How to get into Ivy League Colleges | 2023 College Admissions Explained

We're talking highly selective and Ivy League admissions. Yale, Harvard, Princeton, MIT, Stanford, Amherst, Wesleyen, Wellesley, Swarthmore, Haverford whatever it is.
Have questions about the seemingly endless changes to the SAT this year? You're not alone, but don't worry - Alyssa the College Expert has all the answers.
#MITAdmissions #YaleAdmissions #HarvardAdmissions
Alyssa Bowlby
SSA Online College Prep
Socratic Summer Academy
Yleana Leadership Academy
Blog: www.socraticsummeracademy.com/blog
Website: www.socraticsummeracademy.com
Facebook: socraticsummeracademy
Instagram: socraticsummeracademy
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LINKS
Comparing options and financial aid:
www.socraticsummeracademy.com...
Sample brag sheet:
www.fastweb.com/nfs/fastweb/s...
How Schools Used Test Scores from the Class of 2021
www.compassprep.com/how-schoo...
PROOF POINTS: Colleges that ditched test scores for admissions find it’s harder to be fair in choosing students, researcher says
hechingerreport.org/proof-poi...
US Colleges Should Bring Back SAT and ACT Test Requirements
www.bloomberg.com/opinion/art...
We are reinstating our SAT/ACT requirement for future admissions cycles by Stu Schmill '86
mitadmissions.org/blogs/entry...
Getting rid of standardized testing will penalize kids from underserved schools
philanthropynewsdigest.org/fe...
Halpern Critical Thinking Assessment Predicts Real-World Outcomes of Critical
Thinking.
drive.google.com/file/d/1vbDe...
Substantive Critical Thinking as Developed by the Foundation for Critical Thinking Proves Effective in Raising SAT and ACT Test Scores
www.criticalthinking.org/page...
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EXCERPTS
"At MIT Admissions, our mission is to recruit, select, and enroll a diverse and talented group of students who are a good match for MIT’s unique education and culture. Everything we do in our process is grounded by our goal to find and admit students who will succeed at MIT and serve the world afterward.
After careful consideration, we have decided to reinstate our SAT/ACT requirement for future admissions cycles. Our research shows standardized tests help us better assess the academic preparedness of all applicants, and also help us identify socioeconomically disadvantaged students who lack access to advanced coursework or other enrichment opportunities that would otherwise demonstrate their readiness for MIT. We believe a requirement is more equitable and transparent than a test-optional policy. In the post below - and in a separate conversation with MIT News today - I explain more⁠01 about how we think this decision helps us advance our mission. "
"In the Class of 2021 Admit Rates figure, schools with similar admit rates between test submitters and test non-submitters, such as Vanderbilt, Wellesley, and Northeastern (EA), back the spirit of test optionality-that students without scores will not be disadvantaged-with their admissions data. Schools with divergent admit rates between submitters and non-submitters (Davidson, Georgia Tech, and Georgetown) are more likely to favor applicants with test scores.
In the Class of 2021 Submitters figure, schools whose admitted class profiles hover close to an even 50/50 split between submitters and non-submitters (Wellesley, Barnard, or USC) also back the spirit of test optionality. Schools who admitted far more students with scores than without, such as Penn (75% of admitted students were test submitters) or Georgetown (89% of admitted students were test submitters) are more likely to favor applicants with test scores. We suspect these schools are also more likely to require testing again once ACT and SAT sites are widely available."

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

What should I do a video about next? Was this information helpful? Let me know what YOU think in the comments! 😘😘😘

[@0x49fa98]

More on ivy league college like MIT, Harvard and Yale. Not only the admissions process, maybe ivy league college reviews?

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

Good idea! Harvard vs. Yale college comparison? Something focusing more on the colleges than the admissions process itself.

[@madhulikamoon3517]

😅😅😅😅😊po😊kkb th V C

[@apekshitasolomon]

How prepare for Ivy league phd two years before with 0 prep.

[@Michelle__.]

I’m a raising senior and I am so nervous I mean applying to very selective schools is extremely intimidating but I hope I am able to strive big !!! Thanks for the info.

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

Good luck Michelle!

[@Sailor-boat]

Got into Harvard and Columbia thx for the tips

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

AMAZING!

