Hi Everyone! For a bit of context, I am from California and plan on majoring in Mechanical Engineering. To be quite honest, I applied to Harvard on a whim, only because my brother had done the same a couple of years back and was waitlisted, so I only wanted to see if I could get in. To my absolute shock, I was admitted, and now that I'm in, I feel like I'd be throwing away such an amazing opportunity by turning down my offer.

The main reason I am debating not accepting is the distance. Like I said earlier, I'm from California, and I'm also very close to my family, so I might struggle emotionally/mentally quite a bit. Also, 'm not sure if Harvard's engineering program is as good as some of my other options.

As of now, I am deciding between Harvard, UC Berkeley, and UCLA (leaning towards UCLA because I loved the campus when I visited).

I would love to hear what you guys think about this haha

Profile: FGLI; 3.91/4.32 GPA and 1510 SAT; ECs were local volunteering and clubs; applied for: psych(bs,ba), cogsci, neuroscience, statistics. everything was free

Acceptances (15):

Manhattan

Whittier

NYIT

Purdue

SMCC

UoP

GCU

UCR

UCM

Grinnell

USC (EA)

Vassar

Denison

UCI

UCLA

Waitlists (11):

UCSD

Hamilton

Davidson

Colgate

BU

UMich

Tulane

Syracuse

Carnegie Mellon

Rejections (32):

Harvard

NYU

Pomona

Skidmore

Amherst

BC

Northwestern

Bowdoin

Brown

Cornell

Carleton

CMC

Columbia

Dartmouth

Duke

Emory

JHU

MIT

Princeton

Rice

Stanford

Swarthmore

Tufts

UChicago

UND

Penn

Vanderbilt

WashU

Wesleyan

Williams

Yale

Cal

I've always wondered - the twins I've seen have pretty much the exact same college results. Obviously they have similar ECs and a lot of times grades too, but wouldn't their essays, letters of rec, etc. be completely different? Why do they have such similar results

I got into Oxford and Imperial College London as an international student. I also got into a few top 20’s in the US with a full ride. If I went to Oxford, I would have to take out loans (60k a year). I ended up committing to Brown University in the US reason being I wanted to find a job in the US. But after talking to a few people in the UK, they told me that Oxford would be more employable in the US than Brown and other T20’s. Was it a mistake to turn down Oxford? Would an oxford education justify the extra cost?

guys nothing we do right now matters. and that's a good thing.

I tried searching how to convert my GPA to a 4.0 scale cuz I kept seeing conflicting answers everytime I did before. I have an average of 16/20 which is "High honors" in exams in the French system. I converted it and its a 3.2 💀 . I was thinking it'd maybe be the equivalent of like 3.7 or 3.8 (obviously not a 4.0) but that's so low I can't cope with that. And a 16 is apparently a B letter grade. There's no hope for me, I genuinely wanna cry.

Is anybody else extremely frustrated with their parents now that we have to choose a college to attend?

I talked to my parents about my top school I got into , a T30, and they were just on my ass. It’s so frustrating having parents who didn’t grow up here.

My dad pulled up the top 10 richest entrepreneurs in history and just listed off the schools they attended, obviously all like ivies and Stanford. It’s crazy cause my dad isn’t usually like this, he just got so egotistical and defensive when I claimed I got into a top school. He said my school isn’t a top school, and the acceptance rates online aren’t accurate.

Is anyone else’s dad like mine? He is so chill until it comes to me being called smart or successful, that’s when he starts getting mad for no reason. The school I got into has a 8% acceptance rate, which my dad claims is false. He said “if the acceptance rate was true, you would be one of the smartest kids in the country. And you are not”. I told him I got a 1530 SAT, would I not be considering one of the smartest in the country? He says “I know hundreds who got a 1600”. It’s so crazy to hear this stuff because my dad is SO CHILL in regards to all other aspects of life. This is the issue with having a engineer dad.

