NMSFs in DC 2026

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For all of the people sniping how this proves [insert] (what school is great or not ) (how meaningless or meaningful it all is) (how much or little test prep is involved) (how DC is easier/harder advantaged/disadvantaged), can you hear yourselves? This thread is a genius parody of how generally insufferable DC area parents are.

Kids took tests. Some got really high scores and were recognized. Some of those kids will get scholarships and/or further recognition. Good for them. I bet you those kids behave better than the adults on DCUM.

I think all discussions of schools on DCUM are really just parents justifying the individual decisions they made about their kids' education.

I hear you, but I think the responses to responses are often times more telling. The term "booster" is the perfect example. Anyone who says anything nice about any school is automatically a booster. Any any nice thing said is interpreted as a direct shot at any other school that isn't spoken about. DCUM treats this all as a zero sum game. If someone else has something nice then I don't have it. The solution is not to build up or be confident in what I have. It is always to tear down the other thing.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:Someone just posted list on private school forum:

BASIS (2)
Edmund Burke (1)
DC International School (1)
Georgetown Day School (4)
Georgetown Visitation (2)
Jackson-Reed (3)
MacArthur HS (1)
Maret (1)
National Cathedral School (5)
School Without Walls (3)
Sidwell Friends (4)
St Albans (2)
St Anselm's Abbey (3)
St John's College HS (1)
Washington International (1)
Washington Latin Public Charter (3)

Interesting...usually Sidwell has nearly double digits. NCS had a banner year. Latin did well this year. The BASIS folks must be unhappy.

What's interesting is private schools with 0 NMSFs. Gonzaga and Field off the top of my head.

It’s surprising to me how low the numbers for semifinalists for all the DC privates are. You would think for 55k a year they would be getting more output. A Maryland private, Holton Arms has 12 semifinalists this year.

The MD and VA magnets of course leave all these schools in the dust. Thomas Jefferson has more than 100 semifinalists this year.

What is the cut off for VA and MD? You can't compare apples and oranges.

Yeah, it's this. Even a one point or two point difference in the cutoff will result in double digit differences.

Maryland and VA have a cutoff of 224 and DC is 225. but to argue that the point difference explains the double digit and sometimes triple digit numbers of semifinalists at schools, is not a robust conclusion.

Yeah, it’s also the suburban cram-school culture. You can’t make NMSF in DC if you get confused on even one question or make even one careless error, and it’s not much easier in the suburbs.

For perspective: my kid has an SAT score in the 99+ range. That SAT score is over the 75th percentile mark at every college in the country. They also had a PSAT score in the 99+ range, with a selection index of 218. That is simultaneously an excellent result and 6 points too low to be NMSF anywhere in the DMV.

To get large groups of kids getting NMSF in this setting, you really need a culture where a large number of families devote time and money to professional test-prep during the summer before junior year, with the specific goal of being NMSF. Not only does DC not have a cram-school culture, I think we have a bit of an anti-cram-school culture, because some parents stay in the city in part to avoid suburban cram-school culture.

To be fair, NMSF are chosen by doubling the Verbal score and adding it to the math score. It’s not as easy to “cram school” the verbal score as it is the math score.

A perfect math score is the foundation of NMSF prep. If you have a perfect 760 math, you can be an NMSF with down to a 740 verbal in the suburbs, or a 750 verbal in DC. (And yes, you can lose more than 20 points with one wrong answer.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Someone just posted list on private school forum:

BASIS (2)
Edmund Burke (1)
DC International School (1)
Georgetown Day School (4)
Georgetown Visitation (2)
Jackson-Reed (3)
MacArthur HS (1)
Maret (1)
National Cathedral School (5)
School Without Walls (3)
Sidwell Friends (4)
St Albans (2)
St Anselm's Abbey (3)
St John's College HS (1)
Washington International (1)
Washington Latin Public Charter (3)

Interesting...usually Sidwell has nearly double digits. NCS had a banner year. Latin did well this year. The BASIS folks must be unhappy.

What's interesting is private schools with 0 NMSFs. Gonzaga and Field off the top of my head.

Why would BASIS be unhappy? They have (by far) the smallest senior class of any of these schools but still had 2 kids who are NMS...about 3% of the class was NMS.

Because BASIS is founded on doing well on standardized tests. If that's core to your identity, then you expect much higher numbers.

Core to its identity? No.

BASIS doesn't emphasize the PSAT. Nor does any of the Big 3.

We all all know that the kids who do well are self-prepping or getting tutors, and a smart, driven kid anywhere can do well on the test.

You really think that J-R is almost the same level/quality as Sidwell or GDS just because J-R has 3 NMS and Sidwell and GDS 4?

Why are we now comparing JR to Sidwell or GDS? Nobody has done that.

