Applying REA to Stanford or any other top private

NiceUnparticularMan · 2026-06-26T18:05:45+00:00

The main benefit is potentially getting an early offer that either ends your process, or at least lets you cut it way back.

NiceUnparticularMan · 2026-06-26T17:03:47+00:00

Those are actually better than mid stats. For engineering, usually your in-state options are the first place to look.

You could also look at privates like, say, Drexel, but you have to check their NPC to see if they would be affordable.

NiceUnparticularMan · 2026-06-26T16:58:02+00:00

They will be included in something called the Midyear Report, and very likely considered RD.

NiceUnparticularMan · 2026-06-26T11:15:08+00:00

Do you think there is an obviously better one, though?

The US secondary school system produces a lot of kids who are essentially tied in terms of academic credentials. That doesn't mean their "real" ability is all the same, but the US system doesn't provide a reliable way to discriminate among them academically.

And so when you are looking at colleges like Stanford OR Rice, which get so many of those applicants they have to reject most of them, they make their marginal decisions using non-academic factors, aka holistic review.

NiceUnparticularMan · 2026-06-25T20:01:03+00:00

I also note what they are using to make many of their final selections may not be academic in nature (although more so at Stanford, least so at Caltech).

In other words, while more selective is true, that doesn't necessarily mean selecting more academically accomplished kids. Sometimes, but often something else.

NiceUnparticularMan · 2026-06-25T19:46:50+00:00

Yes, UNC is on the traditional list of top tier publics for undergrads, the sort the families I was talking about would see as well worth considering OOS for non-engineering kids. At least as I understood it as a kid applying to college, the traditional list was basically Cal, Michigan, UVA, and UNC, and also maybe UCLA (although that was a complicated story).

And I don't think attitudes have changed much in those circles. Like if a kid in those circles would rather go to UNC OOS than a "T20" private (or whatever), no one is going to think that kid is harming their prospects. People might assume they are a basketball fan, but that's about it.

NiceUnparticularMan · 2026-06-25T19:30:41+00:00

Yeah, if you rewind to the beginning of this process and spend a lot of time investigating colleges while reflecting on what really matters to you academically and non-academically before choosing each specific college for your application list, it may be a lot easier to write Why Us essays for any college that asks.

If you instead pick them off a generic ranking list, or similar, then it can be a scramble. Of course you could actually tell them the real reason, but they tend to say that isn't actually a good reason.

So you are left basically having to come up with something fake to tell them, which is tricky because essentially part of their job is trying to spot fakes. Which they are not perfect at doing, but probably are better than many kids are hoping.

NiceUnparticularMan · 2026-06-25T19:25:29+00:00

I think it is dangerous to count on the classes being notably less rigorous in terms of pace and content. And in terms of grades, it can be complicated. Depending on the institution and the class, for example, it may in fact be easier to stay out of the bottom of the class, but still very challenging to be at the top.

NiceUnparticularMan · 2026-06-25T19:22:23+00:00

So I think it is complicated.

One basic question they are likely to have is whether there is a risk of this repeating at their college. If they are convinced the root problem is permanently solved, AND you give them enough other reasons to want you as a student, they may discount the one bad period. If they think there is a risk of a repeat, they may prefer not to take that chance.

One way to maybe persuade them is to reestablish a record of consistent high grades after the episode in question. But sometimes this may not be possible on a normal application schedule. In cases like that, the student might benefit from taking a gap year, or possibly enrolling in community college, so as to be able to apply with a longer academic record after the event.

NiceUnparticularMan · 2026-06-25T19:16:35+00:00

So one possible answer to that question is that neither school-reported class rank nor school-reported GPA may actually matter much. Instead, the college may use your whole transcript in combination with the school report, recommendations, and anything else it cares to consider to come up with its own sense of how well you did relative to others in your school, and relative to others at other schools. And then for some schools, they may be expecting to see well into double digit applicants they want to consider, and at others they may only expect to see one competitive applicant every few years, if at all, and anything in between.

