Best private schools in NYC?

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:You can only enroll in one school. If you get into your first choice school, why do you need multiple offers?

You don't, but I don't know why people are obsessing about this first choice process when it seems like other people who don't bother first-choicing are getting into multiple TT schools.

We had one of the least impressive girls (also without legacy/family weight) in our class receive a TT acceptance to everyones shock. And the most impressive girl (also from a family that was equivalently so) get waitlisted at eight schools. This is where the preschool director came in, they worked to get her a spot for next year, though it was not TT.

Impressive and not impressive in what ways? Can’t imagine how impressiveness is determined at 4 years old…

Lagging in social and verbal skills. Highly doubtful that the parents were the deciding factor unless they were looking for something extremely particular to round out the class.

How would you know? It could be the grandparents.

Far from it. Both sets of grandparents are blue collar types from Queens and the likes. The parents are extremely awkward, almost as if they are a combination of starstruck and lost. One is a mid-level finance type and the other a generalist doctor type. They do value education greatly and the girl checks a diversity box on one side, though all of the classmates parents think the child won't be a fit at the school she is now going to. None of this is meant be judgmental. Just giving facts, you never know what moves the needle and what the schools are looking for in filling out their classes. Many are quick to shoot the PSD but you do have unexpected outcomes.

My husband is socially awkward, so are a number of our friends. Our kids are all at TT schools in NYC and the west coast. We all went to Ivy schools with advanced degrees and some have PhDs. Some of us have good careers while others have regular corporate jobs. Perhaps the TT schools like parents who went to good colleges and have advanced degrees even if they are socially awkward?

Do you explicitly state your educational pedigree? I never did at interviews, except in one case when the interviewer asked me point blank if I had gone to a specific very highly regarded university (I did, but found it rather inappropriate).

You don’t need to bring it up in interviews. All the schools we applied to ask where you went to school and jobs etc in the application forms. Some even ask where you went to high school.

We name-dropped our elite alma maters as subtly as possible, and tried to convey that we are very involved (this was in HS interviews). Knowing that an applicant has a slightly easier path to a legacy spot at a top school theoretically should help, though I don't remember where we mentioned it and where we didn't and the outcomes at the different places. Our backgrounds are very easy to find so if they wanted to they could have figured some of this out, though who knows whether they actually do the research or not.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You can only enroll in one school. If you get into your first choice school, why do you need multiple offers?

You don't, but I don't know why people are obsessing about this first choice process when it seems like other people who don't bother first-choicing are getting into multiple TT schools.

We had one of the least impressive girls (also without legacy/family weight) in our class receive a TT acceptance to everyones shock. And the most impressive girl (also from a family that was equivalently so) get waitlisted at eight schools. This is where the preschool director came in, they worked to get her a spot for next year, though it was not TT.

Impressive and not impressive in what ways? Can’t imagine how impressiveness is determined at 4 years old…

Lagging in social and verbal skills. Highly doubtful that the parents were the deciding factor unless they were looking for something extremely particular to round out the class.

How would you know? It could be the grandparents.

Far from it. Both sets of grandparents are blue collar types from Queens and the likes. The parents are extremely awkward, almost as if they are a combination of starstruck and lost. One is a mid-level finance type and the other a generalist doctor type. They do value education greatly and the girl checks a diversity box on one side, though all of the classmates parents think the child won't be a fit at the school she is now going to. None of this is meant be judgmental. Just giving facts, you never know what moves the needle and what the schools are looking for in filling out their classes. Many are quick to shoot the PSD but you do have unexpected outcomes.

My husband is socially awkward, so are a number of our friends. Our kids are all at TT schools in NYC and the west coast. We all went to Ivy schools with advanced degrees and some have PhDs. Some of us have good careers while others have regular corporate jobs. Perhaps the TT schools like parents who went to good colleges and have advanced degrees even if they are socially awkward?

Do you explicitly state your educational pedigree? I never did at interviews, except in one case when the interviewer asked me point blank if I had gone to a specific very highly regarded university (I did, but found it rather inappropriate).

