National Merit Semifinalist for DMV Private Schools

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Walls: 6
Sidwell: 5
GDS: 4
STA: 3
Gonzaga: 3
NCS: 2
SAAS: 2
Basis DC: 1
JR/Wilson: 1
Maret: 1
WIS: 1
Whittle: 1

Impressive results for DC public schools:

Public: 8
Private: 22

Walls beat every private school in the DC—kudos to them!

And, for privates, Gonzaga bested NCS and SAAS.

What does this look like per capita?

Whittle 1/20 5%
Sidwell: 5/125 4%
Walls: 6/150 4%
SAAS: 2/50 4%
STA: 3/80 3.75%
GDS: 4/125 3.2%
NCS: 2/80 2.5%
Basis DC: 1/50 2%
Gonzaga: 3/225 1.3%
WIS: 1/80 1.3%
Maret: 1/125 0.8%
JR/Wilson: 1/375 0.2%

Maret's class has 85, not 125

And JR/(Wilson) is much larger than 375.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wouldn't worry about this. College admissions to top schools have nothing to do with NMSF.

I don’t agree with this. While NMSF is perhaps not more than another feather in the cap of these high performing kids, elite colleges do care very much about high SAT scores, and those who perform well on psat are very likely to do the same on SAT.

My kid didn't qualify for NMSF but got 1600 on the SAT. That's what matters for college admissions.

Ha! My son did horrible on the PSAT. I slaked him why and he said “it doesn’t count”. Then scored 1580 as a junior on his SAT.

Same for my GDS DC. Should the school push more so more kids will take the PSAT?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wouldn't worry about this. College admissions to top schools have nothing to do with NMSF.

I don’t agree with this. While NMSF is perhaps not more than another feather in the cap of these high performing kids, elite colleges do care very much about high SAT scores, and those who perform well on psat are very likely to do the same on SAT.

My kid didn't qualify for NMSF but got 1600 on the SAT. That's what matters for college admissions.

Ha! My son did horrible on the PSAT. I slaked him why and he said “it doesn’t count”. Then scored 1580 as a junior on his SAT.

Whereas my kid knew it could make him some money, so he showed what he knew and became a semifinalist. (And it didn't prevent him from doing well on the SAT.)

And how much money did he get?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wouldn't worry about this. College admissions to top schools have nothing to do with NMSF.

I don’t agree with this. While NMSF is perhaps not more than another feather in the cap of these high performing kids, elite colleges do care very much about high SAT scores, and those who perform well on psat are very likely to do the same on SAT.

My kid didn't qualify for NMSF but got 1600 on the SAT. That's what matters for college admissions.

Ha! My son did horrible on the PSAT. I slaked him why and he said “it doesn’t count”. Then scored 1580 as a junior on his SAT.

Maybe you should have told him why it matters.

But it really doesn't matter that much.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wouldn't worry about this. College admissions to top schools have nothing to do with NMSF.

I don’t agree with this. While NMSF is perhaps not more than another feather in the cap of these high performing kids, elite colleges do care very much about high SAT scores, and those who perform well on psat are very likely to do the same on SAT.

My kid didn't qualify for NMSF but got 1600 on the SAT. That's what matters for college admissions.

Ha! My son did horrible on the PSAT. I slaked him why and he said “it doesn’t count”. Then scored 1580 as a junior on his SAT.

Whereas my kid knew it could make him some money, so he showed what he knew and became a semifinalist. (And it didn't prevent him from doing well on the SAT.)

And how much money did he get?

$8000 for a morning's work. Not bad.

[Anonymous]

The way this works is all so screwy. My kid missed the cutoff in DC by one point. He would be a NMSF if he went to school in VA or MD. Doesn't seem to make much sense. Oh well...

Oh well indeed. He did not make the cut with his DC cohort. Everyone can find another cohort to make the cut with ... Alabama, Montana, or prison (GED)!!
What's so screwy about not making the bar in one's cohort?

Get a life folk. Be grateful for your own unique gifts.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wouldn't worry about this. College admissions to top schools have nothing to do with NMSF.

I don’t agree with this. While NMSF is perhaps not more than another feather in the cap of these high performing kids, elite colleges do care very much about high SAT scores, and those who perform well on psat are very likely to do the same on SAT.

My kid didn't qualify for NMSF but got 1600 on the SAT. That's what matters for college admissions.

Ha! My son did horrible on the PSAT. I slaked him why and he said “it doesn’t count”. Then scored 1580 as a junior on his SAT.

And he studied and prepped a bit at home for it?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Percentage for TJ is near 30%, a bit higher than Basis McLean’s (7/30), a lot higher than other DMV public and private schools.

I just googled.
https://www.fcps.edu/news/two-hundred-thirty-seven-fcps-students-are-2023-national-merit-semifinalists
And counted roughly. TJ has about 131, so it’s 131/452, which is 29%.

https://schoolprofiles.fcps.edu/schlprfl/f?p=108:13:::NO:0_CURRENT_SCHOOL_ID,P0_EDSL:300,0

Basis Mclean is 7/30=23%.

