Best private schools in NYC?

[Anonymous]

Anyone familiar with Collegiate or Dalton admissions for K? Is it impossible to get in without connections?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My wife and I just went through the K admissions process. We're not originally from NYC and have no connection to any local private schools. Our child was at one of the "Baby Ivies" for preschool and we expected that would translate into excellent admissions choices. However, after completing the process we believe that the excellent exmissions stats of our preschool are largely due to them carefully selecting children who fit the preferred profile of the K-12 schools, and not due to much educational or reputational "value add" on their part. The preferred profile includes children of TT alumni and kids who provide visual but not socioeconomic diversity (think URM with parents in law, finance, medicine, etc.). I suspect the same is true for the high schools with excellent exmission stats. Getting kids into Ivies for college is easier if the parents are alumni and donors.

Thanks for this input. Did your PSD do a lot of bartering for the final admission? Also, If a child is unconnected, were their exmissions still as strong? My colleague whose unconnected child went to a Baby Ivy preschool didn’t get into the top 2 schools she wanted (Trinity and brearley) because all the spots went to siblings and super donors.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My wife and I just went through the K admissions process. We're not originally from NYC and have no connection to any local private schools. Our child was at one of the "Baby Ivies" for preschool and we expected that would translate into excellent admissions choices. However, after completing the process we believe that the excellent exmissions stats of our preschool are largely due to them carefully selecting children who fit the preferred profile of the K-12 schools, and not due to much educational or reputational "value add" on their part. The preferred profile includes children of TT alumni and kids who provide visual but not socioeconomic diversity (think URM with parents in law, finance, medicine, etc.). I suspect the same is true for the high schools with excellent exmission stats. Getting kids into Ivies for college is easier if the parents are alumni and donors.

Thanks for this input. Did your PSD do a lot of bartering for the final admission? Also, If a child is unconnected, were their exmissions still as strong? My colleague whose unconnected child went to a Baby Ivy preschool didn’t get into the top 2 schools she wanted (Trinity and brearley) because all the spots went to siblings and super donors.

I imagine the PSD directed your colleague to apply to Spence and Chapin. Those schools are very similar academically to Brearley. Yes, Brearley has the reputation of being the most academically rigorous but really the difference is minimal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Anyone familiar with Collegiate or Dalton admissions for K? Is it impossible to get in without connections?

I'm many years removed from that process, but it was unlikely though not impossible. I wonder if Dalton still does the dreaded "basement interviews," after which you could pretty much count on a rejection letter.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My wife and I just went through the K admissions process. We're not originally from NYC and have no connection to any local private schools. Our child was at one of the "Baby Ivies" for preschool and we expected that would translate into excellent admissions choices. However, after completing the process we believe that the excellent exmissions stats of our preschool are largely due to them carefully selecting children who fit the preferred profile of the K-12 schools, and not due to much educational or reputational "value add" on their part. The preferred profile includes children of TT alumni and kids who provide visual but not socioeconomic diversity (think URM with parents in law, finance, medicine, etc.). I suspect the same is true for the high schools with excellent exmission stats. Getting kids into Ivies for college is easier if the parents are alumni and donors.

Thanks for this input. Did your PSD do a lot of bartering for the final admission? Also, If a child is unconnected, were their exmissions still as strong? My colleague whose unconnected child went to a Baby Ivy preschool didn’t get into the top 2 schools she wanted (Trinity and brearley) because all the spots went to siblings and super donors.

After we were waitlisted at 2 TTs (our top 2 choices) and accepted at 1 T2 (our last choice for a few reasons), our PSD said "I'm surprised. Our assessment was glowing and we got strong feedback from the waitlisting schools. I'll inquire." But after making some calls the response was "It is what it is." We didn't feel there was much effort put forth on their part. We are involved in the school, but not in leadership roles, and have donated fairly generously (low 5 figures per year, but definitely not "super donors"). Our contributions didn't seem to be enough to move the needle with our PSD in terms of advocacy. I don't know if further advocacy would have helped, but we didn't seem to get any.

We heard that the schools we were waitlisted at "waitlist everyone" and that the only way we were getting in was if a child of a similar "profile" to our own rejected the offer, which seemed highly unlikely given the prestige and reputation of the schools, and given that (we suspected) there were likely legacy kids of our "profile" ahead of us in line. We also heard that last year was a particularly difficult year for unconnected admissions due to many connected families returning to the city post-COVID pandemic. I have no idea if those things are true.

