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- Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
- Kategorie: Bildung
- Sprache: Englisch
Make sense of college admissions and prepare a successful application Admission Matters offers comprehensive, expert, and practical advice for parents and students to guide them through the college admissions process. From building a college list, to understanding standardized tests, to obtaining financial aid, to crafting personal statements, to making a final decision, this book guides you every step of the way with clear, sensible advice and practical tips. This new fourth edition has been completely updated to reflect the latest changes in college admissions. including new developments in standardized testing, applications, financial aid and more. Questionnaires, interactive forms, checklists, and other tools help you stay focused and organized throughout the process.. With the answers you need and a down-to-earth perspective, this book provides an invaluable resource for stressed-out students and parents everywhere. Applying to college can be competitive and complex. Admission Matters offers real-world expert advice for all students, whether you're aiming an Ivy or the state school close to home. It also includes much needed guidance for students with special circumstances, including students with disabilities, international students, and transfer students. In addition, athletes, artists and performers, and homeschoolers will find valuable guidance as they plan for and apply to college. * Understand how the admissions process works and what you can and cannot control * Learn how to build a strong list of good-fit colleges * Craft a strong application package with a compelling personal statement * Get expert advice on early admissions, financial aid, standardized testing, and much more * Make a final decision that is the right one for you Whether you think you've got applying to college under control or don't even know where to begin, Admission Matters is your expert guide throughout the college admissions process.
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Table of Contents
Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Part 1: What You Need to Know Before You Begin
Chapter 1: Why Has College Admissions Become So Competitive?
It Used to Be Simple . . . but Not Anymore
What Is Selectivity All About?
Why Is There So Much Interest in a Small Group of Colleges?
The Rankings Game
Why Are Rankings So Popular?
Admissions Rate and Yield and How They Contribute to College Frenzy
“I'll Make More Money If I Graduate from an Elite College”: A Myth
The Importance of Fit
Notes
Chapter 2: What Do Colleges Look for in an Applicant?
How College Admissions Has Changed
What Matters Now
The Academic Record
Standardized Tests
Engagement Beyond the Classroom
Personal Qualities: The Person Behind the Paper
Hooks and How They Help
Fitting It All Together
Notes
Chapter 3: How Do Colleges Make Their Decisions?
Who Works in Admissions?
What Happens to Your Application?
Tentative Decisions
How The Final Decision is Made
A Look Inside the UCLA Admissions Process
The Special Case of the Most Selective Colleges
The Role of Your High School Counselor
How College Access Programs Can Help
Should You Consider Hiring an Independent College Counselor?
The Parents' Role
Notes
Chapter 4: How Colleges (and Students) Differ: Finding What Fits
So Many Choices: How Do You Begin?
Some Questions to Ask Yourself
Community Colleges
Liberal Arts Colleges
Research Universities
What's in a Name?
Master's Universities and Baccalaureate Colleges
Specialized Programs
Colleges with Special Affiliations
Earning Your Degree Abroad, in English
Which Kind of College Is Best for You?
Majors, Careers, and Curriculum
How Easily Can You Get Advice and Help?
Determining Your Priorities
Notes
Part 2: Making the Right Choices for You
Chapter 5: Where Should You Apply?
Start at Your Counseling Office
Use A College Search Tool
Meeting College Representatives
Read What They Send You (but Don't Let It Go to Your Head)
How to Narrow Things Down
The College Visit
Selectivity and Your College List
Check out the Data
How Long Should Your College List Be?
The Key to a Good College List
A Word About Finances
Notes
Chapter 6: The Big Tests
What Are the SAT and ACT?
The Structure of the SAT and ACT
Content Tested by the SAT and ACT
Pacing of the SAT and ACT
How Are the Tests Scored?
How Much Do Standardized Tests Count?
How Do the PSAT and PreACT Fit into the Picture?
Which Test Should You Take?
How Important Is the Essay?
How Does Test Prep Work?
When Should You Test?
The National Merit Scholarship Competition
The Case of Special Accommodations
The SAT Subject Tests
Test‐Optional Schools
A Word to Parents About Standardized Tests
Notes
Chapter 7: Deciding About Early Decision and Other Early Options
An Overview of Early Acceptance Programs
The Pros and Cons of Early Decision
Early Action in Detail
Should You Apply Early Decision or Early Action?
Likely Letters and Early Notification
The Advantage of Thinking Early Even If You Decide Against Applying Early
Notes
Chapter 8: Paying the Bill
Key Concepts for Understanding Financial Aid
How Colleges Determine Your Financial Need
What Forms Will You Have to File?
Getting an Estimate of Your Financial Need
What Goes into a Financial Aid Package?
Why Need‐Based Packages Can Differ from College to College
Will Your Need for Financial Aid Affect Your Chances for Admission?
How Merit Aid Works
Financial Aid for Veterans and Their Families
Other Scholarship Sources
Financial Aid and Your College List
Evaluating Aid After You've Been Accepted
Another Word About Early Decision
Planning Ahead When Your Child Is Young
Notes
Part 3: Tackling Your Applications
Chapter 9: Applying Well, Part I: The Application and the Essay
Getting Off to A Good Start
Application Choices
Writing an Effective Personal Essay
An Important To‐Do List
Notes
Chapter 10: Applying Well, Part II: Advice to Parents and Students
Getting Great Letters of Recommendation
Shining in Your Interview
Showing That You Are Interested
Highlighting What You've Accomplished
The Canadian, British, Irish, and Dutch Difference
You've Finished Your Applications—What's Next?
