Worth it's own post: The Harvard-Westlake college matriculation data!!

[Anonymous]

Have you guys seen this?
It's the matriculation data for unhooked kids from Harvard Westlake.
It's REALLY interesting.

https://students.hw.com/Portals/44/completehandbook2023.pdf

A couple of thoughts:
--Their GPAs seem to be a touch higher than those at DC privates. Many kids are applying with above a 3.8. Very few are applying with below a 3.4. Our DC private has almost no kids with a 3.8+

That said, the Ivies have a pretty strict GPA cut-off of about 3.8. Still lots of lower kids trying to apply without luck. I can totally see this at our private "my kid is special! they can get into an Ivy with a 3.6!!" Um. NO
Other schools like NYU, Georgetown, Tufts seem to love HW kids.

[Anonymous]

Generally, rich kids do fine OP, even if they are mediocre students or people

[Anonymous]

I am reposting from other thread bc more relevant here (hope that is okay)

FWIW, our kids got pretty much the same info from their DC private, with the exception of the "unhooked" aspect,. Ours was offered in a different format (including a handbook but then more supplemental materials, and workshops). And, the rejection info was only on naviance, which also included info on ED v RD (I am sure they got that too). I actually liked the way my kid's CCO presented some of this info better: it was GPA bands of where students were admitted and it helped my kid broaden his search list. I would imagine every private school offers this same data, FYI.

I also sort of question what hooks means given their use of "etc." I get taking out athletic recruits and legacy, but are they really excluding minority kids or first gen from the data set? Or what about family members who attend other than parents?

Quickly looking at two schools at which my kid (no hooks) was accepted, his local DMV private did better than Harvard Westlake, though that is obviously anecdotal (and doesn't really diminish the education kids are getting there)... though I feel a little icky for looking up the admits at those schools bc I think this data isn't really for public consumption. I see why our CCO gives everything to the kids on paper: they can't forward it around, lol.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Have you guys seen this?
It's the matriculation data for unhooked kids from Harvard Westlake.
It's REALLY interesting.

https://students.hw.com/Portals/44/completehandbook2023.pdf

A couple of thoughts:
--Their GPAs seem to be a touch higher than those at DC privates. Many kids are applying with above a 3.8. Very few are applying with below a 3.4. Our DC private has almost no kids with a 3.8+

That said, the Ivies have a pretty strict GPA cut-off of about 3.8. Still lots of lower kids trying to apply without luck. I can totally see this at our private "my kid is special! they can get into an Ivy with a 3.6!!" Um. NO
Other schools like NYU, Georgetown, Tufts seem to love HW kids.

Schools love rich kids (and HW is LA rich, which is a very different thing from DC rich) and kids with celebrity parents. A full pay dullard with a dad who is a well known producer is getting into NYU

[Anonymous]

That's not showing you a cut off. It's showing your correction between decisions and GPAs.

[Anonymous]

There were some interesting yield protections in there - assuming you go by GPA alone as the standard.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Have you guys seen this?
It's the matriculation data for unhooked kids from Harvard Westlake.
It's REALLY interesting.

https://students.hw.com/Portals/44/completehandbook2023.pdf

A couple of thoughts:
--Their GPAs seem to be a touch higher than those at DC privates. Many kids are applying with above a 3.8. Very few are applying with below a 3.4. Our DC private has almost no kids with a 3.8+

That said, the Ivies have a pretty strict GPA cut-off of about 3.8. Still lots of lower kids trying to apply without luck. I can totally see this at our private "my kid is special! they can get into an Ivy with a 3.6!!" Um. NO
Other schools like NYU, Georgetown, Tufts seem to love HW kids.

No-one at Harvard Westlake is totally unhooked. It's literally full go the West cost Hollywood elite and MULTI-BILLIONAIRES. The schools stats are outlier stats.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Have you guys seen this?
It's the matriculation data for unhooked kids from Harvard Westlake.
It's REALLY interesting.

https://students.hw.com/Portals/44/completehandbook2023.pdf

A couple of thoughts:
--Their GPAs seem to be a touch higher than those at DC privates. Many kids are applying with above a 3.8. Very few are applying with below a 3.4. Our DC private has almost no kids with a 3.8+

That said, the Ivies have a pretty strict GPA cut-off of about 3.8. Still lots of lower kids trying to apply without luck. I can totally see this at our private "my kid is special! they can get into an Ivy with a 3.6!!" Um. NO
Other schools like NYU, Georgetown, Tufts seem to love HW kids.

Schools love rich kids (and HW is LA rich, which is a very different thing from DC rich) and kids with celebrity parents. A full pay dullard with a dad who is a well known producer is getting into NYU

Agree that schools love rich kids with " names"---the schools salivate over the idea of having famous Hollywood or sports/music stars names on future huildings oneday.

