<p>I would have been admitted to my alma mater – a women’s college. I applied to 3 schools, Princeton, Brown and my alma mater. DId take the SAT a second time because I wanted to get my math score up to a certain threshold. Rejected at P’ton, admitted to Brown, could not afford it, so went to the women’s college which was supposed to be my financial safety. My law school, on the other, hand, I wouldn’t stand a shot at. </p>
<p>No way, but that’s okay. It wasn’t a good fit.
Today I would have applied to LACs instead.</p>
<p>I was accepted early action to Yale 32 years ago. My alumni magazine described recently how the percentage of applicants accepted has changed over the years, with a graph indicating the percentage for each year. Although my application was solid, I can’t say I would get in if I applied today because 1) the percentage was 20% the year I applied and <7% last year, and 2) applying to the most selective schools is a lottery-ticket kind of exercise. If one put in several identical applications, I have a feeling that some would succeed and some would not.</p>
<p>Please don’t put all of your eggs in one basket. I made sure my daughter did not, and we will see the outcome within two weeks. As I tell her, I have had a great job I love which pays well, and my colleagues come from colleges from all across the spectrum of selectivity.</p>
<p>I was accepted early decision to Tufts over 30 years ago. I doubt my stats would warrant acceptance based on the current test scores. My math score was in the range but my critical reading score came up a little light. Plus my son who is a much better student was wait listed a few years ago. So much for legacies at Tufts (would have been a third generation Jumbo)!</p>
<p>MThreeS: If you hang out a while on CC, you will notice a bunch of references to “recentered” SAT scores. In the mid-90s, College Board effectively changed the scale for SAT scores, with the effect that SAT I scores from the past 20 years or so aren’t directly comparable to prior scores unless the prior scores are adjusted. So your Verbal score (it wasn’t Critical Reasoning yet) probably wasn’t as light as you think. I don’t know all the differences, but I know that one of the biggest differences is that Verbal scores in the 600-790 range get adjusted upward by a meaningful margin.</p>
<p>I definitely would have gotten in. I went to a directional where the requirements are pretty much “graduated from high school or got a GED”. I don’t know that I would get a full tuition scholarship again as they now require an in person competition of some sort. Of course, back then, my $1200 a year scholarship covered full tuition. </p>
<p>I went to Vanderbilt 30 years ago. Graduated 2nd in my HS class, great grades, decent test scores. No way would I have a chance now. The valedictorian of our local high school didn’t get in last year.</p>
<p>I would have gotten into the same decent but nothing special national university I attended, but I would hopefully make a better choice - for me - of college than I did. I ignored all the good advice I got and applied to schools based on a pretty silly criteria and as a result was underwhelmed at where I went.
However, while my SATs were very good, my grades were lower than they should have been, I took only 2 APs and I don’t think our HS even had honor classes (back in the 70’s in my town). I had very few EC other than JV tennis and a few clubs, so not sure where I could get into today.
And what I really find interesting is that while the top schools are still the top schools 35 years later, there has been a big shift in many other schools that have really moved up in the rankings. Northeastern in Boston was a commuter school back then and now is much much harder and a reach and/or desirable school for many of the top kids in our Boston suburb.<br>
And my middle class parents paid for my school from my dad’s salary, savings and a few loans. No way we could pay that same tuition today even on 2 incomes, without merit or scholarship money!!</p>
<p>No way at UMD. My GPA was ok but my SAT score was abysmal. </p>
<p>I might need to lose a few pounds to get through the door. I’d better get in since it was the only school I applied to. </p>
<p>On paper, the 1980s me would not get admitted to my alma mater today. But this question is really comparing apples and oranges. In relative terms, I think I would. </p>
<p>For example, the top five or ten kids went to HYP schools. I was in the next tier down. But their stats back then did not equal today’s HYP admits. In my graduating class of over 700 there was only one class of AP Calc!</p>
<p>In my sons very small HS class there were several classes of Calc BC and many more of AB. </p>
<p>Undergraduate, I don’t know how hard it is today for in-state students, but I think so, if I still lived in that state.</p>
<p>Grad school? LOL! No way!!! </p>
<p>I attended Carleton in the 70’s. Got in with a 3.67 GPA, no AP’s, SAT 560v640m So no I wouldn’t have gotten in today I don’t think, even adjusting the SAT upward. </p>
<p>I wish I could go back and apply to much higher level schools- I was first generation college and I did the best I could. I was given no direction by the counselors who actually called me in twice to discourage me from going to college because my father worked in a steel mill. I was top of the class with the highest level you could take math and science and english and yes all A’s. I went down to the first counselor visit and listened, told him thank you, told him’ I am going to college 'and left. The second time I refused to meet with him. SAT’s were good considering no prep and only taking once. I paid my way. Not sure there were scholarships then, I went to the state flagship. Darn right I wish I could go talk to that counselor now (40 years later), but I did quite well without following his counseling. </p>
<p>Not a chance. I went to UVA. Applied and was accepted ED. Was a legacy, OOS, class pres multiple times, yearbook ed in chief, pres of this and that, NHS, etc, 16/305 class rank, survived death of my mother, decent SATs, but not a chance today. I’m not sure who gets in; I just know it seems impossible to get in! </p>
<p>Absolutely. I was a good student, NMF, etc, and would still get into Case Western Reserve U. I probably would no longer choose to attend but that is another matter.</p>
<p>Well I would have gotten in somewhere, but I don’t think it’s comparable. Today, a student like me - smart, intellectually curious - would not have fallen through the cracks the way I did. I had a 91 average and graduated in 3 years, and also earned a NYS Regents Scholarship. However, I did not take math or science after 9th grade (yes, NY State was pretty lax then) or any AP courses. I had some minimal ECs - Chorus, French Club, Photography Club, helped produce and performed in Talent Show - but zero community service. I really disliked my high school, had terrible advising and wanted to get out as soon as possible. I ended up working for 3 years at a variety of jobs, some OK, some really awful, lived on my own and then applied to Berklee College of Music and SUNY New Paltz (my boyfriend at the time graduated from there, great reason, right?). Accepted at both, but Berklee offered zero financial aid, so I went to New Paltz, which I really did like. But I could have done much more, had I had a clue. First generation college students got pretty bad advice back then - no College Forward or Project Advance programs.
Given that SUNY New Paltz is much more selective these days, my lack of science and math might have disqualified me, but who knows. Berklee offers better financial aid nowadays, but I don’t think I would have passed the present day audition! </p>
<p>Nope, wouldn’t have gotten in. GPA was hi 3-something, NM Finalist, class rank was 7 of 250, BUT I had few extracurriculars and only 1340 on SATs. I did have geographic and gender diversity going for me, but there’s no way I would get into MIT today. However, I did get in and graduated in 4 years, so maybe they were correct to let me in after all…</p>
<p>Absolutely yes, why I would not get into our local college? </p>
<p>I think what posters are saying miami, is that numbers of students and applications are way up from 30, or even 10 years ago, and that impacts acceptance numbers.
I know that my oldest college has almost halved acceptances from her admission 13 years ago, and since it is need aware, I expect that it is possible she wouldnt be admitted today.</p>
<p>Still, I suppose some schools have not increased applications/ competitveness, which is a blessing for those students who didnt realize till junior ir even senior year of high school, that they were interested in attending college.</p>