Within the circle of families that we know, unconnected admissions of oldest siblings to TTs largely, but not always, go to URMs. Once a sibling has been accepted schools will "look for ways to say yes" to younger siblings. I have been surprised by a couple of acceptances of non-legacy, non-sibling, non-URM, non-G&T kids to TTs, and then learned that there were professional or family connections to the school. Scour Board of Trustee lists for any connections you may, unwittingly, have.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My wife and I just went through the K admissions process. We're not originally from NYC and have no connection to any local private schools. Our child was at one of the "Baby Ivies" for preschool and we expected that would translate into excellent admissions choices. However, after completing the process we believe that the excellent exmissions stats of our preschool are largely due to them carefully selecting children who fit the preferred profile of the K-12 schools, and not due to much educational or reputational "value add" on their part. The preferred profile includes children of TT alumni and kids who provide visual but not socioeconomic diversity (think URM with parents in law, finance, medicine, etc.). I suspect the same is true for the high schools with excellent exmission stats. Getting kids into Ivies for college is easier if the parents are alumni and donors.

No, TT schools got highly motivated kids who are academically advanced. Those unfit can go to Avenues

I think that's largely true for unconnected oldest siblings, but most TTs "look for ways to say yes" to legacies and younger siblings, which dilutes the level of "academic advancement" of the student body overall. There are a lot of fingers on the scale.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My wife and I just went through the K admissions process. We're not originally from NYC and have no connection to any local private schools. Our child was at one of the "Baby Ivies" for preschool and we expected that would translate into excellent admissions choices. However, after completing the process we believe that the excellent exmissions stats of our preschool are largely due to them carefully selecting children who fit the preferred profile of the K-12 schools, and not due to much educational or reputational "value add" on their part. The preferred profile includes children of TT alumni and kids who provide visual but not socioeconomic diversity (think URM with parents in law, finance, medicine, etc.). I suspect the same is true for the high schools with excellent exmission stats. Getting kids into Ivies for college is easier if the parents are alumni and donors.

Thanks for this input. Did your PSD do a lot of bartering for the final admission? Also, If a child is unconnected, were their exmissions still as strong? My colleague whose unconnected child went to a Baby Ivy preschool didn’t get into the top 2 schools she wanted (Trinity and brearley) because all the spots went to siblings and super donors.

After we were waitlisted at 2 TTs (our top 2 choices) and accepted at 1 T2 (our last choice for a few reasons), our PSD said "I'm surprised. Our assessment was glowing and we got strong feedback from the waitlisting schools. I'll inquire." But after making some calls the response was "It is what it is." We didn't feel there was much effort put forth on their part. We are involved in the school, but not in leadership roles, and have donated fairly generously (low 5 figures per year, but definitely not "super donors"). Our contributions didn't seem to be enough to move the needle with our PSD in terms of advocacy. I don't know if further advocacy would have helped, but we didn't seem to get any.

We heard that the schools we were waitlisted at "waitlist everyone" and that the only way we were getting in was if a child of a similar "profile" to our own rejected the offer, which seemed highly unlikely given the prestige and reputation of the schools, and given that (we suspected) there were likely legacy kids of our "profile" ahead of us in line. We also heard that last year was a particularly difficult year for unconnected admissions due to many connected families returning to the city post-COVID pandemic. I have no idea if those things are true.

Within the circle of families that we know, unconnected admissions of oldest siblings to TTs largely, but not always, go to URMs. Once a sibling has been accepted schools will "look for ways to say yes" to younger siblings. I have been surprised by a couple of acceptances of non-legacy, non-sibling, non-URM, non-G&T kids to TTs, and then learned that there were professional or family connections to the school. Scour Board of Trustee lists for any connections you may, unwittingly, have.

The best year to apply to top tier schools was probably fall of 2020 and 2021. That said, if your child is a strong student Horace Mann and Riverdale 6th grade classes are HUGE, make sure your child gets 8’s and 9’s on the ISEE and they have a decent chance. I don’t think the other top tier schools have many openings until 9th.

