What's going on with the College Admission this year?

[menloparkmom]

^^"And yes, this is the reason for some of the U.C. campuses being near 50% Asian in freshman composition." And think about this- Asians do not make up anywhere near 30% of the population of Calif, yet they make up the majority of admissions at the top UC's. So how do you think that makes the families of non Asians feel, especially after their children were rejected by UCB, UCLA, UCSD, etc...when they have been supporting the UC system through Calif state taxes for 20+ years? Nothing is "fair" these days, when there are too many qualified students chasing after admisson at the same schools. "Admissions frenzy" is unfortunately the perfect description for the current situation.

[epiphany]

^^ and with the residency requirement for U.C. eligibility being so minimal now -- vs. what it used to be. (i.e. -- "when they have been supporting the UC system through Calif state taxes for 20+ years?")

In sum, "What's going on" is unpredictability, for the vast majority even of the very high-achieving students. That is why diversifying a list to include different geographies, different levels, different types/specialties/emphases in a college, and publics as well as many privates, is so important.

We should all develop -- & advise for -- Worst Case Scenarios. What are we prepared to do if no acceptances result? Naturally one way to avoid that is to choose the most acceptable college that has an EA option or a rolling admissions school. What this requires is starting the search earlier than historically has been necessary. First doing a lot of distant research, then combining perhaps family trips with a look-see at a possible EA or rolling admissions choice after that research. Not the obvious or local safeties, but the hidden ones. ("The Hidden Ivies," "Beyond the Ivy League" -- both good books -- & additional products of individual family research.)

And I will say this again: For no category is this as important as for the category of the middle-class (or above) student who lacks significant economic or personal challenges. Sometimes even the flagship public will admit challenged students if they are also high-achievers, as against students from that class whose life has been easier. This is apart from race or ethnicity, just economics & personal challenges.

Finally, the essay can no longer be laughed off. More than ever this year, essays have been significant factors in decision making -- judging by not just posts on CC, but at my D's school, at schools I am involved with in my area, where I know admissions results & know the student's profiles in detail (including having reviewed their essays). It's the content & tone that are looked at (assuming the mechanics are basically solid).

[archermom]

PDad,
You've been given some great insights into the college admissions process...it can be random. We are also an Asian family, and I agree that depending on the region/locale of the college, the number of highly qualified Asian students is abundant. As other posters have stated, the strategy is to include a mix of both matches and safeties in one's list of colleges. Matches would exclude the Ivies, Stanford, MIT, an Caltech.

I would encourage S2 to enroll in classes and participate in EC's that are meaningful to him...versus doing it with the expectation of a "desired result." If we have learned anything from the admissions process, it's that the field is definitely not level. But, to even be on the field to compete, our children have to "do the best they can." With their "personal best," a good mix of schools, and some luck, there will definitely be some options.

[nngmm]

puzzled,
sorry that your son had such a bad luck this year. It could be that there was some flaw in his application (not enough personality shown in his essays? recommendations from teachers that did not know him well enough as a person?), but more likely, the problem was some bad luck, and lack of match schools on his list.

As some posters mentioned above, there are some extraordinary schools that are actively trying to recruit Asians. Among them are top LACs (Swarthmore, Carlton) where quality of education is on par with Ivies, if not better.

Which school is your son going to attend next year?

[icy9ff8]

I agree with post #13. Elite schools--both colleges & universities--seek genuine passion in their applicants and they seek genuine applicants. Tone--the applicant's voice--of the essay is also very important as any sense of entitlement to admission is as insulting to an admissions committee as if the applicant wrote "this is my back-up safety school" on the application. Perhaps it would be worthwhile to hire an experienced educational consultant in your area to review your son's applications for an independent critique.

[standrews]

Are there any game theorists out there? College admissions sure seems like a suitable subject to explore. It appears to me that so many people are relying upon the same information (USNWR, college board, etc) and coming up with similar strategies that they are all end up trying to seize the same opportunities and there ends up being plenty of disappointment. One of the strategies many have adopted is to apply to more schools, especially for those desiring to go to a tier 1 institution. Another is that at less-selective, good schools, large numbers of students spot the same opportunity and these schools see applications increase 20% or more in a single year. Hidden gems don't stay hidden long, and with high school graduates increasing match schools quickly turn into reaches and safeties become unsafe. Having seen one child (almost) through the college admissions game, I will be rethinking strategies for my younger children. What I see next is the acceleration of the trend toward increased applications to schools with superior financial aid. The weak economy will get better but it will make an impression on this year's HS juniors (and their parents) and play a big part in where they apply. Schools like Davidson, which eliminated loans from their FinAid packages will be swamped with applications. Second-tier schools FinAid that meets 100% of need will likewise see big jumps.

[standrews]

Dear Original poster,

What a wonderful hardworking son you have! If the guidance counselor saw nothing wrong with your son's application, then likely there was nothing wrong with your son or his application, it was just the (bad) luck of the draw in a year where there are so many applicants. He did nothing wrong, you did nothing wrong.
Please do not feel that his hard work and dedication was not worth it. It most definitely is worth it. I believe that all the preparation your child has done will be rewarded, but in a way different than you hoped. Your son will be better prepared for school, and better prepared for a job, and better prepared for life. So many parents would envy you for such a child as you have.
Please tell the younger siblings to emulate their brother.
Please tell your beautiful child to go to this safety school, continue working hard as he has been doing, and then go to a kicka$$ graduate school.
God bless you and your wonderful family.

