<p>Princeton reported 26,498 applicants for the Class of 2017, of whom it accepted 1,931 7.29 percent.</p>
<p>Of the applicants, 13,802 had SAT scores of 2100 or higher. Among the high schools that rank their students, 97 percent of the admitted applicants are in the top 10 percent of their class. In other words, only 3 percent of the admits werent in the top 10 percent of their class.</p>
<p>Let me ask about unhooked applicants those who arent recruited athletes, or members of a URM, or legacies, or development prospects, or whatever. If your SAT score is below 2100, isnt it more or less a waste of time to apply? The same goes for those ranking outside the top 10 percent of their class. </p>
<p>I see the number of applications going up every year, but not necessarily the number of applicants with a realistic chance of getting in. Couldnt you subtract the 12,696 applicants with SATs of less than 2100, to get an applicant pool of 13,802, and then subtract all the students in that group who arent in the Top 10 percent of their class? I feel like that would produce a much more realistic total of applicants who at least meet the minimum threshold for potentially being admitted.</p>
<p>If stats like this exist for past years at any of the highly selective schools, please point me in their direction Id love to see them.</p>
<p>Note that only 26% of the freshman class at Princeton submitted class rank, according to the 2012 CDS. For accurate class rank comparisons, you’d need to also consider the vast majority that did not submit rank.</p>
<p>
Data is available for some highly selective schools. For example, Brown and Stanford publish admit rate and number of applicants for different SAT/GPA/Rank. Links are below. I haven’t seen similar data for Princeton, aside from a 2004 Avery/Harvard study that graphed chance of admission by SAT percentile. The graph is at <a href=“http://s13.postimg.org/e60llqzvb/sat.jpg[/url]”>http://s13.postimg.org/e60llqzvb/sat.jpg</a> . The graphed survey participants were all students from well known HSs who had GPA ranks near the top of their HS class.</p>
<p>The admission facts for Brown at [Admission</a> Facts | Undergraduate Admission](<a href=“Undergraduate Admission | Brown University”>Undergraduate Admission | Brown University) mention a 7.2% acceptance rate for a 26-28 ACT (similar percentile to ~1830 to ~1950 SAT) vs 9.2% for all students. The Stanford admissions profile at [Applicant</a> Profile : Stanford University](<a href=“Page Not Found : Stanford University”>Page Not Found : Stanford University) mentions a 3% acceptance rate for 24-29 ACT (similar percentile to ~1720 to ~2000 SAT) vs 5.7% for all students. I’m focusing on ACT because combined SAT score isn’t available.</p>
<p>It’s not likely. However, if Princeton is your dream school, I might just throw in an app during the RD. For SCEA or EA, I’d focus on schools that are more in your reach.</p>
<p>If you look at this link [Admission</a> Statistics | Princeton University](<a href=“http://www.princeton.edu/admission/applyingforadmission/admission_statistics/]Admission”>http://www.princeton.edu/admission/applyingforadmission/admission_statistics/) you’ll see how low the percentage of students who are admitted with less than 2100 is to the class of 2016, as well as the statistic that 96% of that class ranked in the top decile of their high school. I believe the reason they look for these kinds of statistics is because it increases the probability that admits will be successful in a very rigorous academic environment. It is probably accurate to say that those students who had less than 2100 on their SAT’s and ranked below the top 10% of their class were otherwise hooked applicants - possibly athletes although most of them are very strong students as well.</p>
<p>It is a waste of time for most people. I think it’s a terrible game that the top schools are playing. All in the name of rankings. If there wasn’t a huge applicant pool then it couldn’t claim to be selective so it whips the kids into a frenzy, blind with the belief that the holistic admission process will save them </p>
<p>BTW the hail grail of stats is the information of the rejected candidates. I don’t think schools release much if any. But I suspect that if they did it would prove your point.</p>
<p>You know what, if you have <2100 SAT/not the highest ranking but are interested in a particular Ivy League/super selective school I’d say go for it. One extra app isn’t a whole lot of extra work and they have to admit SOME people with sub 2100’s so you may get lucky. Who knows. Just don’t apply to a whole bunch if your stats aren’t up there.</p>
<p>And blah, blah, blah, GPA, class rank, SAT score, extracurriculars, essay, blah, blah, blah. I’ve given up on understanding how Ivy League admissions work and what you “have to do” to get in. No one knows. You need a high GPA and standardized test score. Beyond that…eh. I’m interested in Princeton. I’m applying. I’m interested in my less selective state schools. I’m applying there as well.</p>
<p>I totally agree with you Sparkle. I think the trick is to find some less selective schools that you are interested in as well. That way you have options, and you aren’t crushed if you don’t get into an ivy.</p>
<p>If there are any fellow Pennsylvanians out there, take a look at Franklin and Marshall. It has a higher acceptance rate, but I found it to be very similar to Princeton. It even has an almost identical residential college system.</p>
<p>Was just talking to a buddy of mine from two years ago who is at Franklin and Marshall and will be a sophomore this year. I remember when he was applying to schools he wanted to go to Yale but it didn’t work out for him. From the way he talks, though, F&M seems like a pretty awesome place and he seems really happy there. (And, his girlfriend there is a dimepiece.)</p>
<p>‘Simply put, probably. Everyone who gets in with a sub-2100 GPA and sub-10% ranking has some other compelling reason they should be admitted. Every single one.’</p>
<p>Yeah, I kind of agree on this one. Even if it’s just being the kid of a faculty member. It’s pretty much true. Though you only apply to college once. If it is going to bother you for the rest of your life that you never applied, you should. But I wouldn’t waste an early application on it unless there is something else going on, either.</p>
<p>I do not think it is a waste of time at all. Princeton reviews their applications “holistically,” which means that they look at you as an entire package. This means that they will not just toss your application because of your lower SAT scores or lower class Rank. They will read your entire application no matter what. And do not freak out about the class rank thing. Those statistics have got to be a bit skewed because many high schools do not rank. Only a portion of the applicants come from high schools that actually rank their students. Also, even if you have perfect scores and grades, they still might not take you. It is all about what the school wants and needs. If they need more female engineers, than they will take girls who indicated they were interested in engineering with less stellar SAT scores than someone who has perfect SAT scores and grades but designated his/her interest as something that the school already has plenty of.</p>
<p>I just went thru a bunch a result threads and saw MANY <2100/top 10% non-hook applicants but this isn’t an automatic acceptance, obviously. You really never know with top schools</p>
<p>Is it an absolute waste of time to apply if my SAT score is below 2000 and I’m not even in the top 20 of my graduating class? However, I am a very strong writer and would plan to pursue voice performance there as well. I honestly think they’d laugh at my scores though</p>
<p>You are making one huge assumption. That high SAT scores and high GPA causes people to be successful. They don’t. Other traits like desire, heart, mindset, wisdom, intelligence, kindness(not niceness, look up Elliot Hulse), resilliency, etc. It just so happens that people with these traits tend to have high GPA’s and SAT scores. The misconception is, if you have a high GPA and high SAT score you have these traits.</p>
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