<p>Well, what I’m suggesting is that even though Single Choice EA may seem on first glance to have a higher acceptance rate, because of recruited athletes and legacy students, the acceptance rate for other folks is pretty much the same as it would be in regular decision. So why not just do Match, hope for the best, and if you don’t get it do Regular Decision?</p>
<p>With SCEA you can be rejected, with Match, you can not.</p>
<p>Okay, Stanford is your first choice. Great. And you have stats that won’t hurt you compared to the rest of the pool. So Stanford is a realistic option. Just two tests to make sure you’re using the most of the process. </p>
<p>Stanford is a reach for every applicant because it is the most selective university in the country (last year acceptance rate: 5.69%). It’s especially tough to get into for students who are not legacies, recruited athletes, or underrepresented minority students. Even having perfect SAT scores, dazzling extracurriculars, and being named first in your class would only give you around a 15% admit rate. You can see some results here: <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/stanford-university/1425488-official-stanford-2017-scea-results-thread.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/stanford-university/1425488-official-stanford-2017-scea-results-thread.html</a> There is no rhyme or reason to who gets accepted or rejected. That’s why anyone who is prepared to apply to Stanford should prepare for rejection and have a suitable number of alternatives.</p>
<p>QuestBridge applicants fare just as selectively in the Stanford pool because their test scores are not as high. Of 4500 finalists last year, of which the majority do apply to Stanford, only 150 get in through either Match or RD, a rate similar to the combined rate when you factor out those who get matched to a binding or don’t apply to Stanford. So QuestBridge isn’t really a boost, if you want one. Honestly, there isn’t any real boost for Stanford, whether you use QuestBridge or you do SCEA. </p>
<p>You stated that you are considering other schools. Which schools? Are they QuestBridge partners? Would you be fine in ranking them for national match and being binded to them with a full ride? If yes, then do Match, ranking Stanford 1st. If no, do either Match with the non-bindings, or SCEA to Stanford.</p>