I know I feel exactly the same way! I made the mistake of going down the rabbit hole of looking at last years EA thread. I feel like screaming “I know you’re concerned about your yield numbers, but our family is different, this is not some kind of back-up plan for us or one random college on the list of 25!” But how on earth are the AOs able to tell the difference between my son’s genuine love of the school vs other kids who said they love the school on their apps !?!
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Actually, with no supplemental essay, you can’t even say why you love the school!
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Oh, right, I forgot, maybe there’s a correlation with why so many people apply who don’t really want to go since it’s easier to apply !?!
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They can track who opens emails, clicks links, likes instagram posts, attends open houses, etc. The problem for us is my kid never checks emails and never uses the old social media sites like twitter, facebook or instagram.
What do you mean when you say, “Case plays games with EA”? I’m new to this so I’m not familiar with Case’s approach.
What time do we think EA is released tomorrow?
An email was sent. 8pm
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That they defer a lot of qualified kids and then want them to do ED2 instead.
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S23 did not get in EA back in 2022… but then accepted RD.
Only issue was then the EA schools he was selected too (further away) he started to learn and love… and then was too much of a draw to go back to CWRU after being passed over in EA. Its a slippery slope… don’t accept great student EA then they commit to other schools (higher rated, less costly, etc.).
Wishing everyone the best!!!
Counting down to get the decision for EA. My D21 applied, got accepted but didn’t go. (She landed at UVA instead.) Will that have any consequences for my younger D25 who is applying EA to CWRU? I am getting so nervous the closer it is to the release of the EA decision.
I’d really hope not but who knows. I also went down the rabbit hole of last years college confidential thread and in addition to many deferrals, I saw some spring admits with merit who were offered a fall spot if they committed. It feels like a real crapshoot. I guess we will all know in 12 hours. Good luck everyone!
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Case is used as a “safety” by kids who are applying to higher ranked schools like CMU, so they practice yield management. The year my son applied to Case, many very high stat students on CC were deferred and invited to apply ED II. (There were many posts by angry parents who could not believe their 4.0UW/1590SAT student did not get into Case.) In effect, Case was calling their bluff - if you are really interested in coming to Cleveland, commit to the university.
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Many students in donut hole families can’t afford CWRU’s full price, and are depending on merit to bring the cost within budget. Such students can’t commit to ED unless the university offers a merit pre-read (which I don’t think Case offers, unless things have changed).
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Those parents may have been happy to send their kid to Case when they knew all their options - especially financially. Its a great school and my kid would be happy there - but he and I want to know all his options first. Makes it feel like the car dealership that says you can have this price but only for the next few hours - I always leave with a bad taste in my mouth thinking their price or product doesn’t stand on its own. Case’s games seem a little like that to me… but they get to run admissions how they see fit.
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Yeah, I really don’t think of this as “calling a bluff” - irrespective of FA needs (which are of course very important) kids do need safeties and some kids will indeed end up at their safeties. It feels really unfair for schools to shut them out b/c they think they won’t come.
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What is a “donut hole” family??? Never heard that…
It’s a term used for families with income too low to afford the full price of a private university, but too high to qualify for financial aid.
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Best of luck to everyone! Our kid got into her ED school so withdrew her CWRU app, but it’s a fantastic school. Hoping for lots of happy families tonight!
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Yeah the ED thing is tough as well for families who aren’t able to fly all across the country to visit schools where their kid has a less than 50% chance of getting in. My son loves CWRU from the webinar, website, etc, however EA allows us to visit before making a final decision to make sure it feels like the right fit! If he is accepted EA and the merit makes sense, then we will happily jump on a plane immediately, but to do that before applying with such a low admittance rate is tough to justify!
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I understand that students applying to colleges need a couple schools where they are a likely admit. Some schools that are commonly used as “safeties” by high stat students who would rather go to more prestigious universities would rather offer their slots to applicants who are likely to matriculate. I have heard this referred to as “the Tufts effect” because there was a time where students who wanted to go to Harvard and be in the the Boston area would apply to Tufts as a safety.
Before electricity, when I applied to college, some highly ranked LACs like Amherst and Williams learned that kids from my HS were using them as safeties for Ivy League schools, so they stopped accepting very accomplished students. The GCs counseled students whose first choice was one of these schools to make that very clear through campus visits, essays and alumni interviews.
I don’t have a problem with universities engaging in yield management. Students are gaming the system too by applying to colleges they would only attend if they were not accepted by schools that were higher on their list.
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