{"id":355,"date":"2022-04-23T20:15:01","date_gmt":"2022-04-23T20:15:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/admissionsyou.com\/?p=355"},"modified":"2023-04-02T14:44:27","modified_gmt":"2023-04-02T14:44:27","slug":"deja-vu-all-over-again","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/admissionsyou.com\/?p=355","title":{"rendered":"Deja Vu All Over Again"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A Response to the Wall Street Journal\u2019s Revelation that \u201cExtraordinary\u201d Isn\u2019t Enough for the Ivy League<\/em><\/h1>\n\n\n\n

With apologies to the always jocular Yogi Berra, I feel his oft-quoted observation after witnessing Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris hit back-to-back home runs time after time best sums up the Wall Street Journal\u2019s recent (04\/21\/22) observation: \u201cTo get into the Ivy League, \u2018Extraordinary\u2019 isn\u2019t always enough these days.\u201d It\u2019s deja vu all over again. Every year, some news outlet desperate for clicks, likes, or whatever metric they can sell to advertisers publishes the same story\u2026ADMISSION TO SELECTIVE COLLEGES IS REALLY HARD AND UNPREDICTABLE\u2026AND SEEMINGLY HEARTLESS<\/strong>. Cue Billie Eilish\u2019s iconic lyric, \u201cduh.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This year\u2019s tragic victim is Kaitlyn from McKinney High School in Texas. Without question, Kaitlyn appears to be an extraordinary student and person. Near perfect SAT score, two B\u2019s her sophomore year in an otherwise rigorous and unblemished transcript, and remarkable extracurriculars. Her teachers speak highly of her character. As so many of my parents like to say, \u201cshe checks all the boxes.\u201d While I am still searching for this proverbial list of admissions-assuring criteria, I understand why it has become ubiquitous. Everyone says the same thing from books, blogs (present company excluded, of course), YouTube videos, friends, rumors, etc. Follow this recipe, and you will get in. But, alas, as we all know in our heart of hearts, there is a mysterious, non-quantifiable side to selective admissions. It must be a dirty little secret shared only in darkened rooms that require a whispered password to gain entry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

SPOILER ALERT<\/strong>: There is NO secret. There is NO algorithm. There is NO ritual handshake. So, stop looking. Don\u2019t forensically examine a rejected application as if it were a lifeless body at a crime scene. I beg you to simply accept the reality that there are way more qualified students than spots available at the most selective schools.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Econ 101: Too Much Demand, Not Enough Supply<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Indicative of most Ivy League schools, Harvard\u2019s numbers are revealing. In 1982, Harvard admitted 2,200 students from an applicant pool of 12,000 high school seniors. Four decades later, more than 61,000 students applied to Cambridge\u2019s finest. Drum roll, please\u2026only 1,954 of that staggering group received the coveted big envelope welcoming them to the Class of 2026. That\u2019s right. Over the past forty years, the number of applications has grown 5x while the number of \u201cseats\u201d has actually gone down. (I will address why that number has remained steady while tuition prices have skyrocketed on another day.) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Schools like Harvard have an embarrassment of riches from whom to choose, which is shared by most in the US News & World Report Top 50 schools.  While I don\u2019t endorse rankings, it is informative to note that most of those institutions boast a 20% or less admission rate. Simply put, Kaitlyn is not alone. In fact, Kaitlyn\u2019s story is commonplace. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last year, Princeton\u2019s Dean of Admission, Karen Richardson, was asked how many students were denied a place in Princeton\u2019s incoming class despite being \u201croughly as good\u201d as the 1,800 admitted. In other words, how many \u201cKaitlyns\u201d were rejected? Hold on to your hat\u2026\u201d18,000\u2026we say \u2018no\u2019 to about 90% of the students fully qualified for the rigorous academic curriculum at Princeton.\u201d There are more than 25,000 high schools in the United States alone. By definition, there are at least 50,000 valedictorians and salutatorians, all of which are being told by their teachers, friends, and family to apply to the top schools. They are kids like Kaitlyn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, who are the \u201clucky\u201d ones? No one can tell you because, apart from being a recruited athlete, legacy, or offspring of a generous donor, there is no clear answer. Classes are crafted to be well-rounded and reflective of our diverse society, which many believe encourages the best learning environment. What this looks like from school to school or year to year is anyone\u2019s guess.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, what can you do?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In light of this admissions arms race, my best advice is to be realistic. A student\u2019s goal should never be school-specific. Don\u2019t fall in love! It too often will be unrequited. Rather, build a well-balanced list of schools reflective of your relative chances of gaining admission, your academic and non-academic interests, and your financial limitations. A good list will have more target and likely schools than reach schools. Find fit in all of them. Kaitlyn heard from Stanford, Harvard, Yale, Brown, Cornell, Penn, USC, Berkeley, Rice, and Northwestern. Those are ALL reach schools\u2026for EVERYONE. Ideally, she would have just as many target schools on her list. Unfortunately, I see too many students who fail to visit or research the actual schools they are most likely to be offered admission. It\u2019s the sweatshirt schools that get all the attention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you meet the academic profile for a particular school, the next thing to focus on is your application narrative. What is your story? Does it match your academic interests? If you hope to study business, what have you done in the summers to demonstrate that interest? Do your essays tell a positive story about your best values and traits? Are you genuine in explaining why you think you are a great fit for a particular school? Did you pick teachers to write recommendations that support your narrative? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the end, there are many non-quantitative factors that ultimately play a role in an admissions decision. Headlines like to focus on the numbers, but that is not how the sausage is made. Take AP courses because you want to be well prepared for college. Do the summer activities that genuinely demonstrate an interest or passion. Volunteer in your community to make it a better place. Participate in sports, mock trial, debate, or music because they make you smile. Do all of those things for the right reasons and you will have a genuine identity that will flourish no matter the campus you call home. So, forget about the schools that said no and embrace the ones that want you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It sounds like Kaitlyn found a home at Arizona State University\u2019s W. P. Carey School of Business. She is well prepared to find her calling at that wonderful institution. To all the Kaitlyns out there, continue to be extraordinary and prosper!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A Response to the Wall Street Journal\u2019s Revelation that \u201cExtraordinary\u201d Isn\u2019t Enough for the Ivy League With apologies to the always jocular Yogi Berra, I feel his oft-quoted observation after witnessing Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris hit back-to-back home runs time after time best sums up the Wall Street Journal\u2019s recent (04\/21\/22) observation: \u201cTo get […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":362,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-355","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-admissions"],"yoast_head":"\nDeja Vu All Over Again - admissionsyou.com<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/admissionsyou.com\/?p=355\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Deja Vu All Over Again\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A Response to the Wall Street Journal\u2019s Revelation that \u201cExtraordinary\u201d Isn\u2019t Enough for the Ivy League With apologies to the always jocular Yogi Berra, I feel his oft-quoted observation after witnessing Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris hit back-to-back home runs time after time best sums up the Wall Street Journal\u2019s recent (04\/21\/22) observation: \u201cTo get […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/admissionsyou.com\/?p=355\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"admissionsyou.com\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/admissionsyou\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-04-23T20:15:01+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-04-02T14:44:27+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/admissionsyou.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/0_xAlJCzfzqKhTGLks-2.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"512\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Mark Rome\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@admissions_you\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@admissions_you\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Mark Rome\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/admissionsyou.com\/?p=355\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/admissionsyou.com\/?p=355\",\"name\":\"Deja Vu All Over Again - 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