<p>Let’s see, you’re transferring out of BC because of ~social fit. A school who according to you is full of “the most brilliant kids you’ll meet anywhere…” and where “the students there are all bright, motivated and hardworking” to go to Cornell (the kids at Cornell are then vastly different from your descriptions of BC students and you’ll clearly ~socially fit in there).</p>
<p>? </p>
<p>PS: If you consider an almost ten percent difference in the percentage of students who rank in the 10% of their h.s., almost identical, then I hope you’re not taking stats at Cornell in the fall, I heard Cornell is a ~hard school. Here’s your beloved collegeboard</p>
<p>Great job taking my statement completely out of context…the kids in honors are some of the most brilliant kids I’ll ever meet… though, I didn’t feel as academically challenged as I would have liked because realistically, I was in the top 5% of the BC class (and I am sure it would be a similar thing if I did decide to apply to and attend UVA). Being bright, motivated and hardworking has very little to do with the SOCIAL fit and the main reasons why I decided to leave BC aren’t relevant to this discussion. </p>
<p>Since the OP’s daughter got into honors at BC, she will probably do very well there. Additionally, she will probably do very well at UVA. If she’s qualified enough to get accepted into honors at Boston College, then she had to have had 1450+ on her SAT and graduate at the very top of her class. A student who those stats would definitely be one of the top students at UVA, from a statistical standpoint and will probably thrive there as well. Sure she was wait-listed initially, but she is also out-of-state. I’m definitely not denying the fact that getting into UVA out-of-state is harder than getting into BC. But nearly 70% are in state and those students are GENERALLY weaker than students at BC so it ultimately balances out. </p>
<p>Regarding the 88% to 80%…those were last year’s numbers. It’s more like 88% to 83-85% (can’t remember exactly, though my cousin who will be attending this year has the exact number). That’s such a huge difference, right? BC’s SAT range is also slightly higher with a difference comparable to the previously mentioned percentages. You attempted to disprove the statement “the overall caliber of the student bodies aren’t all that different.” Yes, UVA does have a SLIGHTLY more competitive student body as a whole but they “aren’t all that different.”</p>
<p>“It’s more like 88% to 83-85% (can’t remember exactly, though my cousin who will be attending this year has the exact number).”</p>
<p>Oh I see, so BC’s percentage of students in the top 10% increases this year and UVA’s percentage stays the same? LOLz, ok. </p>
<p>“If she’s qualified enough to get accepted into honors at Boston College, then she had to have had 1450+ on her SAT and graduate at the very top of her class.”</p>
<p>Do you have a link for this? Or is this based on the students you met/speculation?</p>
<p>“But nearly 70% are in state and those students are GENERALLY weaker than students at BC so it ultimately balances out.”</p>
<p>Students in the honors program usually have 1450+ on their SAT and are in the top 5% of their graduating class. I received a 1480 on my SAT and that was the lowest of all of my friends in honors and all were well within the top 5% of their respective high school class. The standards for the business school honors program at BC, CSOM honors, are even higher (not sure what the OP’s daughter is in). Yes, I do understand that brilliant in-state kids attend UVA, obviously. But realistically, there is no denying that the caliber of the average in-state student is lower than the average out-of-state student. If an in-state student had the stats of an honors student at Boston College, as the OP’s daughter does, do you really think he/she would not be offered admission (excluding the wait list)? honestly.</p>
<p>I would have said yes before, however, after seeing what happened to my little sister this year (whom I talked about sometime ago in a thread), I wouldn’t know what to tell you. My little sister, the one with the highest GPA in her high school class (one of the best high schools in the United States-no. 23 actually according to US News)–and named valedictorian yesterday (at her graduation), fluent in three languages and legacy, (I went to UVA) with an SAT score of 1240, an ACT score of a 29 (is that bad?), 800 on the Spanish SAT II, 760 on the French SAT II and a 710 on the Math IIC SAT II got waitlisted and rejected afterwards. </p>
<p>She got into Cornell. </p>
<p>Due to money, she’s going to Virginia Tech. </p>
<p>So my answer to your question is, I truly don’t know.</p>
<p>Wahoomb, as a parent of one UVA grad and another soon-to-be student, I’m asking that you please give it a rest. It’s exactly your kind of attitude concerning UVA – that no other school can possibly be as good – that turns so many prospective applicants and their parents against the school. </p>
<p>Your sister’s credentials are similar to my younger daughter’s credentials. My younger daughter just got into UVA off the waitlist (we, too, are in state), but did NOT get off of BC’s waitlist – or William and Mary’s either. Our older daughter (also in state) got into UVA (directly, not off the waitlist), but was waitlisted at Richmond, William and Mary, and Vanderbilt. </p>
<p>It’s great that your sister got into Cornell, but I’d hazard a guess that her test scores were closer to the bottom of the admitted class than they were to to top. What likely happened – not that there’s anything wrong with it – is that your sister’s status as a latina from beyond the tri-state area played a major role in the decision. Also, your having gone to UVA doesn’t make your sister a legacy, nor is it uncommon for native Spanish speakers to score 800 on the Spanish SAT II. </p>
<p>In short, to suggest that your sister might have gotten into BC’s honors program is a stretch. Moreover, there’s simply no question that in state students on the lower end of the scale at UVA would probably have had trouble getting into BC, just as there’s no question that students at the high end of UVA’s scale are as well qualified as any students anywhere in the country. UVA is great. BC is great. Cornell is great. To each his own, ok?</p>
<p>Well said parent2009. We should remember that what the OP and her daughter are really looking for is help in decidng between two excellent choices.</p>
<p>if your daughter doesn’t want to join sorority it’s totally fine.