Notes
Chapter 11: Making the Most of Your Special Talents
The Student Athlete and Athletic Recruitment
Options for the Student Artist
Notes
Chapter 12: Students with Special Circumstances
Students with Disabilities
Tips for Homeschoolers
Making a Change: How to Successfully Transfer Colleges
Notes
Chapter 13: Advice for International Students
The Advantages and Disadvantages of Being an International Applicant
What Are Colleges Looking For?
How Will Your Application Be Reviewed?
Where Should You Apply?
The Role of Standardized Tests
Tests to Show Proficiency in English
Getting the Application Completed
Paying for Your Education
Special Circumstances
The Bigger Picture
Notes
Part 4: Bringing the Process to a Close
Chapter 14: Making
Your
Decision After the Colleges Make Theirs
How Will You Be Notified?
The Special Case of Early Decision
What You Can Do If You Are Deferred
When It Is Your Turn to Decide in the Spring
Dealing With Disappointment
Spring Admits
Taking Another Look
Revisiting Financial Aid
How Wait Lists Work
Deposit Ethics
Should You Consider a Gap Year?
A Word About Senioritis
Celebrate and Enjoy!
Notes
Chapter 15: What Matters Most
Some Parting Thoughts for Parents
Some Parting Thoughts for Students
Appendix A: College Research Worksheet
Appendix B: Essay Prompts, 2017–2018
Common Application
Universal Application
Coalition Application
Cappex Application
Appendix C: Financial Aid Shopping Sheet
Appendix D: Cost of Attendance Worksheet
College Preparation Time Line
Freshman Year
Sophomore Year
Junior Year
Senior Year
What if you are Beginning Your Search in Senior Year?
Resources
General Admissions Information
Reference Guides to Colleges
Narrative and Evaluative Guides to Colleges
Special Focus Guides
Test Preparation
Essay Writing
Advice for Artists
Advice for Athletes
Special Circumstances
Financial Aid
International Students
Gap Year
Studying in Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Holland
About the Authors
Index
End User License Agreement
Guide
Cover
Table of Contents
Begin Reading
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PRAISE FOR Admission Matters What Students and Parents Need to Know About Getting into College
Fourth Edition:
“If you are looking for a book where you can get the best possible advice from authors who have the ability to anticipate and answer your questions with a marvelous combination of experience and insight, then this is the book you need to buy . . . quickly!”
Gary L. Ross, vice president and dean of admission, Colgate University
“Written by deeply experienced and respected professionals, Admission Matters aims to ‘empower students and their families to make good choices . . . and retain their balance and sanity at the same time.’ Bullseye!”
Philip Ballinger, associate vice provost for enrollment and undergraduate admissions, University of Washington
“You can't ask for a better introduction into college admissions. From exploring colleges, to applying, and deciding, Admission Matters continues to be an essential, comprehensive book for high school students and families.”
Art D. Rodriguez, dean of admission and financial aid, Vassar College
“Admission Matters demystifies college admissions like no other book has, with the most current information on testing, paying for college, and finding the right college.”
Robert Massa, senior vice president for enrollment and institutional planning, Drew University, and former vice president, Dickinson College and dean of enrollment, Johns Hopkins University
“I absolutely love this book and highly recommend it as a must‐read resource for students and parents going through the college admission search and application process. It's easy to understand, current, and contains spot on advice.”
Bob Bardwell, school counselor and director of school counseling, Monson High School (MA)
“A thoughtful, thorough tour of the college selection process. Admission Matters goes well beyond the basics, and invites the student to personalize the college process as few books do.”
Patrick O'Connor, associate dean, college counseling, Cranbrook Kingswood Upper School (MI)
“Clear, comprehensive, and sane advice from trusted experts. This updated guide provides a road map to what is often a bewildering and anxious process for students and families.”
Debra Shaver, dean of admission, Smith College
“Comprehensive, insightful, based on current research and insider expertise. A straightforward guide to today's complex college admission process that is anything but straightforward.”
Bruce Reed, co‐founder, Compass Education Group
“I wish I had this book when my daughters were applying to college. Admission Matters somehow finds clarity amidst the complicated set of confusing, even contradictory college admission practices.”
Kirk Brennan, director of undergraduate admission, University of Southern California
“An enormously useful and easy‐to‐read guide to getting into college. While others may claim to be the ‘gold standard,’ this one is the real deal.”
Nancy Griesemer, independent educational consultant and long‐time blogger on colleges and the admissions process
“All readers of Admission Matters—whether students, parents, or counselors—will benefit from the deep insights and expertise of the authors. Accessible and a good read, the book provides much needed guidance for the college admissions process.”
Sam Carpenter, senior assistant director of admissions, Duke University
“This book is a ‘must read’ for all families going through the college admissions process. If you are looking for a guide to help you approach the college search in a meaningful way, this is the book for you.”
Angel Perez, vice president for enrollment and student success, Trinity College
“Admission Matters provides a straightforward, no nonsense blueprint to navigate the complex college admissions process.”
Jon Westover, senior associate director of undergraduate admissions, University of Massachusetts, Amherst
“As an experienced counselor and the parent of a high school junior, I found this book packed with so many helpful and informative ideas to share with both my students and my own children. A must‐have for every college‐bound student's household.”
Kathi Moody, school counselor, Lynnfield High School (MA)
“This brand new edition of Admission Matters is just what the doctor ordered. It is filled with wise, up‐to‐date information and insider knowledge. Families will love it.”
Marjorie Hansen Shaevitz, author and founder, adMISSIONPOSSIBLE
“This is a must‐have resource for students and families navigating the college admissions process. The authors are respected, long‐time professionals and get it right from the search to enrollment.”
Jeff Rickey, vice president and dean, admissions and financial aid, St. Lawrence University
“Admission Matters is current, insightful, non‐dogmatic and the most inclusive book about the complex U.S. college admission process I have read. I can even see using it as a training manual for my new staff on the complexity of U.S. college admission; it is that thorough and in‐depth.”
