Do private high schools research families during the admissions process?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is anecdotal, but I will say that although some schools don’t really look into these things for high school admissions, families themselves still care about it.

I was recently at the admitted students day at Poly Prep, and the question, “What do you do for work?” and “Where do you live?” were very common among current parents towards new parents. A friend of mine saw a similar thing happen at Packer.

Granted, Packer tends to attract law and finance types.

This is how people make small talk in NYC. I think it is very normal. What else are you going to ask someone - their favorite color? Where do you summer out east? To your point, I prefer the "where do you live" over "what do you do for work" as it is a bit less loaded. And the answer tells a lot about someone - "Park Avenue" is a different answer than "Upper East Side".

Yeah, that just sounds like standard small talk to me. Especially at a school that pulls from lots of different neighborhoods. Those parent receptions are always a bit awkward IMO, not a ton to talk about.

[Anonymous]

my guess is in high school it matters much less.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For my child's HS admission, two different schools mentioned that I grew up in NYC/went to a specific TT school, and we hadn't submitted our full application yet with that information. And I don't have my high school on my LinkedIn...so yeah, they Google.

Woah, that’s weird. Like I know everyone googles people they meet, but it’s very weird to bring up what you learn in a conversation with said person. I would probably be turned off by the schools.

[Anonymous]

Why shouldn't schools do their due diligence in figuring which applicant families might be potentially great donors?

[Anonymous]

Just finished the high school process with my kid and I don’t think parent background is that important at this stage. In the parent interviews I wasn’t asked anything about myself beyond why am I interested in the school and why do I think it’s a good fit for my kid. We were asked a little about our family values, what do we like to do together as a family, etc. Packer and Dalton don’t even interview parents. I think a couple school asked where we went to high school but there were never any follow up questions. My kid got into 9 of the 11 schools they applied to and waitlisted at the other two so it doesn’t seem like having parents who are not rich and important makes much of a difference.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is anecdotal, but I will say that although some schools don’t really look into these things for high school admissions, families themselves still care about it.

I was recently at the admitted students day at Poly Prep, and the question, “What do you do for work?” and “Where do you live?” were very common among current parents towards new parents. A friend of mine saw a similar thing happen at Packer.

Granted, Packer tends to attract law and finance types.

Blep Bloop I also am not programmed to communicate in human interaction protocols Bleep Bloop

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just finished the high school process with my kid and I don’t think parent background is that important at this stage. In the parent interviews I wasn’t asked anything about myself beyond why am I interested in the school and why do I think it’s a good fit for my kid. We were asked a little about our family values, what do we like to do together as a family, etc. Packer and Dalton don’t even interview parents. I think a couple school asked where we went to high school but there were never any follow up questions. My kid got into 9 of the 11 schools they applied to and waitlisted at the other two so it doesn’t seem like having parents who are not rich and important makes much of a difference.

I’m surprised Packer didn’t interview you. We also applied there for high school and the admissions person had a 30 minute conversation with our child and then a 20 min conversation with us. All the other parents interviewing with us also got interviewed.

[Anonymous]

Even if parents aren't interviewed, that doesn't mean the school still isn't doing Google searches as part of their standard process.

[Anonymous]

Of course they do.

Google fundraising and wealth analytics software

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just finished the high school process with my kid and I don’t think parent background is that important at this stage. In the parent interviews I wasn’t asked anything about myself beyond why am I interested in the school and why do I think it’s a good fit for my kid. We were asked a little about our family values, what do we like to do together as a family, etc. Packer and Dalton don’t even interview parents. I think a couple school asked where we went to high school but there were never any follow up questions. My kid got into 9 of the 11 schools they applied to and waitlisted at the other two so it doesn’t seem like having parents who are not rich and important makes much of a difference.

I’m surprised Packer didn’t interview you. We also applied there for high school and the admissions person had a 30 minute conversation with our child and then a 20 min conversation with us. All the other parents interviewing with us also got interviewed.

I did speak to them after my kid’s interview but they made it clear it wasn’t an “interview.” It was basically an opportunity for me to ask any questions I had. It wasn’t like the more formal interviews at the other schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Even if parents aren't interviewed, that doesn't mean the school still isn't doing Google searches as part of their standard process.

They probably are but I don’t think it makes much of a difference in admissions, at least not for high school.

[Anonymous]

If the fundraising and wealth analytics software reveals off-the-charts giving capacity, it absolutely will make a difference in admissions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If the fundraising and wealth analytics software reveals off-the-charts giving capacity, it absolutely will make a difference in admissions.

Not denying that. Just saying that we’re a nobody family and my kid got into almost all the schools they applied to. We had grades, ISEE scores and recs in our favor. I think these things matter much more at the high school level.

[Anonymous]

I think it’s a collective agreement that kids who are admitted in 9th grade are, on average, much stronger students academically and mostly got in because they’re smart and involved.

The Prep for Prep kids at our school always impress me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If the fundraising and wealth analytics software reveals off-the-charts giving capacity, it absolutely will make a difference in admissions.

Not denying that. Just saying that we’re a nobody family and my kid got into almost all the schools they applied to. We had grades, ISEE scores and recs in our favor. I think these things matter much more at the high school level.

Even at the high school level, wealth can be sufficient even if not necessary.