Schools all over the country do this based on the historic data they collect.
Iâm going to be honest, I was surprised that she didnât get into honors. though sheâs I guess a 'high-stats kid" (if a 1520/4.0 non weighed classifies her as such) itâs actually her non-stats that makes her a great fit for honors⊠not really sure what else she could have that they are looking for, but we have learned to just laugh at the randomness of the decisions been made.
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I think itâs pretty clear that VT has a formula for the type of student they look for, and GPA/test scores are just two of a variety of factors that they consider. There are plenty of colleges that judge based solely on academic achievements, for those who want their kids to be considered based on those metrics only. I think this formula extends to merit scholarships and the honors program as well - so itâs not just the 1500âs ++ getting those awards.
There was a similar sentiment last year, by high stat parents whose kids were waitlisted (as ShenVal pointed out). I was reluctant to post my daughterâs stats because she was OOS (lots of shade thrown at OOS kids who were accepted) and although she was certainly on the upper end of what VT looks for, she was not 1500+.
My daughter applied to honors at several of the schools where she was on the higher side of the average applicant and didnât get in any of those honors programs - it wasnât a deal-breaker.
If it had been, then I would say that those schools werenât the right fit for her in the first place. Most colleges will let you reapply after fall semester freshman year, when thereâs only a minimum gpa requirement, so theyâre only missing one semester. If you read the honors college comments on the VT FB page, Iâd say roughly 50% of students end up dropping the honors because they donât see an added value to their particular course of study and would rather pursue multiple degrees than deal with the extra work of honors classes.
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In 2021-22 (from the Common Data Set), it looks like the acceptance was 88.7% females accepted and 53.3% males were accepted.
14592 were waitlisted
9176 accepted place on waitlist
3292 were admitted from waitlist
Wonder how close it is this year? At least itâs not Purdue waitlist stats.
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I think a better explanation, is that they do a holistic approach, or maybe it is as simple as a high stat kid writing a poor essay. Maybe VT, for whatever reason, doesnât feel the student will be a good match, but because of their stats, they waitlisted them. VT tends to admit from geographical areas and by major. It is much harder to get accepted at VT from NOVA, than it is from SWVA. But⊠seriously how bad would the diversity be, if colleges just admitted all the same kids. OR Maybe there were 5 spots in a popular major and 30 high stat kids applied? Some will be rejected, it is basic math. Think of it as a puzzle, each student being a puzzle piece within the community the college wants to create. Everyone cannot be a cornerpiece. Never feel you childâs accomplishment was diminished because someone thinks their child was better deserving (that in itself could be a reason they were rejected).
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Every year since I first glanced at the results threads back in 2017. Frankly I wish CC would forbid posting stats since they donât provide any real insight as to what future applicants might expect.
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My D too.
4.6 weighted GPA
33 ACT
Lots of APs
Robotics, band, dance, volunteer hours
âŠ
Accepted for General Engineering with an interest of Computer Science with honors college and 5k merit (instate)
GPA: 4.5W/4.0UW
Rank: 2/roughly 220
Course Rigor: 16 courses weighted at 5.0 (including 9 APs and 4 dual enrollment)
ACT: 35 SS (35 all sections)
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The formula includes things like gender, race, how much $ you have and where you live. It is not always based on EC etc. Using âholistic reviewâ standards allows US colleges & unis not to be as transparent as a lot of people would like. The bottom line is that it is not always that some other student was more deserving or that much of a better prospect than the student that wasnât chosen. It depends on a little bit of luck and a lot of factors that an applicant canât control.
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I agree with this. As much as I would love to believe that an AO is spending time on each application and getting a nuanced view of every student and contemplating their âfitâ at the university, I would guess there are some formulas at work here in evaluating 45,000 applications, and part of it is the finances, as colleges are businesses. Our personal experience has been that D has received acceptances to several comparable OOS schools. As a full pay OOS student, this isnât surprising to me. We help finance the university and support their goals to have students from a broad geographical area. Unpopular opinion, but VT seems less âholisticâ than other schools based on their own admission criteria as presented at a student visit (no common app essay consideredââWe wonât read it.â, 125 word short answer prompts instead), no letters of recommendation considered, no consideration of demonstration interest, etc. This is not to diminish those accepted-Congrats to all and well deserved, but there are probably many waitlisted or rejected students that would do well also.
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Except for ED - the ultimate in demonstrated interest.
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Iâm very relieved I am the one reading this and not my daughter. Sheâs OOS and accepted, and she is thrilled to visit. I choose to believe that as a state robotics champion, first chair trumpet, drum line captain, varsity goalie all in addition to her APs and above average ACT, EARNED her a spot. But on here, youâd think our ability to pay got her in. Geez. She might not have the highest GPA and ACT, but she did all of these things concurrently and managed to also be a kind human who is outgoing and affable. At a certain point, admissions counselors can see promise and potential and competency. You donât have to have a perfect GPA to be successful; many other factors are at play. Who knows what anyone looks for anymore, with so many competitive stats. She was deferred OOS early on to what surely was a safety for her. It happens. We moved on. Numbers are nuts.
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Thatâs not at all what I am saying. I am certain the admitted students are exceeding well-qualified. Iâm delighted for your D and glad she is excited.
My D is in the EXACT SAME situation at other OOS schools, if you read my post. Sheâs admitted and likely to attend one of these schools. She understands that admissions is a bit of a roll of the dice and every acceptance or rejection should not modify her feelings of self-worth.
My point was to try to get some to realize that there are many factors at play including âfitâ and other altruistic factors, but also the purely practical ones like money and geographic breadth. We will have to disagree if you donât think those factors are also taken into consideration. Again, huge congrats to your D and all the others who are celebrating!
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Agree! We are from NJ & all of S22 rejections, waitlist & deferrals are from southern schools except accepted to NC State & UMD (which really isnât south lol) He initially really wanted to go south but that has changed! Waitlisted at VT which was high on his list but he already has other great options thankfully.
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Itâs quite an accomplishment to get into both NC State & UMD from out of state - congratulations to your son!
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Wow, those are lovely acceptances! Congrats to him on NC State and UMD.
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Agree on geographic breadth for certain. Iâm sure full pay is enticing for any school; however, those full pay should be qualified to attend and do well, otherwise schools like VT do themselves no favor if they accept weighted heavily upon that particular criterion. Quality metrics would ultimately reflect such in outcomes.
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I might be missing something since itâs been years since our recent VT grads application process - is there somewhere on the app or portal where an applicant states their financial condition? I guess Iâm confused as to where admissions would access data that would determine if an applicant is full-pay or not?
Of course your daughter earned her spot. And there are also plenty of other kids equally deserving, but unfortunately not enough spots for all of them. Once a certain acceptance threshold is met they use holistic factors to choose which among the qualified makes it.
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Full pay is OOS and international students