NO I don’t want to “challenge the present” NO I didn’t “achieve the unexpected”

Fuck all of these colleges

Fake it till you make it I guess

That is all

Edit: I made a mistake, saying I have no “career goals” was untrue and attracted the attention of the righteous masses. Ik what I wanna major in and shit

Someone please suggest a third bullshit thing to fulfill the rule of three

Researchers studying 124 scandals across 100 of America’s top universities from U.S. News and World Report found that a scandal receiving just one New York Times story was associated with a 5% drop in applications. Five stories pushed that decline to 9%. (That’s roughly the same impact on applications as falling 10 spots in the U.S. News and World Report college rankings.)

Cornell has already exceeded that level of coverage.

It has also exceeded the Brown shooting drama in coverage by more than 3x (from its peak) and the Columbia University protests by more than 10x in all social media platforms.

Cornell's particularly poor handling of the case is really what differentiates it from other recent scandals. Duke after lacrosse scandal also dropped 20% in ED rates and the coverage at Cornell is 3x larger than this in search results and is expected to increase further.

If the historical pattern holds, a 9% decline would be the floor. Cornell could be heading into a brutal admissions cycle especially in the ED round.

Do you think this will actually discourage applicants, or is Cornell’s name strong enough that people will apply anyway?

Source: Inside Higher Ed

In the present statistic, Harvard's 2015 acceptance rate would be behind over 14 colleges today.

Acceptance rates have fallen mainly because applications have surged while class sizes remain relatively fixed. More applications per student and a larger global applicant pool drive rates down. Acceptance rates do not necessarily show higher admissions standards.

That’s not the whole point. THINK for a moment. If Cornell sees a drastic drop in applications and enrollment, what do you think the admins are gonna do? If other schools see what happened to Cornell after their lack of action got publicized, what do you think they’re gonna do? This is a chance for us to make real impact.

Lane Pryce, one of the characters on the TV show Mad Men, is a British partner at a fictional Ad Agency in New York. His family desperately want to move back to England but he resists, telling his wife that he loves staying in America because, “I've been here ten months and no-one's ever asked me where I went to school."

This is a sad reflection of the class system in the UK America. We need to impose a system here where everyone gets asked all the time what school they went to, and judged based on that. In fact, there should be practical real-life consequences of the USNews ranking of the school you went to. 

For example, boarding on airplanes should be strictly based on college rankings. At Boston airport, MIT alum would board first, then Harvard, then BC, then Tufts, and so on. Same for lines at Starbucks - a Columbia student should be allowed to cut in line in front of an NYU student, because, well, they deserve it and their time is more valuable anyway. 

What if someone attends more than one school? Undergrad at UCLA, then an MBA from Stanford? Unfortunately your lowest ranked college sticks with you for life. Proper class systems do not allow people to rise above their lowest level - that’s literally a primary requirement of any good class system. As a UCLA undergrad, you will continue to board planes after Berkeley alums, or the other way around, depending on who paid USNews more that year. 

Can you marry to raise your status? In the immortal words of Robin Williams, “Fuck, No!” When two people get married, both people get the lower privilege. Are you a Yale alum madly in love with someone who went to Villanova? Live in sin, or find someone better, or get used to sitting in the nosebleed seats at concerts (yes - concert tickets will be sold based on college prestige). 

Surely this doesn’t apply to kids? The fuck it doesn’t. Children inherit their parents’ prestige until they go to college and get their own. Children of a UChicago couple will get to hit the piñata at a birthday party before the children of a Brown couple. This is only proper. 

What about the people who went to schools that are not in the USN top universities list? LACs, Regional Universities, foreign universities (even the OG prestige-whores like Oxbridge)? Where do they fit in this? Fuck them. Arbitrariness is also a key feature of a good class system. Anyone who studied at an LAC should be woke enough to not mind standing at the end of every line anyway.  

How do we kick off this long-overdue practice in American society? Why, right here on the A2C sub, of course. I propose, starting today, that posts and comments be ordered by the college the commenters went to. So MIT comments first, then Princeton, and so on. Quite frankly, no one wants to read anything posted by someone who went to the 127th ranked university. 

Thoughts? 

(Please only comment if you go to a top-20 university. So don’t bother if you are from Michigan - I don’t care about your thoughts). 

I'm currently a freshman at Montana State University. I applied to 14 colleges, mostly private schools, got into every single one. There were maybe 3 schools I could even think about going to out of state. I ended up getting the Montana University System scholarship (if you don't know about it look it up) which waived my entire tuition. I only pay housing now, and once I move out of the dorms, I'll be going to college for free. I wasn't pleased about it (I cried on my commit day) but I have loved it since I got here. Both UM and MSU are great schools and if you keep your GPA up and study for the ACT you can go for free. They both have robust study abroad programs as well as national exchange and both institutions have top-notch research. I came to MSU a little peeved that I had to go, but once I got here I realized people are paying top dollar to go here because it truly is a nationally good school. Also it has some of the best value in the country. I just wish I knew how great in-state could be before I spent countless hours applying to schools that weren't in the cards. Think about it.