You don’t need to bring it up in interviews. All the schools we applied to ask where you went to school and jobs etc in the application forms. Some even ask where you went to high school.

We name-dropped our elite alma maters as subtly as possible, and tried to convey that we are very involved (this was in HS interviews). Knowing that an applicant has a slightly easier path to a legacy spot at a top school theoretically should help, though I don't remember where we mentioned it and where we didn't and the outcomes at the different places. Our backgrounds are very easy to find so if they wanted to they could have figured some of this out, though who knows whether they actually do the research or not.

I don't think it's as important as people seem to think at a high school level. Universities are giving less and less preference to legacies without 10M+ donations, and AO at TT schools are well aware of this. The child's character and accomplishments carry far more weight at that point.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You can only enroll in one school. If you get into your first choice school, why do you need multiple offers?

You don't, but I don't know why people are obsessing about this first choice process when it seems like other people who don't bother first-choicing are getting into multiple TT schools.

We had one of the least impressive girls (also without legacy/family weight) in our class receive a TT acceptance to everyones shock. And the most impressive girl (also from a family that was equivalently so) get waitlisted at eight schools. This is where the preschool director came in, they worked to get her a spot for next year, though it was not TT.

Impressive and not impressive in what ways? Can’t imagine how impressiveness is determined at 4 years old…

Lagging in social and verbal skills. Highly doubtful that the parents were the deciding factor unless they were looking for something extremely particular to round out the class.

How would you know? It could be the grandparents.

Far from it. Both sets of grandparents are blue collar types from Queens and the likes. The parents are extremely awkward, almost as if they are a combination of starstruck and lost. One is a mid-level finance type and the other a generalist doctor type. They do value education greatly and the girl checks a diversity box on one side, though all of the classmates parents think the child won't be a fit at the school she is now going to. None of this is meant be judgmental. Just giving facts, you never know what moves the needle and what the schools are looking for in filling out their classes. Many are quick to shoot the PSD but you do have unexpected outcomes.

My husband is socially awkward, so are a number of our friends. Our kids are all at TT schools in NYC and the west coast. We all went to Ivy schools with advanced degrees and some have PhDs. Some of us have good careers while others have regular corporate jobs. Perhaps the TT schools like parents who went to good colleges and have advanced degrees even if they are socially awkward?

Do you explicitly state your educational pedigree? I never did at interviews, except in one case when the interviewer asked me point blank if I had gone to a specific very highly regarded university (I did, but found it rather inappropriate).

You don’t need to bring it up in interviews. All the schools we applied to ask where you went to school and jobs etc in the application forms. Some even ask where you went to high school.

We name-dropped our elite alma maters as subtly as possible, and tried to convey that we are very involved (this was in HS interviews). Knowing that an applicant has a slightly easier path to a legacy spot at a top school theoretically should help, though I don't remember where we mentioned it and where we didn't and the outcomes at the different places. Our backgrounds are very easy to find so if they wanted to they could have figured some of this out, though who knows whether they actually do the research or not.

I don't think it's as important as people seem to think at a high school level. Universities are giving less and less preference to legacies without 10M+ donations, and AO at TT schools are well aware of this. The child's character and accomplishments carry far more weight at that point.

Yes. But all things being equal, if there is a kid who seems smart and might have a slightly easier time getting into a TT college because the parents are involved, it could tip things slightly in their favor. Depending on the college, if there are multiple alum parents and a history of consistent giving at any level and involvement, it could be a tiebreaker.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You can only enroll in one school. If you get into your first choice school, why do you need multiple offers?

You don't, but I don't know why people are obsessing about this first choice process when it seems like other people who don't bother first-choicing are getting into multiple TT schools.

We had one of the least impressive girls (also without legacy/family weight) in our class receive a TT acceptance to everyones shock. And the most impressive girl (also from a family that was equivalently so) get waitlisted at eight schools. This is where the preschool director came in, they worked to get her a spot for next year, though it was not TT.

Impressive and not impressive in what ways? Can’t imagine how impressiveness is determined at 4 years old…

Lagging in social and verbal skills. Highly doubtful that the parents were the deciding factor unless they were looking for something extremely particular to round out the class.

