OT: I have Hoo cousin, whose twins were both waitlisted @ Tech for the fall
Fairfax County PS for their K-12 years, and their mother (my 1C) went to Robinson HS before her undergrad studies in and TAMU from her postgrad. Their father and I, have fun back n forth banter about VT vs UVA.
Having been born and raised in the West End of Henrico (another superb school system), I too wonder if I could now get in?
VT is quickly giving me less and less reasons to not cut them off from all my donations. I hail from a VMI and UVA-heavy extended family. Beamer Ball and that wonderful, beautifully scenic campus were the main reasons I became a rebel. Alumni relations from VT, are sorely lacking compared to many other peer schools.
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1y
their senior year. Getting in from Fairfax County is ridiculous. Presumably similar for Loudoun and Arlington County as well.
I got in from Harrisonburg High School with a 3.7 and an embarrassing 1100 SAT c/o 1997
A number of people from HHS didn't even have my meh metrics and got in.
My oldest two kids got waitlisted with a lot of AP credits, a 4.3 +, and over 1400 on the SAT's. The primary driver is that they're Fairfax County kids and I was from a more rural era. A higher importance placed on DEI could have some impact as well, though that's probably not completely unrelated to location also, if you think about what areas they're more likely to get diversity from...
JMU and now VCU bound for my two oldest kids.
(In response to this post by AggHokie)
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Right of the top, GPAs are on a 5.0 scale (once you include +0.5 for honors and another +0.5 for AP) where where used to be a lot closer to 4.0 (In the 90s you got 0.5 for AP, but there where far fewer AP classes available). Your 3.7 and their 4.3 are not all that different.
I worry this would be considered political, but the only difference between today's unpopular "DEI" and rural-privileged admissions policies is how one defines the "D".
(In response to this post by BG Hokie)
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got out of undergrad in 3.5 years. Saved us a cool $6K plus!
(In response to this post by Beerman)
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Virginia Tech is a landgrant university that must serve the entire state. So it behooves Virginia Tech to admit a cross-section of students from all over the state.
Virginia Tech could fill their entire freshman class from a handful of high schools in Northern Virginia. But that's not their mission/mandate. So they must limit the number of students they take from dense areas like NOVA, where it's actually super-competitive to get into Virginia Tech.
But down here in Radford, my own personal experience with my kids is that nearly every kid from Radford HS, as long as they have decent grades, is offered admission to VT when they apply. We're talking about kids who wouldn't get a sniff from VT if they lived in NOVA, including my own son and daughter.
I also know a handful of kids from Radford High who were decent-but-not-great students who were offered admission into UVA. Same story: transplant those kids to NOVA, with the same classes and grades, and UVA would laugh at them. But since UVA has a rep of being difficult to get into, no one cares or talks about it.
BTW, UVA threw a lot of money at those kids, as well. They've got money to burn. I know kids who grew up wanting to go to VT, got into both schools, and went to UVA because it would up being 1/2 to 1/3 the cost of VT, after financial incentives. I'm not exaggerating. It's depressing. UVA plucks who they want from down here.
** Edited by Will Stewart at 3/28/2025, 9:06:21 AM
(In response to this post by AggHokie)
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state school:
NC State is limited to enrolling not more than 18 percent of total new undergraduate students from outside the state.
This is what VA should do!
** Edited by HoakieBS at 3/28/2025, 10:38:29 AM
(In response to this post by Will Stewart)
Georgia does something similar
(In response to this post by HoakieBS)
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cripwick
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My son was also wait listed 2 years ago. 5.0 GPA from Virginia high school while enrolled in a science and medicine program. Played 3 high school sports. Several clubs and still waiting listed. He is at NC State now and loves it. But I can't understand what it takes anymore
(In response to this post by AggHokie)
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hok1eboy
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I'd prefer a state school be in fact for the state students first.
(In response to this post by AggHokie)
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VT makes about double on an out of state student than a state student. When the State continues to cut funds for the universities, the out of state source of students gives a great source of revenue.
THis is happening all over the state. I heard Alabama has almost 50 percent of the enrollment out of state and it drives the entire Univeristy budget, (not getting any from the state of alabama). Same with other southern schools.
This is all about making a 37,000 university financially operate.
(In response to this post by hok1eboy)
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they have to recruit from other states to fill the voids.
(In response to this post by 1947Sunbowl)
Agree. If we want VT to be more of a "State" school than we all need to
press our state reps to fund a much higher % of our overall budget like it was in the 60s and 70s. We get very little state support anymore as a % of the budget.
(In response to this post by 1947Sunbowl)
1y
(aka the out of state rate) to instate students? One reason a state may be fine with its public schools accepting a higher percentage of out of state students is it increases the tax base because it means new blood is moving into the state. If that additional revenue suddenly goes away for the schools and state, then it is reasonable to expect both to look for ways to transfer that burden onto the instate residents. At least I wouldn't assume both would be okay with losing out on that additional revenue.