Paul Thiboutot, vice president and dean of admissions and financial aid, Carleton College
“Admission Matters is the quintessential book for anyone who wants to thoroughly understand today's college landscape. It is a must read.”
Nanette Tarbouni, director of college counseling, John Burroughs School (MO)
“This is a valuable resource, with encyclopedic information on nearly every aspect of college admission. Whether you are new to college searches or a seasoned professional, you will find answers to detailed questions as well as a rich overview of this ever‐changing and complex process.”
Ralph Figueroa, dean of college guidance, Albuquerque Academy (NM)
“Filled with both common sense and sage advice, the fourth edition of Admission Matters is the only guide any high school student—and his or her parent—will ever need.”
Jennifer Delahunty, former dean of admissions and financial aid, Kenyon College
“This updated edition is a great addition to the library of any family with college‐bound students or any counselor's library.”
William S. Dingledine Jr., certified educational planner, past president Southern Association for College Admission Counseling
“Admission Matters is the single best comprehensive guide available to help students and their families avoid the harmful aspects of the ‘admission marketplace.’ The new edition continues that noble tradition by providing essential information and tools to make the college admission process sane, humane, and perhaps even, for its fortunate readers, a great voyage of personal growth and discovery.”
Michael Beseda, vice provost for strategic enrollment management, University of San Francisco
ADMISSION MATTERS
What Students and Parents Need to Know About Getting into College
FOURTH EDITION
Sally P. Springer
Jon Reider
Joyce Vining Morgan
Copyright © 2017 by Sally P. Springer, Jon Reider, and Joyce Vining Morgan. All rights reserved.
Published by Jossey-BassA Wiley BrandOne Montgomery Street, Suite 1000, San Francisco, CA 94104-4594—www.josseybass.com
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FOURTH EDITION
To our children
Acknowledgments
Many colleagues have shared our goal of improving the college admissions process for students and parents and have helped us, in ways large and small, in the writing of the fourth edition of Admission Matters. We are grateful to all of them: Jed Applerouth, Terry Axe, Carolyn Barr, Bonnie Burks Becker, Jeffrey Corton, Jeffrey Durso‐Finley, Frances Fee, Duffy Grant, Vicki Kleinman, Douglas Long, Marybeth Kravets, Nancy Hargrave Meislahn, Bruce Poch, John H. Provost Jr., John Raftrey, Bruce Reed, Zita Riedlová, Gary Ross, Pam Schachter, Beatrice Schultz, Catherine Sinclair, Leanne Stillman, Ken Suratt, Marilyn van Loben Sels, Sue Wilbur, and Kim Zwitserloot.
We are indebted as well to the Jossey‐Bass editorial team for the fourth edition—Kate Bradford, senior editor; Connor O'Brien, project editor; and Sharmila Boominathan, production editor—for guiding us so capably through the publication process.
Three people who have made lasting contributions to Admission Matters through all four editions deserve special acknowledgment and recognition. The insights and wisdom of Marian Franck, coauthor of the first edition, remain an integral part of the book. Lesley Iura, then education editor at Jossey‐Bass, saw the value and potential of Admission Matters when it first arrived on her desk more than 13 years ago. Later, as publisher at Jossey‐Bass, she continued to support Admission Matters as a valued part of the Jossey‐Bass list. Professor emeritus Håkon Hope has contributed encouragement, insights, and support from the earliest stages of planning for the first edition through the final stages of reviewing page proofs for the fourth edition. His dedication to his students and their academic and personal development has been an inspiration throughout.
Finally, we want to thank the thousands of high school and college students whose lives we have touched over the course of our careers, both in the classroom and as counselors. Their dreams and aspirations have encouraged us to try to ease the path for others yet to undertake the college admissions journey.
Introduction
It is easy to understand why the college admissions process has become such a challenge, and even an ordeal, for many students and their families. Everywhere they look, families are barraged by evidence of “college mania.” Online and print media regularly regale readers with horror stories about the competition involved in gaining admission to selective colleges as application numbers rise and admissions rates fall, sometimes dramatically in a given year. Classmates, neighbors, coworkers, and even virtual strangers are all too eager to share tales about terrific kids with great academic and extracurricular records who were denied admission by the colleges of their choice.
As likelihood of admission becomes harder to predict at many schools, students find themselves applying to an increasing number of colleges to protect themselves. Of course, one major consequence of such behavior is an overall increase in application numbers and corresponding declines in admissions rates at those schools, feeding the very problem students are hoping to address by submitting more applications.
Adding to the challenge is the continuing rise in the cost of college, with the sticker price at some private four‐year colleges now approaching $70,000 per year. Recent changes in the standardized testing policies of many schools, as well as changes in the tests themselves, have also contributed to the uncertainty surrounding college admission.
The result of all of this is that families often find themselves caught up in a high‐stakes competition in which they are uncertain about the rules and even more uncertain about the outcome. Parents feel uncomfortable trying to support their children in a process that they do not completely understand and are not sure they can afford. Even those who consider themselves knowledgeable may quickly find that much of what they know is out‐of‐date or based on unverifiable hearsay.
Frank Bruni, author of a widely acclaimed book entitled Where You Go Is Not Who You'll Be: An Antidote to the College Admissions Mania, dedicated his book as follows: “To all the high school kids in this country who are dreading the crossroads of college admissions and to all the young adults who felt ravaged by it. We owe you and the whole country a better, more constructive way.”1 We fully agree.
College admissions does not have to be, and should not be, an ordeal. A clear understanding of the process can empower students and their families to make good choices for themselves and allow them to retain their balance and sanity at the same time. That has always been the goal of Admission Matters, from its first edition in 2005 through this fourth edition today.