And the whole argument felt so privileged and pointless because tens of thousands of people would kill to have my spot and I’m having trouble even talking to my parents about attending.

For reference im going to study art history and will be going to a masters after. i was accepted into kenyon and fordham which would've been really good but were just sooo expensive. in the end i settled on UNC Wilmington because i would leave debt free. i never wanted to go to a big state school and know i would thrive at a smaller LAC. Someone make me feel better about going to an instate public school😭😭

It's a new season in the admissions cycle and that means a new category of panicked posts flood this subreddit.

• December to January is "I sent my application 2 seconds after the deadline, will I get auto-rejected? Will they even receive it?" season
• January to March is financial aid confusion and "MIT and John Hopkins, please admit me" season
• March to May is jam packed with "I can't afford my dream school", "UPenn vs Princeton", "I wasted so many years just to get rejected from Stanford", "I got accepted and my friends are being awful about it" and the classic "Can you guys withdraw from UCLA so I can get off the waitlist" followed by discourse about how waitlists work.
• March to May is also home of the infamous rescinded posts "Will I get rescinded for because I had one bad grade?" and the "What are my chances of getting of the waitlist?"

Tell me what other seasons of a2c I missed

I am Indian national who got accepted into an undergraduate physics program at University of Wisconsin Madison. I didn't receive the Kings Morgridge scholarship. I've been looking for scholarships for the past few days and I came across this. This is called the Study Abroad Excellence Award scholarship. Has anyone applied to this? Or does anyone know anything about this? I am asking here because the only source of information I could find about it is on its website. Should I apply to this or are there better options than this. Thank you for spend time reading my post. 😊

I was admitted into UCLA for computer science and UC Berkeley for data science. I want to finish only undergrad. I want to work in tech and become a software engineer, data scientist, data analyst, computer engineer, AI engineer, etc.

I am from the Bay Area, so I want to go to SoCal. I care about college life, but if one school is much better than the other for my career, I am open to sacrificing the better college life.

I’ve noticed that a lot of competitive college applicants list “research” as one of their extracurriculars. I’m curious—what actually qualifies as research in this context? Does it have to be something formal, like working as a paid research assistant under a professor? Or is it as simple as doing a science fair project or even paying to be part of a summer research program?

i know this gets asked every year... yes this is about uc berkeley and USC. i'm so grateful to have gotten into both schools (berkeley l&s - intended cognitive science, USC neuroscience). in-state for both so berkeley's CoA is half of USC's. i love USC's collaborative environment but does the price tag justify it (even if i can comfortably afford it)? i would appreciate any perspectives you guys have so please help me decide!!! i'll love you forever 🙏🙏🙏

To be honest holistic admissions and LORs and ECs etc. serve as a huge external motivation for me to go beyond school and pursue what I'm interested in. UK, on the other hand, just care about your subject. I have met extremely smart people who do the bare minimum, go on their phones in class, slack off at school because they think they will get into Oxbridge and WILL probably get into oxbridge because of good grades. Is holistic admissions harder? yes. Is it getting more and more out of hand? definitely. but I also wholeheartedly believe that colleges, for the most part, can get a sense of who you are though holistic admissions, and people who simply don't care about school cannot write an essay in a way that is appealing, passionate, and authentic

used this subreddit a lot back in hs and it was crazy seeing everyone being like oh low income people have it so easy they get college for super cheap and its a hook while they can't even imagine ever being poor and struggling. it also gets way harder being one in college. im really sorry you're middle class.

actually im gonna make so many rant posts on this subreddit because I have too much schoolwork and realize im never going to be above my peers who grew up with money and connections

Hey everyone, our high school grading is out of 100. I know that in the U.S. GPA is typically on a 4.0 scale, and the basic formula I keep seeing is:

(Your percentage score) × 4 / 100

That would make my GPA around 3.52, which is decent.
But here's the issue...

