“She just has doubts about whether she should shoot for a few more high-prestige places (maybe like a Case Western, Rochester, Colgate…). It’s natural for a kid to want to feel like his or her hard work has been rewarded.”
I don’t think Case, Rochester, or Colgate have more prestige than BU or Lehigh. If she might actually want to go to Case, Rochester, or Colgate, go ahead and apply. But she shouldn’t apply just for the purpose of hanging a few more acceptance pelts on the wall.
Considering admittance rate only, how about University of Wisconsin-Madison as a match and Northwestern as another reach? UW-Madison is very strong in the sciences; its chemistry and biochemistry departments are very well respected in the science community; both are on par with those at Michigan and Northwestern.
My son applied to quite a few schools last year and he viewed the process as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to apply as a freshman; he wanted that aim-high experience and was well aware that it came with rejections. To me, a rejection is easier to accept than an afterthought of what-if.
This is CC, where you never get to decide when people are done commenting, lol! More perspectives often help others who are reading.
I agree with others that Lehigh and BU are definitely at least as prestigious as Colgate, CWRU and UR. I would argue that U Rochester should be MORE prestigious than it is. I would also argue that Lehigh and Colgate are probably more prestigious than the others of the ones mentioned here. I would consider BU to be marginally more prestigious than CWRU and UR, but not quite as prestigious as Lehigh and Colgate, which I would consider equals in prestige. But all of these schools are great.
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Considering admittance rate only, how about University of Wisconsin-Madison as a match and Northwestern as another reach? UW-Madison is very strong in the sciences; its chemistry and biochemistry departments are very well respected in the science community; both are on par with those at Michigan and Northwestern.
She did apply to Wisconsin as a match school, thanks.
She doesn’t think she would have a good shot at Northwestern (prob correct) and isn’t interested in it.
Based on your responses, if she doesn’t get into Emory or Michigan and ends up at BU or Lehigh, I do not think she will have any “what-if” regrets.
I’m still not entirely clear on the reason shooting for “high prestige places” is desired. You mentioned wanting to feel like his/her hard work is rewarded, so maybe the idea is that the primary purpose of working hard during HS is to be accepted to a prestigious college. And if you choose to attend a less prestigious college that you could have been accepted to with less hard work during HS, then the extra hard beyond the minimum required to be accepted is not rewarded?
I’d suggest focusing more on aspects of college beyond prestige. For example, things like what colleges do you think will be the best help towards her long term career and life goals? At which colleges will she be most content? Which colleges offer classes/majors/… that most interest her? Which colleges offer special non-academic ECs or other activities that interest her, suggesting as being able to continue playing her sport? Which colleges are in a preferred location, including near where prefer to live after graduation? Which colleges are more/less affordable? The best match to such questions might be a “high prestige place” or might be middle/low prestige place.
Which of the listed colleges is more/less prestigious depends on whose definition of prestige you are using. Many academic quality type rankings would put Michigan well ahead of the rest as a whole and rank smaller LACs like Colgate far lower. However, if prestigious includes more of a non-public wealthy/exclusive club vibe, then Colgate might meet that definition better, with one of the ~3 wealthiest student bodies in the country (https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/projects/college-mobility/colgate-university ). If prestige better correlates with most selective on average, then Emory might be a small step above the rest. Emory also tops the scientific forum Prestigiosity Ratings (see http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/1457519-is-it-time-to-revise-the-prestigiosity-ratings-the-original-p1.html ). Among employers, it varies greatly by field. In my field (engineering), I’d expect employers to be most impressed with Michigan or in some locations Lehigh, but would overwhelmingly focus on other criteria besides college name.
In my opinion, BU and Lehigh are excellent colleges that many would feel proud to attend and by many measures are as prestigious as various others on the list. If I had acceptances to all the colleges on your list when I was a HS student, I would have picked Lehigh without hesitation.
Joe,
What would be your daughter’s next choices if her top four choices (Emory and MI, BU and Lehigh) all denied her? She has great stats hopefully will get into one of those, but there is the possibility that all four say no. Has she carefully considered a list of 3-5 more schools that she won’t hate or feel “forced” to attend?
I see you said Wisconsin was one. Any others?
Your daughter already is reaching a bit…she doesn’t need more reaches. She has plenty.
I would have encouraged her to apply ED to Lehigh or BU (if BU has ED) since those are her top choices and they appear to be affordable. If I understand correctly, she applied ED to a school that is not one of her top choices… but she views it as being more prestigious.