BASIS cares far more than any other school about standardized tests and many BASIS people disparage Latin. This is comparing one charter school against another.

NP. First off, how or why do you think BASIS cares about standardized tests? There is no admission test, there is no PSAT class or test prep, they don't spend any time prepping for CAPE. It's a pressure cooker and many other things, but you've simply made up this point.

Second, I've been on DCUM for a very long time and I can't recall once any parent disparaging Latin That's not happening anywhere but inside your own head.

Finally, no one other than you is comparing Latin and BASIS. The point the poster to whom you are responding made went way the heck over your head. They were explaining to you how silly it is to try and illustrate the quality of an education based on NMSF numbers. Their point was that to do so you'd have to argue that GDS and Sidwell are indistinguishable from J-R. Which is silly. But you completely missed the point.

Take a breath, defensive Latin parent. You seem really insecure.

I'm a different parent who doesn't have a student at Latin or Basis (neither of my kids applied to either so I truly have no horse in this race) but there is at least one particular poster who seems to go around many different threads and calls Latin "mid." Then gives many different reason why he or she doesn't like Latin. For example, in the recent USNWR thread, this was done many, many times. So, they are not, in fact, making this up.

[Anonymous]

I love that almost as many public school students as private school students got the NMSF.

I think this is likely a reflection of the current reality that students who test well attend many different schools in the DC area.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I love that almost as many public school students as private school students got the NMSF.

I think this is likely a reflection of the current reality that students who test well attend many different schools in the DC area.

Well, 13 public and 26 private. But that’s certainly a far cry from the 2017 list that’s been floating around that had 3 public and 33 private.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I love that almost as many public school students as private school students got the NMSF.

I think this is likely a reflection of the current reality that students who test well attend many different schools in the DC area.

Well, 13 public and 26 private. But that’s certainly a far cry from the 2017 list that’s been floating around that had 3 public and 33 private.

Well, and the other question is how many of the private school students live in DC.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For all of the people sniping how this proves [insert] (what school is great or not ) (how meaningless or meaningful it all is) (how much or little test prep is involved) (how DC is easier/harder advantaged/disadvantaged), can you hear yourselves? This thread is a genius parody of how generally insufferable DC area parents are.

Kids took tests. Some got really high scores and were recognized. Some of those kids will get scholarships and/or further recognition. Good for them. I bet you those kids behave better than the adults on DCUM.

I think all discussions of schools on DCUM are really just parents justifying the individual decisions they made about their kids' education.

I think extrapolating huge differences in schools based on the test taking skills of literally one or two real people is kind of crazy.

However, I do think the list is useful in the sense of identifying which public high schools have some really smart students, and which have zero year after year.

I would send my kid to any of the public high schools in the list, and would be hesitant to send them to the schools that never produce NMSFs (as a former NMSF).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For all of the people sniping how this proves [insert] (what school is great or not ) (how meaningless or meaningful it all is) (how much or little test prep is involved) (how DC is easier/harder advantaged/disadvantaged), can you hear yourselves? This thread is a genius parody of how generally insufferable DC area parents are.

Kids took tests. Some got really high scores and were recognized. Some of those kids will get scholarships and/or further recognition. Good for them. I bet you those kids behave better than the adults on DCUM.

I think all discussions of schools on DCUM are really just parents justifying the individual decisions they made about their kids' education.

I think extrapolating huge differences in schools based on the test taking skills of literally one or two real people is kind of crazy.

However, I do think the list is useful in the sense of identifying which public high schools have some really smart students, and which have zero year after year.

I would send my kid to any of the public high schools in the list, and would be hesitant to send them to the schools that never produce NMSFs (as a former NMSF).

I think that's fair. I honestly don't know which schools never produce NMSF. I do know that, in the past McKinley Tech and Banneker have both produced NMSF, but I don't know which other public schools not on this list have.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For all of the people sniping how this proves [insert] (what school is great or not ) (how meaningless or meaningful it all is) (how much or little test prep is involved) (how DC is easier/harder advantaged/disadvantaged), can you hear yourselves? This thread is a genius parody of how generally insufferable DC area parents are.

Kids took tests. Some got really high scores and were recognized. Some of those kids will get scholarships and/or further recognition. Good for them. I bet you those kids behave better than the adults on DCUM.

I think all discussions of schools on DCUM are really just parents justifying the individual decisions they made about their kids' education.

I think extrapolating huge differences in schools based on the test taking skills of literally one or two real people is kind of crazy.

However, I do think the list is useful in the sense of identifying which public high schools have some really smart students, and which have zero year after year.

I would send my kid to any of the public high schools in the list, and would be hesitant to send them to the schools that never produce NMSFs (as a former NMSF).

