Hey there, future college students and families! It’s time to review the latest college admissions trends for the 2022-23 cycle and get ready to make some wise decisions as you approach your college admission season. It’s GO TIME for Juniors.
First up, we’ve got continued increases in applications to high-profile colleges! That’s right, big-name schools like Harvard and Yale are seeing more and more applications, but so are other institutions, including marquee public universities. The University of Tennessee even reported a whopping 40% increase in applications!
Why? Grade inflation!
Test Optional Hail Marys- test scores matter folks.
The ‘Why not try” strategy-which is like buying a lottery ticket.
Applications overall and applications per student have also increased. The Common App reported an increase across the board, with more individual student applicants, more total applications, and an average of five college applications per Common App user (and in my world, that’s more like 10-12 per kid).
And let’s not forget about test-optional policies! Most colleges have kept their Covid-initiated test-optional policies in place, meaning you can complete an application without submitting test scores. Only 4% of Common App colleges required test scores from first-time freshman applicants in the 2022-23 cycle. But be aware, it remains unclear how student choices regarding test scores help or hurt their applications. Our philosophy is, “If you cannot ACE the Algebra 2 testing on the SAT, you have no business applying to MIT.” MIT agrees btw as they brought testing back (cue Justin Timberlake)
So there you have it, folks! Stay on top of these exciting trends and get ready to rock your college admissions journey with our team here to help you. We have many new products including hourly packages for the “somewhat prepared” student, the comprehensive package (always the most successful) the Comprehensive PLUS- by invitation only, to our awesome private group of parents of college-bound teens (a great opportunity to get in “the know”).
We love what we do.
We are growing.
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We put together a well-balanced list.
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We turn the firehose off (or at least to a drinkable level).
**This year has been particularly competitive with test-optional policies driving up applications at the nation’s most selective schools. From Harvard to Vanderbilt to Rice and WashU, the number of applicants vs. the number of spaces is extremely lopsided. Even public universities like Texas, Clemson, and Georgia are reporting record numbers of applications. But fear not! Remember that there are more than 10 worthy colleges in America, as New York Times columnist Frank Bruni reminds us in his book “Where You Go is Not Who You’ll Be.” Your success in college is not determined by the name of the institution, but rather what you do in your four years there. So take advantage of opportunities in research, leadership, internships, and in the classroom. Let’s make the most of this exciting time and find the perfect college for you!