This conversation should have taken place before she EDd to Emory, because if she gets in she has to attend. If she doesn’t get in, hopefully she showed enough interest to Lehigh and BU…she is not a shoo-in to either school. BU specifically told us that loving the city of Boston is not a reason to apply (not saying your D did this) and that applicants must show their interest for the school…not the city.
Does your daughter like her safeties in the event that she doesn’t get in to Emory, Michigan, BU or Lehigh? I think Wisconsin is a good idea, and maybe even Ohio State.
Good luck! If your daughter is accepted to Emory I hope she loves it…it really is a great school!
@twogirls , remember, she can easily switch her ED app to RD. She just has to notify the admissions officer. IMO, she’s better off applying ED2 to Lehigh. That’s deadline is Jan. 1.
I don’t think Emory is a better school than Lehigh. Lehigh grads do very well.
Yes I was just thinking the same thing…you beat me to it!
My daughter was waitlisted at Lehigh. She had a 1550 SAT, 4.97 weighted GPA, all AP and Honors classes, high level extracurricular participation and great recs. And I’m an alumni and she demonstrated interest.
All that to say I agree with others who say Lehigh should not necessarily be considered a match.
She was offered a spot off the waitlist which she did not take. I do wonder what her outcome would have been if she applied ED but it sounds like that ship has sailed for this applicant unless she wants to apply ED2 and switch her Emory app to RD.
Just wondering about how fit is really being factored in, with colleges as different as Colgate and BU being bandied about.
FWIW, we went for an info session at BU last (2018) spring, as it was on my D’s list. From what they were saying about how they judge applications, it seems like it has got pretty competitive, and acceptance rates are now in the teens. OP’s daughter’s SAT is just about in the middle of the BU middle 50 too. It’s a match, but not a shoe-in by any means. I have to agree with a poster above that ED there if it was top choice would have made more sense.
Honestly, outside the northeast, all of these schools would be viewed the same, prestige-wise. Fit is way more important
I am IN the Northeast and I don’t see a major difference in terms of prestige. I went to BU eons ago and it is on my D20s list right now. It is a lot more competitive than it used to be. My D’s stats are very similar to yours and we don’t view it as an easy school to get into by any means. And she is a legacy, for whatever that might be worth. Best wishes!
Another thought occurs to me, having seen this a few times: it can be quite crushing to be rejected from a school that one considers a match with not “that much” prestige. I hope you won’t need it, but you may need to have a box of Kleenex and some chocolate handy.
You don’t think folks around here were going to let this thread go that easily did ya? :lol:
Prestige is in the eye of the beholder. We all have different perspectives.
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My daughter was waitlisted at Lehigh. She had a 1550 SAT, 4.97 weighted GPA, all AP and Honors classes, high level extracurricular participation and great recs. And I’m an alumni and she demonstrated interest.
wow that is hard to believe…was lehigh just playing the yield game, assuming she would be going somewhere “better?”
It’s going to be brutal when one of the schools she thinks is “settling” and not “aiming high” enough and an inadequate “reward” for all her hard work turns her down. Don’t think it can’t happen.
It won’t be brutal. She is fine and she is prepared for this possibility. She has safeties and has an acceptance (Pitt). She gets no pressure from her parents and is realistic. Don’t worry. The point of this thread was just to hear people’s perspective on the relative prestige of schools like Lehigh and BU. Which are clearly not safety schools for her or most anyone.
Here is my take on attending BU or Lehigh (her two favorites) …versus Emory (her ED school which is ranked higher but not her favorite).
Nobody will ever care (I guess there are exceptions to this…possibly) except your daughter. Nobody will ever discuss it or think about it for a second, and nobody will ever look at her resume and calculate the relative prestige of Lehigh or BU versus somebody who graduated from Emory. These are all excellent schools and the success of any student will depend on what he/she does while in college…and not whether BU, Lehigh, or Emory is written on the diploma.
The same goes if she graduates from Pitt and crafts a great resume while there (terrific school btw). My D did not attend the most prestigious school that accepted her…it wasn’t the right fit.
Money expert Dave Ramsey tells students: Skip the ‘dream’ college and go to school where you can afford
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/07/dave-ramsey-tells-students-go-to-school-where-you-can-afford.html
Just a note on Pitt(great school). Our neighbor started there. Good kid. Bright. had a bit too much fun his freshman year. Failed economics. Parents had him come home to get it together. Enrolled at CCAC(local community college). Took economics and guess what…he had the same professor from Pitt. Kid got it together and transferred to a state school the next year. Did fine and is employed. Your kid will be fine.