[@thargwobbly1498]

I was like WOW - She touched on all the Ivy schools where I want to apply! And YES! I was wondering how can schools decide between applicants without the SAT, and how I can make my application stand out? Tips on constructing a great essay! What a great idea - Bulletted summaries - to get a recommendation - nobody at our school was offered Brag Sheets!

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

glad it was helpful! ❤️

[@laurat9320]

I love your bangs Alyssa! I’ll be sharing this with everyone!

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

Thank you Laura!

[@gokselyesilyurt1973]

Super Helpful thanks !

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

thank you!

[@TommyNHoang]

One of the first videos I have ever watched that actually provided useful tips for perspective college students on the admission process. This will really help a lot of teens out there still struggling with setting a clear road map for college. Keep up the amazing work!

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

Thank you Tommy! That made my day :D

[@leonchen9591]

Thanks for making this video Deeply appreciate

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

That's so nice of you!! Thank you!!

[@whitebeardpirates7551]

really helpful, thx for your time and effort♥♥

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

You're very welcome! ❤️

[@vex2960]

Woah! this was actually super helpful unlike most college videos. Keep up the great work

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

thanks vex!

[@MuhammadOmerIrfan12]

im a junior and i've been watching these videos regarding college essay. This is without a doubt the video video i've watching. its such a compact video with so much useful info in just 10min. I will definitely revisit he vid in summer before my senior yr. Appreciate all the work! ❤

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

Thank you Muhammad. I'm so glad it was helpful! ❤️

[@blizz8563]

You're on the right path. As a fall 23 applicant, I just have one tip for you: Organize your college research - Jot down everything on a spreadsheet including scholarship documents, deadlines, clubs etc. This way you'll get everything done beforehand.

[@0x49fa98]

great advice!

[@theangryarabian1256]

Did you apply to any summer programs?

[@shadowmt6735]

Wow, subscribed!

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

Thanks. See you around! :D

[@midnightakame4115]

That's so helpful

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

I'm glad!

[@greatindiandreams]

Alyssa i think you should make a video about British universities. As British universities are 3 years and a student can do his masters too all in 4 years. If someone who doesn't get into an Harvard or UPENN can still get into Imperial college London, University College London & University Of Edinburgh because their global rankings is still much better than rest of ivy league as per QS and the best part is that they are cheaper easier to get into. I also got into brown, Dartmouth and NYU but i chose Kings college London because of better ranking (37 global). Kings college London being part University of London i usually hang out with people from LSE, UCL, LBS etc. As for the networking is concerned i think its much better than ivy leagues i have personally met many children of billionaires, royalty, heads of state and industry leaders. i hope this helps.

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

that's a great suggestion!

[@emallace447]

Oh my gosh I wish I knew of you when I was applying. You're amazing.

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

🥰

[@aditinarayanan]

I am your 500th subscriber

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

Thank you Aditi! See you around! 😍

[@fawcheck7552]

Woooooow thanx Elizabeth

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

🤣

[@SomethingToThinkAboutwithWJ]

Alyssa, you have outstanding on camera presence. Great information for highly selective college applicants.

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

Thank you so much!

[@soccersprint]

It is very difficult to get into the IVYs for undergrad degrees, however Its significantly easier to get into grad school in all the Ivy"s and elite schools. If you dont get into an Ivy for undergrad then no big deal. Just make sure that what ever school you go to for undergrad, you keep your GPA above 3.2, and do meaningful summer internships. Then you can apply to IVYs and other elite schools for grad school. Apparently its easy to get into the graduate programs in the school of Public health at Harvard, Yale, Dartmouth, Columbia and also John Hopkins, if you are interested in getting a masters of public health. Its still competitive to get into most of the Ivy grad programs but outside of MBA, LAW and MED, its much less competitive. I think Harvards school of Public health accepts 40-60% of applicants while their MBA program only accepts 5- 10% of applicants.

[@chantalpurvis]

Thank you Alyssa for this good advice , because I want to apply to all Ivy League colleges .

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

Best of luck!

[@anxheloripa449]

Alyssa, you and your organization has helped me so much, allowed me to get in my University of choice for free. This video is absolute gold. People, if you stumbled upon this Please Follow All These Steps. They WORK.

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

Anxhelo - I (and all of us at Yleana) are so proud of you! I love you!

