College Discussion - View Single Post - How to improve the chances of chances threads?

Student615 · 01-20-2008, 11:06 AM

I don't reply to too many "Chance Me" threads, but the things that make me more likely to do so are...

- Neatness. Bullet points, sections, and bold headings. It makes the info so much easier to digest. On the flip side, a totally unformatted "laundry list" is usually too daunting to deal with.

- Descriptions. Just because everyone in your school knows what and how great the "XYZ Club" is doesn't mean that we will. If something is particular to your school/state/region, just include a very brief description (i.e. "Service club").

- Discernment re: what you list. Don't go back to elementary school. Don't include all kinds of "almosts" or would've/could've/should've stuff that won't appear in your application or your recommendations ("I was invited to ______ but I decided not to go," or "I would have gotten a B+ instead of a B but I was sick for the second test and even though I talked to the teacher..."). If you think it might be addressed in your application, of course, do note it. The flip side to this is not including enough. Give more than your total SAT and "The usual stuff...some clubs, some service, y'know." NOTE: I slightly disagree with the above post. I say list it if it will appear on your applications, which might mean that it fits in with some other interests, you're heavily involved, it just looks good, it shows another side of you, or whatever, but not necessarily that you're an officer.

- This could be particular to me, but I want a reason behind your post! Very often, chance threads look like they're posted for no other reason than ego-boosts or nerve-calmers (I'm more sympathetic to the latter than the former). But if students are as intelligent as their accomplishments would suggest, I tend to wonder why they can't just take their own numbers, compare them to school medians, and come to their own conclusions. The chance threads that catch my eye are those in which posters recognize this fact and give a bit deeper reason behind their post: "I know I have kind of a weird situation since _______. Part of what I'm wondering is whether anyone has any anecdotal experience with how these schools might react"; "I know that my numbers are all pretty average for these schools and I'm really hoping that my EC's will give me an edge, but I'm not sure which schools will really look past numbers."

Finally, and again, I might just be weird in this...

- Attitude. You're opening yourself up to a lot with these threads. If someone responds negatively or critically, ignore the person, move it to a PM, or try to respond politely. If you're not getting the responses you want, don't get mad at posters and then reveal some "secret weapon" to your application (for some reason, this seems to happen rather often..."You're all wrong and I can't believe you're not even calling me a match. What I forgot to say was that I'm a triple legacy at every school!"). Don't treat people like it's their duty to respond with the answers you want, or even to respond at all. Feel free to bump yourself, but not infinitely. Of course, the flip side to this is that I think some respondents also need to be more conscious of their attitudes and of the fact that there's actually a 17 year old on the other end of the post...

So I guess that those are what I consider the "do's": be neat, be descriptive where necessary, use good judgment, let us know you want more than an ego-boost, and be considerate of other posters. Last but not least, a few random suggestions:

- Please don't post these threads before the end of your junior year. If you do, they should be more along the lines of "Hey, am I heading in the right direction?" threads. It's just not reasonable to say "I'm a sophomore, but assuming I take all AP's for the next two years and get straight A's, and assuming I get 2200+ on my SAT..."

- Please let us know if you're open to suggestions of other schools, activities, suggestions, or whatever. If so, say something brief about what you're looking for. If all you want are chances, that's fine, too.

I really don't mind chance threads when I feel that posters have a purpose and are actually seeking advice. Unfortunately, not too many of them leave me with this impression. Still, I know it's a tough time to go through--lots of stress. Good luck to all

01-20-2008, 11:06 AM	#3
Student615 Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Threads: 7 Posts: 1,672	I don't reply to too many "Chance Me" threads, but the things that make me more likely to do so are... - Neatness. Bullet points, sections, and bold headings. It makes the info so much easier to digest. On the flip side, a totally unformatted "laundry list" is usually too daunting to deal with. - Descriptions. Just because everyone in your school knows what and how great the "XYZ Club" is doesn't mean that we will. If something is particular to your school/state/region, just include a very brief description (i.e. "Service club"). - Discernment re: what you list. Don't go back to elementary school. Don't include all kinds of "almosts" or would've/could've/should've stuff that won't appear in your application or your recommendations ("I was invited to ______ but I decided not to go," or "I would have gotten a B+ instead of a B but I was sick for the second test and even though I talked to the teacher..."). If you think it might be addressed in your application, of course, do note it. The flip side to this is not including enough. Give more than your total SAT and "The usual stuff...some clubs, some service, y'know." NOTE: I slightly disagree with the above post. I say list it if it will appear on your applications, which might mean that it fits in with some other interests, you're heavily involved, it just looks good, it shows another side of you, or whatever, but not necessarily that you're an officer. - This could be particular to me, but I want a reason behind your post! Very often, chance threads look like they're posted for no other reason than ego-boosts or nerve-calmers (I'm more sympathetic to the latter than the former). But if students are as intelligent as their accomplishments would suggest, I tend to wonder why they can't just take their own numbers, compare them to school medians, and come to their own conclusions. The chance threads that catch my eye are those in which posters recognize this fact and give a bit deeper reason behind their post: "I know I have kind of a weird situation since _______. Part of what I'm wondering is whether anyone has any anecdotal experience with how these schools might react"; "I know that my numbers are all pretty average for these schools and I'm really hoping that my EC's will give me an edge, but I'm not sure which schools will really look past numbers." Finally, and again, I might just be weird in this... - Attitude. You're opening yourself up to a lot with these threads. If someone responds negatively or critically, ignore the person, move it to a PM, or try to respond politely. If you're not getting the responses you want, don't get mad at posters and then reveal some "secret weapon" to your application (for some reason, this seems to happen rather often..."You're all wrong and I can't believe you're not even calling me a match. What I forgot to say was that I'm a triple legacy at every school!"). Don't treat people like it's their duty to respond with the answers you want, or even to respond at all. Feel free to bump yourself, but not infinitely. Of course, the flip side to this is that I think some respondents also need to be more conscious of their attitudes and of the fact that there's actually a 17 year old on the other end of the post... So I guess that those are what I consider the "do's": be neat, be descriptive where necessary, use good judgment, let us know you want more than an ego-boost, and be considerate of other posters. Last but not least, a few random suggestions: - Please don't post these threads before the end of your junior year. If you do, they should be more along the lines of "Hey, am I heading in the right direction?" threads. It's just not reasonable to say "I'm a sophomore, but assuming I take all AP's for the next two years and get straight A's, and assuming I get 2200+ on my SAT..." - Please let us know if you're open to suggestions of other schools, activities, suggestions, or whatever. If so, say something brief about what you're looking for. If all you want are chances, that's fine, too. I really don't mind chance threads when I feel that posters have a purpose and are actually seeking advice. Unfortunately, not too many of them leave me with this impression. Still, I know it's a tough time to go through--lots of stress. Good luck to all Last edited by Student615 : 01-20-2008 at 11:24 AM.