<p>So we had a nice list of 8 schools with a few reach,etc. DD has good rank, grades. She has gone through a SAT prep course and feels “good to go.” Her scores have gone up considerably, according to the prep company.</p>
<p>Here’s the rub: If her scores DON"T improve much, then our list will change quite a bit. We made her list based on her scores improving about 50 points in each. They have gone up about 100 in each section according to her prep and practice tests she took. </p>
<p>SO: Do we just wait till Oct. 29 when the scores come out and scramble to meet some Nov. 1 deadlines?
Have others changed the list after their scores come out? Just how definate should we be?</p>
<p>Certainly others change their lists after their new scores come out. Why not make up 3 lists…one list for if her scores don’t improve much or stay the same…another list for if her scores go up significantly…another list for if her scores go up dramatically. </p>
<p>Each list will have some different “reach” choices, but will likely have the same safeties and some of the same matches.</p>
<p>Then, when you get the scores…use the appropriate list.</p>
<p>:)</p>
<p>and…you can always make changes to your “final list” right up to application deadlines.</p>
<p>I think we made the final list tonight. It’s basiscally 7 reaches and 2 safeties. Surprisingly like older son’s list that way. He couldn’t find any matches he liked as much as American. The reaches will look slightly less reachy if his scores and grades improve, but they aren’t for the most part completely implausible. I think there are only 2 EA schools on the list, but he wanted to finalize the list because his history teacher wanted all the info a month in advance - including at least a rough draft of the essay.</p>
<p>It’s final because one teacher would like to have the entire list of schools at once and he wanted them a month before EA deadlines, but I think we could add one or two if we needed to.</p>
<p>I’m a little surprised that a 150 point change would change the list so dramatically. </p>
<p>Whatever the score, the reaches are likely to remain reaches. But I guess the concern is that some of the matches may become reaches and the safeties may become matches. </p>
<p>Which means finding a couple more safeties…that have higher acceptance rates and lower median test scores than the safeties currently on the list… just in case the scores don’t improve. Seems fairly straight forward. Especially if there’s a strong concern that the safeties will become matches (although…that takes us back to trying to figure out how 150 points in test scores…all else remaining equal…moves the bar so much on the list of 8.)</p>
<p>The November 1 deadline is really only for EA and ED. Hopefully you’re NOT considering which school is her ED choice based on her scores! Presumably, she still wants to apply ED to one, and keep going on her EA schools. The only difference, which 2boysima pointed out, is a shift in how you view the schools, not whether your D will apply there. So if her scores don’t improve, you just may need to add one or two more safeties.</p>
<p>If your daughter actually has November 1 deadlines, she needs to decide NOW, without waiting for her scores.</p>
<p>The college’s deadline is not the real deadline. The real deadline is the one set by her high school for sending out transcripts and recommendations (or in some cases, the deadlines set by individual teachers for writing recommendations).</p>
<p>That deadline is likely to be approximately now – if it hasn’t already passed – for Nov. 1 schools. Many high schools require a full month or longer to process a student’s paperwork.</p>
<p>Don’t put off an application because of “might be” test scores. Work with what you’ve got; most students’ SAT scores won’t improve as dramatically as 300 points, I’m sorry to say. </p>
<p>If this is for EA, send the app, school records and teachers’ recommendations in October, and note on the application when the later scores will be arriving. If this is an ED decision, have the application ready to go and the grades, etc. sent. You can always send another set of scores, and you can defer an ED application to RD with a call or e-mail to the admissions office.</p>
<p>S2 has a list, but what we’ve “activated” for transcripts so far are the 11/1 EA and 12/1 merit consideration apps. We’ll see what strategy he takes when we get some news in December – dropping a couple, choosing an ED II, etc. Don’t think we’ll be adding any.</p>
<p>mathmom, that is about the proportion on S2’s also. Mostly low reaches.</p>
<p>Why so many reach schools and no match schools? I think the best situation is when you have multiple options in April, not just one or two safeties. S1 made the mistake of applying to too many reach schools (these were schools that would be reaches for anyone). S2 applied to mostly match schools, a few reaches and 2 safeties. He was one happy senior in April with many schools to choose from. Also, a rolling admission or an early action acceptance in hand is a great stress reducer as well. So nice to know you are going to college somewhere!</p>
<p>There are no match schools because he visited them and didn’t like them or he rejected them for other reasons - too rural, too far away, too hard to get to, too small. He loves one of his safeties, it seems to be a perfect fit in every way, so I’m fine with the list. Come April he might even choose that safety over some of the other choices.</p>
<p>heartart,
Our state flagship is very good and S2 would be willing to attend. That gives him a bit of flexibility. He has three others where the Naviance data indicates he has a very good shot and that he also likes. No school goes on the list that he has not vetted, visited, and likes. Right now he has twelve total, though two are wavering. (Believe me, his “no thanks” list would be an excellent list in and of itself. Matches, reaches, safeties in fairly equal shares.) </p>
<p>Note I said the reaches are “low” – that’s as defined by the CC Stats Eval folks. A couple of those are schools that particularly like kids from the program S attends/likes IB diploma students/where S’s app is particularly strong. Naviance at our school is a well-maintained and very valuable tool and has helped inform what S’s chances are as compared to similar classmates. He has no mega reaches, no Ivies.</p>
<p>I don’t like the terms “safety” and “match” anyway. Always has seemed a little presumptuous to me. At our house, schools that my kids particularly like and have a reasonable shot of being accepted are called “targets” and that’s where the bulk of the work on essays, love, etc. are devoted.</p>