@CalBearsMom Oh sorry, I didn’t get a 1 on AP Physics, I just didn’t end up taking the test. I meant to say that I took AP Physics 1. Are AP Scores weighted heavily in admissions? Also, my school is set schedule, so although I wanted to take more AP Classes, my school has it set so that everyone is taking the exact same classes, and only AP and honors classes are offered.
I’m shocked that Wellesley didn’t send you a likely under EE. Did you follow up with an AO there in writing?
@Oregon2016 I genuinely didn’t know that I could do that. How would I go about following up with an AO at Wellesley? Should I have my counselor call and ask about it?
Better if it comes from you tonight. Was there something maybe not quite perfect in your essay that you could explain? A recent recognition, milestone, or honor? Even if not just indicating continued interest in consideration by Wellesley might tip the RD decision.
Actually, it’s better if it comes from the counselor. The student should express continued interest, perhaps send an update, and certainly not try to explain “something not quite perfect” in the application (absolutely not! do not draw attention to it, and do not start second-guessing your app after sending it!) while the counselor should ask what elements they were unsure about and what you could do to assuage their fears.
I am confused about your recommendations. Most high level colleges instruct you to have two core academic subject high school teachers write your recommendations, plus your GC does one. If you skipped one of the HS teacher recs, that could be an issue.
I disagree with post #24: OP has already been notified by Wellesley under its unique Early Evaluation plan that she has no better chance of admission in RD as the rest of its RD applicant pool (about 21% based on stats from 2 years ago). The College is in effect warning the OP to second guess her application.
@MurphyBrown No, I applied RD to Northwestern, instead of ED. Does legacy not hold much/any weight in regular decision?
I am sorry to say this, but your grades, test scores and ethnicity are not likely to do you in favors in that weird way that happens with the top colleges in the nation. Take comfort in knowing you are definitiely in at one college at least, and are very likely to get inot some others. That’s better than the kids who post on here every year with stats like yours, except their thread is called “why didn’t I get in anywhere?”
Right now 'keep getting rejected’is an exageration: you got ONE 
plus a match telling you you’re 50/50.
Start talking gap year with your parents to see what they think but don’t assume everything is going to be ‘denied’.
Do update your thread
You have U of A as your safety. Would you be happy to attend there? If not definitely keep the gap year suggestion in the back of your mind.
I think you have a good shot at Wellesley. I am sure thousands of students are feeling exactly the same as you are feeling now.
In your original post, I see a lot of achievement. It seems like what’s drawing you to all of these prestigious schools is the generous financial aid. What I don’t see is uniqueness in anything that would make a school say that “I want that”. It’s not a criticism, it just an impression of what your profile looks like to me. I agree that contacting your admissions officer at Wellesley and expressing your interest would be good.
At some level, it almost seems like bagging a prestigious college is really to gain another achievement.
I mean no disrespect, but I don’t understand why attending UArizona won’t be fine.
Before considering taking a gap year, ask yourself what you want to accomplish in college and ask if there is a solution for Fall of 2016 that would be more appropriate for your goals, if you have any. For example, there are always openings to certain colleges when the list comes of of colleges still accepting spaces.
Good luck.
My son just got rejected from Northwestern, which is my alma mater. My siblings also went there. We are were a Northwestern family, but no more. It’s not just you!
Awww. First of all, hang in there!
I’m just a lowly parent, but had kids accepted/attend at many places you specifically mentioned and a similar range, like CMC (scholarship), Duke (scholarship), Yale, Vanderbilt (scholarship), Stanford, MIT, Harvey Mudd (scholarship), Chapel Hill (scholarship) etc…many with early admission or likely letters.
My first thought was, like, @intparent in post #26, why don’t you have two teacher recs in core areas? I agree if you substituted one out for a rec from a Harvard SSP prof, it was not a good decision. Those two recs are usually required, so I’m hoping the rec from the prof was in addition, not instead of one of the others.
Also, I’m surprised no one mentioned your rank, unless I missed it! 9/50 is 18%. That is rough, even at a solid, well ranked prep school. You say you can’t do anything about the courses you take, but how you do in comparison to everyone else in your school in the same course load is a very big deal. In my experience that is more important than the actual nice looking numbers. Top 3-5% at the very least for the top schools is practically a given, unless you are an athlete. We know a lot of admissions counselors and D '10 worked in at a very selective admissions office all 4 years (at one of the places you mentioned) and they all said at that level the numbers just get you looked at and then what do you have that makes you stand out in the pack? If they have trouble with the numbers, you won’t get that far.
I agree you need to apply early to get the legacy advantage. That is for demonstrated interest in your parent’s alma mater. Also, we heard over and over from admissions it is what you do with what you have, so if your parent is a professor and you have access to the resources of a university as well, they will expect you to be top-notch because you have many advantages. They will assess you in that context.
Also, I think it is very odd that you only have three true academic courses this year. You should have five every year. Philosophy and psych don’t really count and of course, neither does art. Foreign language? AP History of some sort? At least honors civics? Your school really makes everyone take those things senior year? If so, I hope you had someone explain that in the counselor or teacher rec. Even so, you could have taken what you needed at the university or taken stronger academic courses online. My kids had to do both to prove rigor of curriculum, but they also took/did extra things because they wanted to and were following their interests. In the end, those stories and the recommendations that came from those experiences seemed to make a lot of difference in essays and interviews and the whole process in general. It started with curiosity and following their passions.
