Question: My son was accepted by three colleges, and he has chosen the one he wants to attend. Are there samples somewhere of what to write the two schools he has decided not to attend? We would like to be as polite as possible and express thanks for the opportunities.

It’s a breath of fresh air–and good karma indeed–that your son will take the time to personally write to the two colleges he won’t attend. Although I firmly believe that almost anything we’d ever want is already out there somewhere in Cyberspace, I’m not sure where you’d find the samples you seek. So, instead, I’ll write them for you.

There are actually two versions of this letter that your son can compose. The first one is very short and sweet:

Dear [NAME OF COLLEGE] Admission Office: [Or, if your son has had contact with a specific admission official, you can write directly to him or her]:

[Your son’s name, school name, and school city/town]

Alternatively, if you don’t have to do too much nagging to get your son to write something longer, then admission officials would really value a more detailed letter that might include all or some of this information:

-the college he plans to attend

-any part of their recruitment effort that was especially worthwhile

That sample would look something like this:

Dear [NAME OF COLLEGE] Admission Office: [Or, if your son has had contact with a specific admission official, you can write directly to him or her]:

[Your son’s name, school name, and school city/town]

Your son can send his regrets via either e-mail or snail-mail, although I recommend the latter. It shows a little bit more effort, and it will also increase the likelihood that the note will be filed with your son’s other application materials. After all, you never know if he’ll decide to transfer in a year or two, so it can’t hurt to leave a favorable impression as he says farewell.

Hope that helps. Best wishes to you and your son as he embarks on his college career,

Share This

Question: I was recently placed on the wait list at all my top choices (Northwestern, Columbia, and Washington University in St. Louis). If a wait list letter requests that I do not submit any additional information, would it be in my best interest to follow instructions rather than sending a letter expressing my great and continued interest in this university?

If college admission folks say that they don’t want supplementary information, what they’re also saying is, “We’re flat out right now and don’t have time to process any more mail, including your heartfelt pleas for admission and your pledge of allegiance to our esteemed institution.”

BUT … you can still get your message across by asking your school guidance counselor to telephone the college in question on your behalf. Any time a student in my orbit lands on a wait list, I suggest that a call from the high school can be a plus. So, especially in this case, when you’ve been given a gag order yourself, it will be useful to ask your counselor to not only sing your praises in a phone call (or, at the very least, via e-mail) but also to say something like, “This guy will definitely enroll if admitted.” (And, if that’s not true, then go with “He is extremely interested in your university.”)

When colleges decide which students to admit from the wait list, it’s always a bonus for them to pick those who are sure to matriculate. Admission officials don’t like to waste time offering a place to candidates who will ultimately say, “Thanks but no thanks.” Thus, if one of the colleges that has waitlisted you is definitely your front-runner, you should be sure they know. If it’s the one that sent the “Don’t call us, we’ll call you” missive, then let your counselor do your talking for you.

Good luck to you as you wait. And don’t forget to send a deposit elsewhere by May 1st.

Share This

Question: How much consideration do graduate schools give to the prestige of the undergraduate institution that an applicant attended? I am currently a high school senior deciding to attend either UC Berkeley or USC. I am aware that although UC Berkeley is ranked slightly higher and has a “better” name value, it is MUCH more prestigious and competitive than USC. Hence, I am wondering if it is worth the trouble to go through this academic challenge at UC Berkeley. I’m not saying that I won’t be challenged at USC. I’m just saying that UC Berkeley academics are known to be more difficult. I want to major in economics, and I ultimately want to attend graduate school in four years, so is Berkeley the better choice for me?

For starters, you are making too much of the differences between Cal Berkeley and USC. Unless you’re talking about the University of South Carolina (and I suspect that you’re not) then the admission standards at the two colleges you cite are strikingly similar. I urge you to make your choice based on the campus that you feel is the best one for you now, and not that will serve as the most likely springboard to affirmative grad school verdicts down the road.

