6 ms·

Throwaway account. I'm currently working on college applications, and found pretty annoying. I've been getting well over a dozen e-mails a day as well as two

Throwaway account. I'm currently working on college applications, and found pretty annoying. I've been getting well over a dozen e-mails a day as well as two or three items of physical mail every day, all on colleges, all for the past three months. I've been getting a lower level of the same thing since early high school when I first took the SAT. I made national merit scholar and did well on the SAT; that's when it really picked up. None of them have really convinced me to apply (except for Vanderbilt; they put their financial aid stuff right up front). However , I did get a few useful ones. Most of them were notifying me about info sessions for the colleges. There's also a box on the SAT where you check whether or not you want this or not, though I don't remember if it's opt-in or opt-out. Most of what I get is useless (though as national merit results get processed, I've started getting serious scholarship offers). What I don't like is that most of them are just send stuff to drive up application numbers and drive down acceptance rates, because yes, that's a thing (even though it sounds horrible, and every rejection makes a kid feel like garbage). Mail is cheap, I guess, but I wish colleges would relegate their communications to those they actually wanted.

utdpromospam 7y ago
(Throwaway account to respond to your throwaway account) If you’re interested in CS, Engineering, Entrepreneurship, with National Merit, check out UT Dallas. They have a full ride for National Merit, and especially if you’re interested in computer science, there’s a honors program just for CS. Its not a top school or anything, but if money is at all a concern, definitely look into it.
- acollins1331 7y ago
  I don't need to make a throwaway account to tell the parent that they probably don't want to live in Texas.
  - dang 7y ago
    I unfortunately just saw this, but need to tell you: please don't post regional flamebait to HN. It leads to flamewars like this one, which we emphatically don't want here. We've already had to warn you before about not breaking the site guidelines, and unfortunately it seems like you've been breaking them a lot. That leads to getting banned here, and I don't want to ban you, so would you please review https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html and use the site as intended from now on? The idea here is: if you have a substantive point to make, make it thoughtfully; if you don't, please don't comment until you do.
  - social_quotient 7y ago
    Geez, what’s wrong with Texas?
    - journalctl 7y ago
      It’s hot and you can’t be black/queer/female there.
      - ozzmotik 7y ago
        the hot thing is true but as someone who was born and raised in Texas and spent 28 years there I do think that you're somewhat exaggerating with that other bit
      - selimthegrim 7y ago
        Barbara Jordan’s ghost is spinning in her grave
      - collegespam 7y ago
        Ahh yes, as everyone knows, Texas is populated exclusively by straight white men. In reality, I live in Houston, which is the most diverse city in the nation. Maybe do your homework before flaming?
      - amyjess 7y ago
        Hi, I'm a queer woman in Texas. UT Dallas alumna even.
    - some_random 7y ago
      Didn't you hear? The US is nothing but barbarian wasteland outside of California.
      - aty268 7y ago
        Apparently, yet masses of people are flocking to the 20th century wasteland Texas from California anyhow.
    - droithomme 7y ago
  - aty268 7y ago
    What a shortsighted, useless comment. I live in Austin, life here is wonderful and predominantly liberal with no income tax and high salaries for a software engineer. I wouldn't live anywhere else. People are leaving California and NY to live in Texas for a reason. My girlfriends parents are hyper liberal beach bums from California who moved to Dallas and said they will never move back.
    - 40four 7y ago
      Austin is an exception to the rule. Would you live in any other cities in Texas? I wouldn't. It's so freaking hot, and it's mostly an ugly state to look at. Not trying to be mean to Texas :) I just like green trees and plants, and sub 100 degree summers! Only my personal preference, I get others preference differs. I don't fault people who enjoy Texas :)
      - aty268 7y ago
        Yes, Dallas and Houston are both pretty decent and diverse cities for tech. Dallas still has some old country money people, but has become much more liberal these past few years as people from out of state are moving there. I agree austin is an exception, but dallas will be soon as well. I can't count the number of insanely liberal people I know who moved from California to Dallas.
        40four 7y ago
        Austin is cool... enjoyed the time I spent there. Anywhere that has a great live music scene I think I can be happy! Was only in Dallas briefly but I wasn't very impressed. I didn't get a great feeling there. Never been to Huston, but a friend of mine grew up there and always spoke highly of it. I just have a hard time with super hot climates, I enjoy a more moderate temp :)
  - collegespam 7y ago
    I live in Texas and am quite happy here. I don't appreciate your needlessly-disparaging remarks. Why wouldn't I want to live here? Lots of jobs, low taxes.
- stevespang 7y ago