We have written this book to demystify the college admissions process by explaining how it works and to level the playing field for those without access to extensive assistance from knowledgeable high school counselors or sometimes any counselors at all. It will also help those who have access to good counseling but would still like some extra support. Our advice is designed for students planning to apply to any four‐year college, whether highly selective or not.
Admission Matters explains
How rankings motivated by profits contribute to the application frenzy
How the admissions process really works, and what you can, and cannot, control
The ways in which colleges differ that really matter
How you can build a list of colleges that are a good fit for you and submit strong, competitive applications to gain admission to them
How and why many colleges use standardized tests and how you can best prepare for them
What recent changes in standardized tests as well as testing policies at many schools mean for you
When an early application makes sense, when it can be a mistake, and how to tell the difference
How financial aid works, what you can expect from it, and how you can increase your chances of receiving more
How to prepare strong applications that can help you distinguish yourself from other applicants
What you—student and parent—can do to work together in appropriate and respectful ways throughout the admissions process to achieve a happy outcome
And much more. In this thoroughly revised fourth edition of Admission Matters, we have worked hard to address the many changes that have occurred in the world of college admissions since our last edition. We want you, our student and parent readers, to begin the college admissions journey confidently with the latest and most complete information available. As before, students with disabilities, international students, and transfer students will find much needed guidance to address their special circumstances, as will athletes, artists, and homeschoolers. Information for first‐generation college students and undocumented students is included as well. We want Admission Matters to continue to be the most up‐to‐date, clear, insightful, supportive, and practical book on college admissions anywhere.
We recognize, however, that you may want more information on certain topics than space allows us to include. To help you access that additional information easily, we have provided a list of resources, many of them on the web, that give detailed information on topics such as financial aid and athletic recruiting to supplement our own coverage. To keep Admission Matters as up‐to‐date as possible, we are maintaining a website with free updates and additional materials. You can find it at www.admissionmatters.com. We welcome your feedback.
We feel we are especially well qualified to be your guides. Among the three of us, we have more than 100 years of experience in secondary and higher education in the roles of high school teacher and college counselor, college admissions officer, college professor and administrator, and independent educational consultant. Collectively we have worked with thousands of students across the United States and abroad. We are also proud parents of successful college graduates, so we have experienced the admissions process firsthand from the parent perspective as well. We are delighted that our readers in the general public have found Admission Matters enjoyable and easy to read, and we are honored that professional colleagues use it widely as a text in courses on college admissions for those studying to be counselors themselves.
We hope Admission Matters will serve as your trusted road map through the college admissions journey.
PART 1What You Need to Know Before You Begin
Chapter 1
Why Has College Admissions Become So Competitive?
Chapter 2
What Do Colleges Look for in an Applicant?
Chapter 3
How Do Colleges Make Their Decisions?
Chapter 4
How Colleges (and Students) Differ: Finding What Fits
CHAPTER 1Why Has College Admissions Become So Competitive?
For members of the baby boom generation born between 1946 and 1964, applying to college was a pretty simple process. Those bound for a four‐year college usually planned to go to a school in their home state or one fairly close by; many considered a college even 300 miles from home to be far away. Few students felt the need to apply to more than two or three colleges, and many applied to just one. They chose their colleges based on location, program offerings, cost, and difficulty of admission, with a parental alma mater sometimes thrown in for good measure. For the most part, the whole process was fairly low key. If students did their homework carefully before deciding where to apply, the outcome was usually predictable. Of course, there were surprises—some pleasant and some disappointing—but nothing that would raise the issue of college as to the level of a national obsession.
IT USED TO BE SIMPLE . . . BUT NOT ANYMORE
Fast‐forward 50 to 60 years when headlines tell a very different story for students applying to college now: “Why Is College Admissions Such a Mess,”1 “Applied to Stanford or Harvard? You Probably Didn't Get In. Admit Rates Drop, Again,”2 “New SAT Brings New Challenges, Same Old Pressure,”3 “Best, Brightest and Rejected: Elite Colleges Turn Away up to 95%,”4 “How College Admissions Has Turned into Something Akin to ‘The Hunger Games,' ”5 “Why Colleges Aggressively Recruit Applicants Just to Turn Them Down,”6 and “The Absurdity of College Admissions.”7
Colleges themselves make equally jarring announcements. In spring 2003, Harvard announced that for the first time it had accepted just under 10 percent of the students who applied for freshman admission for the class of 2007, or about 2,000 out of 21,000 applicants. This was a new low not only for Harvard but also for colleges nationwide. But much more was to come. By spring 2016, the admissions rate at Harvard had fallen to 5.2 percent out of an applicant pool of over 39,000 for the class of 2020, and at least nine other colleges had joined Harvard in the “under 10 percent” club. Among them was the University of Chicago, reporting an admissions rate of less than 9 percent for the class of 2020, down from a little less than 16 percent five years earlier and just over 38 percent a decade before.
Many public universities, particularly state flagship campuses, have also experienced dramatic growth in applications as well as falling admission rates. For example, UC Berkeley received 82,000 applications for the freshman class of 2020 and admitted 17.5 percent. Ten years prior, the campus received fewer than 42,000 applications and admitted 23.8 percent.
These are just a few of the many colleges reporting record‐breaking numbers of applications and record‐low rates of admission, continuing a trend that began two decades earlier. What has happened to change the college admissions picture so dramatically in such a relatively short time?
Population Growth
The simple explanation seems to be supply and demand: more high school graduates than ever are now competing for seats in the freshman class. After declining somewhat in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the number of students graduating from high school in the United States has risen steadily. In 1997 there were 2.6 million graduates; by 2013, the number had grown to almost 3.5 million. Although the numbers are now declining slightly, they are projected to stay at or above 3.4 million until 2028.8
I don't think anyone is complacent about getting a high‐quality applicant pool.
