National College Match - 2009-2010 - Page 8

driscol · 07-01-2009, 12:34 PM

Ah, sorry about that. I just read the process overview and thought only the QB app was required since there was no mention of any other apps. Thanks.

Edit: Now that I look back at it, I wasn't exactly wrong. I just wasn't too clear with my posting. I meant the QB app is only required to apply to be selected as a QB Finalist. The supplemental stuff comes after you are selected. But yeah you should prepare all the materials ahead of time.

darling · 07-03-2009, 08:32 PM

GA2012MOM: By updating my info, I wanted to change my essays, I had new ECs etc, and the way I formatted my activities.

again, i am in no way discouraging ppl from NOT using QB. i used the app for RD for one college, didn't use the QB app for another college for personal reasons. I ended up being accepted to both.

good luck!

ExcitedG · 07-08-2009, 11:15 PM

This would be the chance of a lifetime...

vpb9392 · 07-10-2009, 02:13 PM

Hi guys! As a 2008 National College Match recipient to UPenn, I just wanted to let you know that if you have any questions at all, feel free to ask! For those of you wondering about your chances, I have a theory that qualified names are put into a hat and picked at random because I know of countless people who've had spotless stats yet were denied from safety schools and then I know some who were lacking in some areas and managed to weasel their way through hard-to-reach doors.

Just to tell you a bit about myself...
-I started the QuestBridge College Prep Scholarship but never completed it and opted to just apply for National College Match in the fall.
-I ranked 5 schools: UPenn (1), Yale (2), Columbia, Northwestern, and Princeton (5).
And I'll be a Quaker in the fall!

If there was only 1 thing about the QuestBridge process that I could advise about, it would be time. A month and a half is really not a long time to fill out the Qestbridge app so starting essays and getting recs early is a must and furthermore, If one were to become a finalist, PLEASE keep in mind that there is an extremely narrow time frame to submit applications to the ranked colleges in Nov if needed (while most colleges accept the QB app alone, a few require the common app or another app form to be submitted by you). From personal experience, I ranked colleges that required an additional application thus had 10 days to fill out the common app for 3 schools and Columbia's specialized app in addition to an exorbitant amount of fin aid forms on my own; it was a nightmare. But it was worth it.

QuestBridge is an extremely beneficial program that offers a multitude of opportunity and while I don't know if they will add any more partner colleges for 2009, they have some amazing partners already. I feel like I'm rambling but I have plenty more advice to give so if anyone has ANYTHING at all to ask me, please do

GA2012MOM · 07-10-2009, 10:41 PM

Quote:

I have a theory that qualified names are put into a hat and picked at random because I know of countless people who've had spotless stats yet were denied from safety schools and then I know some who were lacking in some areas and managed to weasel their way through hard-to-reach doors.

Please don't say things like that. Adcoms do not randomly admit people at random. They build a class person by person. "Spotless stats" don't mean crap.

4th house · 07-11-2009, 10:34 AM

""Spotless stats" don't mean crap. "

I take some offense to this. Spotless Stats should still be a goal -- perfection or something approaching perfection should be an aspiration, although they are rarely achieved.

As someone who used to work in theatre, I realize now that there are a lot of parallels between that world and the world of admissions. Two actresses audition for the same part. One is clearly the superior actress, but she is short and brunette and the director envisioned a tall blond. The other girl gets the part.

College admissions casts a class. It is not a pure meritocracy by any definition. A few years back, Harvey Mudd sent out a brochure where they bragged about accepting an applicant with clearly sub-par academic achievements, but she was a female interested in engineering (there aren't that many of them), who she was also from an underrepresented state and she happened to be a world-class log-roller. Log-roller! Log-rolling, of course, has nothing to do with academia, nor does Harvey Mudd have a log-rolling team, but they thought she would be an interesting addition to the "campus mix."

Now, as cool as that may sound to some people, how would you like to be the kid sitting next to her in high school class, working far harder than her on academics, getting far better grades, far better scores, simply being far more intelligent, showing far more passion for engineering, but you were not accepted by the same college? Pretty darn ticked off, I would say, and rightly so.

Thus, since no one would ever say, "Oh, log-roller -- that's a guaranteed lock for a top college," it does make many people look at college admissions as more of a crap shoot than a fair and logical process. If you cannot point a student toward a logical path, it demonstrates randomness to the whole process.

GA2012MOM · 07-11-2009, 02:34 PM

4th house, you almost make my point for me. Spotless stats don't mean crap, just as not being what the casting director has in mind. Johnny Depp may be a better actor than say Leonardo DiCaprio, but he wasn't the right person for the part in Titanic. The log-roller may be a much more interesting person (I'm assuming) to bring to the campus instead of yet another violin/piano science/math Asian.

Your value as a member of an admitted class is not whether you have a 33 or a 35 on your ACT. That is negligable. What matters is the rest of what you can bring to the table.

