If any of these are affordable-- this is a great list.
First of all- hugs. Must be very frustrating for you. I think that Rutgers and Rochester are both fantastic U’s. I’m a big UVM fan as well but if it’s off the table-- and for good reasons- then it is.
I think the strategy of reapplying is a risky one unless your D comes to terms with a very different application list. To be blunt- a few months of an internship in publishing (if she can even get one) is not going to move the needle. Publishing interns (particularly those without a college degree) are NOT reading manuscripts, weighing in on the editorial calendar, figuring out if a novel should be marketed as historical fiction or fantasy. They are learning the difference between espresso and flat whites when they aren’t returning salads for having too much dressing on the spinach. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news. But it takes a LONG time to work your way into a role that actually leverages a love of literature…and adcom’s know it.
So for my two cents, it would be better for your D to get a job doing- pretty much anything- fast food, Old Navy, filing insurance claims in a big dental office. She’ll earn money and probably learn more than a post HS internship in publishing. Or hang out a shingle tutoring 6th graders who are falling behind in language arts. Since you live in an affluent area, this is a high demand service. And she can volunteer at the local library teaching citizenship classes to new immigrants in the evening.
Transfer? Aid is iffy. So that’s a risk. And there’s also the risk that first semester of Freshman year isn’t the cake walk she thinks it will be… her profile may never be as high as it is today. I’m not underselling your D who is obviously a fantastic student- but it happens. Those B’s in college-- after a lifetime of A’s-- whoa.
If it were my kid- I’d have the GC call Smith and Skidmore (if you think they are going to be affordable) and say “if she’s admitted, she will attend” (obviously don’t call them both at the same time, you’ll need to sequence this). Meanwhile, you’ll need to put down a deposit at either Rutgers or Rochester and wait it out.
If you don’t get the green light from Smith or Skidmore, reach out to Rochester or Rutgers to ask about a gap year if that’s still how she’s feeling.
I think those two schools are the highest likelihood/best matches to what she wants. BU would be on the list but if Rochester is too big, BU is more of the same, and she’s less likely to get a great scholarship off the waitlist (again, just being candid with you).
As an fyi, a lot of kids who plan to major in English end up doing something else-- mainly because they love what they’ve done in HS but haven’t been exposed to other disciplines. So if the English department at Rochester is in transition- what about Comparative Lit? History? Political Science? Psych?