I am very interested to hear about admissions to Collegiate. How many boys do they accept at 6th, if at all? We just went through the 6th grade admissions process and got into a top tier all girls school but alas, I have a boy as well. LOL.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My wife and I just went through the K admissions process. We're not originally from NYC and have no connection to any local private schools. Our child was at one of the "Baby Ivies" for preschool and we expected that would translate into excellent admissions choices. However, after completing the process we believe that the excellent exmissions stats of our preschool are largely due to them carefully selecting children who fit the preferred profile of the K-12 schools, and not due to much educational or reputational "value add" on their part. The preferred profile includes children of TT alumni and kids who provide visual but not socioeconomic diversity (think URM with parents in law, finance, medicine, etc.). I suspect the same is true for the high schools with excellent exmission stats. Getting kids into Ivies for college is easier if the parents are alumni and donors.

Thanks for this input. Did your PSD do a lot of bartering for the final admission? Also, If a child is unconnected, were their exmissions still as strong? My colleague whose unconnected child went to a Baby Ivy preschool didn’t get into the top 2 schools she wanted (Trinity and brearley) because all the spots went to siblings and super donors.

After we were waitlisted at 2 TTs (our top 2 choices) and accepted at 1 T2 (our last choice for a few reasons), our PSD said "I'm surprised. Our assessment was glowing and we got strong feedback from the waitlisting schools. I'll inquire." But after making some calls the response was "It is what it is." We didn't feel there was much effort put forth on their part. We are involved in the school, but not in leadership roles, and have donated fairly generously (low 5 figures per year, but definitely not "super donors"). Our contributions didn't seem to be enough to move the needle with our PSD in terms of advocacy. I don't know if further advocacy would have helped, but we didn't seem to get any.

We heard that the schools we were waitlisted at "waitlist everyone" and that the only way we were getting in was if a child of a similar "profile" to our own rejected the offer, which seemed highly unlikely given the prestige and reputation of the schools, and given that (we suspected) there were likely legacy kids of our "profile" ahead of us in line. We also heard that last year was a particularly difficult year for unconnected admissions due to many connected families returning to the city post-COVID pandemic. I have no idea if those things are true.

Within the circle of families that we know, unconnected admissions of oldest siblings to TTs largely, but not always, go to URMs. Once a sibling has been accepted schools will "look for ways to say yes" to younger siblings. I have been surprised by a couple of acceptances of non-legacy, non-sibling, non-URM, non-G&T kids to TTs, and then learned that there were professional or family connections to the school. Scour Board of Trustee lists for any connections you may, unwittingly, have.

Wow. Thanks for sharing your experience. It sounds exactly like my colleague’s experience ( PSD told them kid got great feedback from TT and basically if they first choiced them, they’re in, and that did NOT happen ). And 5 figure donations is no joke!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My wife and I just went through the K admissions process. We're not originally from NYC and have no connection to any local private schools. Our child was at one of the "Baby Ivies" for preschool and we expected that would translate into excellent admissions choices. However, after completing the process we believe that the excellent exmissions stats of our preschool are largely due to them carefully selecting children who fit the preferred profile of the K-12 schools, and not due to much educational or reputational "value add" on their part. The preferred profile includes children of TT alumni and kids who provide visual but not socioeconomic diversity (think URM with parents in law, finance, medicine, etc.). I suspect the same is true for the high schools with excellent exmission stats. Getting kids into Ivies for college is easier if the parents are alumni and donors.

Thanks for this input. Did your PSD do a lot of bartering for the final admission? Also, If a child is unconnected, were their exmissions still as strong? My colleague whose unconnected child went to a Baby Ivy preschool didn’t get into the top 2 schools she wanted (Trinity and brearley) because all the spots went to siblings and super donors.

After we were waitlisted at 2 TTs (our top 2 choices) and accepted at 1 T2 (our last choice for a few reasons), our PSD said "I'm surprised. Our assessment was glowing and we got strong feedback from the waitlisting schools. I'll inquire." But after making some calls the response was "It is what it is." We didn't feel there was much effort put forth on their part. We are involved in the school, but not in leadership roles, and have donated fairly generously (low 5 figures per year, but definitely not "super donors"). Our contributions didn't seem to be enough to move the needle with our PSD in terms of advocacy. I don't know if further advocacy would have helped, but we didn't seem to get any.

We heard that the schools we were waitlisted at "waitlist everyone" and that the only way we were getting in was if a child of a similar "profile" to our own rejected the offer, which seemed highly unlikely given the prestige and reputation of the schools, and given that (we suspected) there were likely legacy kids of our "profile" ahead of us in line. We also heard that last year was a particularly difficult year for unconnected admissions due to many connected families returning to the city post-COVID pandemic. I have no idea if those things are true.