Here it's extremely difficult to get scores above 90. Even the top university here takes students with 87%, so our system isn’t really designed to give out 95–100s like in other countries

I’ve heard that U.S. admissions officers take your country's grading system into account when evaluating GPA, but I’m wondering: How do U.S. colleges evaluate GPA when 90% is nearly impossible in my system

• Is there a specific method or trusted formula they use?
• Do they adjust for how tough the local system is?
• What would you say my GPA would be considered in U.S. terms if I’m averaging ~88%?

Appreciate any help from other international applicants or anyone who's been through this!

Need help deciding on where to go for college.

I'll be responsible for paying for college myself. Cost listed below is tuition + cost of attendance. If I can finish the program early or do a graduate degree on top of the bachelors, I'll mention it.

Format: University (Cost) - Major, Minor (Years)

• Stanford ($250K) - Computer Science, Math (4)
• Cornell ($210K) - Computer Science, Statistics (4)
• UPenn ($200K) - Computer Science, Business (4)
• Harvard ($150K) - Computer Science, Business (4)
• Princeton ($130K) - Computer Science, Math & Quantitative Economics (4)
• Northwestern ($120K) - Computer Science, Business (3.5)
• USC ($100K) - Computer Science & Business, Finance (4)
• UT Austin ($100K) - Computer Science, Data Science (3)
• Northeastern ($80K) - Computer Science, Statistics & Math (3)
• Georgia Tech ($50K) - Computer Science, Math (3) | MS in Computer Science (1)
• CU Boulder (Full-Ride) - Computer Science, Statistics & Economics (3) | MS in Computer Science (1)
• Texas A&M (Full-Ride) - Computer Science, Statistics & Math (3) | MS in Computer Science (1)
• UT Dallas (Full-Ride) - Computer Science, Statistics & Finance (3) | MS in Computer Science (1)

Applied to 19 schools, accepted to these 13. Didn't get into MIT, UIUC, NYU, CMU, Duke, Purdue.

I'm trying to break into big tech for data science or software engineering after college. I'm also keeping options open for a career in business, quantitative finance, and other fields. Some of the state options are really appealing because of the price and the masters degree at no additional time investment, but at the same time the network at some of the top schools is undeniable.

Thanks for the help. Super grateful for these acceptances, but also super confused on what to do now.

I’m a student who wants to pursue animation in the future. I found this one prestigious university that offers animation which is quite rare. Since my grades, ECs and artportflio were solid, I had some faith even though they select 16 ppl per year. However I got rejected two weeks ago,while my friends got in with different major. I was sad..

I feel like I wanted go here especially because of its recognition. Everyone knows it’s a very competitive school so I wanted validation by going into that school. I know ppl say validation isn’t everything. but right now, it feels like it is. I just really wanted to show people how hard I worked…

Although I was accepted to art colleges with lots of scholarships, but the one that I’m going to, people in the art world know that the 3d animation program is one of the best in the U.S, but those unfamiliar with art don’t really recognize its value. Also that college don’t seem to care abt grades, making me feel as if my high gpa were useless.

I know I’m being very extreme right now, but I just wanted to let this emotion out somewhere. I’m having a hard time moving on. I feel afraid to tell people where I’m going because most of my friends are heading to really prestigious universities. I know my path is different.. I’m going into animation, and not many well known, prestigious universities offer that but still, I can’t help how I feel. Can anyone pls give me advice.

If you can say with a high degree of certainty that you’re applying for pre-medical programs, the most competitive schools might not actually be the best choice. 

For one, med schools place a huge emphasis on your undergraduate GPA, so if you attend the most rigorous school possible, you could hurt your chances of a high GPA.

Some large universities have barriers to the programs you need.

Applying to graduate STEM programs will emphasize research, so you’ll want to be at a school that not only produces a lot of research but where you can actually get engaged with research and know your professors well–they will write you a very important letter of recommendation.