[Anonymous]

^ buildings

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Have you guys seen this?
It's the matriculation data for unhooked kids from Harvard Westlake.
It's REALLY interesting.

https://students.hw.com/Portals/44/completehandbook2023.pdf

A couple of thoughts:
--Their GPAs seem to be a touch higher than those at DC privates. Many kids are applying with above a 3.8. Very few are applying with below a 3.4. Our DC private has almost no kids with a 3.8+

That said, the Ivies have a pretty strict GPA cut-off of about 3.8. Still lots of lower kids trying to apply without luck. I can totally see this at our private "my kid is special! they can get into an Ivy with a 3.6!!" Um. NO
Other schools like NYU, Georgetown, Tufts seem to love HW kids.

Schools love rich kids (and HW is LA rich, which is a very different thing from DC rich) and kids with celebrity parents. A full pay dullard with a dad who is a well known producer is getting into NYU

This. People in DC don't understand that privates in other major cities have kids whose parents or on an entirely different level. DC's privates are full of kids whose parents are BigLaw partners, often people coming from family money, plus a handful of truly powerful and connected people (politicians, some founders/CEOs). That impresses people in DC to some degree but elsewhere peopel don't care. Ivies don't care. Schools like NYU don't care. Georgetown doesn't even care!

Everyone cares when your parent is a celebrity, tech giant, upper echelon producer, or high up in finance. You can mostly go wherever you want. The HW kids attending NYU could have gone to Harvard or Brown or Stanford -- they wanted to be in NYC. Often these kids don't want to go to the most prestigious school because (1) why, they don't need it, and (2) it will put them in the company of a bunch of UMC striver competitive kids and that doesn't sound fun to them. Even the studious, bookish ones recognize that they don't really need Standford's stamp of approval, and will instead look for a school that feels like a really good personality fit.

In some ways the smart kids at HW can apply to school the way everyone should -- not worrying about prestige or competition and just finding a college that will nurture their interests and has the kind of social scene and academic environment that appeals to them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Have you guys seen this?
It's the matriculation data for unhooked kids from Harvard Westlake.
It's REALLY interesting.

https://students.hw.com/Portals/44/completehandbook2023.pdf

A couple of thoughts:
--Their GPAs seem to be a touch higher than those at DC privates. Many kids are applying with above a 3.8. Very few are applying with below a 3.4. Our DC private has almost no kids with a 3.8+

That said, the Ivies have a pretty strict GPA cut-off of about 3.8. Still lots of lower kids trying to apply without luck. I can totally see this at our private "my kid is special! they can get into an Ivy with a 3.6!!" Um. NO
Other schools like NYU, Georgetown, Tufts seem to love HW kids.

Schools love rich kids (and HW is LA rich, which is a very different thing from DC rich) and kids with celebrity parents. A full pay dullard with a dad who is a well known producer is getting into NYU

What does any of this matter? There admissions looks no better than my kid's DC private.

This. People in DC don't understand that privates in other major cities have kids whose parents or on an entirely different level. DC's privates are full of kids whose parents are BigLaw partners, often people coming from family money, plus a handful of truly powerful and connected people (politicians, some founders/CEOs). That impresses people in DC to some degree but elsewhere peopel don't care. Ivies don't care. Schools like NYU don't care. Georgetown doesn't even care!

Everyone cares when your parent is a celebrity, tech giant, upper echelon producer, or high up in finance. You can mostly go wherever you want. The HW kids attending NYU could have gone to Harvard or Brown or Stanford -- they wanted to be in NYC. Often these kids don't want to go to the most prestigious school because (1) why, they don't need it, and (2) it will put them in the company of a bunch of UMC striver competitive kids and that doesn't sound fun to them. Even the studious, bookish ones recognize that they don't really need Standford's stamp of approval, and will instead look for a school that feels like a really good personality fit.

In some ways the smart kids at HW can apply to school the way everyone should -- not worrying about prestige or competition and just finding a college that will nurture their interests and has the kind of social scene and academic environment that appeals to them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Have you guys seen this?
It's the matriculation data for unhooked kids from Harvard Westlake.
It's REALLY interesting.

https://students.hw.com/Portals/44/completehandbook2023.pdf

A couple of thoughts:
--Their GPAs seem to be a touch higher than those at DC privates. Many kids are applying with above a 3.8. Very few are applying with below a 3.4. Our DC private has almost no kids with a 3.8+

That said, the Ivies have a pretty strict GPA cut-off of about 3.8. Still lots of lower kids trying to apply without luck. I can totally see this at our private "my kid is special! they can get into an Ivy with a 3.6!!" Um. NO
Other schools like NYU, Georgetown, Tufts seem to love HW kids.

Schools love rich kids (and HW is LA rich, which is a very different thing from DC rich) and kids with celebrity parents. A full pay dullard with a dad who is a well known producer is getting into NYU

This. I went to Brown and the HW kids had world famous parents.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Have you guys seen this?
It's the matriculation data for unhooked kids from Harvard Westlake.
It's REALLY interesting.

https://students.hw.com/Portals/44/completehandbook2023.pdf

A couple of thoughts:
--Their GPAs seem to be a touch higher than those at DC privates. Many kids are applying with above a 3.8. Very few are applying with below a 3.4. Our DC private has almost no kids with a 3.8+

That said, the Ivies have a pretty strict GPA cut-off of about 3.8. Still lots of lower kids trying to apply without luck. I can totally see this at our private "my kid is special! they can get into an Ivy with a 3.6!!" Um. NO
Other schools like NYU, Georgetown, Tufts seem to love HW kids.