  My kid graduated Westlake in Austin, TX 2016 with 52 AP hrs, about top 15% of his class, not within the top 7% required to get automatic entry into UT Austin. But he could not get past 2000 on the SAT despite taking it several times (may not be a good test taker). He did apply though at UT Austin in Natural Sciences, Texas A&M ranked 40th nationally in Comp. Sci., and a host of lesser schools. UT Dallas offered him a scholarship right off the bat, but his luck UT Austin accepted him, not on SAT but likely on AP hrs. and his resume, captain tennis team, etc., etc, he was able to graduate in 3 years with no student loan debt and about a "B" average in Comp Sci., now a software engineer in Austin. I think UT Dallas has a lot going for it. UT Austin ranked 7th nationally in Comp. Sci., so within the top ten that high tech corporations like to hire from. Texas is hot 6 months of the year, but the comment about no LBGT is dead wrong. Texas State, a lesser univ. 50 miles down the road has become a hotbed of LBGT, all the nearby streets are head shops, quicky loans, tattoo parlors and bars. Go figure.
- amyjess 7y ago
  I went to UT Dallas, and I got a full-ride scholarship without even having to apply for it. I had no extracurriculars to speak of, and my grades were good but not the best (I was in the top 10% of my class, but nowhere near the top of that). IIRC, it was the third-highest scholarship tier they offered at the time (started Fall 2003). Tuition + mandatory fees + a few hundred a month (forgot the exact number) credit for Waterview rent. No stipend, though, that's only in the two highest tiers.
30collegespam 7y ago
(Throwaway because I don't like talking about college application process). If it's any consolidation, it's been like this for at least 20 years. I'm 33, and when I did well enough on PSAT to become National Merit Finalist, I got similar amount of inbound mail from colleges. By the end of the process I had 4 banker boxes full of the stuff. It's very similar to what happened last year when I went for a car quote... I ended up taking a full ride at a state school. While the school wasn't the best experience and I've gotten some "why didn't you go to an ivy league school?" comments, not having any college debt has been worth it. I don't regret the decision at all.
- akhilcacharya 7y ago
  I remember being disappointed that my SAT score was too low to even get inbound mail from decent institutions! Guess the world for the high-SAT scorers and the rest of us is pretty different.
some_random 7y ago
This is consistent with my experience, tons and tons of identically formated mail from random universities I'd never talked to. I've really come to hate university administration.
- TomVDB 7y ago
  But our university 500 activity clubs while the others have only 300. Doesn’t that count for something?
- ineedasername 7y ago
  The administrations are only partly to blame. It's something of an arms race, and anyone who doesn't participate gets left behind. When one school starts something, it's initially a competitive advantage. After a few years, other schools pick up on it and it becomes less valuable. After that it becomes almost compulsory because what used to be a competitive advantage is now status quo, creating a sort of negative Nash equilibrium. The identically formatted materials are because there are a dozen or so higher ed marketing companies that serve most of the market, and they are themselves competing with each other in a similar way, converging on a handful of templates they've tested to be the most successful. Once one of them comes up with something more innovative, the very next marketing cycle will see their competitors mirror it.
gwbas1c 7y ago
When I did the SAT / PSAT, this was opt-in. I checked the box and had a steady stream of mail from colleges I had no interest in.
throw1234651234 7y ago
I wonder if there is any trick for old people (30s) to get into college for free for a Bachelor's or a Masters. I am guessing they don't care about SATs at that point.
- kop316 7y ago
  What are you looking for to pursue? While not free, community college is a great resource to look at to get a lot of the core requirements out of the way, and they try to hold a lot of evening classes for working individuals. In addition, it wouldn't surprise me if there are some sort of merit and/or other type scholarships for folks wanting to go back to schools. You just have to look.
- _jal 7y ago
  Why would there be? It tends to be the opposite; if you're coming back to school in your 30s, you're presumed to have some savings, and likely interested in school to increase your earnings. That said, SF residents can get a Associates from City College for free. Elsewhere I know less about it, but there community colleges are still very cheap in some places.
masonhensley 7y ago
I recall their recruiting & financial aid communication was on point 15 years ago when in your shoes. My email is in my profile if you have any questions about Vanderbilt. (Biomedical Engineering class of 2010)
oefrha 7y ago
> I've been getting well over a dozen e-mails a day as well as two or three items of physical mail every day, all on colleges, all for the past three months. > Most of what I get is useless That’s basically a fact of life these days. Better get used to and learn to cope with it.
ineedasername 7y ago
Whether or not you checked that box to opt-in/out, you can still get lots of these marketing materials. The SAT is not the only source that colleges and universities use, many or most purchase lists from other sources as well. For example, if you ever sign in to Peterson's or any of a dozen other "help me search for a college" services, you're probably on lists being sold for this purpose.
MH15 7y ago
The interesting thing I'm experiencing now after having a similar experience to you is that now the same colleges have begun emailing me with graduate school offers. I've begun to identify which schools use which contracting company to send emails and mail by the style of these messages.
InitialLastName 7y ago
FWIW, I'm not sure national merit made any difference to the amount of mail. I made it, my sister didn't (late 00's) and the amount of college advertising spam we got was indistinguishable.