(In response to this post by hok1eboy)
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Marooned
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The way in is more often than not by transfer after the first year when a large number of kids wash out. TAMU actually has an arrangement with Blinn College to act as an extended pipeline where kids can automatically transfer in on a space available basis. It is also a reason why most all of the state schools (even TT and UH) have satellite campuses. VT definitely needs to move in that direction.
(In response to this post by AggHokie)
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schools? If so, then that might be a way for kids, who were either waitlisted or not accepted, to still be able to attend the school of their choice.
(In response to this post by AggHokie)
1y
My son did 5 years in the Marines after a not great high school career. When he got out, he went to NOVA CC on the GI Bill and was in the program for guaranteed admission to George Mason in Forensic Psychology (somehow he graduated with an AS with honors and BS also with honors at GMU). What you have to do is follow the requirements for the program for the school including credits/courses/performance (GPA, etc). If you do that, you are in. It's the best deal you can get. My neighbor's daughter didn't get into VT for ME and instead of doing this NOVA CC program spent $120k going to GT for ME and spent a decade broke as hell and working a weekend job paying off that bill.
(In response to this post by VTHokie2000)
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EDGEMAN
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For example, freshman English at a CC is the same as any VA university, so no worries about having it transfer.
Back in the old days, it was sort of "hit or miss" with CC classes. Some CC classes would transfer to some VA universities, but not others. Some classes would only transfer as an elective, and few schools were on the same page. They finally realized that was a bad way to do it, so they got together to align everything across the Commonwealth.
Students need to get good grades to get into Virginia's "elite" public universities.
(In response to this post by Happy Dog)
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student earns an Associates Degree from a Va. CC and maintains a 3.0 or better they can transfer to any in-state U.
(In response to this post by VTHokie2000)
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If you earn an associates from a VA CC with a 3.0 average, you are guaranteed admission to any VA state school. My daughters boyfriend did not get into JMU. He attended TCC the summer after graduation, the fall and spring semester, and the follwing summer and got his associates in 14 months. He then began at JMU the following fall under guaranteed admission. He was also accepted into VT, but decided to go to JMU because my daughter was there.
(In response to this post by Tuckahokie)
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Like GPA, core courses taken, etc. The requirements are known up front, you just have to meet them.
(In response to this post by Tuckahokie)
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it to give the schools more control over its enrollment. Particularly for the highly competitive degrees offered at the school and/or degrees with limited space.
(In response to this post by Tuckahokie)
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my son went to NRCC and just transferred into Radford mostly because they have a program for PA, PT, and he is still considering MD. He would have preferred VT but the sticker price difference is huge even for a kid that is living at home in Christiansburg.
(In response to this post by AggHokie)
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And it blew my mind they got into the school only 3 years prior. It has just gotten more competitive
If we want to be though of in the same conversation with UVA or UNC, this is how it goes
(In response to this post by AggHokie)
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2hhoop3
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UNC and academics the fake classes issue pops in my head. I know UNC has good programs but, the fake classes and the whole "to seem rather than to be" vibe still sticks out to me and I doubt I am the only one. Same goes for the "gentleman's C" at UVA. I know what "those conversations" used to be but, I am not sure there have not been some changes. Note, both are good schools but, I'm not sure they are quite as good as they think they are.
(In response to this post by soflahokie)
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...the exceptions that the university makes for their athletes really doesn't mean anything.
(In response to this post by 2hhoop3)
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2hhoop3
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to which you are entitled but, you might want to consider a little further. I don't think those exceptions only matter if someone's student is an athlete and it could affect a far larger group depending on the nature of the exception(s) granted.
(In response to this post by Beerman)
1y
It remains the case, however, that UNC has an excellent academic reputation and gaining acceptance there is terribly difficult for the general population. I don't care for them either, but grinding axes about Rocks for Jocks doesn't change the larger reality.
(In response to this post by 2hhoop3)
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2hhoop3
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you're entitled to your opinion. Their reputation has suffered, even if still good and the acceptance rate of the general population is likely much more a reflection of demand than anything else. UNC also has a good journalism and communications program capable of covering their warts and deficiencies and propping up their rankings. That is also another larger reality. This is not about grinding on Rocks for Jocks. This is about the development of a systematic plan to perpetrate academic fraud and, even more egregiously, the attempted cover up and fraudulent defenses designed to beat the charges at the expense of the academic reputation of the entire university.
** Edited by 2hhoop3 at 4/1/2025, 3:12:43 PM
(In response to this post by Beerman)
1y
Email from an assistant football coach asking for the professor to excuse one of the football players to be excused from class for three weeks for personal reasons. Also asked if the player could get As for the work missed. My daughter said the player has been to one class this semester. She said she rarely sees any athletes registered in the classes show up.
