<p>I think most of the advice provided is generally ok – but the 15 schools to apply to is outright silly – if you’ve identified the “right” schools for you, 6 or 7 at the most should suffice. I think alot of applicants apply to that many because they are not applying to the right schools to begin with. I’ve noticed a definite propensity for applicants to shoot way over their heads and apply to schools they have absolutely no chance of getting into. </p>
<p>When folks ask me about my “reach” schools, they’re dumbfounded that I didn’t apply to Harvard, Yale, etc. on the “off chance” that I’ll somehow get lucky. At this point, I’ve been accepted at 3 of the 4 schools (all top 20) I applied, and am waiting to hear from the last. All with full funding. Keeping my list tight allowed me to hone in on very specific reasons for applying to the schools I did apply to and my SOP definitely illustrated this point.</p>