We are finally going to do some more tours! Walked Cornell on our own last year, not likely to be in our budget, really liked the campus though. Toured Princeton in the Spring. Going to do an official tour of Pitt next week, and self tour Villanova, Haverford, Bucknell in a few weeks on the way back to school, self tours as it is back to school time and none are offered. Will be applying to Syracuse and St. Lawrence sight unseen. Possibly a few others.
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That’s very helpful info, thank you! Also what a weird thing that she got in with TE to all those places and then waitlisted at Syracuse. However, I think admissions to the Newhouse school of communications at Syracuse is super competitive, so I bet that’s why. Some of their programs are really hard to get into and others aren’t. Luckily my kid’s program (engineering) isn’t. Just goes to show that casting the net wide with TE is a good strategy.
If I’m remembering correctly, Pitt TE is awarded with holistic consideration, which is a contrast to Delaware’s stats-only consideration. I do know it’s hard to get the award at either school. Congrats to your daughter on so many successful apps. Thanks for the helpful boots-on-the-ground feedback.
Oh! She applied to Newhouse at Syracuse?
That has a low acceptance rate—maybe 10-25%?—whereas CAS is much higher.
23 would love to be in Maxwell yet it has a 10-15% acceptance rate. I think 23 would still attend even if they didn’t get into Maxwell.
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After the heads-up from ColdWombat, I found out my school only allows 10 TE applications (per student). We do have CIC-TEP, so we can add a few there (and a few were on my TE list, so I moved them to CIC list), but CIC mostly covers regional colleges and universities, with a few NLACs tossed in. So, we’ve pared down her list a bit, with her current scores in mind.
LOW CHANCE - ACT score not in the 75th percentile, but at/near top of the 50th
- Boston University (her #1 pick, though with a 33 composite that seems highly unlikely)
SOME CHANCE - ACT in the 75th percentile, but barely
- Rollins, Trinity (TX), Eckerd, Skidmore, SLU
DECENT CHANCE - ACT solidly in the 75% percentile
- Augustana, Knox, Hendrix, Syracuse, DePaul, New College Florida, Lake Forest, Stetson, Beloit
As we all know, TE is a great option, but it’s like trying to figure out where to put your limited bet money at a casino (others call it “casting a wide net”). You don’t really know what the real odds are for any given school, you don’t want to waste any of your 10 apps, and you’d like to shoot reasonably high enough to get your kid good options. So, given that I’m operating with a limited number of apps, I pulled some obviously low % ones that have little chance - Fordham and Pitzer for example. I’d pull BU, but D would take me to the woodshed.
Looking back on previous TE awards in the threads, you get a decent idea of what’s what but there’s also a fair amount of score “noise”. I understand that app review is holistic, but just looking at stats, some get the TE at school X with worse stats than another, which just makes it hard to figure out how to rationally construct the list. Also, some schools have other variables to consider - for instance, Eckerd’s 75% ACT begins at a 28, but yet accepts “below 10%”. D is already at 33, but given their location (on a beach) I have Eckerd in the “some chance” list and not the “decent” chance one (even though most of the schools in the “decent” group are ranked higher using standard measurements). Schools in sought out spots are more competitive, obviously.
My rough and ready tool is this: whatever the 75% begins at, if it’s an 11-40% TE admit school, I’m adding 1 ACT point to that before I feel like there’s a reasonable shot. If it’s a below 10% admit, I’m going to the middle of the 75% at minimum before I feel like there’s a shot. So, for example Skidmore starts at 32, is 11-40%, so I’m thinking a 33 score is reasonable to apply. Fordham starts at 33, and is below 10%, so 34/35 to be reasonable (more likely a 35).
Well, we’re still early in the process. I can tell this is going to be a long year! Good luck again to all.
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We have a few similar schools on our lists.
Again, my kids gpa will be a huge negative. 3.3 gpa but 35 ACT.
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That’s smart to lay it out like this.
How do you factor in test optional? TO seems to make test scores of accepted students appear higher when, in reality, more students with lower test scores could be accepted.
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It’s getting real!
