Helpful Thread for Those Contemplating SCEA

[silverturtle]

If you're considering applying SCEA to Yale next year, you may be helped out by checking out the analysis I recently conducted of the admissions results from last year.

"Race" in College Admissions FAQ & Discussion 3

Here's the final post of the series, containing an overall impression.

If you’re hookless and want to get accepted SCEA to Yale next year, you are going to need outstanding stats (as well as exceptional subjective elements, but that’s not what this analysis is about). The data indicate that only three of the 32 unhooked applicants had SAT 1 scores below 2310. The lowest score of any white or Asian applicant who was accepted was 2270. Furthermore, none of the unhooked applicants were accepted without having at least a 3.90 unweighted GPA. The majority of those accepted early without a hook had a 4.0 GPA and an SAT 1 score of at least 2350.

If you aren’t hooked and don’t have at least a 2200 on the Subject Tests, a 2250+ on the SAT 1, and a 3.90+ GPA, your early admission application might be better spent on schools that are not as competitive.

I also conducted one on Princeton RD. In case you're interested: "Race" in College Admissions FAQ & Discussion 3

[dirdir]

That's interesting data! Can similar conclusions be drawn from Stanford SCEA? B/c I am suddenly very insecure of my 2280.

[chair2]

would a 3.82 for an unhooked (ORM) be too low, even with an "excuse"? i moved sophomore year and there was a considerable drop in my grades (3 B's, 2 A's in academic classes all that year). however, since then, there has been a significant upward trend with increasing upward course difficulty, and my grades are back to all A's.

and for those who probably lost a lot of home from the post above... there's still hope!!

2013 ACCEPTED SCEA:

ORM with 2260 as highest sitting, post #129: Official Yale 2013 SCEA Results Thread

unhooked white applicant with a 3.8, initially deferred then accepted to HYPS, post #131: Official Yale 2013 SCEA Results Thread

ORM with 1970 (slightly suspicious), post #213: Official Yale 2013 SCEA Results Thread

ORM with 2220 and 3.9, post #219: Official Yale 2013 SCEA Results Thread

---------------

2012 SCEA:

ORM with 3.86, which puts him outside of top 10%: Final Official Early Decisions Thread

ORM with 3.8 and 2280, post #59: OFFICIAL Early Action Decision Thread

ORM with "3.75" (which i believe is a typo; according to past posts he had a 3.81 right before scea apps were due), post #36: OFFICIAL Early Action Decision Thread

---------------

2010 SCEA:

ORM with 3.78 who was initially deferred, then accepted: Official Yale RD Decisions - Class of 2010

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Then for a bit of 2013 RD:

ORM with a 2210, post #96: Official Yale 2013 RD Results Thread

ORM with 2210 and 3.89: Official Yale 2013 RD Results Thread

ORM with self described "TERRIBLE" grades with a 2270, post #44: Official Yale 2013 RD Results Thread

unhooked white with a 3.8 and 2210 (seems to be the lucky SAT number haha), also a stanford SCEA acceptee, post #36: Official Yale 2013 RD Results Thread

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and remember CC is just a tiny microcosm of the entire application process... good luck!
PS don't ask how i have the time to do this.

[silverturtle]

"ORM with 2260 as highest sitting, post #129: Official Yale 2013 SCEA Results Thread"

Yale uses the highest score on each section. The applicant had a 2310 superscored.

I can't say that a 3.83 will get you deferred SCEA. All I can point to is that fact that no ORM was accepted early with a GPA below 3.90.

[silverturtle]

"Can similar conclusions be drawn from Stanford SCEA?"

I haven't done a complete analysis, but from what I know Stanford uses very different policies during SCEA. They reject many more than Yale and defer fewer.

I haven't established any baseline SAT scores for Stanford yet.

[silverturtle]

"ORM with 1970 (slightly suspicious), post #213: Official Yale 2013 SCEA Results Thread"

I didn't include this applicant because he is international.

[silverturtle]

"ORM with 2220 and 3.9, post #219: Official Yale 2013 SCEA Results Thread"

This applicant's ACT score was higher and I equivalenced that to yield the 2270, which was the previously referenced lowest score of an unhooked applicant accepted early.

[ThePerson1]

Lol I'd say I'm on the borderline with a 4.0 UW and 2310 as an ORM. Hopefully I can get those subject tests at least at 2300+. My only slight tip might be that I'm am trying to pursue math, which is less common at Yale.

[silverturtle]

It's important to keep in mind that, even though a 2350+ and 4.0 was most common for early acceptances, that the majority with those stats were deferred. I was attempting to establish a baseline.

Your scores gives you a good shot early, but it then comes down to your ECs (and the other subjective elements) to determine whether you will be accepted.

[MD Mom]

This explains a lot. Thank you silverturtle.

[dirdir]

ugh gotta get my june sat to 2350+.

[kwijiborjt]

Caution! This data is derived from CC. It's a skewed pool. I'm curious how many people with grades above those cutoffs were deferred and rejected.

And i know plenty of undergrads at yale who had grades and scores below 2300 and 4.0.

[silverturtle]

The data are solely for SCEA. Some were deferred and later accepted. This is unlike the Yale undergraduate population, which is made up of both early and regularly admitted students.

The pool is certainly self-selected, but that doesn't mean it is meaningfully skewed. It is intended to establish an approximate baseline and to lead to more informed decisions about whether to apply early.

"I'm curious how many people with grades above those cutoffs were deferred and rejected."

If you continue to the page linked to on post number one, the full data is there. I have sorted out all 148 of the applicants who posted on the original thread and sorted them by race. It does not, however, convey who was accepted after being deferred because many who posted on the SCEA did not follow up.

[applicannot]

Silverturtle,

Statistics and quantitive analysis (is this even what this is?) are really weak for me, so I'm drawing conclusions based on YOUR conclusions. Would you say that SCEA is, as rumored, friendly toward minorities based on what you know statistically and what you have experienced?

[silverturtle]

I'm uncomfortable making any broad conclusions about minorities SCEA given the relatively small sample size for minorities. With that said, half of the sixteen minority applicants who were included in the sample were accepted, which is a much higher rate than that for non-URMs.

See post 695 on this page: "Race" in College Admissions FAQ & Discussion 3