Both are great.

Basis McLean is 7/29 = 24%. There is a record in the senior class they use for email test purposes.

Kudos to the honorees from all the schools--DC isn't there yet so no dog in this fight.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wouldn't worry about this. College admissions to top schools have nothing to do with NMSF.

I don’t agree with this. While NMSF is perhaps not more than another feather in the cap of these high performing kids, elite colleges do care very much about high SAT scores, and those who perform well on psat are very likely to do the same on SAT.

My kid didn't qualify for NMSF but got 1600 on the SAT. That's what matters for college admissions.

Ha! My son did horrible on the PSAT. I slaked him why and he said “it doesn’t count”. Then scored 1580 as a junior on his SAT.

Whereas my kid knew it could make him some money, so he showed what he knew and became a semifinalist. (And it didn't prevent him from doing well on the SAT.)

And how much money did he get?

$8000 for a morning's work. Not bad.

So $8000 x 4 =$32000? That is indeed awesome. Congrats to your kid.

[Anonymous]

Congrats to these kids!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My high school didn’t tell us anything about it, we just showed up in the cafeteria and were proctored the test. I was pissed to find out it could have used for more scholarship money or academic recognition, plus the verbal was worth double the math.

Shame on your high school, but my impression was that this has been common knowledge for the last 30+ years, especially in the DC area.

Yes this isn’t on your high school. I was one in the early 90s in the area, so it has been around at least that long.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wouldn't worry about this. College admissions to top schools have nothing to do with NMSF.

I don’t agree with this. While NMSF is perhaps not more than another feather in the cap of these high performing kids, elite colleges do care very much about high SAT scores, and those who perform well on psat are very likely to do the same on SAT.

My kid didn't qualify for NMSF but got 1600 on the SAT. That's what matters for college admissions.

Ha! My son did horrible on the PSAT. I slaked him why and he said “it doesn’t count”. Then scored 1580 as a junior on his SAT.

Whereas my kid knew it could make him some money, so he showed what he knew and became a semifinalist. (And it didn't prevent him from doing well on the SAT.)

And how much money did he get?

$8000 for a morning's work. Not bad.

So $8000 x 4 =$32000? That is indeed awesome. Congrats to your kid.

Unless it has changed, it is a one time payment (or at least was when I got it in the early 90s).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wouldn't worry about this. College admissions to top schools have nothing to do with NMSF.

I don’t agree with this. While NMSF is perhaps not more than another feather in the cap of these high performing kids, elite colleges do care very much about high SAT scores, and those who perform well on psat are very likely to do the same on SAT.

My kid didn't qualify for NMSF but got 1600 on the SAT. That's what matters for college admissions.

Ha! My son did horrible on the PSAT. I slaked him why and he said “it doesn’t count”. Then scored 1580 as a junior on his SAT.

Same for my GDS DC. Should the school push more so more kids will take the PSAT?

They never push anyone. It’s up to the student to figure it out or advocate for something they don’t know they want or need.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What the hell are we paying all this money for?

The schools don't tell you that you can Prep for this test - most kids don't.

My high school didn’t tell us anything about it, we just showed up in the cafeteria and were proctored the test. I was pissed to find out it could have used for more scholarship money or academic recognition, plus the verbal was worth double the math.

The kids that got it had older siblings and in-the-know parents. And likely took only 1 practice test a couple weeks before so knew the format and points system.

That said I have seen a dad quizzing vocabulary flash cards with a 12 yo at the airport. Fun stuff. Grooming them well.

Our HS downplayed it on purpose to the kids. They do this for whether to take AP exams too. They think it's taking the pressure off the kids, but what it does is not fully inform them. Even worse, parents who don't know better and trust the school find out later that they didn't get the full picture. There are nuances involved and the school shouldn't be skewing the story this way.

I happened to be "in the know" on the PSAT but let my kid decide. They had already taken ACT and had a great score. I didn't feel the need to add pressure.

After the "messaging" from school and already having a preference for the ACT over the SAT, it's no surprise my child decided to do no prep at all. They'll be fine and I am ok with these decisions (ours and our child's). But I think the school does a disservice to other families who didn't the full picture so they could make an informed decision.

This

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wouldn't worry about this. College admissions to top schools have nothing to do with NMSF.

I don’t agree with this. While NMSF is perhaps not more than another feather in the cap of these high performing kids, elite colleges do care very much about high SAT scores, and those who perform well on psat are very likely to do the same on SAT.

My kid didn't qualify for NMSF but got 1600 on the SAT. That's what matters for college admissions.

Ha! My son did horrible on the PSAT. I slaked him why and he said “it doesn’t count”. Then scored 1580 as a junior on his SAT.

Same for my GDS DC. Should the school push more so more kids will take the PSAT?

They never push anyone. It’s up to the student to figure it out or advocate for something they don’t know they want or need.

I suspect they don’t push the PSAT because it doesn’t count for college admissions.