This was shared on the Parents of HS Class of 2016 thread, and I thought it deserved a wider audience.
I don’t understand where this idea comes from.
I disagree with him to a large extent. The chances threads I’ve followed do a pretty good job of discussing the factors and emphasis at a particular school. For example the UMich chances discussions do a good job of reminding applicants that they need to recalculate unweighted GPA ( andof Umichs heavy emphasis on that factor) and on the fact that Because of state law URM is not a hook. Just because admission is holistic doesn’t the mean that someone from the " outside" can’t have some insight into likelihood.
Take one part internet cliché (everyone on the internet is some guy living in their mom’s basement) and one part “doesn’t read any threads on CC that doesn’t include his own name”, mix and out comes that insightful understanding of CC’s chance me threads…
Of course, we all know chance me threads as an expression of anxiety, usually posted by a 16 to 17 year old. We also know that parents, as a rule are proud of their children and are not shy about self-identifying as parents.
When it comes to holistic admissions (which is what the Tech guy was talking about), most responses to chance me threads are “stats are good/no good, but who knows with holistic admissions…”. They really are just an expression of hand holding.
Instead of ranting about CC’s chance me threads (which can drive anyone crazy), he should be having someone in GT’s admissions department register as a college rep with CC, and start posting useful information in the GT forum. It’s called “outreach”… I can’t think of a more effective way to reach high performing students (and their parents) than CC.
Yes, countering erroneous posts is to be commended, but the fact remains that much of what is posted is erroneous. The Johns Hopkins admission rep on CC blogged about this a few years ago. .
That’s surprising to read Rick Clark’s comments. It’s pretty easy to flush out the kids posing as parents and vice versa, but rarely is it likely that parents waste one minute in the “chance me” threads. The “chance me” threads are esteemed in the “most annoying threads” thread, and not much of anywhere else. Parents run in the opposite direction!
When I see in a Chance Me thread that someone is telling an 1800 SAT, 3.5 UW GPA, unhooked applicant that he has a “great chance” of being admitted to say Duke, I will chime in to burst that bubble.
And not too man parents write “PLEEEEAAAASEEE Chance me- it’s an EMERGENCY!! I will chance you back!!”
I generally avoid the chance me threads unless -
It is very easy to tell if a candidate is in/out and the “out” kid needs to stop dreaming and get a safety
Other posters give inaccurate information
I can link to information that the candidate has not read on the college website that helps them chance themselves
The kid obviously has no adult guidance on college search and needs to be pointed towards other helpful information
Occasionally just sympathize that there is no way to know until March
One of our state flagships had an admission counselor answer questions on a similar website last year and it helped people immensely to understand how the process worked and that school does very little holistically. It is still confusing to people.
I agree with Gator that he should register and enlighten everyone. The admissions scene has become very uncertain, and that is not just because kids don’t have their facts straight. Holistic admissions are unpredictable by definition. If if were only about scores and GPA, there’d be a much shorter chance me thread.
High school guidance counselors are often loathe to tell a student that their dream school is out of reach or even a reach. They are “destroying their dream” even if it is more a fantasy than a dream. Parents may complain and it can become a mess for the GC.
Some students do not communicate with their parents. One thread here on CC was by a student asking “My father is a professor at X University. Will that help me get admitted?” I advised him to ask his father.
I thought the Director’s comment might be directed towards those Chance Me threads where the student appears to be perfect. These posters remind me of animals marking their territory (i.e. “I’m much better than you, you don’t have a chance, don’t bother applying because I (or my kid) am vastly superior to you.”) Perfect people are a dime a dozen on a “confidential” website but are a rare breed in the wild. 
It’s often very obvious when the students are really students and the students are really parents.
However, the point is still true…the Chance Me threads are silly and are just the means for nervous students to work out their anxieties while waiting for results.
The GT admissions director is correct when he says the “What are my chances” thread is inaccurate for GT. They denied 600 kids with 35 & 36 ACTs and/or 1500-1600 SATs during the EA process which is completely consistent with this statement. They also say that they will no longer publish GPA ranges. Now students who want to go to GT will have even less of an idea of what GT is looking for.
Who here besides 16yos thinks Chance Me threads are really helpful? Especially when one person who can’t seem to assess their ability to get into a school promises to “chance you back.” Oh, brother.
Nothing to see here. Move on.
The chance me threads are a complete waste of time. That is correct. But they are not comprised of parents pretending to be kids. Thats silly.
Of course, that is true for much on the internet, including many long-time blogs. 
“The chance me threads are a complete waste of time”
Maybe it’s one-off but not for my kid. You see after spending time researching on UMichigans website my daughter thought her UW GPA put her in the bottom quarter of the admissions pool. Only after looking at “chance me” threads did we learn that Michigan recalculates GPA ( many respond to those michigan “chance me” threads with information telling the student they need to be recalculating GPA ). Once she realized that the GPA. She’d be credited with at Michigan would put her in the top quarter( that’s what happens to an A- student) she was a lot more interested. The recalculating info takes quite a lot of digging on the UMICH site.
yeah, the chance me back cracks me up. If you can’t evaluate your own “chances” why on earth should you feel qualified to judge someone else’s?
Maya,
The U Michigan thread is a much better source of information than the chance me thread. Here, for instance, they discussed when U Mich stopped and then restarted recalculating GPAs http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-michigan-ann-arbor/1783627-gpa-for-umich.html