Would you get into your college today?

[Deleted]

The AA thread below has me wondering.

I don't think I'd get into UT Austin today. Obviously I did 20 years ago :-) as an out of state student.

[ringstrue]

probably not.

[Deleted]

No way. Northeastern has gotten way more competitive since I was there.

I consider my degree an appreciating asset, lol.

[ESF]

Um, no.

A few years ago, I was over a friend's place. Her step-daughters were applying to college at the time. One of them really wanted to go to my school but she kept saying that she didn't think she would get in. This girl was smarter at 17 than I was that day at 30. Like, I felt dumb talking to her that day.

She didn't get in.

There would be no hope for me.

[sunshine608]

Nope. My school has gotten much more selective for a non flagship state school.

I also would not have qualified for the scholarship that paid for it all either.

[AJL]

I would.

I think I would also get in to Texas A&M where I started college (finished somewhere else.) I would not get in to the engineering school though. That was also where I started as a freshmen, but I finished college with another degree.

[ladybrettashley]

Yes, but I went to a public out of state school that no one had ever heard of. Even though they are highly selective, they do not have prestige outside of the state, so it's not super competitive to get in.

[charminglife]

I'd like to say yes, but my university just switched from being need blind to need aware, so it's much more of a toss-up now.

[eclaires]

I think so. I went to a big state university, but their admissions are done by school of whatever. Admission requirements tend to vary based on what school/major you are applying to.

School of engineering is one of the tougher ones to get into. Not sure if I could still get in there (I did when I applied but chose to major in history - school of liberal arts instead), because I'm sure it's more competitive. The profile that is on the main website for admissions (not school specific, entire freshman class) is one that I would fit into rather easily, so IDK.

[laurenpetro]

i would but i doubt i'd be able to afford it. check that, i "could" afford it but my father would probably tell me there's no way he'd pay that much money for that school.

[terpsfan]

Probably not. UMD was somewhat hard to get into out of state when I started there in 95 and was getting really hard to get into out of state by the time I graduated in 99. I suspect it's gotten harder but not sure as I haven't been in the college application circles.

[meshaliuknits]

I imagine so, yes. I suspect graduating ranked 3 in my HS had more to do with getting in than being black did.

If I did it again, though, I'd apply for a regents scholarship & maybe get free room and board. I knew squat about scholarships and how to get them when I applied for school.

[ttt]

Probably not. It was competitive then but it's REALLY competitive now. I doubt I would make the cut.

[laurenpetro]

ironically i'd probably get into UTA now, but only because one of my relatives is a professor

[LoveTrains]

Maybe I would. Hard to say. It is definitely more competitive now, but my test scores and grades were very good. Honestly it is kind of a crapshoot at some of the smaller, elite liberal arts colleges in New England.

[Deleted]

Yes, I went to my safety school. I also had a full tuition scholarship. Maybe I wouldn't get the scholarship, but I would absolutely get in.

[heightsyankee]

It's hard to say. The school has grown (private college with 1200 undergrads when I was there and has doubled since I graduated in 95) so there is more room but it has gotten more competitive. I wasn't on the cusp, though. It was a sure thing for me to get in then so I think I would now.

[anasara]

Yes.

[ChillyMcFreeze]

I got into my school early admission. I think I'd make the cut today, but probably after being wait-listed until spring.

[pixy0stix]

Yes.

[mominatrix]

Oct 9, 2012 11:44:31 GMT -5 LoveTrains said:

Maybe I would. Hard to say. It is definitely more competitive now, but my test scores and grades were very good. Honestly it is kind of a crapshoot at some of the smaller, elite liberal arts colleges in New England.

I don't know if I would have or not. I went to one of those small, elite liberal arts colleges in New England.

The small bit helped me a lot - -my grades weren't very good, but I had really amazing outside-of-school stuff, and really good test scores. I went to a super shitty high school, and did poorly there because I was bored to tears.

Honestly, I think I got in based on the strength of my interview. Yes, I had an interview to get into college. I can't imagine that many schools do that anymore.

[msmerymac]

Yes. Of all the schools I applied to, the one I went to was probably the easiest, admissions-wise (I only applied to 4). I got a small scholarship, and honestly, there were a lot of people there who were dumbasses. My program (communications school) was really good, and their music school and PT program are really good. But other random majors? Just okay. Although I think their business school finally got some kind of certification (and a new building).

The school thinks they are good. And they are in certain ways. But they were also on the upswing when I was coming in. I really feel like they've found their niche, and they'll always be good for a regional school and good in their focus departments, but overall, they will stay where they are for the foreseeable future. Which does NOT preclude them from raising tuition by nearly 10% per year.

[marie427]

Yes, I think I would. I went to NYU and while it has gotten even more selective since I went there, there are thousands of students there and I'm pretty sure being a local is strongly preferred by the admissions committee because housing is tight and locals can commute from home (which I did).

[Deleted]

I don't know. My college has gone up and down in the rankings since I graduated (almost always top 20, top 25 though, or at least whenever I bother to look haha) but I think its applications have gone up so it has become more selective. But I honestly don't know.

[PinkSquirrel]

I want to say yes. Since I entered college my school has jumped 94 spots on US New's top colleges list. It's now #56 on the list, so, ya, big leap. I'm pretty sure my H would not get in now, but I still would.

[basilosaurus]

Yeah, I don't see why not. Vandy was highly selective when I got in, and I even got into their engineering program early decision. My high school record was pretty stellar.

Now, if they'd known how awful I'd do once I was there, they wouldn't accept me Then again, if I knew what the school was like before I got there, I never would have even applied.

ETA They were top 20 then, and they're still top 20 so that's why I expect the same result.

[Deleted]

I think so. My SATs are still above the average there. My sister is a freshman and all of my categories were stronger than hers. But who knows? Its a crap shoot.

[msmerymac]

Oct 9, 2012 12:23:17 GMT -5 mominatrix said:

Oct 9, 2012 11:44:31 GMT -5 LoveTrains said:

Maybe I would. Hard to say. It is definitely more competitive now, but my test scores and grades were very good. Honestly it is kind of a crapshoot at some of the smaller, elite liberal arts colleges in New England.

I don't know if I would have or not. I went to one of those small, elite liberal arts colleges in New England.

The small bit helped me a lot - -my grades weren't very good, but I had really amazing outside-of-school stuff, and really good test scores. I went to a super shitty high school, and did poorly there because I was bored to tears.

Honestly, I think I got in based on the strength of my interview. Yes, I had an interview to get into college. I can't imagine that many schools do that anymore.

An interview was either required or recommended for most of the schools I looked at, almost 15 years ago. Because most schools are trying to pull from other states/regions, now, though, an off-campus interview with an alum or other representative is usually totally fine. My husband used to do those for his school, and might start doing it again, although he says it's sometimes fuucking depressing (see thread on legacies) because he knows who will get in and who won't based on the kind of grooming and prep they've been exposed to.

I would caution my child against choosing a school without visiting, but I can also see how some people might only want to visit schools that are very far away AFTER they've been accepted and are deciding, which would likely narrow the pool.

[mmp]

Not a chance.

You can't believe some of the college applications I have seen from my students. I never did any of the things they have on their application, but in the 80s I got into a pretty tough school. No way could I go there now.

[wawa]

AFAIK, my school has pretty much held steady in the rankings. I have no reason to believe that it'd be any harder to get in now than it was 10 years ago.

But I couldn't tell you what they were actually ranked at then vs. now.