I’ve heard from some people that if you apply out of state from a really small state like North Dakota, it can actually help you in admissions, because it’s not normal and that’s what colleges look for in creating a diverse campus.
Is this true?
For some schools looking to have representation across the board it could be a tip factor.
Yes, it helps at most top private schools.
It’s a small factor. If you’re on the bubble, maybe in and maybe out, it can tip you in. But it’s not going to rescue an otherwise weakly-competitive candidate the way a hook may.
it helps at private colleges, especially top LACs, not because “it’s not normal”, but rather because the state has fewer residents to start with, very few of whom are college-age, and very few try to go to colleges in other states than their own or contiguous states.Top LACs want a national presence. So you have less competition than if you came from new York City or California. So if you were to apply to Grinnell, Hamilton, Scripps, Emory… it’d definitely help you to be from North Dakota or Montana. It’d be a little boost all things being equal at universities/LACs ranked in the top 10-20.