Got off SMCS waitlist
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Anonymous
| DD got off the waitlist for Blair SMCS. We are so excited but have so many questions since we did not go to admitted students night. (1) how is the pressure / competition (2) how much homework very night (3) our DD has 280 MAP M which I think is on the lower end so curious how do kids that are not that exceptional in Math handle the course load. Thanks! |
Anonymous
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First, congratuations!
Second, to provide my anecdotal experience: (1) very high pressure and competition, especially for jr and sr years when they realize the competition is really just among their peers. For girls strong in STEM, you general have a better shot to land some excellent offers than Asian boys with similar metrics. This holds true in later career stage. If your DD is genuinely interested and strong in STEM, definitely worths a try. (2) It really depends. For very strong student, 2-3 hours/night in total is possible. I heard that 3-5 hours/night is a more typical scene, including weekends. (3) There are plenty other courses and tracks to dive deeper. How about biology and chemistry? How about engineering (e.g., robotics)? I would worry more for extremely advanced kid as electives are expected to decline rapidly once the regional model starts. Other than that, transportation is more uncertain so I'd put more weights on logistics if I were you. |
Anonymous
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Think about how organized your kid is and how motivated they are to attend. They are not by any means on the lower end, but regardless of their MAP score they need to be very organized and very motivated to succeed. It’s an incredible amount of pressure and it will impact your entire family - you will need to carve time out of vacations and weekend plans to get homework done. 3 or more hours per night homework is typical and the transportation and extra period mean a very long day. Don’t count on bus transportation either.
It’s a great program for the right fit, but there are also considerable changes coming up. If you think your child’s needs (academic and social) are well met at their home school or you are unsure about your kid’s ability to keep up with the work (that’s about motivation and perseverance more than ability) then pass, otherwise jump at the opportunity. |
Anonymous
| Did you find out today? Or Friday? |
Anonymous
| It’s a grind and overwhelmingly intense. |
Anonymous
Friday |
Anonymous
How long did they give you to respond? Could you visit the school? |
Anonymous
| Definitely a grind but worth it. It feels like a grind in some classes because it really is a very comprehensive science education. E.g., a kid with likes only bio and chemistry may find the engineering requirements tedious. Likewise, a kid who loves physics but not bio must still do advanced bio. But, very good preparation for any analytical field of study in college. English courses are not advanced. |
Anonymous
| My kid find it very difficult to make friends and spent all their free time on homework. I don’t know if I’d make the same choice as it didn’t leave any time to just be a teenager and was pretty lonely. There is very little community in the program, sadly. |
Anonymous
*not advanced, except for APs in 11th and 12th. |
Anonymous
This was our experience with DD at first. We insisted on her having planned invites for new friends. Home study sessions with new friends, etc. It helped, I think. |
Anonymous
Congrats. My daughter is a senior in SMCS at Poolesville. I can't speak to Blair program but I'm assuming that they are similar. So, I'll just give you my thoughts based on the Poolesville program. First, it's all about time management. It's an eight period day. Long days. If your daughter can manage her schedule well, things will be fine. My daughter gets up a little after 5A and gets home a little after 5P. She also plays sports (those are really long days), coaches a 10U team and also is a theater kid. Those can be really long days. But, she found her tribe there. An amazing group of nerd girls  Wonderful kids. It can be competitive, but we've been hands off since she started CES in fourth grade. It seems the kids who tend to be the most aggressive and competitive have really overbearing parents. That's not a slight on the parents, just something we've noticed over the years.
That MAP score is great. My daughter was in that ballpark and now she is doing multi-variable calculus. Homework increases over the years. Freshman year wasn't bad. Senior year it's now about two hours a night. I don't know if Blair follows the same program, but after 8th period there is a 'study hall' where kiddo can get a bunch of homework done before catching the 4:30 bus. But now that spring sports have kicked off, she has to punt that to get to the field. But the program has been amazing. She's taken 15 APs with a WGPA of 4.88. So, she'll likely start college as a second semester sophomore. She applied to five schools and was accepted to all five. Four of the five offered academic scholarships. Two full rides and two 60% scholarships. Maryland was the only one that didn't throw money at her. Thankfully, that is by far the cheapest one
So, tldr; It's a lot of work, but it is very rewarding. IMO. |
Anonymous
I think the Blair program is more intense - please correct me of I’m wrong but at Poolesville isn’t magnet pre calculus over 4 semesters? At Blair it’s 3 semesters, or 2 if you are in functions. Most kids also accelerate in comp sci and Blair offers (now) more advanced electives. It is NOT an AP program though, most kids at Blair end up with 7-8 APs unless they ignore the magnet coordinators advice and instruction. |
Anonymous
| My son says says his Blair experience was more important to his education than the ivy that followed |
Anonymous
And conversely I know several adults who graduated from the magnet program over the past 2-3 decades who are in perfectly fine but unremarkable careers in largely non-STEM fields who feel they owe no such debt to Blair. |