BIGGEST COLLEGE-RELATED NEWS OF THE WEEK
BRUTAL REGULAR DECISION NUMBERS
A number of highly selective (or as many of our colleagues are calling them, “highly rejective”) schools released the last of the regular decision admission decisions last night. It was absolutely insane. Check out the latest results from College Kickstart, but don’t forget to keep in mind that these statistics are somewhat misleading as they represent the combination of results from multiple admission plans. In other words, many of these schools are admitting 50%+ of their classes through binding early decision plans with a higher acceptance rate.
Let’s look at Vanderbilt - they had approximately 2,700 ED I applicants; 2,400 ED II applicants; and 41,600 RD applicants for a total of 46,717. As College Kickstart reports, 2,864 students were admitted to the freshman class for an overall acceptance rate of 6%. Totally insane, right? But it gets worse. Of the 2,700 ED I applicants, 24.1% of students were accepted. Of the 2,400 ED II applicants, 10.3% of students were accepted. And for the approximately 41,600 RD applicants? Approximately 1,964 acceptance letters went out. This means that despite the published acceptance rate of 6%, the RD acceptance rate was actually 4.7%. For Vanderbilt - an amazing school, of course, but it’s not Harvard or Yale.
Perhaps even more depressing, Northeastern had an overall acceptance rate of 7% (Northeastern!!!!), Tulane 10%, Boston University 14%, NYU 12%… what is wrong with the world?!
MIT REINSTATES TESTING REQUIREMENT
MIT is the latest school to announce that it will be reinstating its testing requirement for the next admissions cycle. Yet rather than the decision itself, it is the reasoning behind the decision that has been making a lot of waves in the educational consulting community this week. MIT argues that reinstating a testing requirement will allow the admissions process to be more equitable, by giving students who may not have access to advanced coursework or extracurricular programs to demonstrate their readiness for MIT. This is a controversial decision because conventional wisdom has long held that standardized tests perpetuate inequality in the admissions process, as students with access to paid test prep opportunities and advanced curricula typically score better on these exams.
I tend to agree with MIT on this one - after all, you can’t fake a test score (well, as long as you aren’t Rick Singer’s client!!). Even with pricey tutoring, the student has to actually earn the score. On the other hand, when a school is test-optional, the “softer” sides of the admissions process (essays, interview prep, extracurricular depth, recommendation letters, ED strategy) become much more important. Because those are a whole lot easier to manipulate with expert guidance than a test score, students with means can end up with a big advantage in test-optional situations. We will have to see if other schools follow MIT’s lead in bringing back testing requirements for the next admissions cycle.
ANOTHER NEW SET OF RANKINGS
We’ve written before on the blog about the rankings from Academic Influence, and the latest metric that the organization is using to rank colleges is something called Academic Stewardship. Basically, this number calculates how an institution uses its resources - a ratio of how much impact it has to available resources. The result is an interesting list of schools that often do not appear on any well-known rankings: the #1 school for Academic Stewardship is Fisk College, a private HBCU in Nashville.
NBA PROSPECTS BYPASS COLLEGE DESPITE NIL DEALS
A growing number of high school basketball players are choosing to bypass college and the NCAA altogether in pursuit of an NBA career, despite the fact that NCAA athletes can now earn money through the NCAA’s newly approved “name, image, and likeness” deals. These allow players to profit from advertisements, video games, and more, even as they remain amateur players. For many students, these incentives are just too new and untested to justify entering college when they could make salaries as full-time players straight from high school. We will have to see how lucrative these NIL deals become to know whether they will attract top-level players to the NCAA - although we also believe that a college education should be worth something in the calculus, too!
TEENS FACED EMOTIONAL ABUSE DURING PANDEMIC
In a sobering study this week, the CDC announced that the majority of teenagers endured emotional abuse while at home during the COVID-19 pandemic. Additional stressors from home and family life were just one of the potential traumatic triggers for teenagers in the last two years, and potentially a symptom of overstressed caregivers, including parents.
BEST ARTICLES OF THE WEEK
As we talk with students about their summer plans, the idea of doing independent research comes up more and more. This can be a really great way for students to pursue their passions (especially those with a unique interest), gain hands-on experience, and create a final product that looks great on college applications. For more about why it is important to pursue research as a high school student, as well as some ways to get started, we recommend diving into this short article and then checking out our Summer Opportunities Database!
We maintain that the number one way to get a true sense of a school is to take an in-person tour. But the truth is, sometimes even that is not enough! During the pandemic, in-person tours were not an option for many students. Other tours were available, but students couldn’t see inside academic buildings or dorms. Or maybe the tour is great, but you visit campus during a break and don’t get to see any students walking around - it can feel like a ghost town! This article explores some ways to improve campus tours, both in-person and virtual, to make the selection process easier for all students, even those who are not able to visit.
By all accounts, this has been a tough admissions year for many students and families. This article dives into some of the reasons for the change. It is worth a read, though we don’t agree with the tongue-in-cheek tone - this has been a legitimate challenge for many families! If your student did not receive the decision they were hoping for, this article from the L.A. Times provides some strategies parents and family members can use to help students weather their feelings of rejection.
OFFICE HAPPENINGS
We want to share a couple of contest opportunities with you! The Congressional Art Competition, a nationwide art contest sponsored by the House of Representatives, is currently accepting applications. If you are a high schooler in Virginia’s 10th Congressional District, you can read more and apply here.
And for our Class of 2022 students, if your college essay had anything at all to do with money - work, social class, privilege, etc. - consider submitting to the New York Times annual essay contest. The essays will be published in late June, and writers will be paid for their work. We love any opportunity for students to share their amazing essays!
Enjoy the weekend, and try not to stress too much if you received a decision you weren’t happy with. I know, easier said than done - at this time of year I always think about how absolutely crushed I was when I was rejected from my dream school (you can read the whole saga here). Yet as an adult, I am so incredibly grateful for the path my life took instead. This too shall pass!
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