We have another child getting ready to start the whole admissions process. She goes to a private college-prep high school. After looking at Naviance we noticed that one of her top pick schools has not had anyone accepted and very few applications in the last 10 years. Her school has plenty of smart kids who get into a variety of reach and top 30 colleges. At first I thought it was because no one was interested in this particular school, but noticed that this school has not been at our college fair for at least 8 years. We asked the high school admissions counselor about why this particular school was not represented and she gave a very un-helpful answer. After our meeting we found out that she did reach out to the schools recruiting rep… several times… but her calls/emails were not returned. Our high school many years earlier had students attend said college and do very well. How likely is it our high school has been “taken off the list”? Is there a way to find out if there is a story? In the event she wants to apply ed I don’t want it to be wasted on a school that would not even consider her application.
It is tough to find out a story - as things like this are rarely official. Did a student at your high school break an Early Decision commitment to this school in the past?
@yikesyikesyikes
Not that I am am aware… of course, that info would not be given out to parents/students. I did hear a story about an athlete a couple of years ago, who was interested in that college and was told by the coaches that they would not recruit him out of our high school. I am not sure how true the story is… but his parents did move him junior year to another local private school.
Talk to your GCs to ask the inside story.
Unfortunately the GC is new and our school is not transparent about anything that might cast them in a negative light.
Whatever the story is, you probably aren’t going to figure it out. I would not have your kid waste an ED app there, but apply RD is he is still interested.
If it looks like your high school is on the college’s “automatic reject” list for whatever reason, it would be a waste of time and money to apply there.
What school is it?
If the admissions office cannot or will not give you a polite answer, perhaps this is a “top pick” school that you don’t need. The student/applicant should always come first, even at “top pick” schools.
My high school had a similar relationship with a top 10 school a few years back. We used to consistantly send a couple of kids there every year, but after a couple of incidents (students faking stuff on apps) it seemed like we were on the “auto-rejrct” list. The counsellors swore up and down that there was no such thing, nothing was wrong etc, but for a couple of years no one from our high school was accepted to that university.
Eventually though, for whatever reason, people started getting accepted again.
My advise is that if this school is top pick and you don’t mind spending the application fee, go for it regardless of how small you chances of admission may seem. After all “you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take” and you never really know what’s going on behind the scenes.
If a GC is complicit in a faked application that could result in a “do not admit” rule for a few years.
Thanks for the replies. I do not want to identify the school since I do not know the full story. My husband is an alum which is one of the reasons it was at the top of the list. Maybe we will have her apply rd… but for alum kids the acceptance rate really drops if they don’t apply ed.
We had the same situation as @saif235: every year multiple students getting into all but one of the tippy top schools. Nobody had any explanation- including parents who had been in the school long enough to have picked up scuttlebut.
Then one year a former student transferred in from another college, the next year a student whose sister had gone to a different secondary school and was a student at that college got in, and the next year an ‘unhooked’ student got in, and now the numbers look normal. But we never knew if it was that the regional Rep had something personal against the school, or former students had let the school down, or what.
If your child is really set on this college as their first choice, s/he could consider asking the question straight up in an interview: ‘is there any reason that you might think that a student from my school would not be a good fit with this college?’
MODERATOR’S NOTE:
The OP has stated that she does not want to name the school, so playing “Guess the school” is pointless. Several posts deleted.
Since your hubby is an alum, I’d advise that HE contact the head of admissions, or the Alumni admissions rep, and ask point blank if your HS is on some sort of"no- accept" list. He should state that the question is based entirely on a close review of Naviance info, not on any scuttlebut. He just wants to know the truth- not your DD chances.
He should also mention that your DD IS interested in applying ED there, but you as parents dont want to OK that step if it will be a waste of everyone’s time.
Another option is to look at the websites for several neighboring high schools where you think students are being accepted. Figure out when the rep assigned to your region will be at those schools and if possible the name of the rep. Then try emailing the rep to see if he or she would be willing to meet up with your student. My D did this with Mt. Holyoke, which didn’t visit her high school. We figured out that the local rep was in town to visit other schools, contacted her and she agreed to meet my D in the lobby of her hotel for a quick interview/visit. Going the extra mile like that may also favorably impress the rep. I wouldn’t put the rep on the spot though to ask why no one from your school has been accepted.
Unlikely that the GC will tell you anything meaningful. I’d go ahead and have her apply. Your H can contact alumni affairs and/or admissions and let them know your D is a legacy. It is highly unlikely that the college will dismiss her application out of hand. Other than that, you can’t do anything about it so no sense worrying.
Thank you for all the advice. My H is going to the school this fall for an alumni thing so maybe he can ask a few questions. We have debated whether highlighting the Naviance data will cause more scrutiny but there might not be any choice.
Here is another way to look at the issue:
Admissions recruiter doesn’t visit your school because generally there is not that much interest in the college so they put effort where it pays off. They are all about # of applicants and Yield. Your new GC contacts them…when? During the admissions busy season? Summer? Maybe they are finishing up this year before they get to into next year. Or maybe they don’t want to answer questions about “why don’t you come to our college fair”…
So I would suggest looking at the Common Data Set of the college and see if "Level of Applicant’ Interest is checked as considered or important…if it is, make sure to sign up on the admissions page to receive info, open those emails, attend info sessions if they have them, visit the college, get an alumni interview, ask specific questions to the admissions office, …what ever makes sense for that college.
And then apply and see what happens.
Your husband’s inquiry and maybe a follow up with his local alumni interview committee chair might get some traction. As for @collegemom3717 ‘s suggestion about asking an interviewer, that’s a dead end. The interviewer will simply be a volunteer and not in any position of knowledge about the HS’ history. Good luck!