EVALUATION PROCEDURE
Under the evaluation procedure, reviewers will assign a specific rating for Secondary School Academic Performance, Educational Environment, and Counselor and Teacher Recommendation, and an overall rating to each file. When evaluating an applicant’s record and assigning a rating in each category above, reviewers have an opportunity to exercise and apply their professional experience and judgment. Reviewers can then balance the different ratings and decide which overall rating best fits the applicant’s achievements and potential.
All of the evaluation ratings are to be used only as guides to help the reviewer manage the composite evaluation and make an appropriate recommendation regarding the decision whether to admit a particular applicant. The evaluation ratings are as follows: Outstanding; Excellent; Good; Average/Fair; and Below Average/Poor. Also, reviewers may assign a plus or minus to an evaluation rating. Where the applicant’s personal characteristics and attributes (e.g., personal background, geographic considerations, and extenuating circumstances) are being evaluated, this rating scale is not applicable; rather, in these areas, as in all areas, reviewers will be able to draw attention to special circumstances or characteristics that stand out in an application and merit particular consideration.
General Description of Evaluation Ratings and Recommended Decisions:
Description of Evaluation Ratings
Reviewers are asked to exercise their professional judgment and experience and rate each applicant with respect to Secondary School Academic Performance, Educational Environment, and Counselor and Teacher Recommendation, and to then provide an overall rating for the application, based on the following scale:
- Outstanding
- All of the applicant’s materials exemplify superior and/or exceptional characteristics that contribute to the specific evaluation categories.
- Excellent
- The applicant’s materials illustrate extremely strong, but not exceptional, characteristics. The reviewer may have a reservation, but there are enough redeeming features to compensate for, or outweigh, the reservation.
- Good
- The applicant’s materials demonstrate competitive average characteristics in most of the criteria, but may be particularly strong in one or more areas. The reviewer may have reservations about the applicant’s academic competitiveness.
- Average/Fair
- While the applicant’s materials are competitive in each of the criteria, the reviewer has substantial concerns about the overall strength of the application and may have reservations about the applicant’s academic competitiveness. The applicant does not stand out.
- Below Average/Poor
- In the applicant’s materials, the reviewer detects serious deficiencies in most of the evaluation criteria in comparison to other applicants. In addition, several of the evaluation criteria may not be met or may not have been addressed in the applicant’s materials.
Recommended Decisions
After conducting a comprehensive, holistic and individualized review of an application, reviewers make an admissions decision recommendation based on the composite evaluation rating and comments. Reviewers may assign a plus or minus to any of the following decision recommendations.
- HA = High Admit
- Consistent outstanding evaluation
- Students who would be considered for top merit scholarship programs
- A = Admit
- Consistent outstanding or excellent evaluation
- No deficiencies
- AR = Admit with Reservation
- Mostly outstanding or excellent evaluations, possibly good in select areas
- A single deficiency, or very few minor deficiencies
- Student is competitive for admission
- DR = Deny with Reservation
- Consistent good or average evaluation
- Several deficiencies, or a major deficiency
- Student is qualified for admission
- D = Deny
- Consistent average or below average ratings
- Student is not qualified for admission