Just talked to a former AD about how she did her selection...

[Anonymous]

and there really is no magic formula. Here is what she said. First they look for obvious reasons to EXCLUDE and she said that is straight forward. Mostly very low test scores or evidence of a severe LD that they cannot accommodate. Or an overly pushy parent or an parent who says things in the interview that indicate that child's personality and school are not a good match. Or a really bad playdate (although sometimes they would invite kids back if there was a seperation issue.... so bad playdate was a misbehaving child although she said that was easier to identify in the older kids because, well, pre-K applicants are often just 3 and much can be excused.) She said these need to be fairly obvious and strong reasons because they want to be as inclusive as possible.. but all they same this can bring down the applicant pool to about 80 percent of where it started. Then they look for reasons to INCLUDE.... did the teachers like your child. She said that she asked teachers if they really liked any of the kids, if any of the kids did anything special or was especially nice to others, they like to have nice kids in their schools. High test scores get you a closer look but do not guarantee anything you need something extra. As a result of this, they create a short-list of maybe twice the size of the incoming class, for her school this was always about 50 percent of the applicant pool. Then they have a brain storming session and ask what group makes for an interesting class. The obvious ones here are boys and girls and ethnicity but they also want a mix of personalities: extroverts, introverts, artistic talent, mathematical ability, verbal ability, big brothers, little brothers, big sisters, little sisters, and onlys, world travelers, sporty types, etc.

[Anonymous]

That makes those of us that don't have the genius 99% WPPSI kid feel like we have a chance. I too was told by my DS's current school director that they normally look for LD issues on the WPPSI and not an IQ of 130 and that the playdate and school recommendations go a long way.

[Anonymous]

I'm surprised there is not more discussion on this thread, because this seems to be one of the high-priority topics that many posters are interested in discussing. Many other threads here spend enormous amounts of time on the significance (or insignificance) of such things as WPPSI scores, playdates, current schools, teacher recommendations, connections, donations, race, age, gender, siblings, open house questions, parent education, parent essays, thank-you notes, etc. OP's description is a good one, and that's sort of what I expected the process to be like. It also sounds like a pretty reasonable process. It also sounds maddeningly subjective for those of us who are swimming through the school application process and thus looking for any bits of hard data we can cling to.

Is there anyone else here with real insider info (for example a current/former admissions person or someone who has had the process described by an admissions person) who can either support or refute or expand on OP's summary?

I know a lot of people here have knowledge, beliefs, and suspicions about what is important or not, based on having gone through the process with your own children and from comparing results with your friends and neighbors, and they're not shy about posting them. Those comments are always interesting. However, what I'm really interested in is info (direct or indirect) from anyone who has participated in the admissions process from a school's perspective.

I'm looking forward to the discussion, if there is one.

[Anonymous]

An AD for a school that starts at PK told me that they look for developmental clues during the interview-playdate, specifically physical developmental clues: how a child holds a cup, walks up or down stairs, holds a crayon/marker, sits, etc...

[Anonymous]

I help provide admission tours for my DC's school and thus have had many casual conversations with the school's AD ... the decisionmaking process described by OP is spot on, at least for our school.

I think this thread has generated less discussion than one might expect because, frankly, the posting reveals that there is not really that much one can do to influence the outcome other than to pick a school that is a reasonable match to your child and your family, present yourselves honestly/sincerely, and be a bit lucky in terms of the number of other reasonable candidates competing for the same slots.

Discussing the role of connections, scores, extracurriculars for two year olds, and so forth makes for much more heated debate than just "be yourself"!!

[Anonymous]

So nice to see the voice(s) of reason represented in this forum! Thank you!

[Anonymous]

I agree! I made the second comment. Reading all these posts about WPPSI scores being in the 99th perecentile really scared me off from applying to many of the schools that require it. I applied to only one because I think my DS would be a great fit there. When I gave his current school director the recommendation form that is when we got talking about what these schools are looking for and she specifically said they do have a informal cut-off but its at the 50th% percentile or an IQ of 100..which is good for me since my son was only 82nd percentile. She mentioned that there is so much more that goes into the decision as the OP stated. So I really do beleive that each child whether average or above average has just as much a chance as acceptance! Also, goes anyone know what the IQ of these 99th percentiles kids are? If my son was 82th percentile and his full scale was 114 then I'm thinking these kids must all have IQ's greater than 130 --wow so many little genius's in DC.

[Anonymous]

This post is very much on target with my understanding of the process in many respects. However, it does not really delineate the significance of how the process differs for applicants from "priority" groups (whether they are connected, alums, a specific visible minority or whatever).

And, contrary to a prior responder's hope, my understanding is that the standards in terms of testing (and behavior, likability, etc.) are higher for non-priority applicants for the simple reason that, if an organization has a number of priority groups they are compelled or make best effort to accommodate, those who do not fall into a priority group need to provide the water that helps all the boats rise.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I agree! I made the second comment. Reading all these posts about WPPSI scores being in the 99th perecentile really scared me off from applying to many of the schools that require it. I applied to only one because I think my DS would be a great fit there. When I gave his current school director the recommendation form that is when we got talking about what these schools are looking for and she specifically said they do have a informal cut-off but its at the 50th% percentile or an IQ of 100..which is good for me since my son was only 82nd percentile. She mentioned that there is so much more that goes into the decision as the OP stated. So I really do beleive that each child whether average or above average has just as much a chance as acceptance! Also, goes anyone know what the IQ of these 99th percentiles kids are? If my son was 82th percentile and his full scale was 114 then I'm thinking these kids must all have IQ's greater than 130 --wow so many little genius's in DC.

