The Mid-Year Report on your Application Checklist

I'm getting a lot of questions from students questioning the mid-year report being listed on their "to do" list in our Student Information System. I've covered this in the "After You Submit" section of the application instructions and in past blog posts, but thought I'd post about it this information is searchable.

We know that most of you don't have mid-year grades at this point. Unless you are denied during Early Action, we expect to get your mid-year grades when they are ready.


And because that was a very short message, here's a picture of Jack in the UVA bowtie the Dean of Students office gave him.

Early Action vs Regular Decision at #UVA

I've been Northern Virginia and New Jersey for the last week, making high school visits and attending some evening fairs. With the Early Action deadline looming, many students are feeling pressure to get some college applications submitted. Early Action isn't always the best route, though. Let's talk about how to decide between Early Action and Regular Decision at UVA.

Keep in mind:

1. We have the same review process during Early Action (EA) and Regular Decision (RD).
2. Interest isn't a factor (this is non-binding EA, after all), so an early application is not seen as a statement about your intent to enroll at UVA.
3. The results of an early application could be admission, denial, or deferral.

Successful Early Action applicants usually have transcripts that show consistently strong work across the core subjects. My suggestion is to look at your final report card from 9th, 10th, and 11th grades side-by-side. If you can say that your program builds nicely and your grades are consistent, Early Action might make sense for you. Of course, having time to write well-crafted essays is a consideration and you have to have given your counselor/teacher plenty of time to write wonderful recommendation letters!

Regular decision would be best for a student who needs more time to complete a thoughtful application or for whom one fall semester grades would be very helpful. There are so many scenarios where RD makes more sense then EA - rebounding grades, school changes, and the list goes on.

Early Action = transcript shows 9th-11th grade work and senior courses
Regular Decision = transcript shows 9th-11th grade work and fall grades in senior courses

This is an area where there is definitely some conflicting advice. For UVA, you need to submit your application at a strong point.

 As always, I'm happy to answer questions in the comments,

Eager to start the reading season!

You Need 9 APs and Other Ridiculous #UVA Admission Rumors

Admission rumors make me laugh sometimes, but not today. Today, I heard that multiple students at a particular high school told their counselors that UVA would put them in a "special category" if they were able to get 9 AP courses on their transcripts.

Let's just nip this in the bud. This is completely false. Every application is reviewed the same way. There is a preliminary review by the Office of Virginia Status that verifies the applicant's residency. Once that is completed, the process is the same for all applicants. Each admission officer reads their applications front-to-back. There is no "first round" that just looks at academics or test scores. There is no "special category" for students with a certain number of AP courses on their transcript. Remember that program options are different from school to school, so having a universal "bar" for applicants wouldn't make sense.

There's another rumor out there that claims we will deny students who have "too many" APs because awarding advanced credit "robs" UVA of tuition dollars. This one is truly baffling. The College addresses their very generous AP/IB/DE credit policy on their website. Students can bring up to 60 credits with them to UVA. The President's office also gives a special stole that those who are completing degrees in 2 or 3 years and President Sullivan makes special mention of those students at Final Exercises. If your school offers advanced options and you feel ready to weave them into your program, go for it!

I suspect that these rumors get cooked up when people try to explain an admission decision that they didn't expect. Keep in mind that while course rigor is very important to us, the other components of the application must be strong and compelling as well.

As always, I'm happy to answer your questions in the comments!

Don't worry! We're here to dispel those rumors!

Jack Tours 1515, a new Off-Grounds Student Center

If you have visited UVA, you may have shopped or grabbed a bite to eat on the Corner. The Corner is a shopping district just next to the University that is full of shops, restaurants, and cafes that serve the UVA community.

When one of the businesses on the Corner closed about two years ago, the University bought the building at 1515 University Avenue with the idea that it could be transformed into a flexible student space. What was interesting about the development of the project was that students were involved in every step. Facilities management documented the renovation process, so many of us were eagerly watching as the project progressed.