UVa is far better in terms of academics. Your daughter can apply to the Echols scholar program after her first semester, which will give her priority of getting classes she wants.</p>
<p>nesh- I didn’t follow all your replies but judging by your last few responses I think you’re arguing between “UVA” and “BC honors”… That is like you’re comparing the United States to Goldman Sachs. Okay, OP’s daughter got into the BC honors program, congrats, and that means she is also at least as bright as the brilliant people you have met (quoting your #22). However, what does that have to do with the BC in general. She is going to be educated in BC, not BC honors. Most likely she will only interact with her fellow honors students once in a while. </p>
<p>And please don’t throw numbers on us. Good SAT scores, high school ranking, etc only apply to the admission and possibly the first year experience. A lot of time people do very well in high school don’t do as well in colleges. And vice versa. BC I believe is not a feeder, at least not as well-recruited as UVa, to law schools. BC’s law school is not even at the same tier as UVa’s.</p>
<p>Thanks again for everyone’s input. Yes, daughter’s credentials are excellent, we were pretty shocked at the waitlist, but what can you do? There are lots of great qualified students out there. </p>
<p>Wow…This is heated. Money aside…Some things you should consider. UVA has tons of “honor’s programs.” They have the Echols and Jefferson scholars to name a few…also DMP. Out of the graduates in my major-( I had the largest major in the college) only 7 were DMP. DMP is very competitive. But that is besides the point.</p>
<p>I personally picked UVA because they gave me a full ride. It was between them and William and Mary and WM was generous but not as much. If money is not an issue I would say that you should let her decide. But if money is…then UVA. You are the parent so you do have the final say. I personally think UVA is a better fit if she plans to attend Law School as we are partial to our Alum during the admissions process. Virginia reserves a nice number of seats for each 1L class.</p>
<p>1) You’re delusional if you think that “type” of attitude turns prospective applicants and their parents off. If it does, they should probably stay away from elite universities. Prospective applicants and their parents should be well aware that when they’re looking at schools like UVA and other top schools, a grand majority of the kids who go to those schools think their school is the best. Take a look around collegeconfidential and I’m sure you can get a good idea of what I’m talking about (that is since you’re judging my attitude on this forum). Elite universities are full of kids who feel they’re above everyone, whether this is good or bad, I don’t know, it still doesn’t stop Harvard, Columbia and the likes from receiving well over 30,000 applications. I’m sure they’re really ~humble, lolz.
2) As I said, my little sister got a 29 ACT composite score (which is the 94th percentile). Cornell’s ACT range is a 28-32, she’s well within that range. “Nor is it uncommon for native Spanish speakers to score 800 on the Spanish SAT II” Thanks for assuming that my sister and I are both native Spanish speakers because actually our first language is English and we were instructed completely in French as we lived in France for most of our lives (12 years to be exact) and completed </p>
<p>Exactly right! And I’ve learned not to assume that a self-described latino with an 800 on the Spanish SAT II is a native Spanish speaker or lived in a native-speaking household. I appreciate that very much, wahoomb. </p>
<p>I would hope that those who are already part of the UVa community would use the private message function to settle misunderstandings or disputes and let this board remain a helpful, friendly place for students and parents to get answers to their questions.</p>
<p>The tone of some of these posts is off putting. Like it or not, people may draw conclusions about UVa based on the behavior of its students and alumni on forums like this. </p>
<p>Congrats to the new students and their parents! I hope you’ll stick around to help the next crop of people looking for information about UVa!</p>
<p>Hey welcome daffinito’s daughter!! WahooWa!! How exciting now that the decision has been made. See you on The Corner ^.^ !
Stay focused on all the good things about UVA>the lessons of Mr. Jefferson, the Grounds, the mountains, purple shadows, 7’s, other Secret Societies, The Corner, the Lawn, girls in pearls/guys in ties, Foxfield, Greek life, oh, and of course Dean J and her dog!! It’s a great place.
I’ve had a grand time here, been challenged (in a good way) academically, had eye-opening experiences and my focus is forward. Welcome! PM me if I can answer any questions; as you might can tell, I love this place!</p>
<p>Dean J: Thanks for dropping by! It’s always so great to see you moderating discussions so parents and prospectives get the ~true portrayal of UVA. You should really take a look at the thread about UVA’s Honor Code, our reputation is really being tarnished there. It’s time to do some ~serious moderation.</p>