Harvard University admissions officer
Social Changes
But it turns out that the increase in applications is not just because of population growth. Application numbers have risen much faster than the age cohort because of important social changes. Not only are more students graduating from high school each year but also a greater percentage of them are interested in going to college. Studies confirm that a college diploma increases lifetime earnings, and many desirable careers require education beyond the bachelor's degree. As a result, more students are seeking to attend four‐year colleges, including students from underrepresented minority groups who previously attended college at much lower rates.
At the same time, colleges themselves have increased their efforts to attract large, diverse pools of applicants. Many have mounted aggressive programs to spread the word about their offerings nationally and internationally. Through colorful brochures mailed directly to students, e‐mail blitzes and social media activity, visits to high schools by admissions officers, college nights at local hotels, and information booths at college fairs, colleges are reaching out to prospective freshmen in the United States and abroad with unprecedented energy and at great expense.
Sophisticated marketing techniques are used not only by colleges that may have problems filling their freshman class but also by colleges with an overabundance of qualified applicants. And it works! As a result, more and more college‐bound students have become aware of and are willing to seriously consider colleges far away from home. Rising standards of living across the globe are also contributing to the number of students from abroad, particularly Asia, choosing to study in the United States.
The Role of the Internet
In addition, the Internet has played a major role in how students approach college admissions. Although printed material and in‐person presentations still help students learn about different colleges, the web has become the primary source of information for students. Students can visit campuses through sophisticated online virtual tours and videos and find answers to many of their questions from college Facebook pages, FAQs posted on their websites, and by tracking college‐sponsored blogs and Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat feeds. Colleges have invested heavily in technology to showcase themselves.
The Internet has also made it easier than ever to apply to college. Applications can be completed and submitted online, saving a lot of the time and effort that traditional paper applications once required. Simplifying things even more, more than 700 colleges now accept the Common Application, a standardized application in which a student can put in his or her basic information just once and then submit it online to up to 20 of those colleges.
With admission harder to predict, students are now submitting more applications than ever before. Ten to 12 applications are now the norm at many private schools and high‐performing public high schools; 15 or more applications are not uncommon. Through technology students can apply to an ever‐larger number of colleges.
All of these factors taken together—growth in the population of 18 year olds, greater interest in college, sophisticated marketing efforts, ready access to information, and ease of applying made possible by the Internet—explain why it is harder to get into college now than ever before.
But even that is not the whole answer.
As word spreads about the competition for college admission, students respond by applying to even more colleges to increase their chances of acceptance. In so doing, they end up unwittingly contributing to the very problem they are trying to solve for themselves.
High school counselor concerned about the trend
Where the Real Crunch Lies
Many people are quite surprised to learn that with relatively few exceptions, most four‐year colleges in the United States still accept well over half of their applicants. In fact, each May, the National Association for College Admission Counseling posts on its website a list of hundreds of colleges still seeking applicants for the fall. Many of these have vacancies well into the summer. How can this fact be reconciled with the newspaper headlines (not to mention firsthand reports from students and parents) about a crisis of hyper‐selectivity in college admissions?
It turns out that the real crunch in admissions—the crunch that drives the newspaper headlines and the anxiety that afflicts many families at college application time—applies to only about 150 of the most selective colleges that attract applicants from all over the country and the world. What's wrong with all the rest? Nothing, of course, except that they aren't in that list of 150. Bill Mayher, a college advisor, summarizes the problem succinctly: “It's hard for kids to get into colleges because they only want to get into colleges that are hard to get into.”9
WHAT IS SELECTIVITY ALL ABOUT?
The percentage of students offered admission to a college is a major factor in determining its selectivity. As the number of applications to a college increases, its admissions rate decreases. Another key factor affecting selectivity is the academic strength of the applicant pool because strong applicants tend to self‐select when applying to certain colleges, especially some smaller ones, well‐known for their academic rigor. Both of these factors—admissions rate and strength of the applicant pool—help determine the selectivity of a particular school. Complicating matters even more is that some schools have different admissions processes for different programs, with some programs, such as engineering or business, more selective than others within the same school.
Our Definition of Selectivity
To simplify our discussion here, we define selectivity only in terms of admissions rate and define a selective college as one with an overall admissions rate of less than 50 percent. We further divide selective colleges into four categories: ultra‐selective colleges (those admitting less than 10 percent of their applicants), super‐selective colleges (those admitting less than 20 percent of their applicants), highly selective colleges (those admitting less than 35 percent of applicants), and very selective colleges (those admitting less than 50 percent of applicants). In the following box we include colleges that offer a broad array of programs and not those that have a highly specialized mission such as military academies, conservatories, or those offering instruction in only one academic area such as business. We will discuss these specialized programs further on in Admission Matters, but for now we are not including them in the data presented here.
