What will you do if you become a QB finalist and match? I know that’s a long shot, but that would be binding and your admissions are done. You can’t wait for acceptances to come in, because you have to pull all outstanding apps.
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If those acceptance letters arrive, it will be exciting. I’ll be truly grateful just to have the opportunity to choose from such wonderful options, and I’m confident Mom will appreciate it too. As someone stated before, once admissions and financial aid offers come in… it’ll be a different ball game we’re looking at.
As you said, being a QuestBridge finalist and matching is definitely a long shot, but the idea of a full-ride scholarship—covering room, board, tuition, and everything else would be LIFE CHANGING! 
It would put me ahead of the pack by being loan-free, which is something only about 1% of students get. I believe it’s something my mom will need to accept and embrace if it comes through.
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Bear in mind that about 20% of the Princeton class are recruited athletes, who average 1 standard deviation less than the rest of the class on an academic basis.
That 3-4% that have a GPA under 3.75 has a high proportion of recruited athletes. There will be only a tiny fraction admitted with grades of 82 in Physics, which you described as part of your academic resurgence.
I hate to tell you this, but your grades are not Ivy League level. You would have to have an incredibly rare non-academic profile to overcome them, and although every applicant believes they do, very few really do. The application pool at any of these schools is incredibly rich with non-academic achievements.
As for adversity, my (surviving) kids faced more adversity than you have described. Your situation is not as unique as you think. You sound like you’ve had excellent family support.
I’m going to push hard for you not to include all longshots on your Questbridge application, and primarily aim for the easier targets ( none of which are easy, by any means).
Your application is not due for quite some time. Try to visit some.
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I doubt Columbia would view that as being within commuting distance…and would require you to live on campus.
Good that your mom is willing to discuss this all with you.
I still think…your budget is in the drivers seat here, and you are counting on getting a full ride…which is iffy.
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The Questbridge app is due Sept 30, so just over 7 weeks.
I agree. Not to mention commuting 3.5 hours every day will be a significant limiter in OP’s ability to engage with classmates and the larger Columbia community…work in study groups, eat meals, participate in clubs, go to sporting events/music recitals/lectures, etc.
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How would your mother feel about schools such as Skidmore, Colgate and Hamilton?
While still competitive, they are less “reachy” than Columbia and Princeton, yet not as far as some of the other schools you mentioned.
I do not see Columbia as being commutable, if you happen to get in.
I don’t know if you drive, but if you don’t I would get your license and see if you can access a car….in case you go to Rutgers (a great school).
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At this point, the completion of the QB application should be your focus, including choosing some QB schools where your chances of acceptance are higher…and RD application schools as well.
In my opinion.
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I would go so far as to say that commuting 3.5 hours every day is very likely to lead to dropping out of school. It’s just not tenable.
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I think I understand why your mom is thinking this way - to her, combining an elite school (i.e. Princeton or Columbia) with the cost savings of living at home (and possibly also not wanting you to leave) sounds like best of both worlds.
But it’s really not. In terms of being truly viable for you, your commuting option is Rutgers. It’s an excellent school, and it’s close enough that commuting wouldn’t be a huge impediment to your involvement on campus and wouldn’t squander your time and energy on commute time. Anything else is too far, in my opinion. Any extent to which a less-close school might be preferable to Rutgers would be cancelled out by the impact of commuting. (Plus, commuting to a school where commuting isn’t normalized would only amplify the impact; at Rutgers, commuting wouldn’t make you an outlier.) Rutgers is your live-at-home option; don’t complicate things with impractical speculation about commuting elsewhere.
Besides, what would even be the point of commuting to an Ivy-level private U, when financial aid at those schools would cover your residential costs, even without a QB match?
I’m afraid I need to join the buzzkill contingent here in saying that I very much doubt that Princeton or Columbia will happen for you anyway. There are too many NJ applicants with EC’s and scores as strong as yours, plus flawless grades. Anything could happen but these schools are a huge long shot.
I certainly wouldn’t foreclose on Questbridge by not applying at all; you wouldn’t be a Scholar if you didn’t have some shot at being a Finalist. But if you do become a finalist, here’s what I would suggest, to maximize your chances of matching: Sort the list of partner schools by acceptance rate. Divide that list into thirds: the most rejective third, the middle third, and the least rejective third. Select five best-fit schools from each section to build a balanced list of 15.
As a rule, the most-rejective schools have the best in-house financial aid. So even if you don’t match, you can take your shot at QB RD at any/all of those schools. But at the less-rejective schools, the Match scholarship may be your only shot at affordability. They are all amazing schools; you should be able to find five schools in each section of the partner list at which a more-than-full ride would be preferable to commuting to Rutgers and likely needing to take on debt… even though Rutgers is a terrific default option and it’s very fortunate you have such an excellent university so close to home.
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You’re 1000% right: Rutgers is a strong school, and it’s a blessing to have that kind of option right at my doorstep. I’d never discount that.