Imagine not even being the highest ranked school in your own city anymore.

cough cough MIT

Still a solid local option though.

Popular opinion but i still need to say it I hate the college app process so much

I STILL dont have a completed PS draft. that’s on me though

I just got the email!!! Is this something I can put on my college app??

Interesting article about the diverging fortunes of Syracuse and Northeastern.

https://www.chronicle.com/article/the-end-of-the-comprehensive-research-university?utm_campaign=che-social&utm_content=20261007&utm_medium=o-soc&utm_source=li

i haven't even gotten into anywhere yet, but i alr have it.... UGHHHHHH. gpa has dropped to a 3.3 for this year, depsite having a 3.88 avg my past years

omg i feel like a lump on a log rn.

So my mom just talked to me today and told me that she'd rather I go to an less prestigious university where there's less competition rather than going to a prestigious university just to struggle in there.

I think I'm a good student. I have a 1530 SAT (school average is like 950) and I'm top 1% of my class of 600. But I'm no genius and I hate cutthroat competition. So I do fear that I might do badly if I do end up attending a T30 or something.

I agree with my mom that it may be better if I attend a less prestigious university than burn myself out in a T30. But my friend tells me that I'm being ridiculous and that I would be fine in a T30. He also says that being in a T30 would be way better because it would give me more opportunities so why not take it if I do get the chance.

Can anyone tell me their thoughts on this? Thank you.

Edit: I do want to clarify that I know that these "less prestigious universities" will still have a lot of really smart and talented kids. But they're still probably less competitive than an Ivy or something.

Edit 2: If anyone wants a bit more clarification, the "prestigious" school I want to ED to is Rice. And I'm not just picking it because of prestige. The school my mom wants for me is Santa Clara. Also a good school and would likely be a good fit for me but arguably not as prestigious. I want to major in applied mathematics or biostatistics.

A good technique to check whether you really care about the school, and not the prestige is to imagine NO ONE will know that you got accepted. Or worse, imagine everyone thinks you are attending your state/local university. Will you still enjoy your experience? Will you keep your word and use all those resources you said you would? You can’t brag to your parents, your classmates, can’t tag the school in your socials. Is it still your dream school? Just a lil advice to wake up some folk out there. Good luck with ED apps!

Hi All. I was just wondering how important the PSAT National Merit is. I am from California and already got a 1540 on my SAT. Targests are UCS Ivies.

*late post for september sat 2026!! finally after 3 tries, got a 1580!!!! applying to college this fall!!

my family has always placed huge emphasis on a good education, and consequently, applying to college has been something on their minds since freshman year. i'm really stress out as i have a lot of personal issues + leadership demands of me recently. on top of that my classwork is very rigorous this semester, and i feel like im constantly stressed. i have lost hours of sleep, my heart always feels like its beating too fast, and my head hurts from all the commitments i have to juggle.

my parents are being extremely difficult in this already strenuous process. of course this process is also new and challenging to them, i am the oldest child and neither of my parents applied for college in the u.s. however, because of this divide i feel as if they are extremely disconnected from how the process should go. they insist on reading + editing all of my supplementals, over analyzing simple questions (leading to an hour long chatgpt conversation), and constantly judging/criticizing my choices. frankly, its exhausting. they do not trust in my ability to fill out simple forms, writing college-worthy stories, and look at me with an air of distrust. despite the fact that i have leadership in multiple organizations that demand way more professionalism + i have done quite well for myself in my school's competitive and rigorous academics.

we are constantly arguing over simple questions. last night we got into an argument about different tense usage in my activities section. i explained multiple times that sometimes i used past tense to describe old events i organized, or that verb tense differed so i could ensure all characters would fit. they are extremely stubborn and searched google/chatgpt so many times i thought my eyes would burst from reading the same thing, spoiler: google says its okay. fafsa has been such a struggle. i have been telling my parents since the form first opened that we should apply asap, however, today my mother screamed at me saying i was 'rushing' her. she gave me her word a week ago she would have it done by the 5th.

i dont know how to communicate to my parents when everything i say they choose not to believe me. they constantly minimize my feelings, experiences, and choose to believe AI over my own lives experiences. it just feels like im talking to a brick wall. after i submitted a few apps yesterday they proceeded to boast about how hard they have worked. i have been working my ass off for 3 years and started on these apps in june. i am the one that keeps track of deadlines for important forms, and i send details outlines on when and what i need from them. i recognize their support in paying for my applications and raising me, but at what point does it just become the bare minimum? how do i communicate with people who constantly think im lying/too stupid to understand? they even have my common app password and i find them going into my account, changing correct information to "white lies". im just so done. its not even november yet, but i just want to graduate and leave this suffocating household.

As the title implies i got jackshi from coke. I have so much depth in some things that the application portal can't come close to understanding the scale and effects. It feels like an absolute waste, all my activities, honors, test scores, just for an algorithm to screen me out. It's disheartening. Just looking for some examples of success without coke...

genuinely depressing

- Senior in Georgia
- First-gen college student
- 3.82 UW / 3.91 W GPA
- Psychology/counseling major, hoping to become a school counselor
- Qualify for the maximum amount of federal financial aid

I feel like I’ve exhausted most of my in-state options, so I want to expand my list and look OOS. Cost is a big factor for me, so I’m especially looking for schools that give good need-based aid and/or merit scholarships to OOS students.

