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Ask HN: I got rejected by all the US colleges I applied to. Now what?
- I got a low ACT score (28). Took the test only once.
- I applied to all the Ivy’s plus half a dozen other private undergraduate colleges. Got rejected from all.
- I assumed my ‘other’ credentials will make up for my low ACT score. I guess i was wrong.
- I scored straight A’s in my A Levels.
- I co-founded a company that has been successfully running for 3+ years now.
- I play a very popular sport at the state level.
- I expected to at least get into Babson (for its entrepreneurship program). But nope.
- Not an expert yet, but i can code (python, javascript).
On the plus side, i have saved 100,000+ USD that i can use as seed capital if i launch my company.
- rotterdamdev 6y agoHave you considered The European Union? University education is very affordable, and you can live off 100k USD for 2-3 years comfortably. I can recommend the Netherlands, good tech universities here. It would also be an experience that few of your generation can afford.
- freeslugs 6y agoThink about where you want to be 3-5 years from now. From an IRR and ROI perspective, not all colleges are equal and often trade schools yield higher relative returns. You definitely have a lot of capital and can invest in future endeavors. Try to apply for a software internship for the summer -- strong way to gain hard skills and determine whether tech life is a good fit.
- tomohawk 6y agoConsider applying to a different school, perhaps a state school. A common strategy is to go to a community college for 2 years and then transfer.
- paypalcust83 6y agoI did that on a TAA even though I was GATE, NMS, and had a perfect math SAT I 800.# It loses dorm life and social aspects, doesn't save much money, it messes up course scheduling, and there can be an impedance mismatch in terms of course content/prerequisites. I would recommend against it if at all possible. # 4-5 years of Boston snow or flambéing in Pasadena didn't seem appealing.
- perl4ever 6y agoI think "A levels" implies the UK.
- 8bitsrule 6y agoAnother path you can take is to enroll at a community college for a year or two to demonstrate your ability to succeed in coursework. Check with the school to be sure that the coursework credits you earn will transfer to a larger school of your choice. A relative of mine took that path (due to the crappy school he attended as a teen) and graduated as a chemistry honors student from a State University. Reliance on ACT scores (yours isn't all that low!) is a mechanical, shitty practice. Route around the damage.
- paypalcust83 6y agoACT requires prep. Ivy college admissions without legacy typically requires hiring an application coach 2-3+ years before applying. The big things you lose by not going to college are dorm life and friendships/networking.
- keiferski 6y agoI’d say you have two options: 1. Look into universities in Continental Europe. Most are free or have low tuition and will still give you a solid education. I recommend somewhere in Germany, Austria, Sweden or the Netherlands. Depending on the city, $100,000 will cover your expenses for 5-10 years. 2. Spend the next year prepping for the SAT. Hire a private tutor, sign up for courses, etc. Then get a high score and reapply next year.
- leoh 6y agoWoah can $100k really take you 5-10 years? What are cities you're thinking of?
- spacechild1 6y agoIn Austria, you can get a single appartment for 400-600€. A room in a shared flat can be even cheaper. So with 100000$ you can indeed survive for 10 years or live comfortably for 5 years. This mostly applies to Germany as well, although certain cities (like Munich) are rather expensive.
- rumanator 6y ago> Woah can $100k really take you 5-10 years? In some cities for $100k you can buy your own apartment and have some money to spare.
- keiferski 6y agoMost smaller university cities in Germany and Austria are very inexpensive. Leipzig, Heidelberg, Kassel, Münster for example. Even Vienna or Berlin are not too bad if you are okay living further out and with roommates.
- kyawzazaw 6y agoBut I think very few courses in Germany are offered in English at the Bachelor's level.
- 6y ago
- kingkongjaffa 6y agoIn context those A-level results are good enough for any of the top 20 if not top 10 universities in the UK, it's a good qualification if not quite top 5 levels ( oxbridge / top london uni's. ) I suspect the Ivy leagues have enough domestic applicants that a very respectable, but not outstanding candidate with less well understood grades would not make the cut here.
- cbanek 6y agoTake a year and do your company and apply again next year? It seems like the whole university system is kind of wondering what will happen in the fall right now due to the virus. You could have more time to prep and do the ACT over again, and apply to the same schools again and maybe add a couple of others just to widen the net? Seems like you really have a good head on your shoulders. Best of luck.
- toomuchtodo 6y agoDouble down on your company. That success will be your credentials and how to make you’re living.
- lonelappde 6y agoWhy do you want to college in the US? Why do you want to go to college? You already have a career.