But let’s pretend for a minute that these standards really are far apart, as you seem to believe. Even so, graduate schools like to admit a diverse swath of applicants, just as undergraduate colleges do. “The Dean” is often asked if private high schools are “better” than public ones, when it comes to Ivy and “elite” admission, and that always spurs a long diatribe that ends up sounding a lot like “it depends.” Both paths will certainly get you where you want to go, so the “it depends” part pertains to what you’re looking for along the way.

Similarly, graduate admission officials endeavor to select a variety of applicants and, in doing so, they draw from a range of undergraduate institutions. They are far more interested in the individual student’s achievement and potential than they are in the name on his or her college sweatshirt. However, they do take into account the rigor and competition of the undergrad school, and they understand that B’s at one college may be closer to A’s at another.

In your case, however, I suggest that you try to decide where you can best see yourself for the next four years rather than attempting to view each option through the lenses of the grad-school admission committees. You have two excellent choices, and I wish you well as you make your final decision.

Share This

Question: I have an overall weighted GPA of 3.51. My SAT scores are: Critical Reading 550; Math 480; Writing 500.What are my chances of getting into college?

There are so many colleges and universities that will accept a student with your credentials that your head may spin from the all the options. We hear so much about the hyper-competitive schools such as the Ivies and their ilk, but–in reality–the vast majority of institutions accept many more students than they turn away, and an applicant with a strong “B” average like yours will be most welcome.

How do you seek out your best bets? There are numerous approaches. For starters, if you have not done so already, try an online search engine such as the College Board’s “Matchmaker” at http://collegesearch.collegeboard.com/search/adv_typeofschool.jsp .

Answer the entire questionnaire, selecting your preferences for type of school, size, location, majors, extracurriculars, etc. When you get to the “Admission” section, enter your current SAT scores and check “50-75% had GPA of 3.0 or higher.” When you hit “Results,” you’ll find a list of colleges where you are likely to be admitted. While I can’t guarantee that you’ll be accepted by all the schools that come up on this search, you should certainly be a very viable candidate at most of them. If you play around with the questionnaire and check the other GPA options, you’ll get additional choices.

Another place to look for college possibilities is on the “Colleges That Change Lives” Web site. See: http://www.ctcl.com/ This site and its 40 member schools are the by-product of a book by the same name by education writer/consultant Loren Pope. The book points out that it can be the less renowned, smaller institutions that really give students the chance to know each other, their professors, and themselves–something that can get lost in the shuffle at a bigger …or bigger NAME .. institution. Note that the Colleges That Change Lives organization holds events throughout the country, and there may be one coming up near you.

Finally, don’t discount the grapevine … i.e., word of mouth … as a good way to learn about possible target colleges. Ask any adults you respect where they attended college Eavesdrop on conversations in elevators or supermarket checkout lines. Read the College Confidential discussion forums to see where students with similar profiles have been happy and engaged. Obviously, once prospective schools land on your radar screen, it’s up to you to do additional research to see if the place is really a good fit … and visit campus whenever possible.

But don’t think for a minute that college acceptances will be an uphill battle for you. Sure, the application process can be confusing and onerous at times, but if you plan carefully, you should have some excellent choices when the dust settles.

Good luck!

Share This

Question: I’ve been told that before my son takes a gap year, he has to apply to–and be accepted by–a college, then talk to them about deferring admission for a year. I was under the impression that he could apply for college during his gap year. Which is correct?

Your son can certainly wait until his gap year to apply to colleges. However, this might be a little tricky if he plans to be far away from home or in any sort of situation where he won’t have regular access to the Internet and e-mail. (Yes, it’s still possible to go through the process without technology, but it sure isn’t easy!) Also, before your son graduates, he might want to consider soliciting references from his teachers and guidance counselor, but that isn’t an imperative either, as long as he’ll be in a position to stay in touch with them during his year off.

