@Collegedad13: Fascinating, because evidence strongly suggests that the college applications process at schools like HYPSM et al IS NOT a meritocracy, meaning students with “the best” transcripts and test scores do not always get accepted over those students with lessor stats. So, IMHO, I think your kids experience are an anomaly and not the norm. To wit: very few high school students actually have college classes on their transcripts, so your kids have had a skewed experience that most (98% of students possibly) do not have.