I think that's fair. I honestly don't know which schools never produce NMSF. I do know that, in the past McKinley Tech and Banneker have both produced NMSF, but I don't know which other public schools not on this list have.

Well…most…but I doubt many on DCUM are seriously considering sending their kid to Coolidge or Dunbar or Ballou et al.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:HB Woodlawn, a public school in Arlington that you don’t test into, only has 100 seniors and more NMSF than any school in DC, public or private. Interesting.

lol. cutoffs are different across the board. for example mechanically it is likely that TJ will have more than all DC combined.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I love that almost as many public school students as private school students got the NMSF.

I think this is likely a reflection of the current reality that students who test well attend many different schools in the DC area.

Well, 13 public and 26 private. But that’s certainly a far cry from the 2017 list that’s been floating around that had 3 public and 33 private.

Well, and the other question is how many of the private school students live in DC.

can't say for all the schools, but for a couple of the schools on the list, residency is like 40% DC, 60% outside.

Also MacArthur made the list with almost no students in that class. It has the highest share right?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Walls PARCC/CAPE scores:

2018-19 /exam/84.1% (4+ math)/93.4% (4+ ELA)

2023-24/no exam/67.8% (4+ math)/97% (4+ ELA)

ELA seems about the same but math is definitely lower.

There are no decent public options to Walls in DC (other than BASIS DC, which you can't get into after 5th grade) and it only cherry picks A students, so the fact that Walls has some NMS/top students doesn't necessarily mean that the overall school quality hasn't decreased.

A measure of change in Math standards may be that 2018/19 SWW had 0/0% students taking Algebra I PARCC and 2024/25 SWW has 18/ 11% students taking Algebra I CAPE.

Algebra 1 in 9th grade is a remedial math track that gets you to preCal in 12th, correct?

Why are these students even considered for Walls, let alone got in?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Walls PARCC/CAPE scores:

2018-19 /exam/84.1% (4+ math)/93.4% (4+ ELA)

2023-24/no exam/67.8% (4+ math)/97% (4+ ELA)

ELA seems about the same but math is definitely lower.

There are no decent public options to Walls in DC (other than BASIS DC, which you can't get into after 5th grade) and it only cherry picks A students, so the fact that Walls has some NMS/top students doesn't necessarily mean that the overall school quality hasn't decreased.

A measure of change in Math standards may be that 2018/19 SWW had 0/0% students taking Algebra I PARCC and 2024/25 SWW has 18/ 11% students taking Algebra I CAPE.

Algebra 1 in 9th grade is a remedial math track that gets you to preCal in 12th, correct?

Why are these students even considered for Walls, let alone got in?

Get the PCSB to mandate Algebra I in every 8th grade and maybe you’ll have an argument. As it is, many schools don’t offer Algebra I until 9th, no matter how smart an individual kid might be.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Walls PARCC/CAPE scores:

2018-19 /exam/84.1% (4+ math)/93.4% (4+ ELA)

2023-24/no exam/67.8% (4+ math)/97% (4+ ELA)

ELA seems about the same but math is definitely lower.

There are no decent public options to Walls in DC (other than BASIS DC, which you can't get into after 5th grade) and it only cherry picks A students, so the fact that Walls has some NMS/top students doesn't necessarily mean that the overall school quality hasn't decreased.

A measure of change in Math standards may be that 2018/19 SWW had 0/0% students taking Algebra I PARCC and 2024/25 SWW has 18/ 11% students taking Algebra I CAPE.

Algebra 1 in 9th grade is a remedial math track that gets you to preCal in 12th, correct?

Why are these students even considered for Walls, let alone got in?

Get the PCSB to mandate Algebra I in every 8th grade and maybe you’ll have an argument. As it is, many schools don’t offer Algebra I until 9th, no matter how smart an individual kid might be.

The PCSB is not the issue. The issue is that the kids in DC do so poorly in math that at many schools there is no cohort even able to do Algebra 1 by 8th grade. There may be an individual smart kid but no cohort.

This is due to social promotion and OSSE refusal to do any type of G & T or tracking starting in elementary. The problem is not that schools don’t offer it. The problem is that there is no pathway for poor, smart kids at poorly performing schools.

Regardless, clearly standards have been lowered when you have kids at Walls coming in on a remedial math track. That would not happen if the entrance testing was still offered.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:HB Woodlawn, a public school in Arlington that you don’t test into, only has 100 seniors and more NMSF than any school in DC, public or private. Interesting.

lol. cutoffs are different across the board. for example mechanically it is likely that TJ will have more than all DC combined.

They're not that different. This year DC is 225 and DC and MD are at 224. Yes, slightly easier with that 1 point, but does not explain why one school will have 2 NMSFs while another will have 13.