When 1515 opened, it became a hub of student activity immediately. Jack recently took a tour of the building, which has space for studying, music performances, exercise, playing games (hello, free skee ball, pool, foosball, air hockey, and video games!), meditating, and group meetings. There's also a coffee bar called Crumbs with the most beautiful desserts, which was closed during our morning visit. 1515 is open until 2 AM and it's full of students no matter what time I walk by.

I hope you enjoy the video by the Office of the Dean of Students' marketing team!

Jack's Visit to Brown College at Monroe Hill

The Dorm Tours are some of the most popular parts of Days on the Lawn. The University doesn't allow tour groups into the residence halls on a daily basis for privacy and security reasons. Can you imagine how disruptive it would be to have three groups like this parade through your home each day?

The dorm tours include the McCormick Road halls ("old" dorms), Alderman Road halls ("new" dorms), and a couple residential colleges. Residential Colleges are special-interest housing options. You can read about all of the options on the housing website, but I thought I'd give you a glimpse into one of them, Brown College at Monroe Hill, on the blog.

Brown is centrally located and just a few steps away from many academic buildings and Newcomb Hall (where they have a private dining room inside the dining hall!).

While traditional halls at UVA house first years, the residential colleges aren't specific to one class. First, second, third, and fourth years live in Brown.

Brown is known for being an inclusive community where everyone is welcome. I think that's why there are students who move in as first-years and stay in the Brown community for the rest of their college career. 

Each portal (four-room suites) in Brown feels homey, in part due to the mantles in many of the rooms. You can tell a lot about the residents by how they decorate their mantles.

The building is low and rambling, with lots of nooks and crannies. While I was walking around with Jack, we stopped in this sitting area for a moment to admire a letter the Seven Society sent to Brown residents several years ago.

The common areas in Brown include lounges and kitchen spaces. The one below known as Smith Cafe, which turns one of the study lounges into a little coffeehouse on certain evenings.

The different parts of the building are connected by tunnels in the basement. I think running through the tunnels was Jack's favorite part of our tour.

Brown has a bunch of beautiful courtyards. It's hard to believe we were so close to the hustle and bustle of Newcomb Hall and McCormick Road when we took these pictures.

The building isn't really the main attraction. The students are the best part of a visit to Brown. If you have a chance, make sure to stop by during your Days on the Lawn.

Be sure to keep an eye out for the Brown application. The questions tend to be interesting and lots of students say they had fun filling it out. There have been times in the past when the Office of Admission has asked the Brownies to contribute a question to the essay choices on our application!

Overlapp Season Returns to UVA

Just when you start to get really, really drained from reading season, the overlap season begins and saves the day. Days on the Lawn brought several hundred admitted students to Grounds over the last few days. These events are supposed to help admitted students, but they wind up giving us an infusion of energy that will carry us through the final days of the process. DOTLs also remind us that a careful, thoughtful review of every application is so important. There are wonderful people behind each application we consider.

When I refer to "overlap season," I mean a time when we are interacting with several different groups of students. We are working with our admitted EA students, RD applicants, transfers (their application deadline was March 1), and juniors visiting us during spring break.

 

 

I know our Regular Decision students are eagerly waiting for updates. As always, we will release decisions when we finalize all decisions. We promise decisions will be available on April 1st, but you all know that we will post them earlier, if possible. Keep an eye on one of my accounts (the blog, Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook) for updates.

 

 By the way, the photos in today's post are from yesterday's DOTL. The first image is from the morning welcome at the Rotunda and the rest are from the student social in the afternoon. The social is "students only," but I took Jack over to meet some of our visitors.

Heads up: Thanksgiving Break is Coming!

Happy Friday!

Just a reminder that next week will be short week at UVA. Offices will be closed Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday for Thanksgiving. No information session or tours will be offered during the break or the Saturday and Sunday afterwards. Safe travels if you'll be on the road next week!

Dressed for dinner!

What Does a November 1 Deadline Mean?

There are two schools of thought when it comes to application deadlines. There are the people who think you have to submit before the deadline day hits and the people who think you can submit at any point on deadline day. The good news is that you can follow either way of thinking and have your application submitted on time for UVA. You have until 11:59 PM on the deadline day, November 1, to submit your application.