How would you know? It could be the grandparents.

Far from it. Both sets of grandparents are blue collar types from Queens and the likes. The parents are extremely awkward, almost as if they are a combination of starstruck and lost. One is a mid-level finance type and the other a generalist doctor type. They do value education greatly and the girl checks a diversity box on one side, though all of the classmates parents think the child won't be a fit at the school she is now going to. None of this is meant be judgmental. Just giving facts, you never know what moves the needle and what the schools are looking for in filling out their classes. Many are quick to shoot the PSD but you do have unexpected outcomes.

My husband is socially awkward, so are a number of our friends. Our kids are all at TT schools in NYC and the west coast. We all went to Ivy schools with advanced degrees and some have PhDs. Some of us have good careers while others have regular corporate jobs. Perhaps the TT schools like parents who went to good colleges and have advanced degrees even if they are socially awkward?

Do you explicitly state your educational pedigree? I never did at interviews, except in one case when the interviewer asked me point blank if I had gone to a specific very highly regarded university (I did, but found it rather inappropriate).

You don’t need to bring it up in interviews. All the schools we applied to ask where you went to school and jobs etc in the application forms. Some even ask where you went to high school.

We name-dropped our elite alma maters as subtly as possible, and tried to convey that we are very involved (this was in HS interviews). Knowing that an applicant has a slightly easier path to a legacy spot at a top school theoretically should help, though I don't remember where we mentioned it and where we didn't and the outcomes at the different places. Our backgrounds are very easy to find so if they wanted to they could have figured some of this out, though who knows whether they actually do the research or not.

Did you decide to wear your alma mater’s hat or sweatshirt to subtly tell everyone? Seems like it is a thing people like to do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You can only enroll in one school. If you get into your first choice school, why do you need multiple offers?

You don't, but I don't know why people are obsessing about this first choice process when it seems like other people who don't bother first-choicing are getting into multiple TT schools.

We had one of the least impressive girls (also without legacy/family weight) in our class receive a TT acceptance to everyones shock. And the most impressive girl (also from a family that was equivalently so) get waitlisted at eight schools. This is where the preschool director came in, they worked to get her a spot for next year, though it was not TT.

Impressive and not impressive in what ways? Can’t imagine how impressiveness is determined at 4 years old…

Lagging in social and verbal skills. Highly doubtful that the parents were the deciding factor unless they were looking for something extremely particular to round out the class.

How would you know? It could be the grandparents.

Far from it. Both sets of grandparents are blue collar types from Queens and the likes. The parents are extremely awkward, almost as if they are a combination of starstruck and lost. One is a mid-level finance type and the other a generalist doctor type. They do value education greatly and the girl checks a diversity box on one side, though all of the classmates parents think the child won't be a fit at the school she is now going to. None of this is meant be judgmental. Just giving facts, you never know what moves the needle and what the schools are looking for in filling out their classes. Many are quick to shoot the PSD but you do have unexpected outcomes.

My husband is socially awkward, so are a number of our friends. Our kids are all at TT schools in NYC and the west coast. We all went to Ivy schools with advanced degrees and some have PhDs. Some of us have good careers while others have regular corporate jobs. Perhaps the TT schools like parents who went to good colleges and have advanced degrees even if they are socially awkward?

Do you explicitly state your educational pedigree? I never did at interviews, except in one case when the interviewer asked me point blank if I had gone to a specific very highly regarded university (I did, but found it rather inappropriate).

You don’t need to bring it up in interviews. All the schools we applied to ask where you went to school and jobs etc in the application forms. Some even ask where you went to high school.

We name-dropped our elite alma maters as subtly as possible, and tried to convey that we are very involved (this was in HS interviews). Knowing that an applicant has a slightly easier path to a legacy spot at a top school theoretically should help, though I don't remember where we mentioned it and where we didn't and the outcomes at the different places. Our backgrounds are very easy to find so if they wanted to they could have figured some of this out, though who knows whether they actually do the research or not.

