The essence of elite school admissions problems: secrecy

Oh please… There are hundreds of colleges in the US. Choose some that will accept you. Then pick one of those that extended an offer to you.

The focus/obsession on the few schools that are looking for truly exceptional students is absurd. We’re talking about something like 13000 slots for truly exceptional students and hundreds of thousands of slots that are for everyone else. Everyone else gets far more slots than are allocated to the exceptional. So we really are in better position than them. We should all stop complaining cause most of us and most of our kids are not exceptional (sorry).

The misguided Self Esteem movement resulted in an entire generation of students (and their parents) who view themselves as each being Harvard-worthy and brilliant. It’s beyond tedious.

And occurs uniquely in the US, lostaccount, because all those other kids in Canada or wherever knew the clear criteria for admission for years ahead of applying, and whether or not they made the cut. If it were only 130k kids stressed by the application process, I might not care. But the trickle down effect is such that in many if not most middle class US high schools, teens are very stressed about this process, even when applying to schools well below the elite level.

@roycroftmom By settling I meant I’m still looking for the data you suggest is out there.

Oh, I misunderstood you. Then just Google to obtain, for example, U Texas-Austin research department statistics on admissions. Literally hundreds of pages, sliced and diced in every demographic way imaginable. I am certain other universities prepare similar reports

Did anyone sincerely think colleges did not track this data?

Lol, there are fewer colleges kids obsess over.

Are you asking for a formula? “Let us see so we can operate to that pattern?” That’s counterintuitive if you want a tippy top. It’s not the level of thinking they want to see.

Btw, what’s so hard about googling an Ivy name and “what we look for?” Granted, then you have to process what you read. But kids don’t.

It’s not the demographic composition that gets you in. It’s the quality of you own app. Someone will be chosen and it could be you. If you meet the challenges. They aren’t looking for kids who don’t get it, who demand the formula.

“But the trickle down effect is such that in many if not most middle class US high schools, teens are very stressed about this process,”

I place the blame on prestige driven families and society. I don’t think it is fair to blame the college for that phenomenon nor is it going to resolved with more transparent admissions data.

Oh I most certainly do “get it”, as we are about to send my 11th family member to HYPSM-I have quite a solid understanding of what it takes. The altruist in me believes that information should be widely and easily accessible to all.

If kids are stressed because they think they need to get into a prestigious school, that is the fault of the family, community and guidance department. I believe the vast majority of kids in this country are not stressed over HYP. They are rightfully stressed about how to afford the colleges they can get into.

But it IS accessible. You said you get it.
The original post was about openings. How does that info offer clarity about what constitutes a quality app?

In my experience, only a fraction of apps show an understanding of the college. Even among top stats kids. They can’t answer Why Us? They speak of passions not pursued, and many other bullets. How does more info than presently available make the light bulb go on?

But when it’s a tippy top, why should the school need to spoon feed. Kids ignore what IS there.

Since you know what the Ivies are looking for, please share. I’m sure the rest of us would love to know.

If you want to help kids, then go ahead. You can do this via CC. You’ll see who accepts advice, who fights it. You’ll see who can take a hint and run with it, who’s stuck in circular thinking, even top stats kids And you’ll see the frivolous and misleading advice from adults: you’re sure to get in, you just need national awards, just be you, dont take courses or do ECs just for colleges, write about (some irrelevant topic,) and more.

Help right that wrong.

As presumably you are unwilling to do so?

Why do you presume? Many of us do, in the free CC context. You knew this, right?

But I don’t “tell” them. I don’t write for them or read for them. I want them to feel empowered and some can be.

Except googling an Ivy name does nothing for you if the Ivy doesn’t put that information out there. If you wanted to know the regression coefficient to being a legacy, you can find that now for Harvard thanks to a lawsuit. You can’t find that for other schools and it took discovery in a federal court case to force Harvard into being transparent about what they look for.

And what use is the regression coefficient? We’re talking about applying successfully. Not analysis.

Seriously, it’s a task. You learn as much as you can. You should be up for it, if you’re good enough for an elite.

Indeed. Nor would there be a legal requirement to do so on the grounds of “having a social mission.” Those who think otherwise, just because the institutions are non-profit by nature, need to cite the enforceable legal statute/principle that applies to that kind of detailed disclosure.

It’s called critical thinking – especially induction and deduction. The Ivy provides the information in components and by inference.

Regression coefficients can be invaluable in selecting which schools to apply to. They can help you decide if a school is a lottery ticket, reach, match, or safety. Kids who are truly tippy top material understand the value of regression coefficients.