So, don’t worry, it looks like you got some bad info from the grapevine this time. Not only can your son wait until his gap year to make his college choices and complete his applications, but also this may be a sound approach because his gap-year experiences could significantly affect what he wants to do and where he wants to be. Waiting those extra months to apply to colleges should also add a bit of sanity to his senior year.

Share This

Question: My son received a rejection letter from Fordham (his dream school). As you can imagine, as a parent, I feel helpless and want to help. I called the school and asked about their appeal process. They told me that they rarely overturn their decision. I’ve committed to writing an appeal letter on behalf of my son and wanted some advice. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Is a heartfelt or factual letter better? Please help.

My condolences on your son’s Fordham news. As a parent myself, I know how painful it can be to endure a child’s disappointment. In a minute I’ll give you the appeals suggestions you request, but–before I do–I’m going to make you suffer through one other important suggestion. I know you want desperately to help your son right now, but, truly, the best help you can give him is to help him to move on. Learning to face disappointments and rise above them is a valuable life lesson … perhaps more useful than anything your son will learn in college, whether at Fordham or elsewhere. Certainly many teenagers become focused on the idea of a “dream school,” but we adults should realize that there’s not a single perfect college for anyone.

Read the College Confidential threads written by those who enrolled in “Safety Schools” and flourished there, and you’ll see what I mean.

This succinct post by “GoldShadow” echoes the thoughts of many others: “I ended up going to my last-choice college, and at first I was pretty disappointed. I went in planning to transfer, but I didn’t. Two years later, I’m as happy as can be and I love it here.” Sure, not everyone fares as well as this … but that’s also true for some who attend a top-choice school. So, because you do want to support your son at this difficult time, I urge you to discuss his other options with him and inspire him to get excited about the choices he does have.

Most college officials I know are befuddled by the idea that students and parents now routinely “appeal” admission decisions as if they were capital murder convictions. In fact, an appeal should be saved for only the most extenuating circumstances. The college folks have just been through several frenzied months of evaluations, often making some very tough calls. The last thing they expect to do is to start all over again.

Thus, appeals letters should be submitted only by those who have some significant new information to submit or who feel that, for whatever reasons, the original application was inaccurate or misleading. Some examples of this might include:

-A student is seriously ill all fall and his mid-term report included several “incompletes.” The student has now made up those grades and done very well.

-It comes to light that a school counselor did not provide adequate–or accurate–references or other materials.

-The College Board made an egregious scoring error which was just recently discovered (and we know this can happen!)

If you feel that your son’s application did not truly reflect his abilities in these ways–or others like it–then this sort of “factual” appeal may be in order. Do not, however, write a letter that simply reiterates the accomplishments and strengths that were already on the application. Likewise, if the thrust of your plea will be, “This is a great guy who is desperate to attend your school …. how can you overlook him?” then you and your son are better served by starting the moving-on process right away.

But if you insist on writing an appeal letter anyway, then I advise your son to write one as well. His case will not be strengthened if admission folks see mom or dad fighting his battle.

While it’s important that your son should get psyched about a school that is welcoming him, it’s also okay to remind him that many colleges do accept transfer students who were not admissible as freshmen. F. Scott Fitzgerald once said, “The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function.” Similarly, your son can head off to school next fall determined to love where he is but also aware that, if he does well there, he will have a good shot at Fordham as a transfer.

Finally, as I often tell students and their parents at this trying time of year, as stressful as this process can be, there is often a meant-to-be outcome. Your son may reluctantly enroll in another college, but it will be there that he discovers his perfect major … or mentor … or mate (!). I have seen this happen many times over many years and am optimistic that your son, too, may find it true.

Share This

Question: We have always tithed to our church, and we give money to many charities, so we are thought to have more money available than we actually have. This is NEVER taken into consideration in any financial aid info I have seen. Is there any way to have our substantial donations considered when seeking aid?