Not to be harsh, but you can buy your way into Harvard SSP. Very selective, fully funded summer programs stand out, like Telluride, research at MIT, critical language and/or cultural programs, depending on your area of interest. Otherwise you might be just as well off getting a job for the break instead of giving admissions another reason to think you are an advantaged kid. Not that you can’t get something out of a program at Harvard or Stanford, but they are well known as money-makers for their schools. Speaking of, private school and Harvard SSP but you need very strong financial aid? Do your parents not want to pay their EFC? That is a whole different application challenge.
The non-profit and concert pianist looks good but how impressive that really seems depends on how it was presented. Do you have a slew of awards or newspaper coverage? Not that state isn’t nice. Extra recommendations from those involved? A music supplement? Otherwise it could look superficial or like you were padding your resume. We have known kids from educated, well-off families who set their kids up in non-profits for admissions purposes. Again, Asians are considered over-represented in top schools. What keeps you from looking like everyone else? Where do you stand out and how do you document that, because it isn’t readily apparent by the info you gave us. I hope it is more obvious on your actual application.
Our kids always started out with two safeties where they could see themselves and one, at least, had guaranteed merit, like U Alabama which has many special perks like Computer Based Honors. If you don’t want to be in-state, those types of schools are a good place to start. Of course there would be more options for a National Merit finalist. Moving up the list a bit, many like Tulane for possible merit aid. Or U Pitt. Easier to get into back up for Ivy League but not necessarily money? Michigan. Emory. Places like CMC, Vanderbilt, Chicago and Duke are just as difficult as most Ivies to get accepted to-more so than some. That is a mistake many people make. And not all Ivies are tops with financial aid. Cornell comes to mind, but it will match packages at certain tippy-top places like Stanford and Yale. Vanderbilt, for example, is much more generous, and at Vanderbilt (and some other more southern colleges-not Duke!) they would be far more interested in recruiting Asian students.
Even so, don’t give up hope. It only takes one yes! Harvard is still technically possible, but given what we see, honestly not likely. Wellesley, according to them is still possible! So cross your fingers and toes and try to be philosophical about the next couple of weeks. You are obviously a fine student and impressive human being. (I love that you work with special needs kids!) Hopefully you didn’t do everything just for admissions purposes and then developing into who you are is it’s own reward. Arizona is a fine university. If nothing else comes through, go, and make it a good choice. You could still apply for a transfer later (applying lessons learned here), but you may not want to by then. Or there is the gap year option, but it needs to be meaningful and you would need to reapply with a significantly re-vamped application. Either way, best of luck and keep us posted!
I don’t see anything wrong with this student’s senior schedule, assuming they have some kind of proficiency in a foreign language and are just done with those courses (say the highest level of language offered at their school). Honors Philosophy sounds like a perfectly acceptable social studies course for any school on your list, I disagree that top colleges won’t “count” those classes, even art & design – even the very top colleges are not looking for automatons, and you don’t have to take every AP possible to get in. I do agree that your class rank is low for some of the schools on your list. Your ECs seem light (and typical, which isn’t usually helpful) for the top schools on your list.
Year before last my son was rejected from Northwestern, then accepted to Brown, Dartmouth, and some LACs. Like has been mentioned before, it’s all a lottery, and who knows what gets you in or not on a particular day? It’s very random in my opinion. You have great stats and I’m sure you will have some choices. The last few weeks of waiting are the hardest, I know.
I don’t see anything wrong or missing in your stats and raising $30K for any charity is quite an accomplishment. Maybe Northwestern did not take the time to read your high school’s profile. 9 out of 50 is close to the 20th percentile. Am guessing you attend Gilbert Classical Academy. They do not post their school profile on the web and it is not as well known as BASIS Scottsdale. If an admissions officer did not realize that you go to such a strong high school, they might draw the wrong conclusions. Consider having your guidance counselor advocate on your behalf. This might help at a college like Wellesley. Don’t lose hope either, still 2 weeks left in March
Three years ago, my oldest daughter’s good friend, let’s call him F1, applied to 18 schools. He was accepted to THREE. His GC told him in the application period that he didn’t have a good chance at top schools bc he is “Asian, male and good at math”. So despite an impeccable resume, he was rejected at school after school. He and his family were devastated. It was a huge hit to his confidence.
Well, he chose a school, one where he wasn’t even admitted to his major - took a chance he would be!! He attends there now, is an unbelievable success. He is graduating early and will have a masters degree shortly after his peers will have a bachelor. He has internships at a REALLY prestigious company, very well paid. He has office hours and is a TA. He is happy and thriving.
The schools rejections do not measure a person’s capabilities. They just don’t. It is difficult to tell your friends that you didn’t get into prestigious schools in High School, but in a few months it won’t matter at all.
You’re going to have opportunity in life. You can take advantage of your opportunities at any of the schools on your list. UofA will have bright students and opportunities for you if that is where you end up. I don’t know much about UofA, but I’m guessing the reason your family doesn’t want you to go there is bc of the reputation as a party school? Well, I went to a party school, found friends who didn’t party. You can too.
My suggestion is this. Wait and see what your options are. If you are waitlisted to some schools, have your GC call your first choice for you, but then you should intend to attend there. Follow up with them telling them you want to go. But you may have more choices from your list in the end.
My last point, as a mom, I sure hate the stress caused by college admissions these days. You kids have more opportunities than I did, but it is really terrible what the process requires of you. You’re not alone in feeling overwhelmed and depressed by this.
You have a pretty low class rank which falls on the lower of the 20th Percentile.