utdpromospam 7y ago

(Throwaway account to respond to your throwaway account) If you’re interested in CS, Engineering, Entrepreneurship, with National Merit, check out UT Dallas. They have a full ride for National Merit, and especially if you’re interested in computer science, there’s a honors program just for CS. Its not a top school or anything, but if money is at all a concern, definitely look into it.

acollins1331 7y ago
I don't need to make a throwaway account to tell the parent that they probably don't want to live in Texas.
- dang 7y ago
  I unfortunately just saw this, but need to tell you: please don't post regional flamebait to HN. It leads to flamewars like this one, which we emphatically don't want here. We've already had to warn you before about not breaking the site guidelines, and unfortunately it seems like you've been breaking them a lot. That leads to getting banned here, and I don't want to ban you, so would you please review https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html and use the site as intended from now on? The idea here is: if you have a substantive point to make, make it thoughtfully; if you don't, please don't comment until you do.
- social_quotient 7y ago
  Geez, what’s wrong with Texas?
  - journalctl 7y ago
    It’s hot and you can’t be black/queer/female there.
    - ozzmotik 7y ago
      the hot thing is true but as someone who was born and raised in Texas and spent 28 years there I do think that you're somewhat exaggerating with that other bit
    - selimthegrim 7y ago
      Barbara Jordan’s ghost is spinning in her grave
    - collegespam 7y ago
      Ahh yes, as everyone knows, Texas is populated exclusively by straight white men. In reality, I live in Houston, which is the most diverse city in the nation. Maybe do your homework before flaming?
    - amyjess 7y ago
      Hi, I'm a queer woman in Texas. UT Dallas alumna even.
  - some_random 7y ago
    Didn't you hear? The US is nothing but barbarian wasteland outside of California.
    - aty268 7y ago
      Apparently, yet masses of people are flocking to the 20th century wasteland Texas from California anyhow.
  - droithomme 7y ago
- aty268 7y ago
  What a shortsighted, useless comment. I live in Austin, life here is wonderful and predominantly liberal with no income tax and high salaries for a software engineer. I wouldn't live anywhere else. People are leaving California and NY to live in Texas for a reason. My girlfriends parents are hyper liberal beach bums from California who moved to Dallas and said they will never move back.
  - 40four 7y ago
    Austin is an exception to the rule. Would you live in any other cities in Texas? I wouldn't. It's so freaking hot, and it's mostly an ugly state to look at. Not trying to be mean to Texas :) I just like green trees and plants, and sub 100 degree summers! Only my personal preference, I get others preference differs. I don't fault people who enjoy Texas :)
    - aty268 7y ago
      Yes, Dallas and Houston are both pretty decent and diverse cities for tech. Dallas still has some old country money people, but has become much more liberal these past few years as people from out of state are moving there. I agree austin is an exception, but dallas will be soon as well. I can't count the number of insanely liberal people I know who moved from California to Dallas.
      - 40four 7y ago
        Austin is cool... enjoyed the time I spent there. Anywhere that has a great live music scene I think I can be happy! Was only in Dallas briefly but I wasn't very impressed. I didn't get a great feeling there. Never been to Huston, but a friend of mine grew up there and always spoke highly of it. I just have a hard time with super hot climates, I enjoy a more moderate temp :)
- collegespam 7y ago
  I live in Texas and am quite happy here. I don't appreciate your needlessly-disparaging remarks. Why wouldn't I want to live here? Lots of jobs, low taxes.
stevespang 7y ago
My kid graduated Westlake in Austin, TX 2016 with 52 AP hrs, about top 15% of his class, not within the top 7% required to get automatic entry into UT Austin. But he could not get past 2000 on the SAT despite taking it several times (may not be a good test taker). He did apply though at UT Austin in Natural Sciences, Texas A&M ranked 40th nationally in Comp. Sci., and a host of lesser schools. UT Dallas offered him a scholarship right off the bat, but his luck UT Austin accepted him, not on SAT but likely on AP hrs. and his resume, captain tennis team, etc., etc, he was able to graduate in 3 years with no student loan debt and about a "B" average in Comp Sci., now a software engineer in Austin. I think UT Dallas has a lot going for it. UT Austin ranked 7th nationally in Comp. Sci., so within the top ten that high tech corporations like to hire from. Texas is hot 6 months of the year, but the comment about no LBGT is dead wrong. Texas State, a lesser univ. 50 miles down the road has become a hotbed of LBGT, all the nearby streets are head shops, quicky loans, tattoo parlors and bars. Go figure.
amyjess 7y ago
I went to UT Dallas, and I got a full-ride scholarship without even having to apply for it. I had no extracurriculars to speak of, and my grades were good but not the best (I was in the top 10% of my class, but nowhere near the top of that). IIRC, it was the third-highest scholarship tier they offered at the time (started Fall 2003). Tuition + mandatory fees + a few hundred a month (forgot the exact number) credit for Waterview rent. No stipend, though, that's only in the two highest tiers.