In our minds, we are talking about 11:59 PM at UVA, which means the Eastern time zone. The Common App accounts for the time zone of all applicants, so those of you out West won't see the app shut down at 8:59 PM in your time zone.

We DO NOT recommend waiting until the last few hours to submit your application. The Common App team stays up all night on deadline nights, but you can't expect instant help if something goes wrong with submission since there are apt to be scores of students submitting requests for help.

Good luck to those putting the finishing touches on an application!

Happy #UVAMoveIn Day!

This is one of my favorite weekends of the whole year. The first-year move-in has begun, with half of the class arriving today and the other half arriving tomorrow. We can't help but feel proud as we see the students we got to know on paper (okay, on computer screen) making their way around the UVA Grounds.

Congratulations, new Hoos! You're always welcome in Peabody Hall and we hope to see you as ambassadors, guides, or DOTL volunteers in the future!

Essay Advice for UVA College of Arts and Sciences Applicants

It feels like there is so much college application essay advice out there and there isn't a real need for me to add more, but the questions we're hearing from callers and visitors have me thinking I'm wrong. So I thought I'd add some more thoughts to the essay conversation (you can see past posts by hitting the "essays" tag at the end of this post). I'm going to break the advice up, so come back next week for posts for the specialty schools. First up, the College of Arts and Sciences.

 What work of art, music, science, mathematics, or literature has surprised, unsettled, or challenged you, and in what way?

 
This prompt is a bit of a tradition here and students in the College can often remember the work they used when they wrote their response. Most of us in admission can cite the most interesting responses we've read and rattle off the ones that fell flat. Here are some ideas to consider if you'll be writing the College essay this year.

1. The phrase "work of art, music, science, mathematics, or literature" in the prompt is deliberately broad. Go in whatever direction feels right for you!

2. Make sure your choice isn't forced, since authenticity comes through pretty clearly in writing. Some students seem to look to the reading list for their English class for inspiration, which means we read a lot of essays that sound like assignments. Be careful about that!

3.We want to learn about growth. Some students spend a lot of time summarizing plot or describing their work and the "in what way" part of the essay winds up being one sentence. The part that is about you is the most important part. If you feel you need to include a description, make it one or two lines. Remember that admission offices have Google, too, so if we feel we need to hear the song or see the work of art, we'll look it up. The majority of the essay should be about your response and reaction to the work. How did it affect or change you?


Are you applying to the College? What questions do you have about the College essay prompt?

Jack's favorite work of art is Jack Blackburn's portrait!

Picking the Right College by May 1st

Many of us have been on the road in recent weeks to help high schools with case study programs. During a case study program, students are put into groups and told to evaluate a handful of deliberately strong applications as if they are an admission committee. School counselors often ask admission officers to facilitate the discussions.

Before one case study program a couple week ago, a counselor friend said that her students had a few days to read the applications and many thought there was a "right" answer to each case. There were obviously three possible outcomes (admit, waiting list, deny), but each committee was bound to have different results for the hypothetical applicants. There were no right answers because all of the hypothetical students were awesome. That's the point of the exercise.

You can't make a bad decision when all the options are wonderful!

The notion of a "right" decision has been a theme this week as well, even though I'm back in the office. With May 1st around the corner, we're getting calls and visits from some who seem more anxious than ever about this choice.We can imagine the spreadsheets being developed when people ask about double majors or studying abroad, or how much the laundry costs (yes, that was a question the other day).


So here's my pep talk for everyone who is worrying about making a final decision in their college search:

You vetted these options back in the fall when you put them on your list of schools to which you would apply. All of these schools have great professors. All of these schools have exciting opportunities inside and outside of the classroom. All of these schools have happy students. If you are still debating your options, relax and remember that you can't make a bad decision.

There is no "right" decision, there is a "best" one. If you pick the school that is best for you, you'll take advantage of all those exciting opportunities. You'll be fostering your growth as a scholar and as a person. 


