Slightly off topic, but...

cb7893

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Did anyone on this forum apply to USC (as in California)?

DS just got rejected. He got into U Mich OOS in Mech E. Thank goodness he had U of Mich as first choice for NROTC 4 yr. USC was #4 or 5. I made him put it down.

I won't give his stats, but everything was consistent with his standing as a Nat'l Merit Scholar Finalist. He even got an A in Calc III at our local Big 10 university as a 1st semester high school senior. Only blemish was bombing one battery of SAT's.

I am starting the thread here as an object lesson for HS juniors to take absolutely NOTHING for granted.
 
Did anyone on this forum apply to USC (as in California)?

Yes, DS was admitted to USC, Fall term, mech eng also. He has not heard back yet re NROTC MO scholarship. Won't go into all stats, but also national merit scholar, all AP math and science he could take, very good ACT. On the flipside, there were some surprising safety and perfect fit schools he did not get into. Needless to say, he is pumped about USC.
 
Did not apply to USC (UCLA fan here), but I felt a want to comment on this post. I got in to 4 of the 5 schools I put on my NROTC list (save the Ivy I applied to). The four were University of Michigan, UVA, University of Utah, and San Diego State. I did not receive a NROTC scholarship. Sometimes things don't seem to make sense, but I totally agree with you. I am taking nothing for granted. Things happen for a reason. It's just another step in life.
 
What the heck is going on?

Just got back from a party. Parents of DS's best bud were there. This kid is Nat'l Merit Scholar, had 36 ACT and is as well rounded as a 17 year old midwestern boy can be. He got accepted at Columbia, WL at Princeton and Cornell, but rejected at Michigan with better stats than my DS.

We were saying that we can only hope that STEM education at the High School level is improving in the US, thereby increasing the number of qualified applicants for spots in Engineering programs.

Best of luck mc and Nurse!
 
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cb - I've heard that sometimes a school may reject an applicant whose stats are above & beyond, because they know they will get into top tiers and probably choose them above the state school. This way they don't waste a seat that will go unclaimed.

navynurse - congrats on your admittances! I am with you, many things don't seems to make sense, and I also keep telling myself things happen (or don't happen) for a reason. And thank you for wanting to serve, not only our country but as a nurse!
 
Colleges also look hard at the High School profile, which can make a difference in admissions.
 
Just got back from a party. Parents of DS's best bud were there. This kid is Nat'l Merit Scholar, had 36 ACT and is as well rounded as a 17 year old midwestern boy can be. He got accepted at Columbia, WL at Princeton and Cornell, but rejected at Michigan with better stats than my DS.

We were saying that we can only hope that STEM education at the High School level is improving in the US, thereby increasing the number of qualified applicants for spots in Engineering programs.

Best of luck mc and Nurse!

cb - I've heard that sometimes a school may reject an applicant whose stats are above & beyond, because they know they will get into top tiers and probably choose them above the state school. This way they don't waste a seat that will go unclaimed.

navynurse - congrats on your admittances! I am with you, many things don't seems to make sense, and I also keep telling myself things happen (or don't happen) for a reason. And thank you for wanting to serve, not only our country but as a nurse!

One other thought on OOS applicants from the same school/city...

Top level schools use OOS admissions to balance the geography/background/special situations of their incoming class. When looking at 2 highly qualified applicants from the same town, they may take the one most likely to accept - in this case the one who is not using it as a potential safety school. Exceptions may apply (think identical twins), but I can see why they would take the one and not the other in this case.
 
I also think there are more superstar kids from high income families that are staying in state. Just to get into a GA Tech requires stats which would automatically qualify the kid for full tuition under a statewide program, leaving a max cost of $10k~. Compare that to a minimum (with bogus scholarship) $45k at a private or elite public OOS.

Also, ALL schools from Stanford, to Jesus Tech, to Northwest Alaska A and T, are recruiting like crazy in developing countries. The Local Big 10 State U has a VP whose sole job is recruiting international students. The President of the school goes to China, India, and Brazil once a year. The demand for US college education is huge and many families have the means to pay and willingness to pay full freight. Foreign students do ot receive scholarships. I beleive MIT is the one exception.

The bottomline though is that there wouldn't the the demand if the quality weren't there. Therefore, our DS's and DD's are not going to be held back by not getting into their number one choice. Elite university BS/BA diplomas happen to be the exception rather than the rule among Nobel Prize winners in the sciences.
 
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