Mrs. Standrews

[epiphany]

Re Post 21:

Financial aid would certainly be one of the attraction-features from the point of view of the schools' offerings. But I think just in general there are other vacuums to explore. Overall, the smart colleges, large or small, famous or not, correctly see the market as sellers/sellers: The students have and are a commodity, as much as the colleges. With the overflow of qualified candidates turned away due to scarce supply at the top end, these students having spent years preparing and even polishing themselves, need somewhere to go. We've had discussions about this on CC in the past -- how this has created new sub-tiers among elevated academia. It's why many recent safeties have become virtual reaches. There's only one reason: an expanded quality student market.

This is about trade, and even colleges without huge endowments can attract high quality students with special academic programs, honors tracks, coop formats (a la Canada), and many other options. On the student & family side, it will take more research to see what colleges already offer unique benefits, and then to present themselves to the college as assets for those purposes.

[krug]

puzzledad, did your S only have top tier schools and 1 safety? What was his safety (state school, top 30 like Case or Carnegie Melon)

[reasonabledad]

Puzzledad ~ We're not asian, but the same thing happened to my son a few years back. There is no certainty in college admissions...it is very random. And it is hard to really understand just how many superb candidates there are for so few slots at the top schools.

Your second child should follow the pattern set by the first, if that's his preferred path, and not let this outcome from child number 1 affect his strategy.

[je_ne_sais_quoi]

I'm going out a limb here, but if the "top" college campuses are 100% Asian because their grades and scores warrant admission, I'm all for it.

The way college admissions works now is impossible to understand, and has parents and kids scrambling this way and that. The rules keep changing. For example, regarding ecs, "doing what you love" fell out of favor a few years ago in favor of "be well-rounded". Now it's back to the former. Parents and kids are really trying to understand what colleges want. That only makes sense. What else can we do, especially when it is our first child who is going through this process? We might not want to follow a formula, but it feels terrifying to do otherwise! If you have a very bright, talented child who wants a particular type of college education, it only stands to reason they and their parents would try to figure out a way to bring that about!

Most of the time, logic and effort do bring "desired results". Now those factors seem to account for less and less of the decisions made by college admissions officers. There does seem to be a true disconnect between what one would logically conclude SHOULD MATTER when it comes to college admissions, and what actually does.

My daughter was encouraged to follow guidelines set forth by her HS GC as a freshman. She stayed the course, even when it meant taking much harder classes she did not like as well, or not dropping a foreign language sequence senior year in favor of a new language. ONE TIME she insisted on letting an activity go (varsity sports). We are now told continuing with that sport could have meant admission at one or maybe two of the colleges to which she was waitlisted. What is a parent to do?! Especially with a good, compliant child who knew she was no college admissions expert, trying to follow the advice of those who should know better?

I feel for you, puzzledad. The knowledge your son has gained and habits he has developed will serve him well in the long run. I hope he will make the most of his college experience, and he knows you are proud of him.

FYI: When efforts don't bring "results" a phenomenon called learned helplessness often occurs, leading to depression. It is truly better for your child to reframe this experience in his mind. He did not have control over the outcome, so he cannot feel he is to blame.

As for your second son? I wish I knew. For now, I am allowing my next child to take whatever classes she wants (satisfying graduation requirements, of course) and enjoy doing whatever she pleases. Let the chips fall where they may.

[hawkette]

I come at this from a little bit different angle. If we have learned anything in the last few years, it is that there are a TON of statistically great students coming out of high school. As a result, students that previously relied on only an academic record and were rewarded with admissions are now being outflanked by students with equal or similar levels of classroom/standardized test achievement, but who can also bring more to the college's campuses.

Colleges like to have smart students, but they like even more to have smart students who will contribute to a college's campus during their undergraduate years (and also have the orientation to contribute as alumni). If a student does not have a record of contributing to his/her high school environment or local environment, then this student will almost surely be at a deficit to an equally talented student who also brings this to the table. This contribution will be seen in the ECs that a student has participated in and in the recommendations (and perhaps the essays). For acceptance to the most elite universities, I think that having such examples are now absolutely vital.

[epiphany]

"I'm going out a limb here, but if the "top" college campuses are 100% Asian because their grades and scores warrant admission, I'm all for it."

Key (misapplied) word: "because." This is where your premise is faulty. As I have posted elsewhere, colleges see academic value, not just "student life" value, to the quality & span of extracurriculars. They are indications of independent motivation that does not necessarily hinge on the more immediate gratification or validation of an A or a score -- although granted, some e.c.'s are accompanied by awards. They are indicators of persistence in excellence, of discipline, & even creativity: there are direct academic payoffs to all of these.

OTOH, the pure scholar (with fewer e.c.'s) is still highly valued by many institutions of higher learning; it's just that the judgment of scholarship is not necessarily confined to quantitative elements in the conventional sense. You can find examples of this on many postings on results threads on CC over the last several years. It's true not just for obscure or angular colleges; it's true for the "biggies," the Ivies, too.

If there's one thing that keeps getting reinforced over & over on CC recently (and from recent personal observations in my region), it's just how bad the advice is from many GC's at many public schools.

[Sawdust]

Putting aside for the moment, the interesting and important question of whether Asians are being discriminated against, the overwhelming anecdotal evidence indicates that there was an unprecedented admissions blood bath that affected all races and ethnicities this year.

It does not appear, however, that this year's high school cohort was THAT MUCH BIGGER than the surrounding years, or that common admissions applications were THAT MUCH EASIER this year than last year or the year before, to explain why this year was SO much different.

I would speculate that the gradual growth in world income over the past few years, coupled with the large and recent drop in the dollar, reached critical mass this year, making American colleges uniquely affordable to foreigners, which resulted in disproportionately large increases in international applications. Indeed, higher education may be one of the few domestic industries we have, that can kick ass in the world economy!

[je_ne_sais_quoi]

Is it possible that acceptance rates are lower and waitlists are longer this year even though there are not that many more applicants, but those applicants are applying to more schools than ever before?