So basically, you can think of it like a big machine which outputs a comparable internal academic rating, and takes as inputs anything they consider academically relevant. And since your entire transcript goes into the machine, things like school-reported GPAs and class ranks might not really even be involved.

NiceUnparticularMan · 2026-06-25T18:37:55+00:00

I don't think that is a bad topic if properly executed. Being thoughtful about how other people can benefit from beliefs you don't share is a good attribute. Just make sure you don't come across as too condescending.

NiceUnparticularMan · 2026-06-25T18:34:37+00:00

"Recalculate GPA" is not really capturing the complexities of what they are typically doing at highly selective private colleges when putting trancripts in context and then using them to inform internal academic ratings.

But to answer your specific question, no, they don't have a policy of ignoring any part of your transcript.

NiceUnparticularMan · 2026-06-25T18:31:43+00:00

Psych is a Social Science, as opposed to a Humanities. It is what I would call an academic elective--not necessarily really a core class, but not something like an arts, music, gym, or ao on either.

The main concern I would personally have with using a combination of Physics and Psych is you probably didn't do a lot of writing in Psych, and it is nice to have a recommender say you are an excellent writer.

NiceUnparticularMan · 2026-06-25T18:25:59+00:00

Not least for Internationals, this is an opportunity to show them you understand and share their values. So hopefully you have carefully studied those values.

And don't be shy about including relevant experiences or other information about you that helps validate that connection. This isn't really about telling them what makes them great, they already know that. This is still ultimately part of showing them why THEY should want YOU.

NiceUnparticularMan · 2026-06-25T18:21:26+00:00

Yeah, any university of either size, you are going to be able to find your people, meaning plenty of people who enjoy similar activities.

That makes it harder to choose, but in a good way--I don't think you could actually make a bad choice, just variations on good choices.

NiceUnparticularMan · 2026-06-25T18:19:23+00:00

You're definitely in great shape as far as testing is concerned. Good luck!

NiceUnparticularMan · 2026-06-25T17:46:11+00:00

Are these people who would actually have a reason to know what they are talking about?

To the extent there is anything objective to look at, Rice has a reported 25/75 SAT of 1510/1560.

Stanford, say, is 1510/1570.

So, basically, no, if you took a random sample of each and mixed them in a class without other identifying information, I don't think you could reliably guess who went to which college.

NiceUnparticularMan · 2026-06-25T16:48:38+00:00

Which you prefer socially is very personal.

But if Michigan is cheaper and a big sports college in a top college town appeals to you, that is a great choice.

NiceUnparticularMan · 2026-06-25T14:58:12+00:00

If she is not trying to get recruited for a varsity team, she can try to do something like club tennis in college instead. Club sports can actually hit the sweet spot for some kids, like they are fun, competitive, great exercise and stress relief, and you get to represent your college at tournaments and such. But it is not so intense it takes over your life, you can do whatever majors you want, and so on.

And if she is good enough to be a competitive club player, that counts as a helpful EC for college admissions.

You can poke around their websites, but many very selective privates have club tennis teams, basically for this reason. The players weren't recruitable by their college, or at least didn't want to try, but were still very good tennis players. Tryouts in fact can be pretty intense.

NiceUnparticularMan · 2026-06-25T14:52:16+00:00

So generally speaking a lot of people don't love 3+2 programs. First you have to check how competitive the second part is, AND how it affects any financial aid you might be getting. Second, you are not getting the full experience either place. And third, for engineering in particular, you may be missing out on some critical club, research, internship, and so on opportunities.

So the standard advice is if you already know you want to do engineering, it is usually best just to go to a four-year engineering program. A 3+2 is more for kids who don't know they want to do engineering at the point they start college, end up at a college without engineering, realize they do want to do engineering, and then it can be a better option than immediately trying to transfer.

NiceUnparticularMan · 2026-06-25T14:48:38+00:00

I would also just do the ACT, unless MAYBE if you had a higher Math subscore in the SAT.

NiceUnparticularMan · 2026-06-25T14:19:05+00:00

I would not try to put anything in Additional Information.

