<p>The existence of CC has made it possible for very well qualified students and their families to gain a realistic understanding of the admissions process at top colleges and to assess the odds more realistically.</p>
<p>As of 2007, I still found the process pretty mysterious. The CC anecdotal data base has grown since then, so that I now find the outcomes somewhat more predictable (though not perfectly so). </p>
<p>Pre-CC, realistic information about the admissions process was not readily available to people in areas where a small-ish number of students went to top colleges. In our area, the “database” of admissions outcomes was small, and statistical fluctuations were large relative to the total number of applicants. Predictability was non-existent. It is thanks to posts like alumother’s that the CC knowledge base has increased. So the 2005 post–honest surprise, honest concern–was of great benefit to us.</p>
<p>Of course, Berkeley is an excellent school, and Berkeley + a Regents Scholarship would have been a great outcome in itself. On the other hand, for a dancer who qualified for the ABT New York Summer Intensive Program, I am reasonably sure that Princeton was the better match, so I am pleased that it worked out.</p>