production: please format this sidebar as it appears on pp. 6–7 of 3rd edition
Colleges by Admissions Rate for the Class of 2020
Ultra‐selective (less than 10 percent of applicants admitted)
Brown University
Caltech
University of Chicago
Claremont McKenna College
Columbia University
Harvard University
MIT
University of Pennsylvania
Pomona College
Princeton University
Stanford University
Yale University
Super‐selective (less than 20 percent of applicants admitted)
Amherst College
Barnard College
University of California, Berkeley
Bowdoin College
Colby College
Colorado College
Cornell University
Dartmouth College
Duke University
Georgetown University
Grinnell College
Harvey Mudd College
Johns Hopkins University
University of California, Los Angeles
Middlebury College
Northwestern University
University of Notre Dame
Pitzer College
Rice University
University of Southern California
Swarthmore College
Tufts University
Vanderbilt University
Washington University, St. Louis
Wesleyan University
Williams College
Highly Selective (less than 35 percent of applicants admitted)
American University
Bard College
Bates College
Boston College
Boston University
Bucknell College
Carleton College
Carnegie Mellon University
Colgate University
Davidson College
Emory University
Franklin and Marshall College
Georgia Tech
Hamilton College
Haverford College
Kenyon College
Lafayette College
Lehigh University
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
New York University
University of North Carolina
Northeastern University
Oberlin College
Reed College
University of Richmond
Scripps College
Skidmore College
Trinity College (Connecticut)
Tulane University
University of Rochester
Vassar College
University of Virginia
Wake Forest University
Washington and Lee College
Wellesley College
Very Selective Colleges (less than 50 percent of applicants admitted)
Baylor University
Binghamton University
Brandeis University
Bryn Mawr College
Case Western Reserve University
University of Connecticut
Connecticut College
University of California, Davis
Denison University
Dickinson College
University of Florida
Fordham University
George Washington University
Gettysburg College
College of the Holy Cross
University of California, Irvine
University of LaVerne
Macalester College
University of Maryland
University of Miami
University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
Muhlenberg College
North Carolina State University, Raleigh
Occidental College
Ohio State University
Pepperdine University
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
St. Lawrence University
University of California, San Diego
University of California, Santa Barbara
Sarah Lawrence College
Smith College
University of South Florida
Southern Methodist University
Southwestern University
Spelman College
Stony Brook University
Syracuse University
Texas Christian University
Trinity University
University of Tulsa
Union College
Villanova University
Washington and Jefferson College
College of William and Mary
University of Wisconsin, Madison
Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Note: This list is not all‐inclusive and omits schools with a highly specialized focus.
Our selectivity classifications are arbitrary, of course, and they don't consider the self‐selection factor we previously noted. Nevertheless, they provide a general idea of the relative difficulty of gaining admission to various schools. Although over 2,000 nonprofit four‐year institutions of higher education in the United States admit 50 percent or more of their applicants (and many admit at least 75 percent), many students focus their attention on the colleges that fall into the four groups we have just defined as selective.
The students applying to these colleges (and especially those in the super‐selective and ultra‐selective tiers) are the ones experiencing the “crisis” in college admissions. The crisis does not affect those applying to community colleges or seeking admission to the many colleges that accept most or all of their applicants. Nevertheless, it is very real to those who are applying to selective colleges in the next few years. You (or your child) may be one of them. In fact, that may be why you are reading this book. We will help you understand all aspects of the college admissions process, build a college list that is right for you, and submit strong applications.
But you don't have to plan to apply to schools we define as selective for this book to be valuable reading. If you'll be applying to some of the many schools that admit at least half of their applicants, this book will help you, too. All students need to understand the admissions process, and all face the challenges of identifying colleges that will be a good fit and then submitting strong applications. We wrote Admission Matters to help all students take the college admissions journey successfully.
WHY IS THERE SO MUCH INTEREST IN A SMALL GROUP OF COLLEGES?
What is behind the intense interest in the small group of colleges and universities that is driving the headlines about a crisis in college admissions, and, in particular, why is there a mystique surrounding the colleges in the Ivy League and a few others accorded similar status? Just what benefits do these elite colleges bestow (or do people believe they bestow) on their graduates?
Prestige, of course, is one obvious answer. The more selective a college, the more difficult it is to get into and usually the greater the prestige associated with being admitted. The student enjoys the prestige directly, and parents do so also by association. Parents are often the primary driver of the push toward prestige, but students also report similar pressures from peers in high school. And, of course, some students seek prestige themselves. Over the last generation, going to a highly ranked college has become a status symbol of greater value than almost any other consumer good, in part because, unlike an expensive car, it cannot simply be purchased if you have enough money.
Although some people openly acknowledge considering prestige in college choice, many more cite the assumed quality of the educational experience as the basis for their interest in an elite college. But this rationale often depends on the unstated and untested assumption that a good indicator of the quality of something is how much others seek it. People assume that selective colleges offer a better education: the more selective, the higher the quality. But is this really true?
Lots of times it's kids, I think, trying to define themselves by their school choice, not so much choosing the school that's right for them, but trying to look good through it. I'm not sure if they get it from parents or from other kids or from teachers. But they get it from somewhere.
Volunteer in counseling office at private high school
Take the eight colleges in the Ivy League, for example: Brown University, Columbia University, Cornell University, Dartmouth College, Harvard University, Princeton University, University of Pennsylvania, and Yale University. One counselor we know refers to them as the “climbing vine” schools to take away some of the glamour attached to the common brand. The Ivy League originally referred only to a football league. (At first, only seven colleges belonged. Brown eventually joined as the eighth member, although several other colleges were considered possibilities at the time.)
Over time, though, the term Ivy League became synonymous with prestige and a very strong academic reputation rather than an athletic league. The admissions rate of each Ivy places it in the ultra‐selective or super‐selective category. Certainly, each has fine students and faculty members renowned for their research. Everyone agrees that they are excellent schools, but do the Ivies automatically offer undergraduates a better educational experience than many other institutions? The answer, commonplace to those in academic circles but surprising to much of the public, is assuredly no.
Harvard is perhaps the most overrated institution of higher learning in America. This is not to imply that Harvard isn't a good school—on the contrary, Harvard is an excellent school. But its reputation creates an unattainable standard; no school could ever be as good as most people think Harvard is.
