Where to go from Big3

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If I paid $60,000/year for my kid to go to Ohio State, I’d be livid.

Go blue!

[Anonymous]

Does your child WANT to transfer or are you just one of those parents who thinks you can game the system somehow and that your child will go to Harvard if you send them to an "easier" school. While places like St. Andrews and Bullis might not carry the same reputation as a Big3 school, trust that your child will still have to compete and it's not a sure thing they will end up with all A's just because they went to a Big3 until 8th.

[Anonymous]

I wouldn’t transfer if your main goal is the idea of an edge in college acceptances (it likely won’t give the big advantage you’re assuming it will).

[Anonymous]

Back to OP, I would be careful transferring your kid away from a group of friends that they’re tight with. Does the kid want to stay at Big3 or do they see the lack of fit?

Do not move a kid who has a strong opinion and will fight you for years!!

8th graders do not have a good judgement, usually, on what would be a good school. My 8th grader had a perfect HS but didn’t see it that way. Wanted a different school. We the parents forced kid to go to that school. We also guaranteed a transfer with our full effort if it didn’t work out. Kid ended up loving the school and wish he’d gone in middle school!

But you do some damage to the kids ability to make decisions, so be careful with a forcible attendance at your chosen school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Back to OP, I would be careful transferring your kid away from a group of friends that they’re tight with. Does the kid want to stay at Big3 or do they see the lack of fit?

Do not move a kid who has a strong opinion and will fight you for years!!

8th graders do not have a good judgement, usually, on what would be a good school. My 8th grader had a perfect HS but didn’t see it that way. Wanted a different school. We the parents forced kid to go to that school. We also guaranteed a transfer with our full effort if it didn’t work out. Kid ended up loving the school and wish he’d gone in middle school!

But you do some damage to the kids ability to make decisions, so be careful with a forcible attendance at your chosen school.

What are you saying? Listen to the kid but he won’t have good judgment. We forced our kid and it worked out great but don’t force your kid. ??

[Anonymous]

I always smile when people complain about “gaming the system” to get an advantage. What else is a big3 private school?

Not being a passive customer and being blinded by brand rather than reality when already at a big3 is something else.

I think what is actually being said is “don’t game the system more than I am”

[Anonymous]

Your example - UCLA - is random and specific. I would love to know how many kids from this entire area, not just Big 3, went to UCLA last year and I am guessing it’s not a lot?? Maybe see which school sent the most there and then reassess. I have literally no idea even what type of school here sends kids to UCLA so if you do find this out, let us know.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You are living in a bubble if you think you have bad college options coming from a Big 3. Oh sad you might end up at Michigan, UVA or even Ohio State.

No one needs to pay big three tuition to go to any of those schools
Especially Ohio state who pays oos state tuition to Ohio state lol stupid people

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Back to OP, I would be careful transferring your kid away from a group of friends that they’re tight with. Does the kid want to stay at Big3 or do they see the lack of fit?

Do not move a kid who has a strong opinion and will fight you for years!!

8th graders do not have a good judgement, usually, on what would be a good school. My 8th grader had a perfect HS but didn’t see it that way. Wanted a different school. We the parents forced kid to go to that school. We also guaranteed a transfer with our full effort if it didn’t work out. Kid ended up loving the school and wish he’d gone in middle school!

But you do some damage to the kids ability to make decisions, so be careful with a forcible attendance at your chosen school.

What are you saying? Listen to the kid but he won’t have good judgment. We forced our kid and it worked out great but don’t force your kid. ??

Depends on the kid. Kid was mildly wanting to go to one school. An indecisive type.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Kid is lifer at a big3. Entering 8th in September and we are starting to realize staying for high-school may give a good education but will seriously harm college chances (especially as school is highly selective, has not kept up with grade inflation elsewhere, and when other schools have many graduating at ABOVE 4.0).

APs and 4.0+ can help in getting past initial screens in bigger schools like UCLA - that our school can rarely get kids into.

We love the school experience otherwise but not willing to sacrifice college chances just because “only so many from one school can go T20”. Safety, access to varsity team participation, and teacher ratio all are factors that nudge us personally away from transfer to local public.

What is the best.private school in DC area that still offers AP classes and gives out grades at a level equivalent to public schools?

Thanks in advance for sincere advice.

Your issue isn't the bold above - the issue will be whether you are hooked or not. And this same issue occurs at all DMV schools. It's just really hard to get into T20 colleges these days. So leaving may not help you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Huh? Have you seem the instagrams for the Big3 and compared them to other schools adjusted for numbers?

UC's are an exception, I will grant you that, but state schools in the other 49 states, and private schools in all 50 states, take kids from Big3's all the time.

Instagrams for Big 3's are misleading due to the heavy prevalence of legacy, athlete, and URM/scholarship students. The UMC child of a dentist and attorney is going to have a very different conversation with the college admissions counselor.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If I paid $60,000/year for my kid to go to Ohio State, I’d be livid.

The high school will not get your kid into an elite college, only your kid will do that.

This is anecdotal, but I personally know a child that attended Lawrenceville School (much more prestigious than any DC private school). He graduated with a 3.97 GPA and was denied by every top 15 university and ended up at NYU.

The high school itself doesn't matter much anymore, and most Ivy League universities want students that weren't handed life on a silver platter. Going to a $60k/year private school might hurt you, because standards will be higher for your student than one that attended a random public school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If I paid $60,000/year for my kid to go to Ohio State, I’d be livid.

The high school will not get your kid into an elite college, only your kid will do that.

This is anecdotal, but I personally know a child that attended Lawrenceville School (much more prestigious than any DC private school). He graduated with a 3.97 GPA and was denied by every top 15 university and ended up at NYU.

The high school itself doesn't matter much anymore, and most Ivy League universities want students that weren't handed life on a silver platter. Going to a $60k/year private school might hurt you, because standards will be higher for your student than one that attended a random public school.

This right here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Huh? Have you seem the instagrams for the Big3 and compared them to other schools adjusted for numbers?

UC's are an exception, I will grant you that, but state schools in the other 49 states, and private schools in all 50 states, take kids from Big3's all the time.

I personally know kids at these schools that ended up at places like Michigan, NYU, Tufts, Wesleyan, etc. (all amazing colleges). But, these same kids were definitely Ivy material if they weren't applying from within the cutthroat applicant pool of these prep schools.

It's not uncommon at all to see kids in their senior year openly say "I would have a better shot at an Ivy if I weren't applying from Sidwell/NCS/STA, etc." The competition to get into an Ivy from these schools is extremely fierce because applicants are compared to others from their same school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Huh? Have you seem the instagrams for the Big3 and compared them to other schools adjusted for numbers?

UC's are an exception, I will grant you that, but state schools in the other 49 states, and private schools in all 50 states, take kids from Big3's all the time.

I personally know kids at these schools that ended up at places like Michigan, NYU, Tufts, Wesleyan, etc. (all amazing colleges). But, these same kids were definitely Ivy material if they weren't applying from within the cutthroat applicant pool of these prep schools.

It's not uncommon at all to see kids in their senior year openly say "I would have a better shot at an Ivy if I weren't applying from Sidwell/NCS/STA, etc." The competition to get into an Ivy from these schools is extremely fierce because applicants are compared to others from their same school.

Exactly.