[@anxheloripa449]

@Alyssa the College Expert thank you. Sharing this with everyone who may find it of use. Great video and a lot of research behind it 👏👏

[@0x49fa98]

agreed!

[@SelfEsteemSalon]

Hi this is super helpful! I am writing in regard to an "undecided major". ---- Can you clarify the "send them a music recording or send them art". Do you mean attach this to the common application? or do you mean send this after applying- send to a faculty member or an admissions officer? I assume you mean this as separate from the required portfolios or music samples that are mandatory for certain majors. Also, some of what I could send them is videos, but it's where the applicant appears in the video personally, which I think is not allowed=. or is that ok at the interview stage?

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

Hi! Thanks for your comment! There are a few bits I wanted to address: [1] WRT "undecided" major: At most highly selective universities where you apply, they don't need you to stick to the major you say you're interested in - just wanted to be clear about that. Based on some conversations with admissions officers, it's often a good idea to say that you're interested in a fairly uncommon major - that will work to your advantage. [2] "send them a music recording or send them art" - you can either attach this to the Common - upside: EVERY college will get it - downside: it doesn't seem particularly personalized to THAT college OR you can follow up specifically with the admissions rep assigned to you at the colleges you really want to see it - upside: it feels extremely personal and demonstrates interest in the college. It also gives you the opportunity to create a relationship with the admissions person - downside: it's a lot of work OR you can reach out to a professor - upside: that's SUPER personal and demonstrates a LOT of interest - downside: the professor may or may not pass that info along to the admissions office [3] I do mean separately from what's required [4] with these kinds of submissions, which are optional and have not been directly requested, I wouldn't worry so much about what is "allowed" unless there is a SPECIFIC proviso against sharing external supplemental materials with the group you're choosing to share with. Hopefully that all helps! Feel free to write again with other questions!

[@happyspirit23569]

Hi, so I'll finish high school at the end of 2023. I'm planning to take a gap year in 2024 to improve my extracurriculars. Do you think taking a gap year can be detrimental to a strong application? I'm an international student, and extracurricular activities are not highly valued in my country. I only found out in the middle of the year that international students can study abroad, so I don't have any extracurriculars. Do you think I can achieve good extras in one year? I really want to get into MIT.😢

[@jerichoadler1747]

Hi! I was wondering how recommendations work. I’m an international student and I noticed that we need recommendations from a counsellor and two teachers( please do correct me if I’m wrong). I’m planning to apply to multiple colleges in the US which means I need a lot of teachers and counselors. My question is, do I truly require multiple teachers for recommendations or could a teacher write multiple or make a general one. As well, for counselor recommendations, I heard school staff like my school principal can suffice, however is there other individuals I could ask for recommendations in this section(or the teacher section)? I ask this because I see people getting recommendations from their boss, a CEO, someone they shadowed, etc. I just wanted some clarity in this section of the admission application and any help would be appreciated! Thank you very much!

[@jstanovic]

Question.. how importance is legacy to admission? My sons grandfather got his PhD from the school we are looking at and went on to be the Dean of a department at U-Mass Boston. My son is straight A's in a top ranked High School IB program. Won State academic competitions. His poetry has been published in the school lierary magazine. Lettered in Golf. Participates in the school homeless program and has been asked to speak at other schools to promote community service. Etc. Your thoughts are appreciated.

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

How important legacy is in college admissions is a complicated question, and highly dependent on the specific school you’re applying to. I know of some schools that allocate 60% of their class to legacy admissions. That’s definitely not the norm, but that school of which I speak is an Ivy - and that school also allocates a separate 10% of their class to just student athletes. Some colleges see legacy admits as a practice that interferes with their DEI goals, and others see it as good business practice to keep their endowment and alumni network/giving program growing. I’d have to know exactly what schools your student is planning to apply to and, if I don’t know their particular allocation off the top of my head, can do some digging to find out what those specific schools’ practices are. There are some schools that I might not be able to find an answer for because their practice is so shrouded in secrecy, but many I probably will be able to find an answer for. Go ahead and book a 30 minute session; once I get more information, I can give you a more specific answer and/or do some research on your behalf. www.socraticsummeracademy.com/services/college-consulting-package

[@jstanovic]

@Alyssa the College Expert Thank you for your insightful response...Boston University is the school.