30collegespam 7y ago

(Throwaway because I don't like talking about college application process). If it's any consolidation, it's been like this for at least 20 years. I'm 33, and when I did well enough on PSAT to become National Merit Finalist, I got similar amount of inbound mail from colleges. By the end of the process I had 4 banker boxes full of the stuff. It's very similar to what happened last year when I went for a car quote... I ended up taking a full ride at a state school. While the school wasn't the best experience and I've gotten some "why didn't you go to an ivy league school?" comments, not having any college debt has been worth it. I don't regret the decision at all.

akhilcacharya 7y ago
I remember being disappointed that my SAT score was too low to even get inbound mail from decent institutions! Guess the world for the high-SAT scorers and the rest of us is pretty different.

some_random 7y ago

This is consistent with my experience, tons and tons of identically formated mail from random universities I'd never talked to. I've really come to hate university administration.

TomVDB 7y ago
But our university 500 activity clubs while the others have only 300. Doesn’t that count for something?
ineedasername 7y ago
The administrations are only partly to blame. It's something of an arms race, and anyone who doesn't participate gets left behind. When one school starts something, it's initially a competitive advantage. After a few years, other schools pick up on it and it becomes less valuable. After that it becomes almost compulsory because what used to be a competitive advantage is now status quo, creating a sort of negative Nash equilibrium. The identically formatted materials are because there are a dozen or so higher ed marketing companies that serve most of the market, and they are themselves competing with each other in a similar way, converging on a handful of templates they've tested to be the most successful. Once one of them comes up with something more innovative, the very next marketing cycle will see their competitors mirror it.

gwbas1c 7y ago

When I did the SAT / PSAT, this was opt-in. I checked the box and had a steady stream of mail from colleges I had no interest in.

throw1234651234 7y ago

I wonder if there is any trick for old people (30s) to get into college for free for a Bachelor's or a Masters. I am guessing they don't care about SATs at that point.

kop316 7y ago
What are you looking for to pursue? While not free, community college is a great resource to look at to get a lot of the core requirements out of the way, and they try to hold a lot of evening classes for working individuals. In addition, it wouldn't surprise me if there are some sort of merit and/or other type scholarships for folks wanting to go back to schools. You just have to look.
_jal 7y ago
Why would there be? It tends to be the opposite; if you're coming back to school in your 30s, you're presumed to have some savings, and likely interested in school to increase your earnings. That said, SF residents can get a Associates from City College for free. Elsewhere I know less about it, but there community colleges are still very cheap in some places.

masonhensley 7y ago

I recall their recruiting & financial aid communication was on point 15 years ago when in your shoes. My email is in my profile if you have any questions about Vanderbilt. (Biomedical Engineering class of 2010)

oefrha 7y ago

> I've been getting well over a dozen e-mails a day as well as two or three items of physical mail every day, all on colleges, all for the past three months. > Most of what I get is useless That’s basically a fact of life these days. Better get used to and learn to cope with it.

ineedasername 7y ago

Whether or not you checked that box to opt-in/out, you can still get lots of these marketing materials. The SAT is not the only source that colleges and universities use, many or most purchase lists from other sources as well. For example, if you ever sign in to Peterson's or any of a dozen other "help me search for a college" services, you're probably on lists being sold for this purpose.

MH15 7y ago

The interesting thing I'm experiencing now after having a similar experience to you is that now the same colleges have begun emailing me with graduate school offers. I've begun to identify which schools use which contracting company to send emails and mail by the style of these messages.

InitialLastName 7y ago

FWIW, I'm not sure national merit made any difference to the amount of mail. I made it, my sister didn't (late 00's) and the amount of college advertising spam we got was indistinguishable.