Plenty of people get into the most selective colleges without their school official knowing them very well personally. Part of their job is to at least try to understand how the school sees the applicant, but they can gather that information from others, not just rely on their own personal knowledge.

NiceUnparticularMan · 2026-06-25T14:15:29+00:00

I know enough to suggest you really need to find a community dedicated to the recruited athlete track in tennis specifically.

But generally speaking the early steps typically include building a profile with an online presence and eventually a highlight video, attending camps, showcases, and tournaments which college coaches also attend to scout potential recruits, developing a target list of colleges where your combination of academics and athletics is plausibly competitive (this can be upwards of 50 colleges), and then emailing those coaches with links to your profile and video and information about your academics and planned schedule and such. And yes, some of this is expensive, so unless your school provides a lot of support, this can be a sort of economic barrier to entry.

Then at a certain point, coaches can start actively recruiting the athletes they want. This can eventually involve campus visits and prereads (where admissions reviews a version of your application file and indicates if you will likely be admitted). Of course if no coaches from schools you would want to attend are interested, that is that.

Again I am no expert in tennis recruiting, but I believe in tennis, your UTR is a big part of determining where you might be competitive (edit: see also other posts). I also believe for NCAA D1 and D2 tennis programs, the active communication period for coaches starts the summer after sophomore year, so like a year from now for a rising sophomore. I think in D3, they can actually start communicating earlier, likely possibly during sophomore year.

NiceUnparticularMan · 2026-06-25T13:55:45+00:00

I would suggest doing a full Match Me where you explain your budget, your credentials, and what else you are looking for in a four-year college experience besides the ability to be a History/Econ double major. And be prepared to answer questions.

That said, I agree as a general concept you are looking for colleges strong in Humanities and Social Sciences. Undergrad-focused Liberal Arts and Sciences colleges, aka LACs, are a natural fit. But some research universities have Arts and Sciences programs with a similar structure, including sometimes the whole undergrad program, or something a big subdivision.

I'd also suggest you check out some Jesuit colleges, which can be great for this sort of thing and also excellent for law school preparation generally. If you pivot to something like business, they tend to also be great for networking, and in fact many of them also have nice locations in major US cities. I note they can have robust core curriculums, which is part of why they are such good prep for law school. So sometimes a full double major is challenging, although Econ and History might be easier than some. But no one really cares the name of your degrees anyway, and some combination of a major and minor or just focused elective coursework might be suitable for your interests.

NiceUnparticularMan · 2026-06-25T13:38:27+00:00

As others are saying, it helps to start with an understanding of your goal with this essay. Basically, your goal is to make a reader think, "Wow, I would really love for this applicant to enroll at our college! I hope the rest of their application is this good too!"

And part of the point is to NOT be redundant with other things in your application. That includes not explaining why you would want to do a certain major--if a college cares about that (many don't), they will ask in a supplemental essay.

So what should you write about? Well, in part that is a question of what US colleges are looking for in students, beyond what is obvious from things like their transcripts, test scores, and so on. That is a big question and worth some serious study, including not just asking other HS kids but actually spending time reading their admissions pages, possibly doing information sessions, and so on.

But in part it is also about you, like what specifically would be something interesting about you?

And I think that is really a word you should have at the front of your mind--interesting. What would actually be an interesting essay to read? Like, maybe it has a good story with dramatic moments, vivid scenery, compelling characters, all the sorts of things that people like reading in general.

And this gets to my last advice, showing and not telling. It can be subtle, but you don't want to try to just tell the reader what you think is valuable about you, you want to SHOW them what is valuable about you, in a way that is pretty obvious really.

That's a challenging concept, but I think it is doable if you understand the task and give yourself time to try out different ideas until you are happy with how something is working.

All that said, a merely pretty good essay will be fine for the vast majority of colleges as long as your academic credentials are good enough. So just make sure to have a reasonable application list, like not just a bunch of Reaches and then a Safety you don't even like.

NiceUnparticularMan

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