Comment by a Harvard student
THE RANKINGS GAME
A major contributor to the mystique of selective colleges has been the annual rankings of colleges published since 1983 by U.S. News and World Report. Over time, the rankings became so popular that they outgrew the magazine itself and became a separate annual guidebook simply called Best Colleges. A number of other rankings have emerged as competitors, but the U.S. News rankings are the best known and most influential.
Although U.S. News no longer exists as a print magazine, the rankings continue through the guidebook and an accompanying website published every year in August that feature extensive information and advice about applying to college, as well as rankings based on reputational and complex statistical formulas. The yearly rankings drive the sales of Best Colleges and generate considerable media attention and controversy among those, including us, who believe the ranking process is fundamentally flawed.
Concern about the rankings is not new. More than 20 years ago, Gerhard Casper, the president of Stanford University, expressed his concern about the rankings to the editor of U.S. News as follows: “As the president of a university that is among the top‐ranked universities, I hope I have the standing to persuade you that much about these rankings—particularly their specious formulas and spurious precision—is utterly misleading.”10
Some kids want that acceptance letter to Harvard, Yale, or Princeton so desperately, but they really do not know why except to impress family, friends, whomever. It is one thing to include prestige as a factor in your list of schools. It is a problem when it becomes the only factor, and I am seeing this more and more.
Private counselor concerned about the emphasis on prestige
What Goes into the U.S. News Rankings?
For the 2016 rankings, a little less than one quarter—22.5 percent to be exact—of a college's ranking is based on reputational ratings it receives in the poll that U.S. News conducts annually of college presidents, provosts, admissions deans, and a small group of high school counselors. The administrators are asked to rate the academic quality of undergraduate programs at schools with the same mission as their own (for example, liberal arts colleges or research universities) on a scale of 1 to 5 from “marginal” to “distinguished,” with an option to respond “don't know.” The counselors are asked to rate both liberal arts colleges and research universities. Many of the recipients of the questionnaire acknowledge that they lack the kind of detailed knowledge of other colleges that they would need to respond meaningfully. Why would the president of George Washington University be familiar with the undergraduate program at Georgia Tech? The response rate is usually fairly low: less than 50 percent for college administrators and less than 10 percent for the high school counselors.
The remaining 77.5 percent of a college's ranking is based on data collected in five categories, each weighted in the final calculation as follows: retention and graduation rate (22.5 percent), faculty resources (20 percent), student selectivity (12.5 percent), financial resources (10 percent), alumni giving (5 percent), and graduation rate performance (7.5 percent).11
U.S. News collects all of these measures annually for each college, puts them into a formula that weights them differentially, and then computes an overall “ranking.” To avoid comparing apples with oranges, U.S. News ranks campuses of the same type, so that research universities and liberal arts colleges, for example, are ranked separately. (We'll discuss the differences between these two kinds of institutions, as well as others, in chapter 4 when we look at factors to consider in choosing colleges.) Every few years, U.S. News slightly modifies its formula, ostensibly to demonstrate its precision and respond to criticism.
Overall, the rankings don't change much from year to year, although a school's position may bounce up or down a few notches because of a change in the formula or some aberration in a statistic reported for a given year. Does its quality relative to its peers really change significantly in one or two years? We think not. Critics of the rankings argue that meaningful changes in college quality cannot be measured in the short term and that U.S. News changes the formula primarily to appear fresh and up‐to‐date—and to sell more guidebooks.
Now more than ever, people believe that the ranking—or the presumed hierarchy of “quality” or “prestige”—of the college or university one attends matters, and matters enormously. More than ever before, education is being viewed as a commodity . . . The large and fundamental problem is that we are at risk of it all seeming and becoming increasingly a game. What matters is less the education and more the brand.12
Lee Bollinger, president of Columbia University
More Concerns About Rankings
Critics have pointed out that although the U.S. News variables may contribute indirectly to educational quality (perhaps higher salaries lead to more motivated faculty members, and smaller classes mean more personal attention), educators do not agree on how those variables can be used to measure the quality of a college. To make things worse, colleges can manipulate directly or indirectly some of the factors in the U.S. News formula to raise their standing. Alumni, boards of trustees, and even bond‐rating agencies on Wall Street pay close attention to the rankings and expect to see “improvement.” As much as college leaders disparage rankings, they are too high profile and too influential to be ignored.
While rankings such as this should always be taken with a grain of salt, it is certainly a clear sign that we are a top university and recognized as such.13
College president commenting on just‐released rankings showing an improvement for his school
Under pressure, some colleges have actively worked to look better in ways that have little to do with educational quality but will boost the school's ranking. One common but harmless approach that has been used for many years is the production of elegant, full‐color booklets that typically highlight a college's new programs and facilities, as well as its ambitious plans for the future. In addition to distributing them for fundraising and other purposes, some college presidents send them to their colleagues at other campuses in the hope that the booklets will raise awareness of their college and possibly lead to a higher reputation rating when the U.S. News questionnaire arrives the following year. No one knows if this actually works, but some colleges expend considerable effort in the hope that it does. Much more troubling are recent disclosures by several well‐known colleges that admissions staff members misrepresented data used in the rankings in an apparent effort to enhance their school's position.
WHY ARE RANKINGS SO POPULAR?
It is not surprising that students and parents turn to rankings such as those published by U.S. News when they think about colleges. Deciding where to apply isn't easy, and having supposed experts do the evaluating is an attractive alternative to trying to figure things out on your own, especially if you have no experience. We accept ratings that assess washing machines, restaurants, football teams, hospitals, and movies, so why not colleges, too?
College rankings, though, are very different. Although they offer the illusion of precision, the rankings simply don't measure what most people think they measure: the educational experience for an individual student. Doing that requires a personal look at a college through the eyes of that student. No standardized ranking can hope to evaluate how you as an individual might fare at a certain college.