Whether your next stop is here or another school, best wishes for a great end to your high school career and an exciting next step on your journey.

If you're joining #UVA20, I hope to see your photo from the "College Signing Day" photobooth on Instagram or Twitter!

Let's Talk about #UVA20 Decisions: The Offer

Admitted students can use this entry to talk. I imagine you might also want to join the UVa Class of 2020 Facebook group to chat with your future classmates. That group is just for students. Parents, you can check out the UVA Parents Page and the UVA Parents Facebook page.

I'll have posts about admission statistics and Days on the Lawn (our admitted student open houses) in the coming days. Just for reference, below your letter are buttons to accept or decline your offer. If you accept, you will see a button to let you pay your tuition deposit online*. I believe orientation registration will open after April 1st, but you'll get more information about that in the future.

You have until May 1st to decide whether you'll be joining us in Charlottesville. If you decide to go elsewhere at some point in the coming weeks, I hope you'll decline the offer immediately via your self-service page.


Our relationship does not end here. We are here to talk if you need more information about UVA to make your decision. Don't hesitate to call or reach out to us online if we can help.

Congratulations! We are so lucky to have you considering UVA!

Image by Sanjay Suchak

*We have an e-check system for deposits. You'll type in the numbers on the bottom of a check. The system will take certain kinds of credit cards, but it's primarily an e-check system. Be sure to turn off your pop-up blocker when you go to pay the deposit!

Internet Rumors about UVA Admission

If a random stranger walked up to you on the street and started telling you how UVA admission operates and makes decisions, would you believe them? Of course not. You'd want to know how they learned the information and about their connection to the Office of Admission. So when an anonymous person on the internet starts doing the same, why do people believe them?

I know you are anxious. If you have questions about something you've heard, know that we are more than happy to chat. You can call us at 434-982-3200 during business hours, email us at undergradadmission@virginia.edu, or reach out to me here or on Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook.

Hang in there. 

How can I help?

Days on the Lawn: Admitted Student Open Houses for #UVA20

If you've planned a visit to UVA, you know that we have visitor programming every day and allow students to visit class any day of the week. In addition to those daily options, we have several open houses for admitted students each spring.

Students admitted during Early Action will be getting an email shortly about Days on the Lawn, these admitted student open houses (on the UVA Grounds, we just say DOTL).

President Sullivan welcoming #UVA19 to Days on the Lawn. #UVA #DOTL #TSully

A photo posted by Dean J|UVa Office of Admission (@uvadeanj) on Apr 8, 2015 at 6:08am PDT

DOTL is not required, but it's a chance to experience UVA in a deeper way than you may have if you visited us to attend an information session and take a tour. Admitted students can attend classes, tour residence halls, eat in the dining hall with a current student, and meet with staff members from different offices around the Grounds at a resource fair. There are also sessions about academics, student life, and resources for parents during DOTL (since parents don't go to class with the students).

Admitted students will get an email when registration opens. Keep in mind that a portion of the reservations for the April events will be set aside for RD students. For now, think about which DOTL dates might fit into your schedule if you want to make a return visit to UVA before May 1st. DOTL has always started bright and early at 9 AM, but we are going to offer one program that starts in the afternoon this year.

2016 Days on the Lawn 

Monday, March 21
Monday, March 28
Monday, April 4
Friday, April 8
Monday, April 11
Friday, April 15
Monday, April 18 (AM and PM)

One of the things that I love about DOTL is seeing students who "met" each other via the UVA Class of 2020 Facebook page or other social media channels getting to spend time together in person. I feel like our classes show up more connected to each other than ever before because they get to know each other before they step foot on Grounds!



This year will be the first one in 8 years without CavDog at DOTL. He went from being scared of the large crowds as a pup to being so excited by all of the extra attention he got. So, UVA20, a cycle starts anew with you. Your DOTLs will be Jack's first ones and we hope you'll bear with us as he gets used to attending.

