That’s a much better response , thank you. Every year the “ yield thing” comes up and I do understand that thought process because I went through this with my son 3 years ago when he got rejected from schools he thought he would get accepted to. It was super stressful and I remember feeling frustrated. But I realized through that process that they all end up at the school that is the best fit for them . Good luck to you .
3 Likes
Yes
To all those waitlisting for CS/CE/CSE, you chose well to apply to UCD. It is a great option if/when you get off the waitlist.
2 Likes
It’s been 2 years since I have gone through this process with my 2nd child but wanted to check in to CC given I know a lot of high school seniors this year. For what it’s worth, my D’s experience 2 years ago was excruciating. Her stats were stellar (valedictorian, varsity tennis captain, 6 years in leadership roles including ASG President, Girl Scout Gold award, 6 Presidential Service awards with close to 1000 hours of volunteering…) She had her heart set on UCSD but was waitlisted there along with her other 5 “top” schools. She was admitted to UC Davis and as soon as she went to Aggie Day knew that was her home. Fast forward 2 years and that choice can’t be any more clear. She is thriving as a straight A student, is double majoring in UX Design & Cognitive Science and working on adding a Comp Sci minor! She is also on the board of a UX Design club and added a second coding club where she is working alongside software engineering students to redesign interfaces for a real world client. She has also secured a second internship as a UX Design/Research intern at the Federal Reserve so will be moving to Atlanta for the summer. She has many friends that have done internships at Adobe, Tesla, Microsoft, Nike, Instagram, Paramount, Amazon, Google & Apple. She also has friends at the other “top UCs” that haven’t been as fortunate. As an aside, my S19 with similar stats was shut out of the 5 UCs he applied to so went to ASU, completed a CIS degree in 3 years, graduated Summa Cum Laude and is working as a software engineer for a global consulting company out of LA making well over 6 figures at 22.
So it makes no difference where you study, it’s truly what you do while you are there. I wish you all similar outcomes !
25 Likes
We didn’t know the Stanford outcome when the UC applications were due. He applied to most of the branches plus several of the CSU/Poly’s because he needed an affordable option for next fall. Davis at $14k/year (since he could commute) would’ve beat out a number of the private colleges that were on his RD list at full price
2 Likes
We have a similar problem in Texas with UT Austin…even worse of an issue due to sheer demand and we don’t have a network of great schools like the UC system. So everyone wants to go to UT and it’s becoming almost impossible for top kids to get into STEM or Business.
My DD had her heart set on going to UT—has amazing stats and EC’s, and a 1530 SAT, but got CAP’d (soft reject) for college of natural sciences because she’s not top 6% auto-admit. Her ‘26 brother is currently there, and I’m an alum. She’s gotten into every other school she’s applied to including OOS—Virginia Tech, Wisconsin, and a full ride to Ohio State. But UT said no—we were completely heartbroken.
A kid from her school got into MIT but didn’t get into UT for his major. This happens every year and it’s agonizing. And Texas doesn’t have a good 2nd choice option within the UT system, the only choice is A&M and the rivalry honestly plays a role in kids not wanting that as a backup.
But my DD got into UC Davis and Irvine for Bio/Public Health and we are a bit surprised because we weren’t sure how things would play out since UC is test blind and being OOS. But the OOS cost is insane.
Point being, this all sounds similar to the situation for in-state California students. We would be so happy to have her at UT which is the most economical decision for us. Her and so many of her friends can’t get access to our state flagship school. But she can get into California schools so long as we can pay triple the tuition. It’s infuriating.
1 Like
I would not try to figure this out. You’d drive yourself bonkers!!
Last year, we had admits to MIT and not BU. And a UCB acceptance but not SDSU. Those are just two I remember.
While many things may be considered, I’m not sure you’d find an exact weighting. Everyone wants to know how they could be rejected but it may simply be that Stanford saw something that perhaps UCD didn’t.
Congrats to your student on the Stanford acceptance. Well done.
2 Likes
Asking with 100% sincerity. You’ve shared that your son attends a private boarding school with less than 400 students. Was he looking to live at home and go to a college with over 40K students?
1 Like
Again. Asking if you will let son turn down Stanford for Davis?
1 Like
(And if said thread involves the racial grievances at which this poster is dogwhistling, it needs to go in the forum where that sort of discussion is contained. Although giving it a rest and being happy with their kid’s good outcome would be preferable.)
7 Likes
I don’t know the OP’s circumstances, but there are VERY valid reasons to do this, not the least of which would be finances.
My son turned down Stanford to stay at Cal Poly for his MS. It would have cost him a BUNCH more money and time and it wasn’t a thesis based program. I certainly didn’t hurt him. He’s been on two elite teams since graduating.
For those claiming yield protection, it’s not that. Too many very high stats students get in, and the yields at the publics are too low. It’s more about “holistic” admissions, which make the process a bit more random looking from the outside.
12 Likes
UC Davis has the #1 veterinarian school in the country. So, there’s a very good reason to attend UC Davis Animal Science UG in order to get a place in their vet school class.
I’m sure there may be other examples. Not everyone does CS.
8 Likes
6 Likes
Or my daughter…Regent’s scholar at UC Berkeley, waitlisted at Santa Clara. Sometimes schools are just looking for different things. As they have a right to do. And the reason it can’t be repeated enough: apply broadly.
12 Likes
I used to feel the same way as both of you, that SATs normalized for differences between more rigorous and less rigorous high schools
BUT
I have come to realize that universities should know the product of each high school by now because they receive 10-100 thousand “data points” each year in the form of a college app and they have the computing analytics and brain power at their fingertips to devise a computer model that can predict success on their campus for each and every major using multiple input factors like gpa, school of origin, EC, service, leadership, engagement, etc. While I don’t know they do this for a fact, what is certain is that they have the capability and access to the historical data that can make models that are far better predictors than SATs/ACTs. Big data and computational analytics have been used for far more complex tasks, so why not this? SATs and ACTS were just surrogate predictors, but correlating application parameters to real campus success is really what admissions is after. They have been amassing the big data for years AND now they have the power to analyze it; surrogate predictors are no longer needed. At least that’s what I tell myself as I watch the 3rd and last of my kids go through this roller coaster ride that is the UC admissions season.
2 Likes
Oh, you poked the hornet’s nest.
The way I view this, it’s a game. There are rules, written and unwritten. Learn the rule and play the game. If you want to go a a particular school, learn the rules and optimize the game plan. From what I have seen last year, old school data becomes unreliable especially for the past 4 years.
No SAT doesn’t mean you get a free pass. It means, you now have time to do something else.
But to stay on point, it’s super early in the cycle and from what Gumbymom posted, a lot of people get in off the waitlist. OTOH, LA, B, SB, SD are still waiting to release decisions. Unless Davis is the only UC people applied to, I suspect much of the frustration will be moot in 2 weeks.
Stay positive.
1 Like
Lol. You think UC Davis has stronger CS/CE/CSE program than MIT, Stanford, CMU, Cal or UIUC?
UC Davis is just a safty school for some applicants, but it could be the dream school for someone else.
Looking at OP’s old posts, it looks like her son has aspiration / intersts in stem cell research. For that, if cost is a consideration, UC Berkeley with its affiliation to UCSF is where I would send my kid to, if that’s that path they want. Hope her kid gets in and this is all moot for her.
The only UC safety school for these majors is UC Merced. Admit rates for CS/CE/CSE are less than 20% at UCD. All are considered Selective majors.
3 Likes