Every spring, high school seniors across the country anxiously check their inboxes and college portals, hoping for that one word: Accepted. And every spring, some students are left wondering how they were rejected from their “target” schools, while others, possibly with lower GPAs or test scores, were accepted to prestigious universities. This pattern fuels a question many students ask: Are college acceptances random?

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The short answer is no, but it’s complicated.

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Colleges don’t admit students by drawing names from a hat. According to Rank, there are clear criteria: GPA, test scores, extracurriculars, essays, recommendations. But what makes the process feel random is the sheer complexity behind admissions decisions, especially at selective schools. A 4.0 GPA is impressive, but it’s far from a guarantee. In fact, many elite institutions reject more than 90% of applicants, including thousands of qualified ones.

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What tips the scale, then? Sometimes it’s what admissions officers call “institutional priorities.” A school might need a violin player for its orchestra, a first-generation college student to diversify its incoming class, or an applicant from a specific region. These priorities shift year to year, and they’re not always public. That unpredictability can make the process feel arbitrary.

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Subjectivity also plays a huge role, Jump admits. One admissions officer may love your essay; another might not connect with it. Unlike standardized tests, there’s no perfect formula for what makes an applicant stand out.

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So, no, the process isn’t random, but it is unclear, competitive, and occasionally unpredictable. That’s why students are often advised to apply broadly, celebrate every acceptance, and not take rejections personally.

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As a school community, we should continue to support each other through this stressful process. College admissions may not always feel fair, but our worth isn’t defined by where we go. What we do once we get there, and beyond, is what truly matters.

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Works Cited

Rank, Mark R. “The Lottery of Getting into Harvard.” Time, Time, 22 Mar. 2024, time.com/6959136/harvard-admissions. 

Jump, Jim. “College Admissions Is a ‘Luckocracy’ (Opinion).” Inside Higher Ed | Higher Education News, Events and Jobs, www.insidehighered.com/opinion/views/2023/12/11/college-admissions-luckocracy-opinion.