So maybe UNC isn’t alone. Some point soon we might eliminate the thought that college sports has anything to do with academics.
(In response to this post by 2hhoop3)
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certainly showed up to class at VT. I don't think they were, generally speaking, the most studious but they certainly attended class whether it was a large lecture or a small classroom.
(In response to this post by GreenvilleVT)
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Tugboat attend class regularly
(In response to this post by GreenvilleVT)
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Gadfly
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would condone the sharing of such information with a student.
(In response to this post by GreenvilleVT)
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I think some of the academic staff has had their fill with athletics.
(In response to this post by Gadfly)
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Spider73
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Just transfer to another school.
(In response to this post by GreenvilleVT)
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2hhoop3
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your observations on the relationships, or lack thereof, between academics and Athletics. All anyone has to do is compare admissions data for the various segments of student populations at most every school in order to see that.
However, and I do not doubt your daughter's account, there is a huge difference, in my opinion, between single, unrelated instances and a systematic plan, as depicted at UNC. On that point, at least so far, UNC clearly seems to be the lone ranger.
(In response to this post by GreenvilleVT)
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And hopefully what she witnessed is one off.
(In response to this post by 2hhoop3)
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2hhoop3
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I doubt what she witnessed was a one off. I think there are likely multiple instances of that or similar type deals that occur every year across all schools, not just VT. Those type situations are likely not just confined to athletes either. However, I view those separate and apart from systemic, organized plans.
Things have changed so much with respect to technology(online, etc.) that it is difficult to know how academic support programs function now versus earlier times.
** Edited by 2hhoop3 at 3/27/2025, 1:47:16 PM
(In response to this post by GreenvilleVT)
1y
When u have 56k aoplying its tough
(In response to this post by AggHokie)
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From early action. I replied to the last email requesting donation “won’t get anything more from me if you don’t accept my son. Tennessee, NC State, Texas A&M - no questions about family attending on the applications. So now he wants to go to Tennessee since Tech is slow playing him. I just can’t justify that much $$ for him to be a vol. I’ll pay out the a$$ for him to be HOKIE.
(In response to this post by 1947Sunbowl)
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the idea of having 'Hokie' families and think that should count for something but i also believe in merit based admissions.
(In response to this post by 1947Sunbowl)
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I'm completely fine with legacy. My kids did get accepted, but it pissed me off that was removed from consideration. It was the only non-merit based factor they could claim.
(In response to this post by radhokie1)
1y
To answer your question, yes...IF academic results are roughly equal, you go with the legacy student...The tough thing is trying to level-set what is equal based on environment...trying to adjust measurement from Baltimore public schools, Nova, SWVA, home schooling, grade inflation, fam/resource support, etc.....
(In response to this post by radhokie1)
1y
complex. I'm happy all I have to do is question everything and not actually make any decisions.
** Edited by radhokie1 at 3/27/2025, 10:51:02 AM
(In response to this post by VT757to276)
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EDGEMAN
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If the parents donate a lot to the school, does VT want to cut off that cashflow?
I wouldn't give VT a dime again if my very qualified kids were denied admission.
IIWII
(In response to this post by 1947Sunbowl)
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donor. I'm trying to root for JMU and VCU now, rather than VT, so I'm certainly never donating money to them again.
(In response to this post by EDGEMAN)
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(In response to this post by EDGEMAN)
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(In response to this post by HOKIE75-79)
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EDGEMAN
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...another student who scored 4.1 and 1420 on their SATs. Do you take the legacy or the other student...both resumes seem very close with the legacy scoring slightly higher on both?
(In response to this post by HOKIE75-79)
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(In response to this post by EDGEMAN)
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EDGEMAN
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Not talking about admitting unqualified, or mediocre students just because their parents attended VT.
(In response to this post by HOKIE75-79)
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.... from all corners fo the Commonwealth. Because there are many, many, many more highly qualified students in the northern Virginia area, many, many more get wait listed, in deference to other students from other parts of the Commonwealth.
(In response to this post by EDGEMAN)
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saret
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computer. I have no idea what demographic discriminators are built into the algorithm.
** Edited by saret at 3/27/2025, 12:11:21 PM
(In response to this post by EDGEMAN)
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student from out-of-state is available and will pay them more in tuition.
(In response to this post by EDGEMAN)
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EDGEMAN
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Kill one cash cow in hopes the replacement continues donating at the same level.
(In response to this post by HortHokie)
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effort kid in HS.
(In response to this post by AggHokie)
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and my mom worked in a college financial aid department at the time. So she had all types of help getting the money part straight.
(In response to this post by Tombo)
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Only way I could get into VT today would be as a portal basketball player!
(In response to this post by Tombo)