New UC data dashboard sheds light on admissions for each academic discipline

New UC data dashboard sheds light on admissions for each academic discipline

By Brittany MaschalNov 15, 2024

This is very cool! 

From the University of California:

Our researchers collect and analyze all kinds of information about the world. We also track all kinds of UC stats, many of them available on detailed public dashboards in the online UC Information Center.

This fall, UC published a new data dashboard that shows how many first-year students apply to and are admitted at each campus by academic discipline. Until now, UC published the overall first-year admission rates for each campus. The new dashboard expands that by providing additional detail on admissions by academic discipline. For each broad area of study, you can see the admit rate, along with how many students applied, were admitted and ended up enrolling. The dashboard lets you see the admission rate for a discipline versus the overall campus admission rate. You can look at just one campus, or you can compare disciplines across UC’s nine undergraduate campuses. (A separate dashboard shows transfer admission rates by major.)

The goal of the dashboard is to offer the public more transparency into UC admissions. Being able to compare the selectivity of disciplines and campuses gives applicants an additional piece of information in their process and a more refined understanding of the competition. That said, the dashboard shouldn’t be used to assess any particular student’s chances of admission.

Continue reading about the new data dashboard in this October 18 article and explore the dashboard yourself.

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Fall College Admissions Pathways via Summer Programming

Fall College Admissions Pathways via Summer Programming

By Brittany MaschalNov 13, 2024

Colleges are starting to market their summer programming as a special pathway to fall admission—guaranteed admission in some cases. Expect to see more of it as schools continue to get creative about their enrollment management tactics.

Read more about Guaranteed Orange here (Syracuse).

Read more about UChicago’s Summer Student Early Notification here (University of Chicago)

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Insights on Test Optional Admissions

Insights on Test Optional Admissions

By BMC BloggerAug 27, 2024

In an op-ed published in Inside Higher Ed, David Blobaum, the director of outreach for the National Test Prep Association and the co-founder of tutoring company Summit Prep, argues that it is in college hopefuls’ best interests to submit test scores, even if a school does not require them.

When accepting – or rejecting – applicants, admissions departments cite often-clandestine “institutional priorities” having to do with students’ backgrounds or areas of expertise. According to Mr. Blobaum, however, “Rhetoric and reality often diverge.”

He contends, unequivocally, that “test-optional institutions have a preference for students with high test scores” and that students applying to test-optional colleges and universities are less likely to be admitted if they do not submit test scores. “If a college does not value SAT or ACT scores, then the college would not use those scores.”

Citing data from Dartmouth’s watershed report, which led the institution to return to test-mandatory admissions, Mr. Blobaum argues that traditionally marginalized students have the most to gain from submitting test scores: “a disadvantaged student with an SAT score between 1450 and 1490 is 3.7 times more likely to get admitted if they submit their score than if they withhold it.”

To support his argument, Mr. Blobaum explores a few key examples of elite institutions that recently were or currently are test-optional:

  • Yale had a three times higher admit rate (6 percent vs. 2 percent) for students who submitted test scores over the past several years compared to those who didn’t.
  • According to Cornell’s internal research, “submitting test scores significantly increases the likelihood of admission (to its) test-optional colleges.” The institution labeled it “prudent” for students to include test scores with their application package.
  • Even though Duke claims that choosing not to submit SAT or ACT scores “will not impact (a student’s) admissions decision,” 81 percent of newly enrolled students at Duke submitted some combination of SAT and ACT. Furthermore, Duke’s admission website goes as far as advising students to “buy a study guide and begin taking practice SAT or ACT tests.”

These examples are compelling, and make clear that standardized test scores can certainly act as key differentiators between candidates who are otherwise qualified for limited class seats. These differentiators are particularly important for hyper-selective schools where the ratio between applicants and enrollment offers is especially stark.

Mr. Blobaum approached this topic with an eye toward the most elite institutions; his observations, therefore, despite their potential relevance at Ivy Plus schools, may not capture the admissions landscape at less selective—but still excellent—colleges and universities. Furthermore, Mr. Blobaum’s argument sometimes strays from hard data; he, perhaps controversially, claims that admissions departments “often outright lie” and bases some of his reasoning on the fact that “it is just common sense.”

Source: Denied? That Top College Lied (Inside Higher Ed)

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Colleges That Are No Longer Test Optional – Updated

Colleges That Are No Longer Test Optional – Updated

By Brittany MaschalAug 20, 2024

Colleges have continued to roll back test-optional policies. We will update this post as more policy changes are made.