Spouse worked on schedule/time management and the essay with 23.
The first essay was tossed and the second essay is half written.
We all hope to knock out a few applications this week before the fall sport starts taking up lots of time.
23 is in 99th percentile for SAT writing but math is low for the desired schools. We are figuring out which schools we can apply to with the lower math score and which should wait until after the test retake.
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It’s hard to know how to factor in the test optionals. It’s clear that whatever the school’s 75th percentile, it’s likely inflated, since only test reporters are being measured for it, and the optionals either didn’t take the test at all or pulled the score because it was less than the 75th %. So, if the school is giving TE to some optionals, then the “real” ACT range is likely lower than what they report, but I’d think the school will just continue to apply the measured rate, regardless. So, as long as the applicant will report the ACT, all that will matter is the official 75th % range.
But maybe I’m overthinking it?
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We have been narrowing the list and now have more from the CIC list as I realized that offers full tuition, and TE isn’t usually.
Kiddo hasn’t started essays. She goes to a boarding school so I am not sure I will even get to read them. I believe her college counselor will read drafts. I can’t believe how many people on this board have already applied to places.
We have two safeties, three targets, three reaches. List isn’t final.
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We have not started essays yet - still narrowing the final list, and she’s retaking the ACT, so we’ll wait on that first. Still a ways off before essays are due - no harm in thinking about them, but I think there’s plenty of time.
On CIC - I’m moving a few from TE to CIC too, but I have no feel for whether CIC is more or less competitive than TE. CIC offers no stats at all. Just says each school has a minimum of three to give out. Any insight on your end?
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No I don’t have insight except that I read on their site that 4 out of 5 applicants receive offers. Going to ask our contact at our school.
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My coworker’s daughter just got a stacked offer at Syracuse (the TE plus an additional $10k or so), so it ended up being her best option and that’s where she’s going)
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Thank you for sharing this.
This is 23’s #1 choice, and she would be thrilled to attend.
My kiddo has a 36 ACT, well known boarding school, spikey EC, 3.9ish (3 AP’s -didn’t take exams as it was Covid 2020 school year-and all available honors classes prior to BS weighted 4.3) BS doesn’t weight and only has a few AP’s. Is a repeat Junior so has TONS of credits.
And I have no idea how to speculate what kind of offers she will get and from where 
…. She is only applying to TE/CIC with the exception of a few Ivies that give good FA.
Great work to your kiddo - those are awesome stats! If my kiddo had those, I’d likely have similar to what you have - some non-TE ivies, and then a third highest ranking TE (the USCs and Pitzers of the world) and a third next level lower TE (BUs and Trinity’s) and then a third of safety schools. Can’t imagine with those stats kiddo you’d not have a high chance at success. The CIC list, as far as I can see, is mostly regional colleges and universities. There are a few exceptions, but not many.
Good luck going forward!
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She wants a not huge school- She wants East Coast. And not too far South, and decent dance.
The list so far:
Syracuse
St. Lawrence
Pitt
Villanova
Bucknell
Maybes:
Haverford (maybe too small- going to drive by when we visit Villanova).
Franklin and Marshall
Princeton (EA)
Harvard?
She is very curious about Columbia for some reason, but we have never been to NYC and I don’t like the idea.
Any other suggestions to look at?
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Is she wanted dance as an extracurricular or dance as a major? And just at CIC/TE schools, or for any school?
If small, take a look at some of the CT NLAC schools - Conn College, and Trinity.
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Not as a major. But wants to be able to join a student ensemble and take a few classes.
We are sticking with TE and CIC.
These are some CIC schools that I’d take a closer look at. I’ll leave it to you to assess the strength of their dance offerings, but some seem to have more extensive dance opportunities and/or are located in a city where there are many dance opportunities.
- Allegheny
- Baldwin Wallace
- Duquesne
- John Carroll
- Lake Forest
- Le Moyne
- Molloy
- Goucher
- Roger Williams
- Saint Anselm
- Seton Hall
- Shenandoah
- U. of New Haven
- Wheaton (MA)
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