There aren’t many subjects as popular among high schoolers as computer science. We're not sure if it's the allure of potentially coding the next big app, the fascination with how technology shapes our world, or just the fact that computer science and coding touches every part of our modern society. And if you’re here, you’re probably a freshman and want to know what you can do to help prep for college, especially since you think you like the crazy competitive major of computer science.

Sorry, you didn’t get into Northwestern. If you are hyperventilating right now, we promise it will be ok. While getting rejected stinks, there is still enough time to ensure that you get into a great school. You just need to put the work in.

Middlebury College is focused on changing the world for the better. Students and faculty on campus are working towards climate solutions, they strive to connect between cultures and languages, they communicate with others through art, design, and writing, and they pursue avenues for conflict resolution globally. From a sprawling campus in Vermont, Middlebury empowers a little under 3,000 students with the knowledge and skills they need to lead the charge in improving our planet and the lives of the people (you included) on it.

Receiving a rejection from the University of Michigan Early Action is a major bummer. It’s frustrating, but it is going to be okay. We know that you’re a smart and qualified student, you applied to Mich ED after all, so application experience is very salvageable. In fact, it can go way up from here if you play your cards right. Getting into Michigan Early Action is super hard. University of Michigan admissions is committed to not giving EA applicants preference (as compared to most schools, who prioritized ED or EA). The Michigan acceptance rate — about 18% — is also misleading if you are an out-of-state applicant. More than a quarter of students at Mich are from Michigan. In-state applicants are given preference in admissions, and benefit from a much higher acceptance rate. As a result, out-of-state applicants have a much lower acceptance rate.  

Hamilton College prepares students for “a life of meaning, purpose, and active citizenship.” Located in the village of Clinton, New York, a town closer to Canada than it is to NYC, but 45 min from the city of Syracuse, Hamilton is a small liberal arts experience in a unique environment crafted to nurture exploration and launch future leaders. Just over 2,000 students call Hamilton home, and they come from 48 states and 56 countries for the opportunity to learn in the Hamilton way.

So, you’ve been rejected ED from Duke. First of all, we’re sorry, and we’re sure you’re having a lot of feelings about this right now. And, since you’re here, you probably want to know what you can do in this moment to take control of this situation. We want to say that Duke is a crazy hard school to get into – they haven’t released precise data since 2021, but we know their acceptance rate hovers around 5%, and their ED acceptance rate is about 15%. That doesn’t mean it’s 3x more likely to get into Duke ED. It means you have about the same chance you would if you applied to Georgetown, Berkeley, or UVA – aka, hard. That also means this is not a reflection of you or your talents or smarts or overall coolness, but rather that these schools have very limited spots and have to leave lots and lots of deserving students out of the mix.

Stanford University was founded with a societal purpose. From the beginning, the school was designed for the common good. Today, it is regarded as one of the best universities in the world. Rooted in the San Francisco Bay Area, Stanford is surrounded by innovation, thought leadership, and technological advancement. Not only is it in the mix of all that — it is a foundational part of it.

If you’re here, we know you probably just got rejected from Columbia, and you don’t know what to do next – we’re sorry that happened, and we know it feels awful. First of all, this admissions decision is not a reflection of who you are as a person or of your hard work and talent. It’s important to remember that, especially in the Ivy League, there are countless students who are more than qualified to get in, and there’s simply not enough space for all of you. You will go to an amazing school, even if it doesn't feel like it right now.

Love knowing the who, what, when, where, why, and how? Then we bet you probably really enjoy history and think you might want to study it in college. History is a great degree that can lead to a bunch of different careers, from teaching to curation to even law or politics. Whether you want to help preserve the past or use it to improve the future, if you think you might want to study history in college, you’re in the right place.

English is a highly competitive major in college, attracting aspiring journalists, readers, novelists, teachers, and more. As such, English programs at top-tier universities receive a flood of applications each year. Popular majors equal competitive majors, so you need to make your application shine to stand out from the crowd.