[@izzyc1570]

You may be completely right that submitting SAT scores increases your chance of being admitted, but your evidence is conflating correlation with causation. It is possible that the students who chose to submit SAT scores were better and that’s why they were more likely to be accepted, not that showing your SAT score improved your chances of being admitted. While it probably is causal, the 2.3 number is likely inflated.

[@AC-bx4lu]

I genuinely have a terrible SAT score, but I go to a competitive high school in the Bay Area and have gotten straight A's throughout high school (incoming senior). I really don't think I'm going to be able to bring my score up to a place where it's going to benefit my application. Is it really going to make or break my application? I'm only applying to reach schools (Stanford, etc) not really expecting anything so do you think I should just try one more time or apply test optional?

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

it will not break your application to submit test-optional, but it could MAKE it if you can submit with a great SAT score. I'd say take it one more time - do your best - and if you still hate your score, apply test-optional. If you've been prepping all this time and still see no improvement, you might be prepping with the wrong people - just saying.

[@bpxl53yewz29]

You gotta apply to safety schools too, bro. Reach schools are just that - a reach that most of us won’t get into.

[@AC-bx4lu]

@@bpxl53yewz29 lmao ik, i'm applying to hella safeties

[@alexiamartinez3770]

Rock star information

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

⭐⭐⭐

[@LanasTutoring]

Thanks for the info! I was wondering if not having 5s on AP tests will bring my chances down..... My school did not offer APs to freshman and sophmores, so in junior year, the highest i got were two 4s......

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

I really doubt it. But don't submit them if you don't like the scores!

[@LanasTutoring]

@@alyssathecollegeexpert thank you!!

[@jhl8203]

Can you also talk about applying to US universities and colleges as an international student?

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

Added to the list!

[@healy_ly]

sooooo helpful. Should I still submit my SAT score if it is lower than a schools average? especially for ivies.

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

Take it again! Reach out to us for help!

[@healy_ly]

@@alyssathecollegeexpert Okay thanks! I just got my march 20th SAT back and it was 1440 (720 for english and math). I think what I really need to target is my math bc I know I can boost it. It sucks though because I got 790 math on the blue book practice test because it was much easier. Very misleading.

[@riddssarah9265]

Hey I am in 12th grade and I had been facing so many issues from past few days because I changed my stream from science to commerce which I also have an explanation to why.I am good at academics but as I changed the whole stream I cannot submit my application right now this year. It's okay to apply it next September of 2024 right as long as I can show my improvements and why the gap was taken?

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

It's always okay to take a gap year - it shows maturity to know that you're not ready for college. Don't apologize for it - embrace it!

[@THT777]

Hello, My name is Utkarsh I am 15 currently and I am in 11th standard right now, I wanna go to the universities which are mentioned in the description but I really have no confidence plus I want to give AP's SAT and I wanna do internships but I really don't know where to start from

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

I'm guessing from your use of the word "standard" that you're not going to school in the US - if that's the case, you will not receive financial aid, because that's only for US-based students. If you can afford to pay your whole way, then you should start prepping for the SAT. If you cannot afford to pay your whole way, start narrowing down the colleges that will give you merit money and looking more seriously at them and figure out what, to each of them, will make you the most competitive applicant.

[@akanbiopeyemidorcas4206]

My tuition and fee is 9,610, and my living expenses is 6,800 my student funding estimated is showing 16,410 and i got a scholarship grant of 10,000 that covers my tuition and books in total of my student funding estimated fee is showing 26,724 please i want to know how they arrive at the total estimated student funding ?

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

I think we would need to take a look at your financial aid package to get a sense of where that number came from - book a session with me or a member of my team here so we can go over it with you: www.socraticsummeracademy.com/college-consulting-landing If you book with a member of my team, use the promo code 50OFFCOLLEGE to get half-off any session!

[@arnavjaisingh6912]

Hey , can we connect regarding my application and profile?

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

Absolutely, Arnav; I'd be happy to help! Let's start with either a half hour or hour and we can go from there! www.socraticsummeracademy.com/services/college-consulting-package I'm excited to start working on your application!

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

honestly, working with students is one of the things that brings me the most joy! @Arnav

[@stoicguac9030]

How about someone whos past college age?