There is no easy substitute for investing the time and effort to determine which colleges will be a good fit for you. Merely knowing which ones are the most selective or enjoy the highest reputations among college administrators (which, as we have said, is essentially what the U.S. News rankings are telling you) doesn't get you very far toward finding a place where you will thrive and learn.
ADMISSIONS RATE AND YIELD AND HOW THEY CONTRIBUTE TO COLLEGE FRENZY
Rankings aside, a college's admissions rate or selectivity is the one figure that captures the public's attention and the most headlines. A decline in the admit rate from the previous year is often interpreted as a reflection of a college's increased quality, not just the result of successful marketing. Sample headline: “College X Admits Record Low Percentage of Applicants.” This is news.
Factors That Affect Admissions Rate
Aggressive outreach to students to encourage them to apply, although the college knows that they will admit only a fraction of those applying, is the easiest way for a college to become more selective. Although most colleges engage in outreach with more noble goals, such as increasing diversity, the result is the same. Rachel Toor, a former Duke University admissions officer, vividly describes her own experience: “I travel around the country whipping kids (and their parents) into a frenzy so that they will apply. I tell them how great a school Duke is academically and how much fun they will have socially. Then, come April, we reject most of them.”14
I overheard a conversation at a reception for the parents of newly admitted students. A mom was chatting with a young admissions officer who was mingling with parents on the lawn of the president's house. “I have a question I'd like to ask you,” she said. “Since Elite U takes less than 15 percent of those who apply, why does the university work so hard to encourage more applications?” The admissions officer was silent for a moment. “I'm afraid you'll have to ask the dean of admissions that question,” she said.
Parent of prospective freshman
Colleges can also lower their admissions percentage by offering admission to those students who are most likely to enroll. Yield—the percentage of admitted students who decide to enroll—varies greatly from college to college, from about 80 percent at Stanford and Harvard to less than 20 percent at many others. A college with a high yield can admit fewer students and still fill its classes. If it has a low yield, it has to admit more to meet enrollment targets.
Ways Colleges Can Increase Their Yield
High yields are prized as a symbol of a college's attractiveness to potential freshmen. There are several admissions practices that will increase yield.
Accepting More Early Decision Applicants
A college can raise its yield by admitting a larger percentage of the incoming class by early decision, often referred to as ED. Through an ED application, students submit a completed application by November 1 or November 15 rather than the traditional January 1 deadline, in exchange for receiving an admission decision by mid‐December rather than in the spring. The catch is that an ED application is binding on the student, meaning that the student is obligated to attend if admitted, subject to the availability of adequate financial aid. So a student admitted by ED is a sure thing for a college. The yield is close to 100 percent. We'll talk much more about ED and its cousin, early action, in chapter 7, but we mention it now because it indirectly increases a college's overall yield and thereby reduces its overall admit rate. Some colleges admit from a third to more than half of their incoming freshman class under ED.
Wait‐Listing the “Overqualified”
A college may also increase its yield and lower its admit rate by rejecting or, more likely, wait‐listing students they consider “overqualified” because the college believes the student won't accept the college's offer of admission and will go elsewhere. The dean of admissions at one such college realistically defended the practice at his institution as follows: “We know our place in the food chain of higher education. We're not a community college. And we're not Harvard.” This practice is not common, but it is not rare either.15
Considering Demonstrated Interest
Finally, a college may increase its yield by preferentially admitting students who have shown that they are strongly interested in that school in some way beyond simply submitting an application. Colleges know from experience that students who connect with a college in different ways beyond submitting an application are more likely to enroll if offered admission than students who do not make such a connection. Some colleges, but not all, take this into account when they make their decisions. We'll talk more about “demonstrated interest” and its role in admissions in chapter 10.
“I'LL MAKE MORE MONEY IF I GRADUATE FROM AN ELITE COLLEGE”: A MYTH
Let's return now to the basic question of why there is so much interest in the most selective colleges. Okay, you say, you now see that name recognition and rankings do not necessarily equal educational quality. But maybe that is irrelevant to you. Isn't the value of an elite college education the contacts you make while there? Everyone knows that the rich, the famous, and the well‐connected attended these colleges. Wouldn't attending one of them increase your chances of getting to know the right people, getting into a prestigious graduate school, or getting an important career‐enhancing break—all eventually leading to fortune if not fame?
Students may have a better sense of their potential ability than college admissions committees. To cite one prominent example, Steven Spielberg was rejected by the University of Southern California and UCLA film schools.16
Stacey Dale and Alan Krueger, researchers who studied the long‐term effects of attending different types of colleges
The Association Between Income and College Selectivity
Several studies have been interpreted as supporting this conclusion. Years after graduation, graduates of elite institutions on average earn more than graduates of less well‐known colleges, just as the income of college graduates is higher those with a high school education. The simple interpretation is that attending a selective college is responsible for the income difference. But economists Stacy Dale and Alan Krueger investigated another possibility in two studies conducted a decade apart. Perhaps, they hypothesized, the students who apply to elite colleges have personal qualities to begin with that lead in some way to later income differences.
The Characteristics of the Student, and Not the College, Are Key
When Dale and Krueger controlled for a student's grade point average and test scores on entering college, they found no difference years later in the income of students who attended elite colleges versus those who had applied, were denied, and subsequently attended less selective schools. Students of similar academic ability who had the self‐confidence and motivation to envision themselves attending a selective college showed the economic benefit usually ascribed to those who actually attended such a college. However, some subgroups of students—African American and Hispanic students as well as those from less‐educated or low‐income families—did show significantly increased future earnings associated with attending a selective college. Overall, with these exceptions, Dale and Krueger's research suggests that the kind of college that students attend is less important than their inherent ability, motivation, and ambition.
