Will I be disadvantaged (for admissions) if I live in Nevada?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Stanford University
1

Nevada is consistently ranked as one of the worst states for education. Will I be disadvantaged by this? I have a pretty good ACT score and Stanford is my dream school.

2

Not to sure how Stanford admissions work but I think your state doesn’t matter (please someone correct me if I’m wrong!) as long as you craft an impressive application. I actually kind of think that if you have pretty great test scores considering “Nevada is consistently ranked as one of the worst states for education”, then that shows you’re a potential student! Great students don’t just reside on one state you know:) So as long as you had a strong app, i don’t see why you’d have a disadvantage.

3

Thanks @beloved18 for the answer… I got a 34 on the ACT btw, if that helps

4

I was told coming from a less common state is an advantage if you are a good candidate (vs coming from Nor or So Cal or other states with lots of opportunities for students).

5

I don’t think you can generalize about an entire state. In California there are some of the best prep schools and some of the least performing high schools. This is one reason why IMO test scores have a place in college admissions criteria. Also I think the admissions officers have their own benchmark data for every high school in the states so the specific high school is of more importance than a statewide average.

6

True. Which is why there are regional admissions officers/readers. Because they know the ins and outs of their region.

7

Because you have Excellent scores and excellent students from Nevada are rare, it’ll actually help you. But remember that even like that, 95%applicants are turned down by Stanford. Run the NPC and look into the Claremonts (Scripps, Pomona), Whitman, Reed, Lewis and Clark, UPugetSound, for instance.
the Fiske guide has good descriptions for all of them.

8

Thanks for the answers!

@googledrone a person at my school last year got into Stanford with a 33. Most other students at my school go to a state school and very few go out of state per class (from what I’m told). Also, I don’t attend a private school or a public magnet school.