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

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote: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.

Not really. Your chances (measured by the percent of the school's graduating class going on to X University) are higher in those elite privates and publics in DC. Yes, you are competing with more kids for Harvard (or whatever) slots, but more of them are going too.

Here's the Worth 100 list of top privates, FWIW (measured I think by acceptances to Ivy):
(only DC, Maryland, Virginia shown)

13) St. Albans School, Washington, DC, www.sta.cathedral.org
17) National Cathedral School, Washington, DC, (F), www.ncs.cathedral.org
22) Potomac School, McLean, VA, www.potomacschool.org
27) Gilman School, Baltimore, MD, (M), www.gilman.edu
28) Sidwell Friends School, Washington, DC, www.sidwell.edu
42) Holton-Arms School, Bethesda, MD, (F), www.holton-arms.edu
43) Georgetown Day School, Washington, DC, www.gds.org
49) Landon School, Bethesda, MD, (M), www.landon.net
55) Bryn Mawr School, Baltimore, MD, (F), www.brynmawrschool.org
61) Maret School, Washington, DC, www.maret.org

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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 . . .

Not true in my experience. Friendships are what you make of them, not what you can buy or sell them for. I made lifelong friendships at public school and an elite private university, but that's because I put something into them, not because of a transaction that came with my tuition. Live and learn, and try not to teach your children that people are for sale lest you end up an object lesson in how not to live one's life.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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 . . .

(Sorry, the above would have been cleaner with the correct formatting)

Not true in my experience. Friendships are what you make of them, not what you can buy or sell them for. I made lifelong friendships at public school and an elite private university, but that's because I put something into them, not because of a transaction that came with my tuition. Live and learn, and try not to teach your children that people are for sale - lest you end up an object lesson in how not to live one's life.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Did you notice on the Wilson list that "University of Wisconsin (15)." Do you know why so many DC public school kids are going there??? Its not like its some great school...

I can say that all of the Big 3 and other private schools regularly send a big contingent to UW. It's a great state school a la Michigan and UVA, but much easier to get into.