Every year, some high school students find that they've been rejected by all the collegess to which they applied. In many cases, the problem can be traced to some miscalculations when choosing schools. The standard advice most students receive is to apply to a mix of safety, match and reach schools. However, in these six cases, what seems like a match might actually be a reach.
1. Highly Selective Schools
If you have great test scores and a high GPA, you may be tempted to view the
top colleges and
universities in the country as matches. However, most of these highly selective schools have acceptance rates well below 20%. Whatever your scores are, these schools should be considered a "reach." Many well-qualified applicants will be rejected.
2. Low Field-Specific GPA
Imagine you're applying to an engineering school and your high school GPA and class rank are a match for the school. However, your math and science grades are the lowest on your transcript. Since the engineering school is looking for particular strength in math and science, those individual grades could reduce your chances of acceptance.3. Shifts in Selectivity
It's easy to miscalculate what schools are a match if you have out-of-date data. The 2007-2008 admissions cycle was one of the most competitive on record because of a surge in the number of applicants. A school that recently accepted 50% of applicants may now accept only 30%. As a result, many schools that would have been a match a couple years earlier are suddenly reach schools.4. Lack of Extracurricular Involvement
If your GPA and test scores are a good match for highly selective colleges, but you have very few extracurriculars, you'll be applying with a handicap. Since schools are looking for highly engaged and well-rounded students, your lack of extracurricular activity will lessen your chances of acceptance.5. Out-of-State Status for a Public College
You may find that your scores are a good match for top public universities like
Berkeley or
UNC Chapel Hill. However, your chance of admission changes if you don't live in the school's state. State-funded universities are often required to admit a specific number of in-state applicants, so frequently the admissions bar is set higher for out-of-state students.
6. Special Programs Within a College
Let's say you are applying for a top business or engineering program at a college where your scores are a good match. However, many specialized programs within a college have higher admission standards than the college as a whole. For example, as hard as it is to get into the
University of Pennsylvania, it's even harder to get into Penn's Wharton School of Business.
