a final warning to high school students in the college admissions game

[Anonymous]

When I watch his old college admission announcement video, it makes me even sadder. Back then, he was so happy with the acceptance.

[Anonymous]

He is not all knowing or all seeing. I'll make my own decisions. Thanks. I can' t believe you get your "knowledge" from tik tok like "geniuses."

[Anonymous]

Why on earth doesn't this student transfer?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Has anyone seen this video from current Princeton student Quon? The comments from current students at Ivies and other top schools are unsettling and worth reading. As parents, we need to hear this and let it resonate as many of our students approach decision day.

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I can NOT roll my eyes any harder.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Could some of this issue (or most of it) be caused by the test optional trend of the last 4 years?

I imagined if you were an average or slightly above average student with an inflated GPA who got into one of these intense schools via test optional, starting behind everyone else from the get go would be very stressful and demoralizing.

OR…maybe it was living through a freakin’ PANDEMIC!!! You seriously think it’s about test-optional policies and make no mention of spending a year of high school online, unable to get out and have a normal high school experience. We will be feeling the mental health impact for decades.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Could some of this issue (or most of it) be caused by the test optional trend of the last 4 years?

I imagined if you were an average or slightly above average student with an inflated GPA who got into one of these intense schools via test optional, starting behind everyone else from the get go would be very stressful and demoralizing.

Jeff Selingo found the thread.

I am so over him. I automatically lose respect for any parent who uses him as a source.

[Anonymous]

I feel bad for this kid, but he is really conflating some personal experience and rumor with an absolute. When he goes on about other schools, it really chips away at the quality of his assessment. How can he know what campuses are like? His claim that Brown is "weird" and "bad" feels loaded and is unsupported. I've had 2 kids at Brown, and it has been mostly collaborative and supportive in its environment. What a strange assertion.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why on earth doesn't this student transfer?

I suspect it's financial.

[Anonymous]

Imagine what it takes to get into Princeton as an unhooked student. Imagine what those kids are like. Then put all those kids together in one school. Let the horror movie begin.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I really feel for this young man who seems kind and thoughtful and a little heartbroken. I hope everything gets better for him.

I agree, but I don't think posting this video showed good judgment. Making these blanket statements that strongly denigrate Princeton and then jumping to conclusions about other universities where he has no experience just sets him up for serious backlash from many points. I worry more about his mental health after posting this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:He is not all knowing or all seeing. I'll make my own decisions. Thanks. I can' t believe you get your "knowledge" from tik tok like "geniuses."

WTF. So all of the 700+ comments on that video are also by "tik tok like geniuses"?

YouTube and this forum are communities where people share their experiences. Why are you even here if that holds no value to you? Moreover, it's quite evident that this young man is suffering. Is there no compassion for that? Continue in your own bubble if you wish, along with the likely strain in your future relationship with your child (or perhaps even now), but his experience does not exist in a vacuum, as evidenced by many of our own children's experiences.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Could some of this issue (or most of it) be caused by the test optional trend of the last 4 years?

I imagined if you were an average or slightly above average student with an inflated GPA who got into one of these intense schools via test optional, starting behind everyone else from the get go would be very stressful and demoralizing.

Maybe? Maybe not. ALDC have been accepted with lower-than-normal grades. They managed. I know a football player that attended HYSP, and he was extremely insecure about his abilities.

Your post also assumes the classes a lot harder than at other schools. Meanwhile, I've heard from numerous Harvard grads and current students that the hardest thing about Harvard is getting accepted...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Imagine what it takes to get into Princeton as an unhooked student. Imagine what those kids are like. Then put all those kids together in one school. Let the horror movie begin.

And is not just kids at Princeton. These kids are now filling all the top 25 schools and making the day to day vibe really competitive. Go read the thread about Northwestern.

[Anonymous]

Wow, that really made an impression on me. Thank you for sharing that!

[Anonymous]

Not convinced he had a Princeton problem. He has a mental health problem at Princeton. Could happen anywhere. I went to a pressure cooker school decades ago and we lost people to mental illness. That wasn’t TO or the pandemic, just a new environment and a tough curriculum.