Keeping it positive here–with this thought that I think we probably all know but I think needs to be repeated. Success (and I bet we all have different definitions of what that means) from the college experience has little to do with where you go and what pre-admissions (read this as “before you have spent one real day on the campus”) groups you get selected for and everything to do with what you DO when you get there. Opportunities will exist everywhere…so will setbacks. It is how you as a student or your child as a student responds that will ultimately define your/their success.
Wow. Sounds like someone needs to just press “decline” for UF and move on.
@moscot I don’t know why you are so defensive about UF’s selection process for their honors program. The criticism that giving more weightage to essay than academics/EC and letting honors students grade the essays of the applicants is a fair one. Reasonable people can disagree on these points but your contention that no one should criticize this because it is “their” college to run and they are ranked highly is ridiculous.
Every single one of them. About 12
IMHO, if a school is ranked 7 public / 34 national with high admissions stats and a low acceptance rate, the entire school is essentially an honors college, so why even designate an honors program?
An honors college seems more worthwhile for top students at lower ranked schools with lower stats and acceptance rates.
I guess they have to have a subjective way to discern between thousands of kids with elite stats. Only other way I can think of is a lottery.
For all this talk about students reading the essays, I gotta say they were probably right in my son’s case if I’m being honest. Smart kid with top grades/scores and all the rest, but his essays were, well… meh. It’s not that he can’t write. He writes well. He just doesn’t have anything to say yet. Many kids don’t at 17 years old.
A lot great point being made and we will never get down as to why this one did not get in or why another one did. Holistic or not holistic it does come down to a somewhat subjective result. This is no different than having a 4.0/35 ACT student getting declined for admissions or honors. It happens and this is not unique to UF. It happens at Michigan, UGA, OSU, Illinois, Harvard, etc. A lot of incredible and talented applicants do not get accepted into many great schools or programs. The Common ap has made incredibly challenging for a lot of these Universities since they are now getting thousands of applications. The admissions process gets even more complex. Even UF just started super scoring the ACT. How many 28’s are now becoming 31s or how many 30’s are becoming 33s? Does this kid now have a shot a UF whereas in years past it was not even a possibility?
Florida received closer to 50K applications for a 6500 class. Florida State received close to 60K applications. An incredible number for a school that not that long ago was receiving about 25K/30K applications. It is easy to see why these schools (among many) are becoming more and more competitive every year. They are all aiming to be among the most Elite Universities in the country.
Sometimes, you have to breathe and take these decisions in stride. This is the reason, everyone should apply to a bunch of schools in order to have some options. Not getting into Honors is really not the end of the world. There are so many people who have been blessed for the opportunity to attend UF, which is an achievement by itself.
MODERATOR’S NOTE:
Take the back-and-forth bickering to PM, if it needs to be continued at all; it has no place on this thread. Several posts deleted.
Two facts from the UF Honors College website that say it all:
- "The application to the Honors Program consists of an ESSAY about your most meaningful extracurricular activity in high school and a pair of academic ESSAYS.... THE ESSAYS ARE ESPECIALLY IMPORTANT.... THE ESSAYS ARE READ BY CURRENT HONORS STUDENTS, AND THEY ARE TOUGH CRITICS."
- "Frequently Asked Questions about the LOMBARDI AND STAMPS SCHOLAR PROGRAM Q. DO I NEED TO APPLY TO THE HONORS PROGRAM? A. APPLICATION AND ADMISSION TO THE HONORS PROGRAM IS AN ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENT.”
Whether good or bad, It seems that UF has been very transparent with their process. No surprises there.
It’s not a secret how UF selects its honors students. It’s also well known that while UF is a great school, its honors program is not as good as those at other schools. The bottom line is that if you don’t like how a program is run, you have a choice to simply not apply. Also, if you are unhappy with your offer, you have a choice to decline.
Transparency does not justify a wrong. It opens the door to correction of the wrong.
Huh?
If your opinion is that the way honors students are selected is “wrong”, why did you apply?
I don’t understand why many people are getting frustrated when someone expresses their criticism of one aspect of the admission process. This a college confidential public forum, for crying out loud.
You can like the college overall but not like some aspect of the admission process. In that case, it is fair to express your opinion on that aspect of the process. It is also fair to make counter argument on why the said process is, in fact, fair. It is called discussion.
Statements like “why did you apply”, “decline and move on”, “they are raising in ranking” are shallow and does nothing foster an open discussion
Asking why someone would apply to a program knowing they think the selection process is “wrong” is a legitimate question. I genuinely would like to know. It’s like applying to a school that doesn’t offer ones’s major and then complaining afterward. I fail to see how that can be constructive or even a legitimate criticism.
We would never know why they accept or not accept XYZ applicants or who makes the cut vs those who do not make the cut. When a college says all applications are reviewed holistically, then it all becomes subjective. All the arguments have been fair, but at least it leads to this comment:
“Whether good or bad, It seems that UF has been very transparent with their process. No surprises there”
By the way, a lot of schools hire extra people in order to just review applications during application season. Who’s to say that these people are more qualified than those students reviewing some of these essays?
E
If college students are good enough to TA courses, including grading student work (essays, exams, etc) and recent grads are good enough to be admissions readers, I’m failing to see how UF’s process is wrong. Just because you don’t get accepted doesn’t make the process wrong or flawed.
@amsunshine In a world with unlimited choices, you can afford to pass colleges/programs that don’t fit perfectly your definition of fair admission process. In real world though, if you like the college/program overall, you apply to that college/program even if you think some aspects of their admission process is flawed. But that does not preclude you from being able to express your criticism of the said flaw.
Let us take your somewhat exaggerated example about majors. I like the college overall, but it does not have the exact major I like. I still decide to apply and enroll to that college for its other strengths. But if I believe the major I preferred is a good one to have, it is perfectly legitimate to express the opinion that the university should consider adding that major, explaining why.
My Daughter got in!
Accepted - Did not apply to Honors College
OOS - Mississippi
ACT - 33
GPA - 3.8
EC - Various Clubs/Service Organizations. Dance Team Captain, Extensive Ballet/Dance from outside school.
On the other hand, this person is not someone who thought the admissions to honors simply “didn’t fit perfectly” into his/her definition of a fair admissions process. This is someone who calls the UF system of honors admissions a “Mickey Mouse approach”; “ridiculous”, “outrageous” and “wrong.” Frankly, I’m truly surprised someone with such strongly negative feelings about the how the program is run applied to said program.
As for the example about majors, it is one thing to suggest a college might consider adding a specific major an admitted student might have preferred they had in the first place. It is quite another to suggest the fact the college does not offer that specific major is “Mickey Mouse”, “ridiculous”, “outrageous” or “wrong.”
eta: I don’t have a dog in this fight. My D and I carefully researched the UF Honors program and in the end, she did not apply because neither of us felt it would be worthwhile for her.