I guess I would have expected a few top Ivies to have significantly lower acceptance rates on the grounds that one could imagine a lot of average-ish students putting one of those schools down just in case they hit the lottery.
But actually, the top Ivies, MIT, West Point, top music schools, and a couple of schools I've never even heard of (!) are all in the 5 to 10% admissions range.
> I guess I would have expected a few top Ivies to have significantly lower acceptance rates on the grounds that one could imagine a lot of average-ish students putting one of those schools down just in case they hit the lottery.
There are many, many of these applicants who have roughly a 0% chance of admission.
I am not saying that elite schools are easy to get in (they are not), but someone who is a strong all-around applicant will most likely get into at least one elite school.
Most applicants are challenged by the fact that they only have one or two strong points (like grades and scores), and those “strong points” often aren’t even that strong. Athletics, community involvement, leadership, above-and-beyond academics, etc. go a long way.
Probably a lot less self-selecting out than you think.