I don't think it's as important as people seem to think at a high school level. Universities are giving less and less preference to legacies without 10M+ donations, and AO at TT schools are well aware of this. The child's character and accomplishments carry far more weight at that point.

Legacies might matter less for college admissions than they did 10 years ago but they still matter a lot. A smart child with a legacy status will still have a meaningful advantage over a smart child with no legacy (no 10M+ donations required). Some colleges are more focused on legacies than others.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You can only enroll in one school. If you get into your first choice school, why do you need multiple offers?

You don't, but I don't know why people are obsessing about this first choice process when it seems like other people who don't bother first-choicing are getting into multiple TT schools.

We had one of the least impressive girls (also without legacy/family weight) in our class receive a TT acceptance to everyones shock. And the most impressive girl (also from a family that was equivalently so) get waitlisted at eight schools. This is where the preschool director came in, they worked to get her a spot for next year, though it was not TT.

Impressive and not impressive in what ways? Can’t imagine how impressiveness is determined at 4 years old…

Lagging in social and verbal skills. Highly doubtful that the parents were the deciding factor unless they were looking for something extremely particular to round out the class.

How would you know? It could be the grandparents.

Far from it. Both sets of grandparents are blue collar types from Queens and the likes. The parents are extremely awkward, almost as if they are a combination of starstruck and lost. One is a mid-level finance type and the other a generalist doctor type. They do value education greatly and the girl checks a diversity box on one side, though all of the classmates parents think the child won't be a fit at the school she is now going to. None of this is meant be judgmental. Just giving facts, you never know what moves the needle and what the schools are looking for in filling out their classes. Many are quick to shoot the PSD but you do have unexpected outcomes.

My husband is socially awkward, so are a number of our friends. Our kids are all at TT schools in NYC and the west coast. We all went to Ivy schools with advanced degrees and some have PhDs. Some of us have good careers while others have regular corporate jobs. Perhaps the TT schools like parents who went to good colleges and have advanced degrees even if they are socially awkward?

Do you explicitly state your educational pedigree? I never did at interviews, except in one case when the interviewer asked me point blank if I had gone to a specific very highly regarded university (I did, but found it rather inappropriate).

You don’t need to bring it up in interviews. All the schools we applied to ask where you went to school and jobs etc in the application forms. Some even ask where you went to high school.

We name-dropped our elite alma maters as subtly as possible, and tried to convey that we are very involved (this was in HS interviews). Knowing that an applicant has a slightly easier path to a legacy spot at a top school theoretically should help, though I don't remember where we mentioned it and where we didn't and the outcomes at the different places. Our backgrounds are very easy to find so if they wanted to they could have figured some of this out, though who knows whether they actually do the research or not.

Did you decide to wear your alma mater’s hat or sweatshirt to subtly tell everyone? Seems like it is a thing people like to do.

We were hoping that the tattoos on our faces of the state of New Hampshire and the fact that our child is named Dartmouth Hanover Smith would make the point...

[Anonymous]

These hypothetical cases hinging on "all things being equal" are mostly that -- hypothetical. Things are never equal, and while legacies probably still confer some subtle advantage at some schools in some cases, don't think it's enough of an advantage at this point for AOs at TT high schools to give much weight to. But hey, you can always swing by your favorite HYPSM bookstore for some school-branded merch, so why not?

[Anonymous]

If you look at the HM matriculation insta, some of the toddlers in the photos are wearing UPenn-branded shirts. They are now going to... well, I don't want to give out the spoiler.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you look at the HM matriculation insta, some of the toddlers in the photos are wearing UPenn-branded shirts. They are now going to... well, I don't want to give out the spoiler.

Or maybe they would have gotten in anyway, but the family connection and school spirit indoctrination is why they chose Penn over, say, Dartmouth.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you look at the HM matriculation insta, some of the toddlers in the photos are wearing UPenn-branded shirts. They are now going to... well, I don't want to give out the spoiler.