Just a few of the friends CavDog made in the last few days. #UVA #uva19 #DOTL #cavdog #regram

A photo posted by Dean J|UVa Office of Admission (@uvadeanj) on Apr 9, 2015 at 3:27pm PDT

About the SIS Application Status

I just got off the phone with a counselor from my territory who said he has a super nice family that is getting really worried about their student's status page. The counselor mailed the school credentials on the 29th and they thought that a week was enough time for the documents to get to us.

First of all, if you are at a school where counselors aren't allowed (ahem, my territory) or don't have the computer system to submit documents online, I can almost guarantee that it takes more than a week for a document to get to us. Just think about the chain of possession on that envelope.

1. Your High School
First, the counseling office prepares the required documents and probably sends them to the location where all the outgoing mail for your school is collected. Either the same day or the next day, the envelope leaves the building with the US Postal Service.

2. The Journey to Charlottesville
The US Postal Service has their own network of facilities that sort and distribute mail. We all know it is hard to predict how busy the distribution system will be. Eventually, the envelope will make it's way to Charlottesville, possibly after a stop in another city.

I don't have a picture of a mail truck. Pretend that is one. Beep beep!

3. The Journey to UVA
The US Postal Service delivers all mail for UVA to UVA's University Mail Services. Mail Services handles all of the mail for the University and the UVA Medical Center. This includes all the "messenger mail" that we send from one office to the next. Just because mail arrived at UVA doesn't mean we have it in our office.

University Mail Services sorts all the mail that comes in for UVA and then delivers it to each building. Once something arrives at Peabody Hall, our staff sorts it and distributes the items to the proper staff members.

Now, our staff members are pretty busy at this time of year. We have have a little over 16,000 Early Action applicants and each has a counselor and teacher sending us documents to support their application. Opening all that mail takes time and checking all those documents in takes even longer.

A long line of mail bins.

If your school sends items electronically, it still takes a few days for that information to make it into your file. The Common App doesn't send anything until YOU hit submit your application. After that, it will probably take a few days for us to get the documents downloaded from the Common App and then our staff has to match the newly-arrived item up with an application that is here. 

Bottom line: At this time, your SIS status is not a call to action. It is view into where we are with your file. There will be a point when we start contacting students about items that are missing, but that won't happen until December. Please do not rush into your counselor or teacher telling them they didn't send the documents correctly. In all likelihood, those items are either on the journey to us or are waiting to be checked in and linked to your application. I'll let you know when all submitted documents have been filed.

The Timing of SAT Score Reports

I'm going to address four topics in this post.

1. Delayed score reporting by the SAT (the ACT was addressed earlier this week).
2. Rushing scores.
3. Canceled test dates.

1. Delayed SAT Score Reports

The SAT folks went on hiatus for a little while and weren't sending score reports to colleges. The files are starting to roll in again. Yesterday, we received just over 3000 reports in the first transfer since the break and it will take a few days for the system at UVA to match scores with applications that have already been submitted. 

If you are one of the students who has been told that your scores are delayed, please know that we will review your scores whenever they arrive. You can still apply under Early Action.

2. Rushing Scores

If you didn't send your scores already and you are applying under Early Action, send your scores ASAP using the standard delivery option. At this point, it is not worth $31 to rush your scores. We have enough files to read to keep us occupied until ETS can get those scores to us.You do not have to rush scores at this point.

3. Canceled Test Dates

This happens every year. A storm, a power outage, or some other problem causes a testing center to cancel the administration of the SAT or ACT. My own nephew was affected when Hurricane Joaquin came ashore earlier this month.

Admission offices have always been flexible around deadlines. If your SAT or ACT was rescheduled, you will be okay. Make sure you submit your part of the application by the deadline and that your teachers and counselors have everything they need to get their part done (we give them a grace period, by the way). The testing piece might just have to come later this year and that will be fine with us.

 CavPup's first major rain event. He was not pleased.

Regarding ACT Score Report Delays

I'm bumping my scheduled post about resumes to later in the week to address those who are worried about the timing of ACT score reporting this year.

In case you've missed the news, some students who took the ACT in September have been told their score reports will be delayed because of changes in the writing section.

