BYU Marriott: 68% Acceptance Rate, Ranked 25th in MBB Hires, 13th in IB Hires... What's the catch?

I'm currently a sophomore at a junior college, and I've been finishing my college applications for the next admissions cycle. When a friend told me about BYU and how represented it was on the street, I was completely stunned. According to these sources, BYU is a peer school to Cornell or Vanderbilt, despite not being nearly as selective.

Before, I had always written it off as some weirdo mid-level Mormon college, but the more I look into it, I would have to be a complete idiot not have this as a safety school.

I think I speak for everyone that most people here would keep it in their pants for 2-4 years for an offer in IB/MBB. Following the honor code won't be an issue.

I would love to ask BYU students (or those who know alum work on the street) what the "catch" is, and why we aren't seeing floods of hardos with bad high-school grades flow into BYU when it has a stronger recruiting pipeline compared to the literal Ivy League and elite privates. It can't just be the honor code; no one can be that short-sighted. I feel like I'm missing something.

Is the recruitment only Mormons serving other Mormons? Can you effectively network without being officially in "the church," or are you effectively a complete outsider? (not like I wouldn't go low enough to convert to get an offer). Do they have issues with abstinent homosexuals like me, and will it get in the way of LGBT+ diversity recruiting?

Thank you to those who respond 3

5 Comments
 

Good luck getting in as a non-LDS member. Also need to consider that 90% of their applicants are members of the church, and are typically intelligent people & hard workers—not typical American high school applicants. Bottom line: you are not LDS, therefore your chances are very low. You will also not fit in with the culture at all. 

-- Cousin of 2 BYU grads

 
Most Helpful

I actually disagree. Since there are so few non-members, they love accepting them, and you would have arguably a better chance than an LDS person

 

BYU grad and ex-BB IB placement here. My honest opinion is that a majority of the BYU network value will come from just being a part of the program, attending the IB club meetings, being friendly and sharp, meeting the upperclassman with offers, following the outlined steps that are proven to work etc..

That being said, there is real network value from either being Mormon or somehow being able to quickly relate with the BYU alumni. Being Mormon and having served a mission automatically makes you "familiar" to the alumni because you have spent ~100K hours living the same lives as them in some way (Mormons spend a LOT of time in church-related activities throughout their life). It's hard to replace that level of instant camaraderie. So, the Mormons at BYU would probably have somewhat of a leg up on you. But if you are friendly, try to understand the culture, find ways to relate with them, and do all of the IB club guidance, I think you would still be successful.

Lastly, on the LGBT+ point – I don't have a ton of data to go off here, but this is my thought. I believe the specific DEI info is blinded from the interviewers, and your resume just gets put in a DEI pile. The optimistic side of me says that if you follow the tips above, you would get treated like any other BYU applicant but have the perks of DEI recruiting... but on the other hand (especially if you are more homosexual-presenting), you could run into a BYU grad decisionmaker that doesn't agree with you being a "good representation of what BYU believes", and ends up cutting you from the process if they catch wind of some of your more personal details. That won't be the case every time, but it is a non-zero chance. Hope this is helpful

 

BYU grad and I start my IB internship this summer. This is spot on. Broadly speaking, Mormons love it when others take real interest in and have real appreciation for either the religion or the school. But it has to be genuine, because alumni feeling you are disingenuous will effectively eliminate your ability to connect with them. Most alum hate hearing people complain about the school or the church's stance on things when they are welcome to attend elsewhere and when their attendance is subsidized by church funds.

 
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