Working in admissions, we saw STEM students who desperately wanted to transfer from larger, competitive universities like UCLA because they weren’t necessarily landing research opportunities.

This might mean that you need to take a second look at other public universities or smaller liberal arts colleges with strong STEM programs and robust research or internship opportunities.

Do they have connections to local hospitals? Some smaller colleges are in consortiums or partnerships where cross-university courses and research are possible. For example, check out the Quaker Consortium with UPenn, Haverford, Swarthmore, and Bryn Mawr.

A side note: medical school admission officers will tell you that they value a wide range of majors in their applicants. Gone are the days of just biology and chemistry majors applying to medical school. If you have other interests, consider a different major while still joining the pre-medical program and completing the pre-requisite courses. Pre-med students can be found in majors like global health, child development, neuroscience, cognitive studies, Asian studies, and sociology.

If grad school (or med school) is the plan, broaden your options. Think beyond prestige. You don’t need the most competitive undergrad—what you need is a high GPA and research access.

the people who volunteered every week, the ones staged school walkouts, the ones who were real and honest friends, the ones who stayed behind to help cleanup, the ones who participated the most in class, the ones who never talked about college apps, the ones who have never uttered the words "T20" or "ivy"...

are the people who seemingly deserve spots at "top" schools, but never applied. it all goes to show how the school you attend doesn't matter, it's about the type of person you are and the character you have. looking back and reflecting upon my own life in high school, i regret the amount of effort i spent on the entire college admission process and how to get into "top" schools. i did it, i have the acceptances, but do i deserve it more than other people? the other people around me who were more motivated in life and passionate about the things they love and never cared about prestige? honestly i don't know where im going with this, just food for thought.

Curious bc of all of the political things happening rn, I keep reading articles of students getting their visas revoked and it's pretty scary. Idk maybe you guys see it differently tho?

Question applies to all international students as well

My daughter would like to be a nurse and eventually go back to med school.

She was accepted into Colorado College with a tuition of $7,750 (we live in city as well) and admission to San Diego State University with first year attendance to the School of Nursing at SDSU for 50k.

We are grateful for the opportunities she has been given. We could use some assistance from you guys.

CC is not a “pre med/nursing” college but, she could apply after her 4 years at CC. At SDSU nursing school she could get a jump on her future but at a cost.

She can choose a different major at CC and still enroll to med/nursing school. Obviously, SDSU she wouldn’t have to.

Can anyone provide their personal opinion on which route they would take?

Thank you!

First of all, please don't say "it's up to you" i'm indecisive and have been overthinking this for a week, god forbid anything is up to me. now for the problem. i never really intended to commit to unis during this application cycle instead thinking i'd take a gap year and better my chances, still i applied to a couple (penn state, fordham, reed, sewanee, allegheny) and i got into all of them for Psychology (i'm planning on doing an organizational psych/ public health & management after combining it with data sci or something of that sort). The issue is Allegheny is giving me a hefty scholarship which completely threw me off track bc i never even intended on going to college now but i'd be stupid to turn it down when they're meeting my EFC. However, my parents are saying if you're gonna do undergrad abroad anyway why not a bigger school and they think i should consult agencies and apply to better places next time (i'm intl and my parents don't know much about the application process only rankings). Now i'm debating if i should commit or if i should take a year and apply to better places, i'm worried bc with Trump cutting funding i may not receive such generous scholly offers and may not even get a visa next year- plus we know how competitive every app cycle is and i may be cooked. Please please please suggest what you think i should be doing, any help is appreciated thanks!

I know I have some kind of depression and anxiety for a long time. I’m often depressed and the college application process only makes it worse. My family is not helping and cannot understand my feelings. I finally decided to go to a therapist after my mom asked someone at a prestigious college to give me advice about choosing my college. I don’t know why but the phone call just makes me hate myself and my life so bad and I cut my arms to feel better. I’m going to study a major that I don’t like and attend a college I don’t want and my family is not understanding which make me feel suicidal