<p>This is not state college admission, this is selective college admission. It is highly objective. Sometimes that will work to your advantage, and sometimes it will not. </p>
<p>Keep in mind that just because you “know” someone on these boards, does not mean you know the whole picture. You haven’t read their essays (and if you have…have you read others as well? How many and for which schools?), and most importantly you have not read their teacher recs and school counselor recs. Everyone typically thinks their recs are great, but many are surprisingly lukewarm. And lukewarm doesn’t get anyone excited. And then, there are the recs that include a couple of telling clues that confirm potentially negative themes the admission officer might have read elsewhere (in essays or teacher recs). What are the negatives? Pushy, obsessive, insensitivity to others in classroom settings (i.e.: those not quite as smart as you), need to dominate, overly competitive, grade-obsessed, and don’t think the teachers don’t know when they are being “played” by kids who think they are savvy. Again, not saying this is the case for any of the applicants here, but let’s not kid ourselves and think that we know all. The only ones who know all are the ones who read the folders, front to back.</p>