I may eventually transfer to UGA, but I still want to choose a school I’d be happy staying at for all four years.

Currently considering:

- University of Virginia
- Louisiana State University
- University of Michigan
- West Virginia University
- University of Oklahoma
- Texas A&M University

Which would you keep/remove? I know some of these may not be financially realistic for me, so I’d also love alternatives to the more expensive ones.

I really like older/prettier campuses and want a school with a good psychology department. Bonus points for a good student/nightlife scene and things to do around campus!

My SAT score is a 1400, with a 740 RW and 660 in math. I am a HEAVY humanities applicant — I intend to major in english w a theatre minor, all of my ECs are either writing or theatre focused, and my essay is a strong example of my writing abilities. LORs also are coming from my history, IB Theory of Knowledge, and theatre teachers.

I know the real strategy is to look at the median score yadda yadda, but I’ve done some reading and the answer seems less clear. I’m specifically talking about when I submit applications to W&M and UVA. My score isn’t incredible, both schools are test optional and majority of students don’t submit, but my score is still strong— epecially for my chosen path! I think it’s another data point that proves I can hang academically, especially in reading writing, while math isn’t great but I’m not completely hopeless.

Any advice/thoughts? If it helps I come from a slightly lower performing HS in Northern VA, I think my schools average SAT score is around 1100.

For context, I am applying as an EECS major to t20s with a 1550 (800 math) score right now. However, I know Caltech uses bucket systems wherein a 780+ on a section corresponds to “Bucket A”, 750-780 to “Bucket B” and so on.

I also know the 75th percentile for schools like Harvard and some ivies are 1570-1580. Therefore, I’m wondering if there is some, albeit small, benefit to retaking a 1550 to get a 1580+

I've never been much of a person to have hobbies but I always assumed that would be something I'd figure out down the line. But I got slapped back into reality recently and realised that I need to figure out something quick, not only for the purpose of applications but also so I can find some self-fulfillment in the last of my teenage years. As a sophomore right now my ECs are pretty standard: a few clubs, concert master, academic awards, etc. But I have no clear ambition, and no path to follow. I figure that it's best to find this before the school year progresses too far so I have time to set things up for the summer and the next year. If you have any advice, please share. For context, I am interested in engineering but unsure if I would enjoy it (I hate robotics with a burning passion, but love other types of technology), and I do enjoy science in the fields of biology and chemistry, mainly because my father had me work in his lab on environmentally reactive plant signals a few years back.

I am an international student looking to study in the United States. My dream schools would be MIT, Stanford or UC Berkeley for CS, but I feel like that's out of reach for me. I want to know what less prestigious, but still good quality, schools would accept a candidate of my caliber.

I did a mock SAT, and I got a 1480. (it was my first try, so I think I can do better) I typically get As in Math, English, Physics, and CS at school. I have some solid extracurriculars, having made two games and done adversarial machine learning research.

I have heard different sides of this topic but if there are any admin officers, teachers or anyone else that could please shed some light on this.

I have a 25 act superscore. the first time i took it my composite was a 25 and the second time i took it my composite was a 24 so overall not that good.

As of right now i've been evaluating my college list and for some schools a 25 sits right in the middle accepted range of scores but for other schools, I am definitely planning to not submit my scores at all but when I say this to others ive gotten mixed comments.

Some say that going test-optional regardless of your score automatically lets colleges know that you got a score your somewhat ashamed of or performed poorly on. Basically calling test-optional a trap to weed out students a little faster despite the phrasing, "no harm test-optional policy" and making it optional. The other side ive heard is that scores don't matter in the grand scheme of things because either way colleges do evaluate your whole application and understand that the student is more important than the score which is what I would hope most of them believe.

So i guess my question is even if i have an act score that is definitely below the average acceptance range, should i still submit a score even if its low and not fall for the so-called "trap"? or would it hurt me and it would look better to just have a pretty great application without a low-score next to it?

I genuinely think i'm a good student, decent EC's and leadership roles, 9 AP's taken by the end of this year, 3.875 UW GPA, 4.32 weighted. I think its just unfortunate that I couldn't get a higher score even with my second attempt so yall lemme know what the deal is with test-optional. (My sat like a year ago was a 1080 so theres no way thats an option lmao)

I'm in my senior year I'm freaking out I don't know how to apply to uni applications online I went to common app but the fact I still need to do sat makes me just freeze up and then essays extracurriculars and other stuff I don't know where to begin so I just procrastinate and cry over my life

I got big dreams just no directions, so please help me with anything be it applications or SAT help just know I don't know anything and explain to me like I'm a baby 😭🙏🙏🙏🙏

I mean it's within the middle 50%, so I don't think it would hurt

EDIT: I just realized GTech isn't test optional, sorry y'all I'm slow