<p>When colleges send you mail saying they want to send you a brochure, pamphlet, poster, etc.... what does it mean? Does it mean that there's a good chance you'll be accepted there?</p>
<p>No, they just want you to apply</p>
<p>no its often just based on mailing lists they compile from names sent to them by schools or from collegeboard. youll get tons of them, they usually dont say anything remotely interesting.</p>
<p>Well they don't mean nothing...they mean that you scored in a certain range on the PSAT or SAT/ACT that the school is targeting. That said, it shouldn't tell you anything about yourself or college chances that you don't already know.</p>
<p>Let's say you get some mail from like... Harvard. That's not a good sign then?</p>
<p>Not particularly. They probably send out similar mail to anyone over a certain score. It's called marketing.</p>
<p>shrubber, more mail = more applicants = more rejected = increased selectivity</p>
<p>Look at WUStL as a prime example.</p>
<p>shrubber, reactions like yours are exactly what the colleges want! </p>
<p>For top tier colleges, they know that getting mail out of the blue impresses many kids. They know they'll be thinking "Harvard is writing to me! Maybe I have something they're looking for. It must mean something. I'll apply!" Harvard, of course, is delighted by this. It gives them more kids to look at when they choose their class, raises their selectivity which helps keep them at the top of the lists, and lets not forget that the application fee generously covers the time their employers actually spend handling your app.</p>
<p>As you slide down the prestige ranking, the letters become more seductive. The name alone is not enough to excite keen interest, so they resort to a little of what's called "marketing". They come as close as possible to saying that you've been singled out for the fast track, that the dean or other important person who's name is on the letters is personally interested in YOU, without ever actually saying so. If they create the image in your mind that some admiring teacher at your school tipped them off to you, that they're sitting around the office and the Dean says "Smith here sounds like a great kid! Write him a letter and see if he's interested in our school" then their dreams have come true. Their dreams of what they want you to believe, that is. Look for letters saying "We look forward to receiving your application", "you'd be one of our top applicants for the class of 2012" (and top applicants get in, right?), "we are impressed with your accomplishments to date", and so on.</p>
<p>It's a bit sad how colleges take advantage of kids trusting nature and inexperience dealing with marketing literature to twist things for their own ends. Here's my advice: don't let the glossy brochures that show up in the mail determine what schools you consider and where you apply. Do your own research, figure out what's a fit for you. Then, if you want, call those schools and ask for their viewbook if you haven't received it already. They'll be happy to send you the same flashy stuff as the other schools, making the same promises, and just as gushing that you're even considering them.</p>
<p>There are 2 types of mail: Good colleges trying to get their acceptance rates down and very unselective colleges trying to get people to apply.</p>
<p>At the very least though, go ahead and look through them. You may discover a school you had never heard of. But after that, do your own research and check out other options ( college board, princeton review, petersons) available to you for matching up your scores with schools on a more realistic scale to find out which are reaches and safeties.</p>