Unfortunately, colleges will not officially consider your generosity when calculating financial aid awards. However, it might be helpful nonetheless to compose an explanatory letter to send to finaid offices at your child’s college (for current students … or to all the schools on the list, for prospective ones). Tell the officials exactly what you’ve told us here. In doing so, follow the Number-One Aid-Appeal Rule, which is to be sure to sound appreciative for any crumb they may deign to toss your way and never entitled to more. At many institutions, the financial aid officials do have some wiggle-room when it comes to determining your bottom line, so it won’t hurt to try this approach.

Presumably, if your church has scholarship $$$ available, you have already explored this avenue.

Good luck!

Share This

Question: Our son did not get into the only school he applied to. We are looking for information to help make this next year as productive as possible — junior college? volunteer abroad? As well as looking for direction….

Sorry to hear that you’re scrambling at an already hectic time of year, but I do have to wonder why a student would apply to only one college. Did your son get poor advising at school or did he approach this process with an “all-or-nothing” determination to attend a dream college? In any case, as my Nana used to say, “Don’t cry over spilled milk.” It’s time to move on, and your son will certainly have plenty of options. In fact, this unfortunate situation may even be destiny’s way of telling him that he was barking up the wrong tree. Here are some ideas to start with:

-In early May, the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC) will post online its annual “Space Available Survey” and you can search, state by state, for colleges that are still accepting applications, even if their official deadlines have passed. While you won’t find Stanford or Swarthmore on this list, there are usually some quite-respectable–if not ideal–options.

See http://www.nacacnet.org/MemberPortal/News/Press/07SAS.htm (but only after the first week or so of May)

-There are also many colleges and universities whose application deadlines have not passed. Trying using the College Board’s “Matchmaker” search engine: http://collegesearch.collegeboard.com/search/servlet/advsearchservlet?buttonPressed=next&navigateTo=5 Your son should fill out the Matchmaker questionnaire, selecting all his preferences (size, location, etc.) Then, when he gets to the section called “Admissions,” he should select the option that says “More than 75% of applicants admitted.” Many of these schools will still be accepting applications.

-Finally, consider a year-off alternative. Your son may decide to work, to pursue an extracurricular activity in depth, to enroll in community-college or “continuing education” classes at a local university, or take part in some sort of organized “Gap Year” program. I’ve heard excellent things about City Year (http://www.cityyear.org/home.aspx ) One great thing about City Year is that participants are actually paid a stipend for their efforts, while many other structured gap-year programs can be pretty pricey. Massachusetts-based “Dynamy,” offers gap-year “internships in MA and CA, too. http://www.dynamy.org/ There are some other great year-off programs, too, but those are just two to get you started.

Do be aware, though, that if your son does a program like City Year or Dynamy and then reapplies to colleges, he probably won’t have a much better chance at the school that already turned him down. If he takes college-level classes and does well, he MIGHT. However, after a non-academic gap year experience, his priorities may have changed anyway, and he can apply to a NEW list of colleges … one that’s more on target than his original goal might have been.

Above all, please assure your son that, although he may feel frustrated and hurt right now, the college-admission process is a capricious one, and the decisions that students receive–both good and bad–don’t really say anything about what kind of people they are nor about the happiness and success that awaits them. I could tell your son many tales of famous college “rejects” who can now look back on their denial letters and laugh, no matter how painful they were at the time.

Share This

Question: We have a high-achieving, loves-a-challenge 8th-grader who will be attending a high school that offers IB and AP. Which of the two do college admissions prefer?

A growing number of high schools seem to be offering both AP and IB, and thus many parents (and students) are befuddled by their options.

In terms of college admissions, it doesn’t matter which you choose. College applications ask guidance counselors to indicate whether a student’s academic program is “Most Demanding,” “Very Demanding, “Somewhat Demanding,” etc. when compared with what is offered at that school. Unless a student has a big “hook” (recruited athlete, underrepresented minority, VIP, legacy, et al), then only those in the first category get serious consideration at the most competitive colleges. Both full IB programs and AP-laden programs generally earn the “Most Demanding” designation. You can certainly check with the school counselor to make sure that this is the case at your son’s school, too.