Schools love rich kids (and HW is LA rich, which is a very different thing from DC rich) and kids with celebrity parents. A full pay dullard with a dad who is a well known producer is getting into NYU

This. People in DC don't understand that privates in other major cities have kids whose parents or on an entirely different level. DC's privates are full of kids whose parents are BigLaw partners, often people coming from family money, plus a handful of truly powerful and connected people (politicians, some founders/CEOs). That impresses people in DC to some degree but elsewhere peopel don't care. Ivies don't care. Schools like NYU don't care. Georgetown doesn't even care!

Everyone cares when your parent is a celebrity, tech giant, upper echelon producer, or high up in finance. You can mostly go wherever you want. The HW kids attending NYU could have gone to Harvard or Brown or Stanford -- they wanted to be in NYC. Often these kids don't want to go to the most prestigious school because (1) why, they don't need it, and (2) it will put them in the company of a bunch of UMC striver competitive kids and that doesn't sound fun to them. Even the studious, bookish ones recognize that they don't really need Standford's stamp of approval, and will instead look for a school that feels like a really good personality fit.

In some ways the smart kids at HW can apply to school the way everyone should -- not worrying about prestige or competition and just finding a college that will nurture their interests and has the kind of social scene and academic environment that appeals to them.

Most DC people understand just fine. I don't think many understand that DC is as close to recession proof as it gets in the States. During the dot com boom there was Silicon Valley and guess who was #2-DMV. That's how the Dulles Corrider got built. This area is not about the glitz and glamour that LA pushes. It is far more intellectual. The amount of small companies here doing a few million a year is staggering. LA is no where close in that regard. It's not "sexy" but the slow and steady DC way produces a lot. DC may not have a lot of fame but it does have substance. Plus, when your parents are wealthy, you can do what you want for the most part.

[Anonymous]

Having graduated from Harvard-Westlake in the 90s, I find this list interesting. In my year alone over 15 kids went to University of Pennsylvania and over 15 to Columbia. Not so any more. Clearly the colleges want more diversity. The admit list is not as impressive as it was back in the day.

And yes, LA wealth is different. There is a much higher percentage of over the top wealthy. However, HW does have some "normal DC type wealth too." (Lawyers, etc).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Have you guys seen this?
It's the matriculation data for unhooked kids from Harvard Westlake.
It's REALLY interesting.

https://students.hw.com/Portals/44/completehandbook2023.pdf

A couple of thoughts:
--Their GPAs seem to be a touch higher than those at DC privates. Many kids are applying with above a 3.8. Very few are applying with below a 3.4. Our DC private has almost no kids with a 3.8+

That said, the Ivies have a pretty strict GPA cut-off of about 3.8. Still lots of lower kids trying to apply without luck. I can totally see this at our private "my kid is special! they can get into an Ivy with a 3.6!!" Um. NO
Other schools like NYU, Georgetown, Tufts seem to love HW kids.

Schools love rich kids (and HW is LA rich, which is a very different thing from DC rich) and kids with celebrity parents. A full pay dullard with a dad who is a well known producer is getting into NYU

This. People in DC don't understand that privates in other major cities have kids whose parents or on an entirely different level. DC's privates are full of kids whose parents are BigLaw partners, often people coming from family money, plus a handful of truly powerful and connected people (politicians, some founders/CEOs). That impresses people in DC to some degree but elsewhere peopel don't care. Ivies don't care. Schools like NYU don't care. Georgetown doesn't even care!

Everyone cares when your parent is a celebrity, tech giant, upper echelon producer, or high up in finance. You can mostly go wherever you want. The HW kids attending NYU could have gone to Harvard or Brown or Stanford -- they wanted to be in NYC. Often these kids don't want to go to the most prestigious school because (1) why, they don't need it, and (2) it will put them in the company of a bunch of UMC striver competitive kids and that doesn't sound fun to them. Even the studious, bookish ones recognize that they don't really need Standford's stamp of approval, and will instead look for a school that feels like a really good personality fit.

In some ways the smart kids at HW can apply to school the way everyone should -- not worrying about prestige or competition and just finding a college that will nurture their interests and has the kind of social scene and academic environment that appeals to them.

Most DC people understand just fine. I don't think many understand that DC is as close to recession proof as it gets in the States. During the dot com boom there was Silicon Valley and guess who was #2-DMV. That's how the Dulles Corrider got built. This area is not about the glitz and glamour that LA pushes. It is far more intellectual. The amount of small companies here doing a few million a year is staggering. LA is no where close in that regard. It's not "sexy" but the slow and steady DC way produces a lot. DC may not have a lot of fame but it does have substance. Plus, when your parents are wealthy, you can do what you want for the most part.

Don't get defensive. No one was putting down DC's economy. The point is that HW graduates have a different experience with college admissions for a variety of reasons, so it's silly to get into the weeds on their admission data. Obsessing over GPA bands or "hooked v. un-hooked" like OP is doing is pointless because HW is unique in how many of its graduates are viewed by admissions offices.