You’ll need competitive test scores to apply to the following schools:

Auburn (testing STRONGLY preferred; required with under a certain GPA)
Brown
Cal Tech
Cornell (2026 start, require, 2025 recommended for certain colleges)
Dartmouth
Georgetown
Georgia Tech
Harvard
JHU (2026 start)
MIT
Purdue
Stanford
University of Georgia
University of Florida (state-wide)
University of Tennessee (state-wide)
UT Austin
Yale

We have also found it beneficial to send high scores to most other test-optional schools in the top tier, especially if you are applying to a selective major (engineering, comp sci, data science, business, hard sciences) or attend a high school where the majority of students test and test well:

Vanderbilt
Northwestern
Duke
Rice
WashU
Notre Dame
Carnegie Mellon
Tufts
Emory
USC
Boston College
Boston University (exception: General Studies)
NYU
Clemson
Case Western
Villanova
University of Chicago
University of Michigan
University of Wisconsin
University of Virginia
University of North Carolina
University of Illinois
University of Maryland

Reach out to us if you’d like help with your application strategy and deciding if you are a good candidate to apply test-optional.

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What is a Personal Statement (Example: The Common App Essay)

What is a Personal Statement (Example: The Common App Essay)

By Brittany MaschalJun 13, 2024

It’s June, which means it’s time to start working on college admissions essays. This month, we’ll share some excerpts from our book, The Complete College Essay Handbook, starting with some personal statement tips!

First, what exactly is a personal statement like the Common Application essay?

A personal statement is a creative essay of 650 words or less that reads like a short story, memoir, or novel—not like an academic essay, textbook, or newspaper article. The best personal statements tell a story that culminates in a meaningful realization and offers the reader a glimpse of a mind in the process of thinking.

The personal statement is not the place to brag about accomplishments (student body president, team captain, founder of a schoolwide service project), or about how amazing you are (“I’m a world-changing revolutionary!”).

Although people you don’t know are going to read it, the personal statement is not a public form, like a school-wide speech. The personal statement is an intimate form, like a secret. It is the place to be honest, vulnerable, and raw, to reveal mistakes and weaknesses, to open up about an experience you’d only tell someone you were really close with, to explore what you struggle with and what scares you.

The personal statement is not “about” an event or achievement. It is about the psychological and emotional processes that occurred “behind the scenes.”

The same story, told from one angle, can be impersonal whereas, from another—told with a focus on the process rather than the outcome—can become deeply personal. Here are a few examples to help explain what I mean.

  • NO (Impersonal): The story about how you got elected student body president and a detailed account of everything you plan work on once in office
  • YES (Personal): The story about your internal struggle to overcome a crippling fear of public      speaking in order to run for student body president
  • NO (Impersonal): The story about how you changed lives by raising money for an orphanage in Africa
  • YES (Personal): The story about how you decided to start raising money for an orphanage because you yourself had been adopted and always struggled with the fact that your birth parents had abandoned you
  • NO (Impersonal): The story about how tearing your ACL was hard because you couldn’t play football or see your friends for a few months
  • YES (Personal): The story about how tearing your ACL gave you the time to reflect on who you are and you realized you didn’t want to just be an athlete so you started writing poetry and made new friends at school

Notice how all of these negative examples focus on the superficial event: I was elected; I raised money; I tore my ACL. By contrast, the positive examples explore the story behind the event—what was going inside of the writer that either led to this event (the student body president and orphanage examples) or the internal change that resulted from it (the ACL example). They also explore intimate, potentially difficult topics.

Since the personal statement is a creative essay at its heart, there is no set formula for success—however, our process and essay samples will give you the tools and examples you need to write your own singular personal statement.

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Colleges That Are No Longer Test Optional

Colleges That Are No Longer Test Optional

By Brittany MaschalJun 10, 2024

Colleges have continued to roll back test-optional policies. We will update this post as more policy changes are made.