Within the circle of families that we know, unconnected admissions of oldest siblings to TTs largely, but not always, go to URMs. Once a sibling has been accepted schools will "look for ways to say yes" to younger siblings. I have been surprised by a couple of acceptances of non-legacy, non-sibling, non-URM, non-G&T kids to TTs, and then learned that there were professional or family connections to the school. Scour Board of Trustee lists for any connections you may, unwittingly, have.

Wow. Thanks for sharing your experience. It sounds exactly like my colleague’s experience ( PSD told them kid got great feedback from TT and basically if they first choiced them, they’re in, and that did NOT happen ). And 5 figure donations is no joke!

Five figure donor is nothing. Six figure donation can't even guarantee admission!

https://www.businessinsider.com/horace-mann-pay-to-play-admissions-whistleblower-lawsuit-2023-6#:~:text=The%20exclusive%20New%20York%20City,process%2C%20a%20new%20lawsuit%20claims.

[Anonymous]

My first DCUM post! We got into Dalton this last cycle? No connections! Not super rich! Any questions?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My first DCUM post! We got into Dalton this last cycle? No connections! Not super rich! Any questions?

For kindergarten, 6th or 9th? How many families do they take at 6th vs 9th?

[Anonymous]

K. Dalton enters 90 at K, 15 more at 6th, 15 more at 9th. Maybe more than 15 because maybe it's net 15 with some leaving, IDK. But 15 or 15+leavers is not a lot- those slots are VERY VERY difficult to get.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My first DCUM post! We got into Dalton this last cycle? No connections! Not super rich! Any questions?

Thanks for offering! What do you think helped your child stand out? Were you coming from a known preschool?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My wife and I just went through the K admissions process. We're not originally from NYC and have no connection to any local private schools. Our child was at one of the "Baby Ivies" for preschool and we expected that would translate into excellent admissions choices. However, after completing the process we believe that the excellent exmissions stats of our preschool are largely due to them carefully selecting children who fit the preferred profile of the K-12 schools, and not due to much educational or reputational "value add" on their part. The preferred profile includes children of TT alumni and kids who provide visual but not socioeconomic diversity (think URM with parents in law, finance, medicine, etc.). I suspect the same is true for the high schools with excellent exmission stats. Getting kids into Ivies for college is easier if the parents are alumni and donors.

Thanks for this input. Did your PSD do a lot of bartering for the final admission? Also, If a child is unconnected, were their exmissions still as strong? My colleague whose unconnected child went to a Baby Ivy preschool didn’t get into the top 2 schools she wanted (Trinity and brearley) because all the spots went to siblings and super donors.

After we were waitlisted at 2 TTs (our top 2 choices) and accepted at 1 T2 (our last choice for a few reasons), our PSD said "I'm surprised. Our assessment was glowing and we got strong feedback from the waitlisting schools. I'll inquire." But after making some calls the response was "It is what it is." We didn't feel there was much effort put forth on their part. We are involved in the school, but not in leadership roles, and have donated fairly generously (low 5 figures per year, but definitely not "super donors"). Our contributions didn't seem to be enough to move the needle with our PSD in terms of advocacy. I don't know if further advocacy would have helped, but we didn't seem to get any.

We heard that the schools we were waitlisted at "waitlist everyone" and that the only way we were getting in was if a child of a similar "profile" to our own rejected the offer, which seemed highly unlikely given the prestige and reputation of the schools, and given that (we suspected) there were likely legacy kids of our "profile" ahead of us in line. We also heard that last year was a particularly difficult year for unconnected admissions due to many connected families returning to the city post-COVID pandemic. I have no idea if those things are true.

Within the circle of families that we know, unconnected admissions of oldest siblings to TTs largely, but not always, go to URMs. Once a sibling has been accepted schools will "look for ways to say yes" to younger siblings. I have been surprised by a couple of acceptances of non-legacy, non-sibling, non-URM, non-G&T kids to TTs, and then learned that there were professional or family connections to the school. Scour Board of Trustee lists for any connections you may, unwittingly, have.

Can you say which 2T? Or alternatively would you be open to talking on a burner email?

[Anonymous]

What are the TT/2T schools in 2024?