<p>I don’t mean to sound entitled to an admission letter, but given my stats and outright denial at Northwestern, I’m starting to think something is wrong with my application. I’m worried for my RD applications, but luckily, I have them all done. My RD list includes a whole bunch of top 20 schools.</p>
<p>Don’t want to give away my identity, but here are my stats:
-2300 SAT (800, 770, 730); 5 APs (maximum at school)-- all 5s; 800, 750, 770 SAT 2s
-Top 5% of competitive public that has sent many students to Northwestern in the past
-Glowing rec letters. I read all of them, and one of them even made me cry!
-ECs include multiple varsity sports (one sports captain and one co-captainship), editor-in-chief of newspaper, student body vice president, junior prom queen.</p>
<p>If your school has sent many other students, the guidance counselor probably has an ongoing relationship with the admissions office. Have you asked him/her for ideas?</p>
<p>I’d wonder about the recommendations if you hadn’t seen them. I assume you’ve never been expelled or suspended. And you didn’t write your essay about really wanting to go to Yale.</p>
<p>You sound like a great candidate, despite Northwestern’s decision. Please have faith in yourself. And consider adding a safety to your top 20 list.</p>
<p>Nothing ‘went wrong.’ They simply had too many students whose accomplishments were similar to yours. Hard to believe, but every school in the country has students who are top of the class, president of the x club, editor of the y, and captain of the z team. With great letters of rec because they really are amazing students who bring tremendous value to their school communities. And in affluent communities, great test scores are not uncommon - along with 4.0s or close to it. </p>
<p>This doesn’t mean you won’t get in somewhere wonderful - it just means that you need to adjust your expectations a bit. You won’t get in everywhere. Make sure you have some real safeties, like Wordworker said.</p>
<p>Maybe I seemed like a generic applicant, but I really tried to show passion in whatever I did. In the end, I guess there’s only so much I can do to be “unique” given my extracurriculars, which don’t lend themselves naturally to much outward evidence of uniqueness. </p>
<p>I really thought I was a great fit for Northwestern given the well-balanced student I thought Northwestern likes, but alas, I have to move on. Maybe I need to elicit some emotion through my essays to be memorable or something. My essays are well-written but probably not “unique.”</p>
<p>Who knows what these top schools are looking for anymore?</p>
<p>I wouldn’t worry too much. Check again for mistakes, essays, and other soft factors in admissions. </p>
<p>College admissions to the top schools is a crapshoot these days. Check the stickied thread in College Chances that shows where people actually got in. </p>
<p>Many had surprising rejections.
E.g Accepted to Harvard, rejected by Boston University.</p>
<p>Does your application list have a safety which you for sure will be admitted to, for sure will be able to afford, for sure will find suitable academic offerings, and for sure will like?</p>
<p>If not, you could be back here in April writing about being shut out of colleges. Although even if that happens, you can go to community college, do well there, and transfer to your state’s flagship as a junior (assuming that you live in the midwest, your state flagship is probably a very good school).</p>
<p>I have stats like yours with 400+ hrs community service, job experience amazing personal essays, and numerous music and athletic awards but was straight up denied Brown…colleges are weird and do weird things</p>
<p>@drjoe lol your case is different. Brown’s a whole 'nother story. My mom went there and as such I never hear the end of “apply to brown!” To the point where I woke up to posters plastered on my wall hahah. But Brown places an extraordinary emphasis on writing, wit, and boldness. You have to covey that you fit the Brown mold. It’s the only Ivy that actually has a specific type of student. Its because the environment of Brown is so unique and unconventional that only a specific type of academic shall thrive in it. And they know that. So never fear! Plenty of Ivy’s and top tier schools await!</p>
<p>Wildrose, just a guess that there a ton of editors in chief who apply to NU because of Medill. </p>
<p>but, I wouldn’t worry, you are an excellent applicant and you will be admitted to and have some other excellent options when the cycle is all over. NU is getting increasingly difficult to get into and has become what we call, around here, a “lottery” school. Past a certain point of selectiveness, you just still have to win the lottery to get in.</p>
<p>It could well have been due to other candidates from your own school being a better fit. Northwestern has been increasingly difficult to get into in recent years and one-time feeder schools are getting less and less of the pie. My son attended a Chicago area school that used to average 7-8 students accepted a year and which was down to only two acceptances when he applied.</p>
<p>If you diversify geographically in your other applications, you should be fine with your stats.</p>
<p>Colleges HATE (it’s true) when students do not waive their rights. It’s like you don’t trust the teacher. Are you not going to trust their institution?</p>
<p>My son waived his rights to see his letters of recommendation, but the teachers all sent him copies of them anyway. Do you think this is unusual? If a letter is extremely favorable, many letter writers want to share what they wrote!</p>
<p>Personally, I thought you were a highly qualified applicant who deserved to be at the very least deferred, although NU does not tend to defer applicants. I would have expected you to be accepted as well, but this is the cruel nature of college admissions at elite private schools.
Word of advice: keep your head up. Early admissions can be great knowing that you can relax, but often times will make you feel the lowest you’ve ever felt during the college admissions process. I was in low spirits as well at this time last year after being deferred from Duke, winter break was all college apps and sad bruno mars songs. But since you have your apps done, I would really take time off, chill with friends and family or something. Maybe have some people look over your essays, and you could also ask your GC to see if he can get in contact with the NU admissions officer. But I don’t believe there is much to be worried about, you’ll definitely be headed somewhere great when it’s all said and done. Good luck!</p>
<p>OP, did your application indicate a need for substantial financial aid? That is about the only reason I could think of as a possible major negative to your applicaiton. Beyond that, all I can think of is that the day and time your application was considered, yours might have come up right after other applicants whose applications looked fundamentally like yours–and since yours didn’t stand out, you didn’t get the lucky lottery ticket.</p>
<p>Because, at NU’s level of selectivity, admissions really is like having a lucky lottery ticket. Almost all of the applicants to a school like NU have the academic qualifications, a good list of ECs, supportive LORs.</p>
<p>Also, just one additional thought–OP, did you waive the right to access your LORs?</p>