- drewbitt 6y agoYour "low" ACT score is in the 89th percentile. You simply should've applied to some state schools as backup—you definitely would've gotten in some. If you're still focused on only going to top private schools, you retake the ACT and try again next year but should really consider applying to others as well.
- burlesona 6y agoCrikey. With that experience and that much money why do you want to go to college? You’re so far ahead of the game right now, you could continue your entrepreneurship with a level of freedom and resources that most folks could only dream of. If you want to learn stuff for your own benefit, or for potential entrepreneurial application, I’ve gotten a lot out of Coursera over the years. There are many great courses covering a broad range of interests. What is it you’re hoping to get out of college?
- moneysake 6y agoAre you international? If so, not surprised. You need to be einstein to get into anywhere interesting with international status
- doopy1 6y agoGrow your business, fuck college. Also, one little known fact is that you can appeal these rejections. Just write a letter to the head of admissions explaining why you think your denial was mistake, tell them about yourself and your experience.
- matheweis 6y agoI agree with what others have said about the value not being there given your current accomplishments. If you are one of the rare few looking for the real value in attending an Ivy League college (relationships you’ll make with professors and other students), get a full time job - can probably even be a janitor if nothing else - at your university of choice, then audit your choice of courses as staff are generally allowed to do without any admission requirements.
- ikeyany 6y agoSeveral schools like Colgate, Vassar, and BU are dropping their ACT/SAT requirements due to coronavirus, so you might not be completely out of options.
- kyawzazaw 6y agoThat's for next year. But you are right, I think the only aspect OP is missing is standardized test scores. Multiple colleges will go optional next year, so OP should retry again.
- Viralsneezer 6y agoAsk Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Gates, Michael Dell, Larry Ellison ... Interesting that a guy with your background would even need to think about going to a college ...
- atmosx 6y agoWhy do you want to go to college? Have you thought about the possibility of studying in Europe instead?
- wdn 6y agoGo to a community college. If you live in a big city, some of the professors are senior manager or executive from some of the largest firms in the area. Not only that, the professors there really care about the students.
- camclay 6y agoEast Coast private Schools, also heavily favor SAT Scores over ACT. ACT is preferred in the Midwest and South. Definitely check out some big state schools like University of Maryland, U of Wisconsin, U of Michigan. These schools have large research grants and funding, and they have access to some of the best large scientific computing platforms (HPC and Mainframes). They may not have the entrepreneurial prestige, but they all have decent business schools in addition to great compsci programs, so you could dual major or minor.
- sergiotapia 6y ago1. Why do you even want to go to college? It'll bore you out of your mind given your credentials. 2. Go to a state college, it's infinitely cheaper for nearly the same thing.
- deleted 6y ago[deleted]
- yitchelle 6y agoThe question is why is getting into a US college so important for you? Is it academically interesting for you, or is it getting the rights to add some letters at end of your name? Once you have answered it, it may turn out that it is not so important after all. My advise is to look deeper.
- kyawzazaw 6y agoIt seems like you are an international student, within the British Education system. Is that correct? If so, check out /r/intltousa
- rayhendricks 6y agoFeel free to apply to UW (University of Washington http://www.dailyuw.com/news/article_1219baae-7c21-11ea-99ac-6b0327844d89.html http://www.dailyuw.com/news/article_1219baae-7c21-11ea-99ac-...) for 2021. They will not be requiring SAT/ACT scores. This is assuming you want to spend $$$ for a degree, which may or may not be worth it. IMO I'd go for a local community college and do the first 2 years there, which is much cheaper. Also schools in EU are cheap/free not mortgage the damn house. Also you can reapply, it is not the end of the world life for the majority of us is long... I got rejected from all 5 ivy-level biomedcial PHD programs I applied to, barring one with a late application date which I could still get rejected from lol.
- Joof 6y agoA lot of people who care about credentials seem to have done undergrad in a state school, then moved on to graduate school in ivy leagues. That describes maybe half of my coworkers.
- Foober223 6y agoYou may not realize it, but you have happy problems. Many of your peers are starting adulthood with $0. They are about to take on massive debt for a useless degree. All to become an modern day indentured servant to interest payments. For the rest of their life. It makes the old time 7 years of indentured servitude sound like a pretty good deal.
- ghastmaster 6y ago> Now what? Launch your next company. Invest in your ability to grow capital. Higher education is massively over priced right now, in general. I know firms who have hired lawyers for jack squat to replace paralegals because we have a glut of graduates. Graduates are serving drinks and driving ubers. You have a talent that a college cannot teach. Use it.