You see that at a lot of schools. Not sure if that sends the "Isn't it cute - I was destined to go there" signal or the "I was a huge legacy so was guaranteed to get in - don't ask about my grades" signal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you look at the HM matriculation insta, some of the toddlers in the photos are wearing UPenn-branded shirts. They are now going to... well, I don't want to give out the spoiler.

I wouldn’t be surprised if some of these people bought baby sweatshirts for a dozen different top colleges and took photos in all of them in anticipation of future matriculation photos. (It’s 2026, this is certainly a phenomenon people could have anticipated in 2008 internet-wise)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you look at the HM matriculation insta, some of the toddlers in the photos are wearing UPenn-branded shirts. They are now going to... well, I don't want to give out the spoiler.

Or maybe they would have gotten in anyway, but the family connection and school spirit indoctrination is why they chose Penn over, say, Dartmouth.

That is unfortunately the way the game is played. Some schools count legacies a fair amount. And at least some of them primarily count it if you apply ED. So do you apply ED to your legacy school, even if it isn't your top choice? And even if you aren't a huge donor, your odds of getting in as a legacy are often better than the odds of getting into a slightly less competitive school unhooked - the kid of an active legacy at Duke (even if they don't give a ton) might have a better chance of getting into Duke ED than Northwestern or Emory unhooked, even though in general Duke is a tougher admit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you look at the HM matriculation insta, some of the toddlers in the photos are wearing UPenn-branded shirts. They are now going to... well, I don't want to give out the spoiler.

Or maybe they would have gotten in anyway, but the family connection and school spirit indoctrination is why they chose Penn over, say, Dartmouth.

That is unfortunately the way the game is played. Some schools count legacies a fair amount. And at least some of them primarily count it if you apply ED. So do you apply ED to your legacy school, even if it isn't your top choice? And even if you aren't a huge donor, your odds of getting in as a legacy are often better than the odds of getting into a slightly less competitive school unhooked - the kid of an active legacy at Duke (even if they don't give a ton) might have a better chance of getting into Duke ED than Northwestern or Emory unhooked, even though in general Duke is a tougher admit.

I mean... people make these statements, but what is the data that you are basing this on?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you look at the HM matriculation insta, some of the toddlers in the photos are wearing UPenn-branded shirts. They are now going to... well, I don't want to give out the spoiler.

I wouldn’t be surprised if some of these people bought baby sweatshirts for a dozen different top colleges and took photos in all of them in anticipation of future matriculation photos. (It’s 2026, this is certainly a phenomenon people could have anticipated in 2008 internet-wise)

They would have had to predict Instagram which came out two years later!
(I have a high schooler, and I only found out about these pages a month ago...)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you look at the HM matriculation insta, some of the toddlers in the photos are wearing UPenn-branded shirts. They are now going to... well, I don't want to give out the spoiler.

Or maybe they would have gotten in anyway, but the family connection and school spirit indoctrination is why they chose Penn over, say, Dartmouth.

That is unfortunately the way the game is played. Some schools count legacies a fair amount. And at least some of them primarily count it if you apply ED. So do you apply ED to your legacy school, even if it isn't your top choice? And even if you aren't a huge donor, your odds of getting in as a legacy are often better than the odds of getting into a slightly less competitive school unhooked - the kid of an active legacy at Duke (even if they don't give a ton) might have a better chance of getting into Duke ED than Northwestern or Emory unhooked, even though in general Duke is a tougher admit.

I mean... people make these statements, but what is the data that you are basing this on?

There is no data. Every situation is different. And this doesn't 100% apply in every case. Which is why the process is so hard. But I know some schools (including Duke) have made it clear that legacy counts a lot more ED than RD. That's why I said "might" - unlike so many others here, I admit that I am not the be all, end all most knowledgeable but I am hypothesizing based on my greater than zero knowledge of the situation. I think that in a lot of situations my theory is correct, but I'm sure much of the time it is wrong.

College admissions has unfortunately turned into a horrible exercise in game theory. Much of it is because the schools are so obsessed with gaming the system - yield management is huge. It is too bad they weren't funneling all of the money they spend on yield management models and professionals into keep tuition more reasonable.