The large majority of scores for those who took the ACT with writing have also been reported, and we are working to score and report the remaining results as quickly as possible. We anticipate that all results will be reported within the normal 3-8 week time frame communicated on the ACT student website and in other materials.
                                                                    -Statement to admission and school counselors from ACT

The line I emphasized above is why I don't think you need to be worried about getting your scores to us if you are applying through Early Action to UVa. ACT anticipates having scores to us by November 6th. Because of our application volume, we'll be reviewing applications well into January (back in the day, we had far fewer applications and finished the review before the holidays).

Application files get opened over and over again during the review. If you note that you took the ACT in September in the testing section of your Common App, we'll know that we might not see those scores for a little while. We'll keep an eye on your file and won't make any final decisions until the ACT folks finish scoring the September exams. We have plenty of information to review in the meantime. You can still apply under Early Action.

I know the ACT statement says you should be sending screen shots or forwarding emails to us, but I don't think that's necessary at this time. If we get into late December and scores are still missing, I'll post an update for those who are affected.

tl;dr: If your ACT scores are delayed a few weeks, you'll be okay!

HALP! Where are my scores?

Three Interesting Questions from the Fair Oaks Mall Fair

The always massive, usually chaotic Fairfax County Public Schools college fair was Sunday night at the Fair Oaks Mall. I don't know if this is because UVa was in a new location (the center of the mall instead of by a department store) or if attendance was down, but the fair wasn't as frenzied as it has been in years past. Instead of people shouting basic questions over the crowd (what's your SAT score? what's your average GPA?), we actually got to have some nice conversations with students and parents.

This fair always gives us insight into the issues that are on people's minds in one of the most densely populated areas of the state. Most of the questions were totally normal, but a few raised an eyebrow.

1. How many hours of community service do we need for UVa?

 When I got this question from a dad, I realized that there are still people out there giving really bad advice to people about the college process. I don't think students and parents come up with a question like this on their own. Rather, they're told by someone who claims to know better that colleges want a certain number of volunteer hours on the activity sheet. Perhaps there is one out there, but I have never heard any admission officer state any sort of service requirement for admission. 

If service work is something you do, that's great. It is not required for admission to UVa, though. When it comes to your activities, there are no check lists and no preferred activities. We are looking to see that you will contribute to our community is some way.

2. Is a bad grade in a really tough course okay?

 One student asked a pretty standard question about course selection. She wondered whether it's better to take a top course and get a "bad grade" or to take a lower-level course and get an A. When I asked her to define a bad grade, her answer almost made me tear up. She said "a B+ or an A-." I was pretty shocked.

I think some of you are way too hard on yourselves. I think your ideas of weak credentials and my ideas of weak credentials are really, really different. It makes me wonder if there are students who don't even apply to their dream schools because they have convinced themselves that they aren't competitive for admission.

When we look at your transcript, we are looking at all four years of work. One grade doesn't derail an application. If we see a low grade, we look to the next semesters to see if the student has rebounded. I think it's smart to address a dip in grades if you have one due to illness, a family situation, a change in schools, etc.

3. What will the admit rate be for ______ High School this year?

I think this points to how someone is using admission statistics. Admission statistics are the result of the process. We don't start reading each year with a goal of having a certain admission rate or a certain testing statistic. The data can help you understand some of the characteristics of the incoming class from the prior year, but it doesn't tell you exactly what will happen in future admission seasons. The applicant pool can evolve over time.

Jack with members of the Class of 2019. Your admission process won't be exactly like theirs!

Should I Apply Under Early Action or Regular Decision?

I've heard some interesting opinions about when you should submit your application to UVa. Many of those opinions seem to be about the mood or level of activity in the Office of Admission. I thought I'd address when you should apply.

Apply to UVa when you can present your strongest application. Remove thoughts about testing, how the admission officers will "feel" at certain times of the year, and offer statistics. Think about your application when making the decision. Here are a few questions to consider:

1. Does your academic program build nicely over the first three years of high school?

We know that freshman year of high school doesn't allow for too much variety, but that you are allowed to make more choices about your program as you advance. Your counselor will send us a document called a high school profile that explains how the curriculum is structured at your school. If you have stepped up each year to take on more challenging courses, you  might be ready to submit an Early Action application. Early Action is not binding, so you aren't committing to UVa if you submit under EA.