My D, submitted her ACT score, 33. Were there students with a 34,35,36 that got rejected? Of course there were. Her school thought that the other things she brought to the table were more valuable than theirs. She had leadership for several years in the few clubs she was in, was a state finalist for four years in her sport, and is majoring in something that is not common.

Is there really a difference in the student who gets a 33 versus a 35? Yes there is, the rest of the application.

4th house · 07-11-2009, 03:00 PM

Interesting, though, is in the eye of the beholder and is what makes the process so unfairly random. I mean, if I am on a bridge that collapses, it will matter little to me that the engineer who screwed up happens to have been a great log-roller. At that point, give me the engineer who had the 2400 and the 4.0.

flyingllama · 07-11-2009, 03:04 PM

^ yes but log rolling would be a great skill to have if you happen to be found on a collapsing bridge

GA2012MOM · 07-11-2009, 03:31 PM

The engineer that had the 2400 and the 4.0 is not neccesarily the best engineer after 4/6 years of college. Only an indicator of how he/she did as a teenager.

vpb9392 · 07-11-2009, 08:08 PM

GA2012 mom, I didn't mean to offend. My point was that "spotless stats" doesn't give too many people a leg up if 90% of 30,000 applicants has them (I use 90% bc Penn claims that that's the percentage of applicants who are qualified for admission to Penn which leads me to my next point). There has to be some that they narrow down the applicants because on some level, they start blurring together for adcoms. My "names in a hat" theory was only a metaphor meant to demonstrate the fact that there isn't a perfect formula for college acceptances to ivy leagues and furthermore, ivy leagues will accept whoever adds diversity to the student body as long as this person's "formula" adds a sufficient and more importantly, unique dimension to their stockpile . So there. The discussion has come full circle.

4th house · 07-12-2009, 12:50 AM

"The log-roller may be a much more interesting person (I'm assuming) to bring to the campus instead of yet another violin/piano science/math Asian."

I find this statement racist and offensive.

"The engineer that had the 2400 and the 4.0 is not neccesarily the best engineer after 4/6 years of college. Only an indicator of how he/she did as a teenager."

The likelihood, though, is that those who are smart don't suddenly get dumb, and those who are hard-working as teens usually, though obviously not exclusively, continue to work hard and achieve great things. Thus, the 2400 4.0 has a far greater likelihood of becoming the better engineer.

Parents should encourage their children to work hard and achieve the most that they can -- to at least try for "perfect stats" if it is within their power to do so. To me, the opposite of this approach is to either "wish upon a star" or look for an "angle" (log-rolling). Because of the overload of smart, hard-working kids, there has become a randomness (names in a hat) to the process. I believe the only way to combat this is not to fall in love with only one top school, but to accept the randomness and unfairness of the process and apply to many.

BTW ... S is a 2009 QB kid who has "spotless stats", applied to 16 schools, received zero rejections, and will be attending Princeton in the fall, so what I am saying is not coming from a standpoint of bitterness or envy, just a different philosophy.

GA2012MOM · 07-12-2009, 01:10 AM

4th house, sorry that you found my comment racist and offensive. I was speaking in general terms, could have just as easily made a stereotype comment about any other race. My point is that no school wants all one type.

I do know that your son was a QB match recipient. As a mom of a QB match D, I know what a blessing this program is. I have followed your posts, and yes, your son does have VERY impressive stats. I still don't think that it is a definate indicator of being a "better" engineer, doctor, lawyer, etc. than someone else. D has a friend at Princeton who got in with a 32 ACT. I can't remember what your son has, maybe a 35, but that does not indicate to me he will be more successful than D's friend. I guess my point is that once you are in college, you start with a clean slate. Most kids that are at top tier schools are there due to their work ethic. 32, 33, 35, it's all the same once you are in.

Congrats on Princeton BTW. D had it ranked #2 on her QB list, but got into her first choice. They have a kind of crazy schedule for holidays and finals, right? I just remember D's friend being home for Christmas, then going back for finals, then coming back home again. Too much money for plane fares!

Significa · 07-12-2009, 04:03 PM

Hmm, was wondering if anyone had a suggestion to whether I should apply ED to UPenn or go through QB? My stats are definitely on the low side (ACT: 28). In the process of reading through QB atm.

Low income - 20k~ (5 member family - 3 heading to college (including me))

BTW: If I read correctly, if I'm not a finally, I can apply through ED still?

flyingllama · 07-12-2009, 04:11 PM

^ I second that question.

CASE 1: I have 8 schools for college match, rank them, and then forward those same 8 to RD if necessary. Conveniently, most of those 8 would automatically consider me anyway in RD if i'm not matched, thus I am mostly done by November. (very convenient)

CASE 2: I apply to one of those 8, SCEA/ED, on my own, and then use QB for RD on the same 8 schools. I would have to finish apps by December. (not as convenient)

Which would be best? I'm aiming for the hardest ones, and have mediocre stats. (2080, 4.1GPA etc)

Case 1 would be easier for me, but Case 2 might increase my chances?