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

It’s the same process regardless of age. What will be different is how you’re perceived. Admissions officers may see your age as diversity - which is exciting - or think it’s “not quite what they’re looking for”, especially if you’re not planning to live in campus and be part of the community. Admissions officers, when they’re thinking about building classes, are thinking about building the class as an entity. So it depends on how you fit in with their vision of what the class will be. But if you’re significantly older, make it clear that you are planning to be part of the cohort and live on campus, because otherwise, they see you as somebody who is taking from them but not contributing to the whole of what they’re creating.

[@etiennedevignolles7538]

Getting somebody else to fill in your application forms, and somebody else to write your essays would help you get into Harvard.

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

🤷‍♀️

[@JamesJoyce12]

you missed the number 1 recommendation to get into an Ivy - be an URM - you get free bonus points across the board - at least until the SCOTUS finds that this is basically and absolutely unfair

[@fazimarif7245]

what's URM

[@Jordan-fn3lb]

These schools don’t track demonstrated interest

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

Different colleges have different ways of keeping track of who visited, etc - I wouldn’t write that off without knowing more about that college’s specific process. There’s no perfect across-the-board measure, but it is generally an understood precept that demonstrated interest will be seen by someone and will likely help you.

[@sandramiller1988]

MIT and Stanford aren’t Ivy League schools…

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

You’re totally right! In terms of selectivity, they’re often grouped with Ivies and many students trying to get into Ivies and also interested in Stanford and MIT - so in college admissions, we tend to say them in the same breath.

[@Progger11]

MIT, Swarthmore, and Stanford are not Ivy League schools.

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

You’re totally right! In terms of selectivity, they’re often grouped with Ivies and many students trying to get into Ivies and also interested in Stanford and MIT - so in college admissions, we tend to say them in the same breath.

[@Krakatoa-i3z]

I mean

[@Progger11]

@@BasicallynoOneAtAll Depends on the subject. MIT and Stanford will always trump the ivies when it comes to tech, computing, and mathematics. But across the humanities and other sciences, it's less clear. Columbia is essentially where modern anthropology was born, and their anthropology department is still among the best to this day. Harvard has very strong pre-law, pre-med, government, and economics programs, as well as the top grad schools in law, government, and education. But it's much weaker in other areas. I would say all the top-rated schools, across the ivies and other comparable institutions, are generally speaking pretty even in overall quality. The strengths and weaknesses of each individual school varies when you get into specifics.

[@kelbygene]

Do you have eyebrows? SAT says no.

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

:D

[@fdr2275]

Ivy League Universities in the USA have become trash in recent years. These moron colleges have officially abandoned the traditional method of recruiting students based on objective standardized testing (like the SAT). Instead, they are playing a game which they call Holistic Approach that puts excessive emphasis on factors like extracurricular activities, teacher recommendations, college application essays, racial quota, special preference given to children of alumni and first generation college students etc. Make no mistake. These things are completely irrelevant to a student's academic potential. The Supreme Court of the United States has already ruled the race-based admission policies of Harvard and UNC are unconstitutional. Let this be a wake-up call to all the colleges all across America.

[@AC-bx4lu]

The students Ivy Leagues are accepting are already exceptional students without the SAT or ACT. They haven't become "trash". To say that these students aren't deserving because they didn't apply with a SAT or ACT discounts their personal achievements that makes them a good candidate. The average student accepted to these schools are already one of the top students in the country. These universities don't want robots, they want actual human beings.

[@fdr2275]

@@AC-bx4lu Where is the proof or evidence that "The students Ivy Leagues are accepting are already exceptional students without the SAT or ACT. "? Exceptional in what sense? Academically? I doubt it.

[@harveyh.7467]

would you consider haverford as nearly the same calibre as the ivies? i thought other LACs like W7L and Carleton were deemed more competitive

[@alyssathecollegeexpert]

Great question! I use the US News rankings to understand the relative standings of colleges, as that’s become the gold standard for families - whether you agree or disagree with their metrics or the how and why of their metrics. I’ve been helping students get into college since 2006, and as I’m sure you can imagine, there’s been some fluctuation in the rankings over that time - I have a long-standing understanding of each school and its network/prestige/academic rigor, outside of yearly fluctuations. For you and your family, though, as you think through your options, I’d advise you to be guided by US News rankings for this year - if only because that’s what everyone else is using. Feel free to reach out privately if you want to talk through your personal school fit/likelihood of admission!