private school decision day: Feb 27

[Anonymous]

Ours is this Thursday the 19th. Baltimore schools. It's a bit weird because I tell myself if it doesn't work out we are saving ourselves a lot of money. Which I sort of wish will happen, though I don't want to tempt fate either!

[Anonymous]

How do schools go about making their final decisions in these last two weeks? Are they focused on applicants on the bubble at this point?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:our local public school is not great - still growing, only been open 2 years (macarthur HS in palisades) so am not thrilled with that option but also think DC would be fine there.

Also not thrilled with macarthur. I don’t think my DC would be fine there, so if the private options don’t work out, we will move.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Not joining an elite private always has the ingredient of FOMO. We were rejected the first time and accepted the second time and then we moved to a much better school a third time. The lesson, it is much better strategy to be flexible and try several times to get the best school for your kid either public or private. Some elite private schools are overpriced, overrated, and parents are jerks as you can read in dcum posts. Others are absolutely perfect. But takes time to find the best match.

Disagree with "Others are absolutely perfect." No school is perfect, yes you can find a good match though- doesn't mean it will be perfect. It helps to go in with that mind set. Very happy with my kids' experience and education at private, and I'd send them there again even if it isn't perfect. I have friends with kids in lots of schools and people are much happier if they go in understanding it isn't going to be perfect.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Re someone mentioning they already booked a family dinner. We had K-8 graduates waiting for a decision previous years. Our school’s recommendation was not to plan anything for the decision day beforehand. If you don’t get good news canceling plans would be more dramatic and impact your kid even more negatively. Why to plan anything? If there is good news you can just decide to go to a restaurant then. It is a random Friday so there plenty of places that don’t need a prior reservation.

My kid doesn’t know about the reservation. She won’t know the difference if we have to cancel for some reason.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We booked a family dinner out that night, hopefully will be celebrating good news!

This is so weird.

No it isn’t? We celebrated with school swag and a dinner too. DC remembers it to this day

Agreed. We know many people who have done the same in prior years and others who are planning similar this year. Not weird at all, but yes I’d keep your plans as a surprise in case the mood is not one for celebration!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How are people feeling? What is your plan if your kid doesn't get in anywhere or doesn't get into an appealing or top choice? We only applied to 3 and our plan is the local public. I don't feel stressed about it bc I don't think public would be all that bad - though obviously a top private would be a more rigorous, well-resourced experience for my kid.

Applied for a few of schools which are all trashed by this site. So not worried. Maybe dodged a few bullets. Who knows?

DC is at a school routinely trashed on this site and loves it. It’s been phenomenal for them. Good luck for your results!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How do schools go about making their final decisions in these last two weeks? Are they focused on applicants on the bubble at this point?

I suspect all decisions are made at this point, or very close to it. There are a lot of logistics that need to happen, and that have to go off without a hitch - admissions materials, acceptance to specific programs (at some schools), merit decisions, FA, etc. They have to implement that across decisions and ensure every applicant has all the correct information. Then, there is the execution that goes into 2/27. Some schools have mailings; all (I think?) have email or portals; and some have a phone call tree to quickly reach admitted students. For them, it's all about getting a strong yield quickly after decisions. I suspect at this point there is some ordering or prioritization of the kids that will end up on waitlists, too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:our local public school is not great - still growing, only been open 2 years (macarthur HS in palisades) so am not thrilled with that option but also think DC would be fine there.

Also not thrilled with macarthur. I don’t think my DC would be fine there, so if the private options don’t work out, we will move.

Super dramatic, but you do you!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote: Super dramatic, but you do you!

Is it dramatic? My kid does not want to go there and it is not worth the long commute that would be required. We are also likely moving if admitted to one of the privates. If MacArthur works for your kid, send them there!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: Super dramatic, but you do you!

Is it dramatic? My kid does not want to go there and it is not worth the long commute that would be required. We are also likely moving if admitted to one of the privates. If MacArthur works for your kid, send them there!

Well so the dramatic piece was saying you were going to move if faced with having to attend MacArthur. And it was apparently also untrue if you were planning to move regardless?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
Well so the dramatic piece was saying you were going to move if faced with having to attend MacArthur. And it was apparently also untrue if you were planning to move regardless?

It’s not dramatic to opt out of DCPS based on personal circumstances. We don’t live in the Palisades and I’m not going out of my way to make MacArthur work for our family based on what I know about the school. Other options seem more appealing for a variety of reasons. You are free to make choices based on what works best for your kid/family.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How are people feeling? What is your plan if your kid doesn't get in anywhere or doesn't get into an appealing or top choice? We only applied to 3 and our plan is the local public. I don't feel stressed about it bc I don't think public would be all that bad - though obviously a top private would be a more rigorous, well-resourced experience for my kid.

Applied for a few of schools which are all trashed by this site. So not worried. Maybe dodged a few bullets. Who knows?

DC is at a school routinely trashed on this site and loves it. It’s been phenomenal for them. Good luck for your results!

Thank you for saying this. Some parents think that if a school isn’t X, Y or Z, it is garbage. Different schools are good fits for different kids! If someone has to trash other schools to make their DC’s school seem superior, maybe it isn’t really superior after all.

My DC actually turned down a school that is often touted as better than the rest for another that was a better fit. DC is happy, thriving and is able to have experiences that they could not have had at the other school. Embrace the differences and good luck!

[Anonymous]

It’s gonna be a lot of disappointment on the 27th.

[Anonymous]

Do schools reject/accept on the same day? Do they hold anyone back for wait list or not really?

I figure the schools reach out by phone to people in advance of this to make sure they have a group who will accept the offer? or does it not work that way.

If we haven't heard yet i figured getting rejected. (non-high school admissions....we are new to this)