Note, however, that I say “full IB programs.” In many high schools, students can sign on for some selected IB classes without shooting for the whole diploma, and I’ve seen admission officials act sort of snooty about that. So, before you commit to either route, be certain that you and your son understand what the complete IB program entails in terms of course selection, time commitment, etc. Your school should have some materials that explain how IB works. You can also check out the official site at http://www.ibo.org/ or read this very reasonable Wikipedia summary at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Baccalaureate If you’re wary about jumping in with both feet, then the AP road might be the better one to take.

Another consideration to keep in mind is that the more selective colleges often give college credit only for IB classes taken at the “Higher Level” (”HL” in IB lingo). IB students take three classes at that level and the rest at the Standard Level (”SL”). Some colleges give credit only for IB exam scores of 7 (the top); some for lower scores. Thus, even the most outstanding students may only get college credit in three areas, while AP students could end up with credit in many more subjects, depending on how many AP classes the student takes, how he fares on the exams, and what the college’s credit policy is. Some parents and students report that they have to jump through more hoops for IB credit than for AP credit, especially when students are not at the most selective colleges. In any case, once you start investigating AP and IB credit policies, you may feel like you need Cal Tech degree just to figure it all out. Each college seems to somehow manage to come up with an AP/IB credit-awarding system that is just a tad different than the next guy’s!

Of course, for many AP and IB students, earning college credit is not a priority. Most students are focusing primarily on having an engaging high school experience and on impressing admission officials in the process. If they’re shooting for the Ivies and other hyper-competitive colleges, these students aren’t necessarily looking to arrive with credits under their belt nor do they intend to rush through in three years (even though it might save Mom and Dad a bundle of dough).

As you make your plans, also don’t forget to also look into miscellaneous “logistical” considerations. Find out how your son’s choice of program might affect other options in the school day. For instance, do scheduling constraints mean that IB students cannot sign up for chorus, orchestra or yearbook? Do IB students take all their classes together and are never–or rarely—in class with non-IB students? Do they have a separate lunch period that segregates them even more? (In some schools, this can be a minus, in others, a plus.)

But the bottom line is this: If your son is looking for a challenging high school experience that will also “look good” at college admission time, then he can’t go wrong with either AP or IB.

For some additional thoughts, here are links to a Washington Post article by noted education/admissions writer Jay Matthews and also to an IB vs.AP thread on the College Confidential discussion forum:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A47562-2004Dec8.html

http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/princeton-university/168664-ap-vs-ib.html

Share This

Question: Can you please explain what Rolling Admissions means and how colleges determine when to send out your decision?

“Rolling Admission” colleges and universities evaluate applications as they arrive, and decisions are mailed shortly thereafter—usually within two months. Places are filled on a first-come, first-served basis. Thus, when considering Rolling Admission schools, it usually makes sense to apply as soon as possible. I say “usually” because, if your junior grades were weaker than your norm or if you’re hoping to improve SAT or ACT scores, then it can be wise to postpone your application until you have stronger stuff to show the colleges.

Note, however, that Rolling Admission plans may have financial aid and/or housing “priority deadlines.” Try to apply well in advance of these since latecomers can be disappointed.

Most Rolling Admission schools will tell you (either right on their Web site or by phone, if you call to ask) what sort of turnaround time to expect … two weeks, two months, etc. Sometimes this can vary depending on the influx of applications at the time you submitted yours. Also, if all of your materials have not arrived, then your application may be put back on the shelf, and you will be stuck at the end of the queue. This can postpone your verdict for weeks … or forever, if your materials don’t show up eventually.

Thus, as an applicant, it is your responsibility to make sure that all application components have reached their destination. (Just because you’re certain that you sent them doesn’t mean that they were received or properly filed.) If you haven’t gotten a response from a Rolling Admission college within the time frame you anticipated, then you should check right away–if you haven’t done so already–to make sure that your folder isn’t gathering dust in the “Incomplete” pile.

Hope that helps. Good luck to you as your college verdicts “roll” in.

Share This