Any rejection is upsetting, but college rejections — especially in the Early Decision round — have a particular sting to them. There is so much hope, optimism, and hard work wrapped up in college applications, that having a dream school like Northwestern shut down that potential future is frustrating, to put it lightly.
What matters most, though, is what you do next. Do you let this rejection derail you, or do you pull things together to get to an even better institution? First, let’s talk numbers.
Northwestern is stingy with their data, but the overall acceptance rate for the Class of 2029 was just over 7%. This marked the next data point in a steady downward decline. A significant aspect of the consistently dropping acceptance rate is increased demand. As more people apply for the same number of spots, the acceptance rate is pushed downward.
As they filter through a larger pile of applications, they have also been able to become pickier about who they choose to let in. Northwestern has been test-optional in recent years, and about 70% of recently accepted and enrolled students submitted an SAT or ACT. With a test-optional policy also comes the potential for a sort of score inflation. Students with weaker test scores choose not to submit them, so the averages rise for the scores that are submitted. An SAT composite score in the 50th percentile was, most recently, a 1540. For the ACT, the 50th percentile score was 34. The average GPA of accepted students not reported, but we know it to be very high.
If you were a competitive applicant academically, something went wrong with your application to nudge them towards a “no.” In this post, we are going to break down the four steps you need to be taking now to right this ship and set a course towards a dream college.
We help strong students get into outstanding schools, even after early rejection. Learn more.
After a rejection Early Decision, it is easy to tuck into your shell like a turtle and tune out the noise of the world. It’s an understandable impulse, but it’s also the wrong one. Instead, it’s time to make bold moves and big changes to get impressive results.
Step One: Take a Break
Yes, we did just say that you need to make bold moves. The first one, though, is to slow down. Before you can do more, you need to do less — for a couple of days, at least. Take a few days to catch up on sleep, have long conversations with friends, and to dream. There is so much that is still possible for your collegiate future. Once you are recharged, it’s time to make it happen.
Step Two: Strategize
Next, you need a strategy. If you had a college list before applying to Northwestern, you don’t necessarily need to throw it out. It does, however, need a fresh look. You didn’t get into Northwestern, and you weren’t deferred either. Northwestern defers strong applicants that they still want to keep in consideration, but they try to only defer a small number of ED applicants. By not deferring you, they let you know that there was something about your application that made it necessary to rule out. And this is where there is a bit of a fork in the road.
If your grades were at the lower end of the averages of what Northwestern has recently accepted, or even below, you need to restructure your college list with this in mind. A strong college list must be crafted to fit your academic profile, and that means that even your reaches need to be, well, within reach. We advise students to build a college list with 2-3 reach schools, 3-4 targets, and 3-4 safety schools.
The other side of the fork is the writing. There is no perfect activities list or array of honors, so it’s much more common that, when a strong academic student is rejected, it is because how they talked about what they do.
Step Three: Essays
It would be nice to be able to reuse the essays you worked so hard on, but we don’t advise taking that path. Starting fresh may be frustrating, but you’ve learned a lot since you first started working on college essays. You know what you want to say better, and you have a clearer idea of what you want to do in college and into the future. Basically, you can do better work than you could have done a few months ago. So, let’s use that for your benefit.
Strong college application writing is narrative-forward, story-centric, and focused without becoming repetitive. We work with our students to develop a story for each supplement and essay, such that the stories build upon each other and show the applicant from a variety of angles.
If you are drafting alone, outline your ideas before you begin to write to ensure that you are treading new territory with each supplement. You should also have some fun with it. Remember that application readers are humans. They want to be entertained as much as they want to get to know you. This doesn’t mean that you should not take the applications seriously, but there are often opportunities to integrate lightheartedness and playfulness that only amplify the impact of your application.
Step Four: Ask For Help
There is a lot to do to get into a dream school in the Regular Decision or Early Decision II rounds, but you don’t need to go it alone. We work with students to craft applications that strongly reflect their personality and potential as a community member. You can also lean on a trusted teacher or school counselor, but don’t expect to get expert advice from friends or family members. College admissions is a very particular experience, and simply being able to write an essay doesn’t mean one knows how to ace a college essay.
You have the opportunity to turn your college application experience around. Go ahead, get into a dream school.
Strong outcomes require strong strategy. Get yours.