You’ll need competitive test scores to apply to the following schools:

Auburn (testing STRONGLY preferred; required with under a certain GPA)
Brown
Cal Tech
Cornell (2026, require, 2025 recommended for certain colleges)
Dartmouth
Georgetown
Georgia Tech
Harvard
MIT
Purdue
Stanford
University of Georgia
University of Florida (state-wide)
University of Tennessee (state-wide)
UT Austin
Yale

We have also found it beneficial to send high scores to most other test-optional schools in the top tier, especially if you are applying to a selective major (engineering, comp sci, data science, business, hard sciences) or attend a high school where the majority of students test and test well:

Vanderbilt
Northwestern
JHU
Duke
Rice
WashU
Notre Dame
Carnegie Mellon
Tufts
Emory
USC
Boston College
Boston University (exception: General Studies)
NYU
Clemson
Case Western
Villanova
University of Chicago
University of Michigan
University of Wisconsin
University of Virginia
University of North Carolina
University of Illinois
University of Maryland

Reach out to us if you’d like help with your application strategy and deciding whether you are a good candidate to apply test-optional or not.

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The New Ivy League

The New Ivy League

By Brittany MaschalMay 20, 2024

Forbes recently conducted a survey of hiring managers to see which colleges beyond Ivy League and Ivy-Plus (Stanford, Duke, MIT,  and U. Chicago) attract the most accomplished students* and “turn out hard-working, highly-regarded employees.” Top 10’s below!

“New Public Ivies” Top 10: 

  1. Binghamton
  2. Georgia Tech
  3. U. of Florida
  4. U. of Illinois – Urbana Champaign
  5. UMD College Park
  6. Michigan
  7. UNC Chapel Hill
  8. UT Austin
  9. UVA
  10. Wisconsin

“New Private Ivies” Top 10: 

  1. Boston College
  2. CMU
  3. Emory
  4. Georgetown
  5. JHU
  6. Northwestern
  7. Rice
  8. Notre Dame
  9. Southern California
  10. Vanderbilt

Read on here! 

*not sure ‘hiring managers’ can actually weigh in on this… being accomplished is just one tiny factor in how these schools make admissions decisions

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High School Class of 2024 – Matriculation List – Congrats!

High School Class of 2024 – Matriculation List – Congrats!

By BMC BloggerMay 10, 2024

Congrats to the class of 2024!

American University
Boston University*
Boston College
Bowdoin
College of Charleston
Clemson*
Colgate
Cornell*
Dartmouth
Duke
Emory
Georgetown*
Georgia Tech
Harvard
Holy Cross
Johns Hopkins
Kenyon*
Lehigh
Northeastern*
Northwestern*
New York University*
Ohio State
Ole Miss
Penn State
Pepperdine
Purdue
SMU
Stanford
Syracuse
Tulane*
Vanderbilt*
Wake Forest
University of Delaware
University of Illinois 
University of Maryland
University of Miami*
University of Michigan*
University of Richmond*
University of South Carolina
University of Southern California*
University of Texas, Austin*
University of Utah
University of Virginia* 
University of Wisconsin*
WashU
Yale

*2-4+ students attending 

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Best College ROI? Public Ivies

Best College ROI? Public Ivies

By BMC BloggerApr 17, 2024

Bloomberg News analysis of 1,500+ nonprofit four-year colleges reveals that public universities often provide the next-best return on investment. We didn’t need Bloomberg to tell us how much value most of these schools offer, but nice to see they are getting some of the additional recognition they deserve.

Read more here!

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News: UT Austin Admissions Changes

News: UT Austin Admissions Changes

By Brittany MaschalMar 18, 2024

Some big changes out of Austin!​

UT will no longer be test-optional. All 2025 freshman applicants must submit an official SAT or ACT directly from the testing agency to be eligible for admission. Applicants do not need to submit the writing section.

Other changes include:

  • Introduction of a new Early Action program. This optional deadline will require application submission by Oct. 15, with a guaranteed decision communicated to applicants by Jan. 15. The regular deadline for applications will remain Dec. 1, with a guaranteed decision communicated by Feb. 15.
  • Modification of the required essay. This will provide greater flexibility in topic choice and enable students to leverage responses used on other applications, while expanding opportunity for a more personalized response.
  • Reduction in the number of short answer responses. This reduction from three responses to two will maintain the currently used major-related question, while creating a new prompt that allows students to highlight a specific activity of their choice.
  • Introduction of a waitlist. Applies to students who are not automatically admitted. Most students will be notified as early as March 1 if they are admitted from the waitlist.
  • Narrowed scope for letters of recommendation. Applicants submitting letters of recommendation will be strongly encouraged to provide those letters from sources outside of their high school. This reduces the burden of this work on high school teachers and counselors and allows University staff to better leverage other materials.

The official write-up is here.

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