Academics at Bullis
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Anonymous
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DC was accepted for 9th and we are between Bullis and one other school.
I know that Bullis touts the school as a lower pressure environment, but with the offerings of AP and honors and Capstone projects, I'm curious if the higher achieving kids sort of end up putting pressure on themselves and end up with rather heavy workloads. DC is really involved in music and sports and while her academics are strong, I don't want her to feel like she has to take honors and AP only because that's what everyone does to keep up with everyone else - or perhaps if the non-honors classes are more likely to be filled with disruptive kids. My hope is that there is a mix of kids in the range of classes, and it's not separated into two groups, the one being super high achievers. Any input from Bullis families would be appreciated! |
Anonymous
| Definitely a school that doesn’t stress rigor, even in the AP courses but there’s still an exam to worry about. However, there are serious behavior problems from kids in non AP classes. Very much a “bro” culture school. |
Anonymous
We have not experienced that at all. Are all the kids perfect? Of course not. But my kid who is mostly in grade level classes does not report major issues. He’s also not an athlete and doesn’t report “bro” culture. Our experience has been more that they welcome diverse learners and kids are encouraged to work at their highest level, which may be all honors/AP, all on grade level, or a mix. |
Anonymous
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My son is in regular English and one grade level above (but not honors) math and there are no discipline issues as far as I know. He was recommended for honors for next year in both.
I’m not exactly sure how to address your concerns, OP. There are a lot of scholar/athletes at Bullis and the faculty do a good job of keeping them balanced. There are a lot of just scholars and just athletes as well. It’s a big enough school to handle all kinds of learners. |
Anonymous
Definitely gives that vibe. |
Anonymous
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The best and the brightest are in MCPS, not private. I say this with one who graduated from MCPS and one who graduated from Bullis.
Bullis excels at small class sizes and personal attention. Max class size was 15 for our child, whereas our public school kids had some in excess of 35 kids in a classroom. If your child likes sports or arts (musical instrument, theater or dance), they will do fine. Bullis is not a pressure cooker - we had to sign a paper for our child to take 3 or maybe 4 APs one year (they usually allow 1), where as our public school kid took 4-5 each year and had friends who took a full course load of APs. Also - you want your child in the higher level courses. When our child made the transition to Bullis, they were originally placed in a lower level math course with those 2 grades above where our child was. Based on the expectations of that teacher, and, the attitude of classmates, our child switched to higher level course - otherwise they would have spent the year unhappy due to the lack of interest from the students and lack of rigor of the course. Bumping up, they did fine (and we're still 2 grades levels ahead of others in their grade) |
Anonymous
| We have a daughter at Bullis, so I can't speak to a "bro" culture, but that certainly hasn't been her experience at all. She started in 9th and quickly met a wonderful group of people. She takes a mix of AP and on level courses, as do her friends. She's also very into art and thinks the art program is fantastic. She hasn't complained of any behavior problems in any of her classes. Bullis challenges our daughter to work to her best potential without crushing her with homework and pressure. |
Anonymous
| We picked Bullis as the so-called anti-pressure cooker environment. I went to a rigorous school and don’t think you should have to work as hard as I did. Compared to my experience, Bullis is honestly a cakewalk. Watered down, easy exams where they pretty much give you exactly what to study and what will be on the test, grade inflation. Including for APs and honors. But the social environment is extremely toxic. Think Landon in the 80s and possibly worse. Yes, DC got into a very good school for college. But wouldn’t do Bullis again. |
Anonymous
| OP. This is really helpful! Thank you! |
Anonymous
| It's actually not helpful at all because it is not truthful. My non-athletic, son is just about to graduate from a very academic college. He thrived at college because of the education he received at Bullis. I suspect the recent posters are laying hate on Bullis as families make school decisions this week. it makes me wonder if it is actually the marketing offices of competitor schools...or the parents they have coopted. Bullis has disrupted the private school market in the last few years, certainly with admissions, the Lower School and of course the college list. The culture is not toxic at all - frankly, the opposite. The focus on Wellness is real - and I know not just because of my son's experience but because I have a daughter there right now. |
Anonymous
| OP again. Also helpful, PP. When I said thanks, I was referring to the positive and thoughtful posts above from parents who seem to have actual kids at Bullis. I was concerned that the AP and honors track were going to be as competitive and hard driving as some of the public schools, as in how school was for me in high school. We want a more well rounded, balanced experienced for our DC. We weren't sure how admissions decisions were going to play out, so I pushed off looking into some of the finer details of the school until now. Very excited for Bullis in fact. |
Anonymous
We have been at Bullis for 8 years and the and the academics are very good. You can take numerous academic paths and that was very important to us. Our child is headed to a top school and it is because of the education they received at Bullis. However, to say it’s not toxic is not totally true. While you may not have experienced or seen it, my child has seen stuff and told us about things that were pretty bad. The school does typically handle these situations, but I know people who have left because it was not handled well. There is, probably like many privates, A LOT of entitlement and how some of these kids treat adults is appalling. That said, it’s a decent size private with a lot of diversity and your child can definitely find friends that are a good fit for them. |
Anonymous
| Bullis has good students, but not really a coterie of outstanding ones. Can't remember the last time they had a student achieve NMSF, for example. Average SAT of 1250, ~ 82nd percentile. Solid choice for the reasonably smart athletic children of wealthy parents, I think. |
Anonymous
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Why do you say this? We are at a local feeder, and are strongly considering Bullis for ninth grade? This college list suggests some very strong students...
https://www.bullis.org/academics/college-counseling/college-matriculation Our DS will not be college athlete, and i like being able to see where kids like him go to college from there. |
Anonymous
I could have written this. Our child, non-athlete, graduating from a top, highly academic college - and in top percentile. Why? Because our child got the deep fundamentals at Bullis. The study skills, the work ethic, the grit, the teachers who teach to reach out for help when necessary and to advocate for themselves; the supportive community. It's worth more than any big-name high school (and btw - we're not even a Bullis family anymore and all we hear is how crazy it is to get in now). I can only speak from our family's experience and from what we see through friends. You'll get the academics, without the pressure (those two are not mutually exclusive), and you'll see really positive outcomes for your child. Good luck with your decision, OP! |