What makes a match?

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Hi guys,</p>

<p>I hear all the time on here about how important it is to have a safety. I hear about how you shouldn't apply to too many reaches. What I don't see a lot of is guidance about what makes a school a match.</p>

<p>For instance, a school where your test scores are in the top 25% would be a safety according to this forum. In the same vein, a school where your test scores are around the 75% or where the admissions rate is under 30% is said to be a reach.</p>

<p>That leaves me in an interesting position with my state flagship. I live in NC and I want to go to UNC Chapel Hill. My SAT scores are a little over the 25th percentile at Chapel Hill. However, acceptance is low. Is UNC a match then? Or does the low acceptance make it a reach even for an in state student with high SATs.</p>

<p>I don't know what to make of it guys, I hope that you can help me out.</p>

<p>Thanks.</p>

2

<p>[Match</a> School - Glossary Definition of Match School for College Admissions](<a href=“http://collegeapps.about.com/od/glossaryofkeyterms/g/match_school.htm]Match”>Learn What a Match School Is in College Admissions)</p>

3

<p>It wouldo be a reach I’d either GPA or scores are at the 25th percentile. Most of those blow the 25th percentile will be athletes and the otherwise connected.</p>

4

<p>From Match school glassary above:</p>

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</p>

<p>Too often we see kids posting on CC that they are surprised that they were rejected with 2380 SATs and a 4.0 GPA with good ECs. Unless you are a recruited athlete by that school for your particular sport, the top 15-20 USNWR schools are not matches for anyone and it is a bad idea to apply to 10 of them without a good safety figuring you’ll get into at least one.</p>

5

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<p>I mispoke, my scores are over the top 25%. </p>

<p>Thanks everyone else too. </p>

<p>Sent from my ADR6300 using CC</p>

6

<p>Consider affordability as well as selectivity in identifying “match” schools.
The following are need-blind, full-need colleges that are selective, but not among the 40 or so most selective:</p>

<p>Brandeis
Hamilton
Vassar
U Michigan
Boston College
Barnard
UVa
Grinnell<br>
U Rochester
Wake Forest
Bates
College of the Holy Cross
Trinity (CT)
University of Richmond
Beloit College
Lawrence University
Knox College</p>

<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-search-selection/687793-selectivity-ranking-national-us-lacs-combined-usnews-method.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-search-selection/687793-selectivity-ranking-national-us-lacs-combined-usnews-method.html&lt;/a&gt;
[Need-blind</a> admission - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Need-blind_admission]Need-blind”>Need-blind admission - Wikipedia)</p>