My ds was 86th percentile and his full scale was 117. He's at one of the "big 3s." Believe me, he's not sitting in a classroom full of little geniuses. He's excelling academically and loves school. Don't let all these scores that are in the 99th percentile scare you off. My dd was in the 99th percentile with an IQ of 138. Good luck to your family.

[Anonymous]

The search for an interesting class also includes an assessment of the parents. Some think this portion is the part where the "how much do you make" factor seeps in. It sometimes does, and I suppose it is interesting if a parent owns a business (like a bank or newspaper or restaurant). But it´s also nice to see the schools seem to be seeking to provide an interesting group of parents apart from a pure accounting decision. While the law firm partners are grist for the mill, and arguably a necessary evil, by far the most interesting families we have come into contact with at Beauvoir include parents with a wide range of interesting jobs from both the private and public sectors. The salaries might not be headturning, but the rich experiences, adventures, and passions make not only for great talk at community dinners and neat connections, but true inspiration for my DCs.

[Anonymous]

OP, I appreciated your post. But did you ask her specifically about how "priority" applicants are treated? There is no mention in your post of connected applicants, or rich ones, and while we do want to think that everybody has a roughly equal chance, you hear enough to think otherwise. Since you have the ear of an AD, it would be nice to get an answer targetted to these particular bug-bears!

[Anonymous]

My experience with this is that priorities are siblings, alumni etc. Money only comes into play as it relates to economic diversity, but is not a deciding factor when given the option between kids.

I am not the OP though.

[Anonymous]

Our friends used connections to get into a top 3. I could tell you exactly how they went about it, but that might reveal who they are (although I suspect this isn't a one-off, and this particular type of connection has been used more than once).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:and there really is no magic formula. Here is what she said. First they look for obvious reasons to EXCLUDE and she said that is straight forward. Mostly very low test scores or evidence of a severe LD that they cannot accommodate. Or an overly pushy parent or an parent who says things in the interview that indicate that child's personality and school are not a good match. Or a really bad playdate (although sometimes they would invite kids back if there was a seperation issue.... so bad playdate was a misbehaving child although she said that was easier to identify in the older kids because, well, pre-K applicants are often just 3 and much can be excused.) She said these need to be fairly obvious and strong reasons because they want to be as inclusive as possible.. but all they same this can bring down the applicant pool to about 80 percent of where it started. Then they look for reasons to INCLUDE.... did the teachers like your child. She said that she asked teachers if they really liked any of the kids, if any of the kids did anything special or was especially nice to others, they like to have nice kids in their schools. High test scores get you a closer look but do not guarantee anything you need something extra. As a result of this, they create a short-list of maybe twice the size of the incoming class, for her school this was always about 50 percent of the applicant pool. Then they have a brain storming session and ask what group makes for an interesting class. The obvious ones here are boys and girls and ethnicity but they also want a mix of personalities: extroverts, introverts, artistic talent, mathematical ability, verbal ability, big brothers, little brothers, big sisters, little sisters, and onlys, world travelers, sporty types, etc.

I guess I get it, but it does not seem impartial. How do you determine if a kid is truly "mean?"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:and there really is no magic formula. Here is what she said. First they look for obvious reasons to EXCLUDE and she said that is straight forward. Mostly very low test scores or evidence of a severe LD that they cannot accommodate. Or an overly pushy parent or an parent who says things in the interview that indicate that child's personality and school are not a good match. Or a really bad playdate (although sometimes they would invite kids back if there was a seperation issue.... so bad playdate was a misbehaving child although she said that was easier to identify in the older kids because, well, pre-K applicants are often just 3 and much can be excused.) She said these need to be fairly obvious and strong reasons because they want to be as inclusive as possible.. but all they same this can bring down the applicant pool to about 80 percent of where it started. Then they look for reasons to INCLUDE.... did the teachers like your child. She said that she asked teachers if they really liked any of the kids, if any of the kids did anything special or was especially nice to others, they like to have nice kids in their schools. High test scores get you a closer look but do not guarantee anything you need something extra. As a result of this, they create a short-list of maybe twice the size of the incoming class, for her school this was always about 50 percent of the applicant pool. Then they have a brain storming session and ask what group makes for an interesting class. The obvious ones here are boys and girls and ethnicity but they also want a mix of personalities: extroverts, introverts, artistic talent, mathematical ability, verbal ability, big brothers, little brothers, big sisters, little sisters, and onlys, world travelers, sporty types, etc.

I guess I get it, but it does not seem impartial. How do you determine if a kid is truly "mean?"

Maybe they overhear a child calling another child a name. Happened to my child on a play visit last fall.