Is the only reason to ask to be chanced for a self-esteem boost?

intparent
Sat, 02 Aug 2014 21:10:51 +0000

I think a lot of high school students have a very limited perspective on their odds of admission. And often they are told by people around them that they are a shoo-in for top colleges – and those people really have no idea. Also, lots of students (and parents) don’t even know where to look for the information. For example… very few people who are new to the college admissions process know about the Common Data Set, which is a great place to glean info that can help you gauge your chances.

Now… as @TomSrOfBoston said, some students don’t want to hear that their chances are not so great and will argue with other posters. I always figure that the ad-coms will resolve the argument in the end, but encourage the poster to have some safeties and matches that they would really like to attend. What else can you do?