Of course, I know the odds for the Ivies and T20 schools are steep. But the beautyy of QuestBridge is that it gives a candidate like me a shot that wouldn’t exist in the traditional pool. They look at more than perfect numbers, they try to see the whole story, the obstacles and how you responded to them through resilience.
For that (from what I understand), the QB partners are willing to overlook a blip compared to their usual GPA, test scores, or EC profile.. to bend the “norm” they typically take. After all, I’ve had different obstacles and fewer opportunities than their average applicant. And if I’m named as a finalist, QB is telling them that they believe I am just as able and just as special as their typical admit.
At some of these schools, especially the Ivies T20s, they get 40–50,000 applicants for around 2,000 seats (1600 SAT, valedictorian, perfect GPA) What sets me apart from the other perfect kids coming in from the Common App will be having a compelling, honest, and insightful story that shows I’ve made the most of what I had, and that I can contribute something special to their campus.
The “thirds” approach makes a lot of sense, and it looks like a straight forward way to make sure I’m not putting all my eggs in the most competitive basket. I’m definitely going to sit down and sort the partner schools like you suggested. Thank you so much for that.
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I was actually talking to my mom in the car last night about dorming. We agreed that if chasing my dream means “sacrificing” a few years now, it’s worth it — because in the long run, it’ll give me better opportunities, real life skills, and the educational approach I’ll need. At some point, whether it’s during med school or residency, I’ll have to live on my own anyway, so I might as well start building that foundation now. I told her it would be hard to truly focus if I had to go back home every day, with all the distractions and breaks in momentum. My grandfather (an immigrant and Vietnam vet) told me that you can’t take the easy, comfortable way out and expect to succeed. If you want to make it, you have to sacrifice something. I told my mother that this sacrifice will be dorming.
Don’t let anyone but the schools tell you that you’re not the one.
That’s you’re likely at Rutgers - and even if for some reason it didn’t happen (which I doubt), there’s other options close by I’m sure.
Take your shot but make sure you’re ahead of schedule getting the required documents in so you’re not last minuting it. QB has an early deadline.
If it’s a no, it will come from the schools. But you’ll know you have given your all.
Good luck.
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Yes, exactly this. I know it can feel like you need to “shotgun” as many of the most-competitive schools as possible, but there’s a point of diminishing returns with that strategy. Colleges are looking for “fit.” If you can identify the 5 (ish) super-rejective schools where your narrative truly fits best, you’ll already be “harvesting” your best shot at that category, and each additional school beyond that core group won’t add much to your odds, whereas diversifying your list could add a lot.
Sounds like a smart approach to characterize living on campus, in discussions with your mom, as a sacrifice. That puts you on the same page with her in terms of valuing living at home, but also acknowledges the payoffs of full immersion in a residential college experience.
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There are students out there who have perfect scores and GPAs, accomplishments….who also have stories to tell, major stressors and difficult life experiences etc…and who also demonstrated resilience.
Plan accordingly so that you have a school to attend (I sound like a broken record).
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I’m not knocking that at all — I 100% agree with what you’re saying. I have the utmost respect for those students. But like @tsbna44 said, the only people I’m going to let tell me “no” are the schools themselves. Right now, I’m just focused on building that list smartly, so I’ve got my reach, match, and safety schools lined up. That way, I’m aiming high but still planning to have a place where I can definitively go.
Will update the forum with that list.
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Do you have your two LORs and school report in process ? They preference 11th grade teachers. Likely best to have one STEM and one humanities or social science.
And the essay.
Not sure if essays by the schools are required or not ? Doesn’t sound like it but research.
Yes, it’s 50 days away (the deadline) but they go by quickly - and you’ll have school. So time to get a move on !!
The supplemental essays will be required if OP becomes a finalist (for the schools OP ranked), at which point OP would have about two weeks to write all the essays. So, OP should be doing at least some of the harder essays now. Like U Chicago, to take one example. All the details are on the QB website. OP would also have to do any supplementals for QB schools that they would apply to RD, whether or not OP becomes a finalist.
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I’m finalizing my QuestBridge National College Match list with a strategy that balances reach and realistic match potential while still going after my top-choice schools. I split my schools into three groups by admit rate:
Most Rejective (4–7%) – Princeton, Columbia, Brown, Harvard, Yale.
These are my dream picks, especially Princeton, Columbia, and Brown. I want a definitive “yes” or “no” from at least one Ivy.
Middle (7–12%) – Cornell, UChicago, Northwestern, Duke, Johns Hopkins.
Least Rejective for strong applicants (12–25%) – Notre Dame, WashU St. Louis, Washington & Lee, Richmond, Denison.
Final ranking:
- Princeton University
- Columbia University
- Brown University
- Harvard University
- Yale University
- Cornell University
- University of Chicago
- Northwestern University
- Duke University
- Johns Hopkins University
- University of Notre Dame
- Washington University in St. Louis
- Washington and Lee University
- University of Richmond
- Denison University
Common App Safety Schools (outside QB)
Just in case the match doesn’t work out, I’ll be applying to:
- Rutgers University – Honors College (in-state)
- Middlesex Community College
Just making sure that you are aware that Notre Dame is a catholic university.
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