Private school enrollment across DMV

[Anonymous]

Now that the dust has settled, what were the yields like this year? Our school has mentioned that we have smaller incoming classes and that other schools do too.

[Anonymous]

Well Gonzaga sent a note to their waitlist saying they have the biggest freshman class in 203 years and would not be going to the waitlist.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Well Gonzaga sent a note to their waitlist saying they have the biggest freshman class in 203 years and would not be going to the waitlist.

Wow - great for Gonzaga!

[Anonymous]

Which school, OP?

[Anonymous]

DMV private schools have entered into a period of contraction and consolidation. There are fewer kids generally (and especially born in 2021), and there are fewer families locally able to afford private school. The Feynman School and SSFS are two early indicators of this. If Gonzaga has its biggest freshman class this, in large part, is a result of Gonzaga charging substantially less for tuition than other area privates.

[Anonymous]

The name brands like Gonzaga still have far more applicants than they have spots, and they'll remain that way. It's the small, niche schools that are at-risk. Yield may be down at top schools, but they're still able to fill all their seats.

Anecdotally, yields seem to be down because families are applying to more schools than ever, especially top schools. Admission is such a crapshoot these days if you don't have a connection that families, so it ends up being like college admissions: apply widely to maximize your odds of getting accepted somewhere.

In my non-DMV city, the lower-tier schools are struggling (most are conservative religious schools, fwiw). One Catholic is having issues but that stems from long-simmering issues that exploded this year. The other Catholics have waitlists (that aren't moving much judging by the online chatter). All the top privates filled their seats and have sizable waitpools.

[Anonymous]

[twitter] hi

Anonymous wrote:The name brands like Gonzaga still have far more applicants than they have spots, and they'll remain that way. It's the small, niche schools that are at-risk. Yield may be down at top schools, but they're still able to fill all their seats.

Anecdotally, yields seem to be down because families are applying to more schools than ever, especially top schools. Admission is such a crapshoot these days if you don't have a connection that families, so it ends up being like college admissions: apply widely to maximize your odds of getting accepted somewhere.

In my non-DMV city, the lower-tier schools are struggling (most are conservative religious schools, fwiw). One Catholic is having issues but that stems from long-simmering issues that exploded this year. The other Catholics have waitlists (that aren't moving much judging by the online chatter). All the top privates filled their seats and have sizable waitpools.

Why on earth are you talking about private schools that are not in the DMV? What does that have to do with this thread? I understand that DCUM participation has expanded to folks who are from outside of our area, but it’s still a DMV-centric site and when a post is clearly DMV-specific it really derails things when folks from outside the area go off topic.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:[twitter] hi

Anonymous wrote:The name brands like Gonzaga still have far more applicants than they have spots, and they'll remain that way. It's the small, niche schools that are at-risk. Yield may be down at top schools, but they're still able to fill all their seats.

Anecdotally, yields seem to be down because families are applying to more schools than ever, especially top schools. Admission is such a crapshoot these days if you don't have a connection that families, so it ends up being like college admissions: apply widely to maximize your odds of getting accepted somewhere.

In my non-DMV city, the lower-tier schools are struggling (most are conservative religious schools, fwiw). One Catholic is having issues but that stems from long-simmering issues that exploded this year. The other Catholics have waitlists (that aren't moving much judging by the online chatter). All the top privates filled their seats and have sizable waitpools.

Why on earth are you talking about private schools that are not in the DMV? What does that have to do with this thread? I understand that DCUM participation has expanded to folks who are from outside of our area, but it’s still a DMV-centric site and when a post is clearly DMV-specific it really derails things when folks from outside the area go off topic.

You’re a really pleasant person 😬

-A DMV resident who appreciates hearing about other experiences outside this bubble

[Anonymous]

I live in the dmv but am a trustee for a private school in New England. I attend frequent conferences for organizations like NAIS. The trend that everyone is talking about is a few elite or large schools in each area doing really well, and smaller schools or schools that are no one’s first choice really struggling. It’s far more dramatic than the small college closures that have been all over the news the past few years. There are a lot of schools that are more like SSFS than Feynman that are on the brink of closure and in a spot where an enrollment decrease of 10 students over 2-3 years would be the end.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:[twitter] hi

Anonymous wrote:The name brands like Gonzaga still have far more applicants than they have spots, and they'll remain that way. It's the small, niche schools that are at-risk. Yield may be down at top schools, but they're still able to fill all their seats.

Anecdotally, yields seem to be down because families are applying to more schools than ever, especially top schools. Admission is such a crapshoot these days if you don't have a connection that families, so it ends up being like college admissions: apply widely to maximize your odds of getting accepted somewhere.

In my non-DMV city, the lower-tier schools are struggling (most are conservative religious schools, fwiw). One Catholic is having issues but that stems from long-simmering issues that exploded this year. The other Catholics have waitlists (that aren't moving much judging by the online chatter). All the top privates filled their seats and have sizable waitpools.

Why on earth are you talking about private schools that are not in the DMV? What does that have to do with this thread? I understand that DCUM participation has expanded to folks who are from outside of our area, but it’s still a DMV-centric site and when a post is clearly DMV-specific it really derails things when folks from outside the area go off topic.

You’re a really pleasant person 😬

-A DMV resident who appreciates hearing about other experiences outside this bubble

That’s fine - start another thread then

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:[twitter] hi

Anonymous wrote:The name brands like Gonzaga still have far more applicants than they have spots, and they'll remain that way. It's the small, niche schools that are at-risk. Yield may be down at top schools, but they're still able to fill all their seats.

Anecdotally, yields seem to be down because families are applying to more schools than ever, especially top schools. Admission is such a crapshoot these days if you don't have a connection that families, so it ends up being like college admissions: apply widely to maximize your odds of getting accepted somewhere.

In my non-DMV city, the lower-tier schools are struggling (most are conservative religious schools, fwiw). One Catholic is having issues but that stems from long-simmering issues that exploded this year. The other Catholics have waitlists (that aren't moving much judging by the online chatter). All the top privates filled their seats and have sizable waitpools.

Why on earth are you talking about private schools that are not in the DMV? What does that have to do with this thread? I understand that DCUM participation has expanded to folks who are from outside of our area, but it’s still a DMV-centric site and when a post is clearly DMV-specific it really derails things when folks from outside the area go off topic.

You’re a really pleasant person 😬

-A DMV resident who appreciates hearing about other experiences outside this bubble

+1. Glad to know what’s happening in other, not so far from DC East Coast communities. It’s certainly germane and worth consideration on this thread. It’s not like the person completely changed the topic. Sheesh.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Well Gonzaga sent a note to their waitlist saying they have the biggest freshman class in 203 years and would not be going to the waitlist.

Gonzaga is more reasonable financially than some of the others.

[Anonymous]

Schools like Bullis and SAES are bursting at the seams, which was not the case a few years ago.

[Anonymous]

Several DC area schools had a record number of applications. That’s what some of the admissions officers told us during tours and shadow visits.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Which school, OP?

A smaller religious school.in VA - prefer not to say.