Time to Get Real about Selective Schools

I want to preface this post by saying I am a glass half full person, a problem solver and someone who wants the best for the families and students I am supporting. I also have worked with many students who have been accepted to selective universities. But, today I’m gonna say some things that are going to make people uncomfortable. I’m not promising acceptance to every ivy league like the founder of Crimson Education. I’m here to give it to you straight.

Every year without fail right around now, students and parents start to add more highly selective/lottery schools. I get it, there is a why not…or let’s just see what happens kind of thing that starts to go through people’s minds. Or parents start to treat college stats like a fantasy football draft. Here’s the deal though, very few students meet the standards these schools are looking for. And, if you are serious about applying to schools with less than a 20% acceptance rate you need to start thinking about that earlier in high school, not the fall of your senior year.

Have you taken 4+ AP/IB classes per year?
Do you have a perfect transcript? (I mean perfect-maybe a B here or there but mostly As and no Cs)
Have you spent your time outside of school going deep in one particular area?
Do you have an SAT score in the top range for the school (usually this is over 1500)?
Have you shown a deep commitment to an academic area of interest?

If you answered no to any of those, please stop right now. I know the brand names are alluring, but it’s not just about submitting an application. It’s about the incredible amount of work required to submit a stellar application. Stanford has EIGHT additional questions (and they are deep), Brown requires a quirky video, Harvard has FIVE questions. Georgetown and MIT have their OWN application.

Don’t do it. It also is a terrible feeling to receive several rejections in the spring. By now you have worked hard to pull together a list of schools that are good fits for you. Focus on those and get things submitted so you can live your life and enjoy senior year!