AP Testing Still a Thing at Sidwell/GDS/Maret/Potomac/St Albans/NCS?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Still those schools will have the best college placement. Our choice.

Yes, because they have donors kids, legacies, kids in $$$$$ recruitable sports (I.e. fencing and squash), and can altogether cherry pick their students. In DC they also pluck the most talented URM kids by high school.

You didn’t think too hard on that one.

well, then you should be happy your kid is at a public school taking 12-15 AP classes. One less kid to compete with. Or maybe you're on this crusade because you realize that 12-15 AP classes got your kid the same result as another kid who took 0.

What results?
I’ve talked at career day at our private school. Saw some terrible attitudes and entitlement and little motivation to work beyond volunteering or art.

Our neighborhood school Whitman has kids going all over the country to a variety of great schools for a diverse set of stem, lib arts, premed/law, social majors programs. Never heard of any of our neighbors or sitters having issues once at college, it’s been easier than school. Their recruiting for internships and jobs and the jobs they take after college graduation have been impressive as well.

[Anonymous]

I believe it. We are lifers and followed this for a while via coworkers. You’re on your own and private schools are not transparent, furthermore they omit key things about themselves and the market.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Still those schools will have the best college placement. Our choice.

Yes, because they have donors kids, legacies, kids in $$$$$ recruitable sports (I.e. fencing and squash), and can altogether cherry pick their students. In DC they also pluck the most talented URM kids by high school.

You didn’t think too hard on that one.

well, then you should be happy your kid is at a public school taking 12-15 AP classes. One less kid to compete with. Or maybe you're on this crusade because you realize that 12-15 AP classes got your kid the same result as another kid who took 0.

What results?
I’ve talked at career day at our private school. Saw some terrible attitudes and entitlement and little motivation to work beyond volunteering or art.

Our neighborhood school Whitman has kids going all over the country to a variety of great schools for a diverse set of stem, lib arts, premed/law, social majors programs. Never heard of any of our neighbors or sitters having issues once at college, it’s been easier than school. Their recruiting for internships and jobs and the jobs they take after college graduation have been impressive as well.

So then you’re an idiot for keeping your kid at your private school. Good grief.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I thought UC schools also give a GPA bump for Honors courses.

“Nonresidents:

UC will grant honors weight for AP or IB courses and transferable college courses only, but not for school-designated honors courses. The weight is given to letter grades of A, B, or C.”

Why didn't my kid's school tell me about this? Kid is in one of the top 3. Asked college office multiple times whether kids should take AP tests and was told "no, unless UK is your plan" - now I find out that UC schools do bump GPAs for this. For the amount of money we pay for these schools, it would be nice if someone in college office could give an accurate answer that reflects the full picture given how many kids from the DC schools that dropped AP classes apply to the UC system

The college advising experience so far at our school (Big 3) has seemed like a bunch of nice nice talk, everything geared towards the middle kids, and especially geared at not painting full picture to protect us and kid from any stress. I'd much rather they tell parents and kids the truth and how to work the reality of hard admissions where you are judged against a NATIONAL pool of kids.

This AP test thing is but one example. I'm sure a chorus of "rich parent complaining blah blah" will now start in reply to this post

BTW One can look to see admit rates at UC's by high school - https://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/about-us/information-center/admissions-source-school
For class starting Fall '21

Wilson HS (where AP courses are taught): 54 applied; 39 got in (UC wide) - 72%
Sidwell: 28 applied; 17 got in - 60%
GDS: 30 applied; 16 got in - 53%
NCS: 15 applied; 6 got in - 40%

Of course not all UC's are the same. But if your computed GPA is goosed by AP classes and the kid took a bunch of honors courses that would have easily allowed sitting for the AP, I'm honestly shocked that this school (a big 3) didnt tell parents - i was on multiple zooms with college office where this question about AP was explicitly asked and it was always denied to help other than UK admit process. What utter bs

This is a very cool data source. But I think you need to break it out by campus for it to be meaningful. Wilson was 13/13 at UC Davis but most private schools barely had any applicants. At a statistical level, public school families are looking for value and private school families are looking for prestige. Outside of Cal and UCLA, the UC schools offer more value than prestige.

Also your school was correct that taking the exam wouldn’t make any difference. The bump is for the grade in an official AP course, not for the score on the exam. (I’m not saying that policy makes sense, just that’s what it is.)

[Anonymous]

If this really puts Cal and UCLA out of reach, that is infuriating. And yes I get that they are extremely difficult to get into OOS anyway, but if the students really have no chance without the bump from AP-designated courses, then that’s a different ballgame and seems like it would be futile even to try.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If this really puts Cal and UCLA out of reach, that is infuriating. And yes I get that they are extremely difficult to get into OOS anyway, but if the students really have no chance without the bump from AP-designated courses, then that’s a different ballgame and seems like it would be futile even to try.

I'm sure it won't help.
Wilson/Walls kids are coming out with 15 APs. Sidwell/STA kids were already having a difficult time with 5 APs. Moving to ZERO isn't going to help their cause.
At the very least it will take the California universities a few years to catch up with the "no AP" program here in DC privates.

