Famous American schools: recruited 1300 people, invited 80,000 people, and were accused of fooling people.

The American Ivy League is world-famous, and many students dream of college. How many students spend a lot of energy and redouble their efforts to be admitted to Ivy League every year? However, what about the "Ivy" accused of fooling people?

Up to now, 20 15 American college applications have basically come to an end. At the end of autumn last year, at the peak of application, a high school girl from New Jersey, USA, wrote in Washington post, criticizing Yale, Harvard, University of Chicago and other famous American universities for using attractive invitations to attract a large number of mediocre students to apply, and then turned them down in large numbers, so as to achieve the effect of low admission rate and strong competitiveness.

American high school students issued a document to bombard the "Ivy League" flicker

The reporter immediately found the original text published on Washington post website 20141017, signed by Amanda Graves, a high school student in a public high school in New Jersey, USA. The original title is "Dear prestigious university, don't recruit me if you know that you won't admit me". Firstly, the article quoted part of the email sent to her by the director of the Admissions Office of Yale University last September, which praised her academic achievements and urged her to give priority to Yale University when applying.

Amanda said in the article that she didn't understand "why me?" She said that her academic performance is not good enough: she has never been shortlisted for the national excellent competition, led a team, conducted any scientific research, participated in a band in Quanzhou, and even failed to reach the top 25% of the school.

She looked it up on the Internet and found that Yale University only enrolled 1300 students a year, but sent such an email invitation to 80,000 students. According to the data of College Board, 95% of Yale students' high school graduation scores are in the top 65,438+00%, and 65,438+000% are in the top 25% of high school graduation classes. So Amanda thinks her chances of being admitted are zero.

The reporter also found that the admission rate of Yale University's 20 14 is only 6.26%, and the admission rate of American "Ivy League" has been declining in recent years. It is generally analyzed in the industry as "increased competition". It turns out that this kind of "competition" actually comes from a large number of "denominators" with mediocre results.

Amanda believes that the reason why these top universities in the United States issue invitations is to "fool" some high school students who have achieved good results in PSAT, SAT and ACT, and make you think that you are really taken a fancy to by famous schools with compliments, and then apply excitedly, contributing a quota for the growing number of applications and the high application fee. The final result, of course, is that I have never heard from you again, and these prestigious schools can still shout that the number of applicants has increased and the admission rate has decreased after receiving the non-refundable application fee. "Just to highlight competitiveness and improve our position in various rankings."

interpret

Just like enterprise recruitment, it is understandable for famous schools to cast nets for publicity.

After verifying the original text, the reporter consulted some consultants and experts from American study institutions (courses). In fact, from the wording to the content, this article is more like a simple high school student venting his anger of being "fooled" in the forum post bar. The statement is biased, but it is also excusable.

Zhang Lei, director of the American Department of Kai Tak Education Guangzhou Branch, told the reporter that in fact, the purpose of sending out a large number of invitations by famous American schools before applying is to attract more elite and diversified talents. "This is the same as corporate recruitment and headhunting." Zhang Lei believes that it is understandable that an excellent enterprise often gives speeches all over the country before the recruitment season, and publicizes its image among outstanding students. "But can every candidate who submits a resume be hired in the end? Of course not. Enterprises should strictly review whether candidates are suitable for the positions they apply for, and colleges and universities should naturally strictly review whether candidates meet the admission conditions and are suitable for the school culture. "

Regarding Amanda's emotions, Zhang Lei said that he could understand them from the perspective of students, but he pointed out that students have every right to refuse the invitation. If they think they can't meet the requirements, they won't apply. "If we know that we can't meet the requirements, we are still excited to apply. Naturally, there is also a lack of understanding of yourself and the vanity factor behind it. "

suggestion

Rushing to a prestigious school: stick to a hobby for 8- 10 years.

Zhang Lei said that a world-class top school like an American Ivy League school must recruit excellent talents. "They are very concerned about things other than English grades and academic achievements, especially the evidence that can reflect students' quality, such as social responsibility, activity organization ability, critical thinking, integration with western culture and their own opinions. They want to see what makes you different from others, and you have to play this specialty well, not just a hobby. "

For example, a student who has been practicing harmonica or painting for 8- 10 years is very telling. "At least you have perseverance and the potential for long-term study in the future. Adhering to a hobby for a long time, the last' leftover' is king, which is much more competitive than temporarily participating in some short-term background enhancement projects. " Zhang Lei said.

For China students who have always been keen on American famous schools, Amanda's denunciation may make people see the other side of admission to American famous schools, and more importantly, let them know what is the right choice for studying abroad.

We always say that we should choose the school that suits us, instead of blindly following the famous schools. But what kind of school is suitable for you, and how to judge whether it is suitable? Zhang Lei believes that first of all, we should examine whether the educational philosophy of the school we apply for is consistent with our own pursuit, and secondly, we should look at the applicants' previous admission documents, and then we can understand the majors and tutors of the school and what kind of work the professors of their chosen majors are doing. Of course, employment environment, climatic conditions, geographical location and other factors are also important reference standards.

"This is the same as looking for a job. You need to know first whether the corporate culture is what you like. " Zhang Lei revealed, for example, that an excellent student should learn to consider and analyze the characteristics of Stanford, MIT and Harvard University, which one is more suitable for him. "MIT prefers the geeks of science and technology, but Harvard University doesn't pay attention to this. It is of course best to go to Cornell University to study medicine. Therefore, if you think you are not a geek or a geek, you should be cautious when applying for MIT. "

In order to know the characteristics of the target school in detail before applying, and not to be confused by the "beautiful lies" of prestigious schools, China international students should not only rely on reliable and realistic overseas consultants, but also have a clear understanding of their ability level and future career goals, so as to maximize their interest in studying abroad, instead of getting lost in the "dream of prestigious schools".

Tips: It is not enough to have excellent grades if you want to increase your chances of being admitted to a prestigious school. You also need to have your own skills, which will keep you going for a long time. At the same time, you should also know that you must apply as soon as possible to apply for a school and prepare in advance.

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