If you think your senior year might really help showcase your ability to take on challenging coursework, you might want to wait for the Regular Decision period. Students who apply RD will have their mid-year grades in their file before we make final decisions.

2. Have your grades from freshman to junior year been consistently strong?

If your grades have been pretty consistent, Early Action might be the route for you since we will be making our decision based on the work you did in first three years of high school. If fall semester of senior year is really going to help you, wait for Regular Decision. RD is probably better if your grades dipped at some point (maybe you were sick, moved, or had a touch transition to junior year). Your fall grades can show that you've rebounded and the stumble is a think of the past.

3. How long will it take your to finalize thoughtful, interesting essays that convey your personality?

I think many students make the EA/RD decision based solely on academics (or sometimes testing, which I'll address below), but the subjective parts of the application are important, too. If fall semester is super busy and you don't think you'll be able to present yourself well in the written parts of the application right now, it might be best to wait for Regular Decision.

4. When will you be able to have a complete application ready?

If you are late asking for recommendations or won't have results from either the SAT or ACT ready by the early deadline (November 1), you might want to apply for Regular Decision (January 1).

This is NOT saying that planning on taking SAT Subject Tests or making a second pass at the SAT or ACT should stop you from applying early. The Subject Tests are optional and can come in after deadline. New SAT/ACT scores will be added to your file as soon as they are sent to us by the testing agencies. You need a score in your file at deadline time. That doesn't mean you can't send more later.

 So many students worry that they can't apply to a college under and early plan if they have signed up to take a standardized test in November. In short, I don't think testing should determine when you apply.



Our review process is the same no matter when you apply. We aren't "easy" on the early group, which is a common perception. The applicant pool is strong no matter when you apply. When thinking about when to submit your application to UVa, I think you should think about the strength of your application right now and compare that to what it might look like once the first semester of senior year is finished. Apply when you feel your application presents the best case for admission to UVa!

 
That isn't the type of strength I meant, Jack.

CavDog's 8th Birthday and a New Face Around Peabody Hall

As CavDog's 8th birthday was approaching, I remember thinking that he seemed to have more fun at this year's Days on the Lawn events than in previous years. CavDog's been coming to DOTL days since he was about 10 months old and always enjoys them, but something was different this year. Meeting students is probably one of his favorite things and more students than ever stopped to say hello to him.

If you saw one of his fetch sessions on the lawn in front of Peabody Hall, you know that CavDog LOVES chasing his tennis ball. One day a few weeks ago, his heart didn't seem into his usual afternoon fetch session. He wasn't too excited about his dinner, either. We took him to the vet, fully expecting them to laugh at me for being overly sensitive.

Unfortunately, things did not go well.

 CavDog had a mass on his spleen that had ruptured. He had an emergency splenectomy and the resulting biopsy revealed that he has hemangiosarcoma. The bad news is that there is no cure for this kind of cancer and it is aggressive. The good news is that we have fantastic vets in Charlottesville and his post-surgery treatment plan hasn't impacted his quality of life. CavDog actually seems to be enjoying the attention he's getting from all of his extra office visits.

We decided that CavDog's 8th birthday was the time to give him something we've been talking about for a long time.

If you follow me on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter, this might not be news to you. I posted about CavDog's canine little brother last week. I asked for UVa-inspired name suggestions on Instagram and Facebook and there seems to be a lot of support for Rugby, TJ, or Peabody.

I'll be posting plenty of admission-related content this summer, but I'll include an occasional update for those interested in how CavDog is doing. Rest assured that CavDog, who was pretty spoiled before, is enjoying royal treatment now and his little puppy friend is keeping him active.

A very special thanks to all of the students from the Class of 2019 who gave CavDog the most exciting DOTL season of his life. I have never seen him so happy.