Myth: Admissions counselors like rejecting people.

False. But some people must believe this to be true, given the nasty things they’re willing to say to admissions staff. The office fields hundreds of phone calls and letters from hostile people.

Several counselors report that they’ve been cursed at and threatened. One says she was accosted in a grocery store by an angry parent, who proceeded to verbally harass her in the middle of the produce section.

Admissions counselors don’t just review files; as they recruit students and help them navigate the admission process, they develop relationships. Each cycle brings hundreds of new faces, and hundreds of new stories. Many are compelling, even heart-wrenching. You think they like telling those students no?

“We take this work home with us,” says admissions counselor Bobbie Jean St. Arnauld. “There are some really tough decisions we have to make. We care a lot about these students, and it’s hard to turn them down. We’re human beings.”

Next myth » My son or daughter isn’t emotionally ready to be turned down by the university.

• Introduction
• Myth: It’s a secretive process.
• Myth: A formula determines whether students are admitted or denied.
• Myth: UW-Madison has raised its admissions criteria in recent years.
• Myth: The UW turns away students with perfect GPAs.
• Myth: Some students get special treatment in the admissions process.
• Myth: It’s impossible for regular students to get in anymore.
• Myth: No one reads personal statements.
• Myth: It pays to apply early.
• Myth: Minority students get in with lower grades than some white students who are rejected.
• Myth: UW-Madison caps the number of students who can be admitted from one high school.
• Myth: Back in the day, UW-Madison let everybody in.
• Myth: Applicants from outside Wisconsin are taking up spots that could go to state residents.
• Myth: Connections with important people can get you in.
• Myth: Alumni can get their kids in if they pull the right strings.
• Myth: Being postponed is the same as being on a wait list.
• Myth: An A is always better than a B.
• Myth: One grumpy admissions counselor can doom an application.
• Myth: Admissions counselors like rejecting people.
• Myth: My son or daughter isn’t emotionally ready to be turned down by the university.
• Myth: It’s a perfect system.