[Anonymous]

STA is not moving to zero APs. My kid is taking an additional 3 next year and the school encourages tests in a ther classes not designated AP. St. Albans has fewer than public schools but still offers AP and lists them as such on transcript.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If this really puts Cal and UCLA out of reach, that is infuriating. And yes I get that they are extremely difficult to get into OOS anyway, but if the students really have no chance without the bump from AP-designated courses, then that’s a different ballgame and seems like it would be futile even to try.

I'm sure it won't help.
Wilson/Walls kids are coming out with 15 APs. Sidwell/STA kids were already having a difficult time with 5 APs. Moving to ZERO isn't going to help their cause.
At the very least it will take the California universities a few years to catch up with the "no AP" program here in DC privates.

As CA is limiting OOS spots, they really have no need to 'catch up' -- they are getting great candidates for the few OOS spots from around the country already. Do you really think at a macro level they care about or notice this handful of schools from the East? They already have kids just like that from CA privates.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:STA is not moving to zero APs. My kid is taking an additional 3 next year and the school encourages tests in a ther classes not designated AP. St. Albans has fewer than public schools but still offers AP and lists them as such on transcript.

I guess they fooled those other schools in the 'pact.'

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Still those schools will have the best college placement. Our choice.

Yes, because they have donors kids, legacies, kids in $$$$$ recruitable sports (I.e. fencing and squash), and can altogether cherry pick their students. In DC they also pluck the most talented URM kids by high school.

You didn’t think too hard on that one.

well, then you should be happy your kid is at a public school taking 12-15 AP classes. One less kid to compete with. Or maybe you're on this crusade because you realize that 12-15 AP classes got your kid the same result as another kid who took 0.

DP.. you are missing the point.

One of the reasons why those kids do well is because of their connections, which a lot of private schools offer. I recall a private school parent saying that they chose private for the connections that the kids would make, and how that is really priceless.

So yes, as far as opportunities go, those connections are more meaningful than 15 AP classes. Public school students have less opportunities to make those connections.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If this really puts Cal and UCLA out of reach, that is infuriating. And yes I get that they are extremely difficult to get into OOS anyway, but if the students really have no chance without the bump from AP-designated courses, then that’s a different ballgame and seems like it would be futile even to try.

I'm sure it won't help.
Wilson/Walls kids are coming out with 15 APs. Sidwell/STA kids were already having a difficult time with 5 APs. Moving to ZERO isn't going to help their cause.
At the very least it will take the California universities a few years to catch up with the "no AP" program here in DC privates.

Dc private schools only shot is to market themselves as super special and amazing. That’ll do it. And then 10 years later the data will speak for itself. Unless it’s hidden away from everyone but the colleges who keep it themselves.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Still those schools will have the best college placement. Our choice.

Yes, because they have donors kids, legacies, kids in $$$$$ recruitable sports (I.e. fencing and squash), and can altogether cherry pick their students. In DC they also pluck the most talented URM kids by high school.

You didn’t think too hard on that one.

well, then you should be happy your kid is at a public school taking 12-15 AP classes. One less kid to compete with. Or maybe you're on this crusade because you realize that 12-15 AP classes got your kid the same result as another kid who took 0.

DP.. you are missing the point.

One of the reasons why those kids do well is because of their connections, which a lot of private schools offer. I recall a private school parent saying that they chose private for the connections that the kids would make, and how that is really priceless.

So yes, as far as opportunities go, those connections are more meaningful than 15 AP classes. Public school students have less opportunities to make those connections.

We’re also concerned about lack of breadth in these classics classes, as some schools overly focus on mission instead of academic knowledge.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Still those schools will have the best college placement. Our choice.

Yes, because they have donors kids, legacies, kids in $$$$$ recruitable sports (I.e. fencing and squash), and can altogether cherry pick their students. In DC they also pluck the most talented URM kids by high school.

You didn’t think too hard on that one.

well, then you should be happy your kid is at a public school taking 12-15 AP classes. One less kid to compete with. Or maybe you're on this crusade because you realize that 12-15 AP classes got your kid the same result as another kid who took 0.

DP.. you are missing the point.

One of the reasons why those kids do well is because of their connections, which a lot of private schools offer. I recall a private school parent saying that they chose private for the connections that the kids would make, and how that is really priceless.

So yes, as far as opportunities go, those connections are more meaningful than 15 AP classes. Public school students have less opportunities to make those connections.

We’re also concerned about lack of breadth in these classics classes, as some schools overly focus on mission instead of academic knowledge.

Then go to another school - this isn’t that hard

[Anonymous]

Are these schools speaking to regional reps from the UCs to explain the situation? Does anyone know? This issue would not have had a significant impact on any classes to date but now that APs are gone at some schools, it will likely start to affect every class going forward.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If this really puts Cal and UCLA out of reach, that is infuriating. And yes I get that they are extremely difficult to get into OOS anyway, but if the students really have no chance without the bump from AP-designated courses, then that’s a different ballgame and seems like it would be futile even to try.

where does the data come from? Does the UC system provide the data for each high school, or does each high school provide the data to UC and they they add it all together on their website?