Today my daughter, who will be applying ED1 to Vassar College, found out that one of her good friends from her HS has decided to apply ED to the same school. This college has had very few applicants from our HS over the years even though it's in the same state. Of course it's a selective school and D was already worried about not getting in, but now she is feeling more worried because she thinks her friend is more likely to be accepted because he's male and has better test scores. Academic rigor and grades are fairly similar (though his GPA might be higher).
On the other hand, this friend has not done any "official" visits, though he walked the campus and knows someone who attended. My daughter has toured twice, attended a class, met with a professor in her potential major. She is also submitting an interesting and creative video for their optional "Your Space" supplement, and thinks her friend is not submitting anything. She will do an alumni interview once her application is received.
The truth is, she hates feeling like she's competing with him or that his decision to do ED will hurt her chances. She is hoping for the best and that they both get in, and she loves the idea of that because they've only gotten to know each other this year and she sees it as an opportunity to become even closer with him. I keep telling her that either Vassar is going to want her or not, and it won't be dependent on whether they want her friend. Also, that there's no reason why they wouldn't accept two students from the same school if they thought both students were qualified. It's not like there are 25 students from her school applying there. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if they are the only two. So am I lying to my daughter? I hope not! Does anyone know anything about colleges comparing students from the same high school? Is it true that, if they would accept her if she was the solitary applicant from her HS, it won't change anything if there's another qualified applicant from the same school, even with higher grades and scores?
Ugh, I hate this sort of thing. It feels so awful and cutthroat and not how I like to be.
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