2008 College Placement for "Elite" DC Area Private Schools?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't know that most privates ask on the application where the parents attended college. Sidwell did ask, which I found somewhat offensive. Beauvior did not. My guess is that most schools do not ask.

You're right. We only applied to two of the big 3, and I remember Sidwell asking but not NCS. Can't speak for GDS. So this selection criterion would qualify Sidwell's college acceptance results, but maybe not the other two.

[Anonymous]

GDS does not ask for that info.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Clueless here, forgive me, but why would it be "harder" to get into top colleges if you graduate from a private school than it would be if you went to a public school??

Fewer applicants from the public school and they stand out more. Also, a public school background would be seen to add to diversity, given the high percentage of people applying from private schools. For example, in DC, even if you're a white student, you went to school in a majority black system. The vast majority of white applicants won't bring that with them.

Of course, this is just speculation on my part. If anyone has direct knowledge of this, please share with us.

Thank you. My concern (which is growing) is that math and science courses are not as strong in private schools as they are in (some) public schools.

[Anonymous]

My kid in language immersion in MoCo is doing math with kids two grades above. MoCo is very willing to let your kid advance one or two years, if they show willingness.

(We are not actually sure how we feel about this, as there is evidence that kids who do algebra in fifth grade forget it all by SAT time. But DC wanted to do it very much, so there it is.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Agree. And anyone who thinks otherwise is seriously delusional about private schools and their college acceptances!

I think that the point such people are making is not that it's not impressive that so many got into Ivy schools. But that no one would spend $300K just so that their kids could get accepted to Univ of Maryland, Univ of Michigan, Bucknell, Weslyan, or Davidson.

Two of own colleges are on this list, and if our kids can get in as legacies, then it eliminates college placement as a reason to push so hard for a top private. We're putting our money instead into lots of enrichment, travel, and a country house. The kid is going to a top public instead.

It's not just the end product - though all of the schools you seem to deride are all excellent, even arguably elite institutions. The 300K "buys" you a network of life-long friends who will be there for you, help you, and provide the proverbial "connections" that we public school graduates both mock and envy.

Public schools also provide a "network of life-long friends who will be there for you....." For free.

True. But when one speaks of "Connections," with a capital C, such things are more often than not forged at an elite private school than a public school.

[Anonymous]

Actually, I would say that DH has gotten more support, in terms of career, from his public HS friends than I have from my "elite" private school.

[Anonymous]

I applied to:

Duke
Georgetown
Kenyon
University of Kansas
University of Virgina
Yale

I got into all of them. I was offered a National Merit Scholarship by one of them (Kenyon, which I eventually turned down).

I went to public school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kid in language immersion in MoCo is doing math with kids two grades above. MoCo is very willing to let your kid advance one or two years, if they show willingness.

(We are not actually sure how we feel about this, as there is evidence that kids who do algebra in fifth grade forget it all by SAT time. But DC wanted to do it very much, so there it is.)

Good point, PP. Language immersion is much more interesting and impressive to elite college admissions officers than expensive but flabby private schools. And yes, privates are almost always so weak in math and sciences! Bet on this: the Mandarin Immersion kids from Washington Yu Ying, Potomac Elementary, and College Gardens will have a FAR more compelling education narrative than those of Sidwell, Maret, and GDS.

[Anonymous]

I'm the PP you're quoting. I dearly wish I could agree with you on the usefulness of immersion for college acceptances, but I'm not convinced it's true. There are tons of kids in the US who are bilingual, whether through one or both parents, or through immersion. I would guess that bilingual kids are seen pretty frequently by admissions officers. Sorry to say!

We're doing the immersion route because DH and I both value languages and an international perspective. Also it provides an additional challenge.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

True. But when one speaks of "Connections," with a capital C, such things are more often than not forged at an elite private school than a public school.

Unfortunately, it often takes connections just to get into these schools. Talk about a juggernaut....

[Anonymous]

W/r/t admissions rates from the elite private schools, there are far more legacies in the private school classes than in most public school classes, so again you have an applicant pool with a slight advantage. As others have said, this is counterbalanced by the number and % of kids from those schools who apply to the same 10-20 top colleges.

As for bilingual immersion students: although it's true that many u.s. students are bilingual, the bilingual immersion students from top immersion schools and well off, college-educated backgrounds have both bilingualism and the test scores. They are also prepared, by high school, to do pretty interesting internships and service projects. Of course there are better reasons to go bilingual, namely the gift of a second language and the multicultural experience.

I went to a private school but the private school scene in my home town was not like DC. I thought we'd go private when I first moved here, but I'm disturbed by the status competition that surrounds private school here, and by the description of too many schools as pressure cookers. My private school was fun and relaxed, but girls from there (myself included) still got into Ivies and other good schools. If it were here, we'd consider it. As it is, I'm glad we have Oyster.

[Anonymous]

Oyster is a jewel. I've seen their test scores on city-wide assessments and the cognitive effects of the bilingualism really show up strongly - especially around 4th grade. Interestingly, you see the same results at Elsie Whitlow Stokes (charter) though to a lesser degree. Their student body demographics don't come from as many highly-educated homes as Oyster, but it's interesting to see that they're getting the same effects. I think their languages are french are spanish, but I won't be on that.

Anyway, good choice in Oyster. Lucky kids.

[Anonymous]

It's not just the end product - though all of the schools you seem to deride are all excellent, even arguably elite institutions. The 300K "buys" you a network of life-long friends who will be there for you, help you, and provide the proverbial "connections" that we public school graduates both mock and envy.

Public schools also provide a "network of life-long friends who will be there for you....." For free.

Well, yes, but you get what you pay for in that regard . . .

[Anonymous]

Believe it or not, my kid is going to private school not because of better college placement or "connections," but because I think he will get a enjoy learning and get a better education. If he wants to go to the University of Maryland when he finishes, fine. My concern is that he not be bored out of his mind (as I was for nine years in public school).

For people worried about where your kids are going to go to college, my advice is to move to a small twon in the midwest. Then your kid can get into Yale. There are so many applicants from the DC metropolitan area that your chances are actually worse regardless of whether you go to public or private school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Believe it or not, my kid is going to private school not because of better college placement or "connections," but because I think he will get a enjoy learning and get a better education. If he wants to go to the University of Maryland when he finishes, fine. My concern is that he not be bored out of his mind (as I was for nine years in public school).

For people worried about where your kids are going to go to college, my advice is to move to a small twon in the midwest. Then your kid can get into Yale. There are so many applicants from the DC metropolitan area that your chances are actually worse regardless of whether you go to public or private school.

Ditto.