<p>My cousin went to stanford and graduated with the class of 97.
I applied and within the application it said alumni relation and I mentioned by cousin.</p>
<p>Does this increase my chances compared to others and if so by how much.</p>
<p>my SAT score: 2280
GPA= 4.4
Good ECs
Job for 3 years
Volunteer at hospital 436 hours
good essay, good recommendations
My main concern is of the affect of my cousin’s alumni status; this is why I have briefly discussed my credentials( I didn’t mention all of my ECs)</p>
<p>I doubt that such a distant relationship would increase your chances much more than a single SAT point or volunteer hour.</p>
<p>Anyway, given the stats you have provided, I would say stanford is a reach school for you. Definitely a possibility, though really, don’t be disappointed if you don’t make it. The SAT needs a bit of work and the GPA could be a bit better (though it means little without class rank). Excellent volunteer hours, and holding a job for 3 years is certainly a plus, but without specifics (and class rank), I can’t really give you better than a “reach”</p>
<p>I suspect that the percentage of applicants who have a cousin who went to Stanford is rather high, and won’t be mnuch of a reason to differentiate your application from others.</p>
<p>If an A+ is worth a 4.3, I pressume that your 4.4 GPA is weighted.</p>
<p>What is your class rank, if I may ask? That will tell us more (in conjunction with your SAT scores) that your degree of cosanguinity with an alumnus.</p>
<p>@ JP, excuse me, but how the hell can you say that a 2280 “needs a bit of work”?..Stanfords average SAT was 2150 last year and 25% of their class of 2011 had an SAT of less that 2000…i think your SATs are more then fine…stop worrying about universities and enjoy your last few months of HS, there is nothing you can do now…</p>
<p>You aren’t considered a legacy so no boost whatsoever. However you’re very viable nonetheless. Best of luck to you. Palo Alto has wonderful weather!</p>
<p>yeah that relation wont do anything for you, usually they specify on the application to only list people in your IMMEDIATE family who attended the university in question. even if your dad went to stanford it by no means guarantees that you will be accepted, especially if, for instance, he has not been actively involved in the alumni network or in donating to the school. a lot of the draw for legacies comes from the onset of money, because they want to know that the money will continue to flow into the school</p>
<p>“But your cousin helps minutely (if at all) in your admissions process” </p>
<p>I disagree. Firstly, practically anyone can list some relation that’s not a parent or grandparent(which grants true legacy status). Secondly, do you see them CHECKING? The reason for legacy preferences is to increase familial loyalty (and giving) to the institution. A cousin relationship doesn’t add to that one iota. It will be completely disregarded (unless your cousin happens to donate $10M this year and expressly ASKS for special consideration for you – but then you’d be a development admit, not a legacy preference)</p>
<p>I’ve wondered this same thing about cousins: two of my nephews graduated from Stanford in the last 8 years. Both really made their marks at Stanford, one in the top leadership position on campus and the other led a science/engineering team to international acclaim. This is a theorhetical question for us, since my d is not applying to Stanford, but if you are related to recent oustanding grads who’s names might be recognizable to admissions, is it worth mentioning?</p>