BS with 83% acceptance rate, should I be worried?

patronyork
Thu, 12 Dec 2013 20:46:09 +0000

I would not rule out the 83% school but I would be cautious.

I would tend to think that a school with such a high accept rate must have reasons. It can always have great academics and a couple of great programs. However, there should be some negative reasons. Try to define what they are.

Some possible reasons I could think of are as follows:


Low % of boarders - lack of proper weekend programs or infrastructure for boarders
English as a Second Language program (ESL) resulting in taking many international students. Many of them are very well motivated but some may have hard times of adjustment and then lose their motivation later on.
Financially unstable - Check if the school has been in the market for a reasonably long period of time.
Recent problems/issues - any very negative issues recently?
Less motivated teachers, less motivated students.
Not an ideal location for a boarding school (safety issues)
Poor college matriculation record
Very serious drugs/alcohol/sexual issues
Problematic campus buildings/maintenance (another safety) issues
Frequent faculty (& student) turnover(transfer)/low student retention


Any school - even the school with a poor academic performance - can have a great program such as marine science and very successful graduates.