Official TJ Admissions Decisions Results for the Class of 2025

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Will there be an open house for admitted kids, so they can make an informed choice about whether to accept? TJ is a lifestyle choice. I found it eye-opening when we went to the open house years ago. Not from FCPS and wasn’t very plugged in, didn’t appreciate what the opportunity was and wasn’t right off the bat.

I have a kid who was admitted. Can anyone elaborate on this? What do you mean by “what it was and what it isn’t”? My kid is not from FCPS but 4.0, science fair winner, algebra 2. Not an all-in on science kid but likes science and math and thinks he wants to pursue a career in them. Is TJ not right for kids like that? We are not yet decided on what to do. I do want him to be a well rounded , well balanced person.

[Anonymous]

Yes, 14:42, your kid sounds like a perfect fit. Congratulations!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So how is TJ going to handle transportation for all these new kids? TJ/FCPS couldn't handle it before, thus the carpooling/buying cars, etc. Going to be interesting to watch that play out.

What do you mean? FCPS has provided transportation. Do you mean the use of depots instead of neighborhood routes? I am sure they’ll bring those back now that they got some of the diversity they sought.

[Anonymous]

For rising 8th graders who wants to apply in next year..
Can anyone give info about detailed spec- GPA, math, EC...?
Also is it impossible to get in if GPA is not 4.0? My kid already has 1 A- in some subject from stupid online school.
It looks like all the waitlist, admitted, and rejected have 4.0, even they say, average GPA is 3.95 from their website.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For rising 8th graders who wants to apply in next year..
Can anyone give info about detailed spec- GPA, math, EC...?
Also is it impossible to get in if GPA is not 4.0? My kid already has 1 A- in some subject from stupid online school.
It looks like all the waitlist, admitted, and rejected have 4.0, even they say, average GPA is 3.95 from their website.

There is absolutely no rhyme or rhythm to list any specifications /criteria of acceptances. Many kids with Math Class Algebra1 , GPA-3.93, no STEM Extra Curriculars have got acceptances while many kids with Math class Algebra 2, GPA -4.0, SOL Scores of 600 in Math classes, AMC8 Honor rolls, Science Olympiad State Medal winners, avid Science Buffs who can single handedly win Science Bowl competitions have been waitlisted.

I would take this so called Holistic Review with a grain of salt before advising anyone on what works/what doesn't. While I do not want to discourage anyone from applying, I wouldn't waste time in fixating on TJ as the base schools would be getting better and better in years to come with more competent/motivated/hardworking students joining them thanks to this Social Experiment/Debacle of 2025...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The new admission process seems like a huge improvement since it reduces the number of heavily prepped students that seem to come from the same areas and focuses more on actual aptitude.

Aka favors kids who don’t have a work ethic and are just average in math, taking Algebra I in 8th. No work ethic and no real aptitude == a high drop back rate. And what will mommy do when she discovers that getting into college requires prepping (ie, work)? This is the year of the Invasion of the Karen’s insisting their kid should get a free pass on doing TJ work and have an A without working night and day, because aptitude.

And, of course, come college admission, they are shocked that their kid ends up at a 3%rd tower kid whine that the “prepped kids” (ie, the ones who worked hard) are getting better college results.

It’s weird, there a MAGA like group out there dug into the idea that with your kid is smart, or your kid worked hard. And it blows their mind to see smart kids who work hard. When did hard work become something you look down on?

This. Those pro FCPS people are just like the MAGAs who complain Mexicans taking their jobs meanwhile they have not upgraded their skills and still expect a good paying jobs with high school education. Tests are one of the most fair measure out there. All you need are some work ethic and books. There is no excuse in the most wealthy country on the planet that you can't compete at learning. Public education and libraries are free. If they put the same efforts they "prep" for travel sports, they will see the results.

DP. I don't think the changes you seem so concerned about resulted from MAGAs, right? They came from the progressive left, right? Now, are some Karens cackling with delight over decreased Asian acceptances? Yeah, probably, sadly.

Also, need to consider the test is anything but objective since most of the kids who were accepted simply bought the answers from a prep center so admission was anything but merit-based.

I know I read about it too. It's pretty awful.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The new admission process seems like a huge improvement since it reduces the number of heavily prepped students that seem to come from the same areas and focuses more on actual aptitude.

Aka favors kids who don’t have a work ethic and are just average in math, taking Algebra I in 8th. No work ethic and no real aptitude == a high drop back rate. And what will mommy do when she discovers that getting into college requires prepping (ie, work)? This is the year of the Invasion of the Karen’s insisting their kid should get a free pass on doing TJ work and have an A without working night and day, because aptitude.

And, of course, come college admission, they are shocked that their kid ends up at a 3%rd tower kid whine that the “prepped kids” (ie, the ones who worked hard) are getting better college results.

It’s weird, there a MAGA like group out there dug into the idea that with your kid is smart, or your kid worked hard. And it blows their mind to see smart kids who work hard. When did hard work become something you look down on?

First PP must be getting paid for each time they repeat "focuses more on actual aptitude" or "favors talent over prep." That poster is unwilling to explain exactly how picking kids based on GPA (when over 1.5% of the kids have straight As at many schools) where math level and rigor of coursework aren't taken into account and a single essay that was written at home and possibly with outside assistance could possibly detect kids with "actual aptitude." Really, it's just going to randomly select among a pool of above average, good students.

Oh no you got this all wrong. The new criteria identifies actual ability whereas the old one favoried those kids from the prep centers who bought the answers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For rising 8th graders who wants to apply in next year..
Can anyone give info about detailed spec- GPA, math, EC...?
Also is it impossible to get in if GPA is not 4.0? My kid already has 1 A- in some subject from stupid online school.
It looks like all the waitlist, admitted, and rejected have 4.0, even they say, average GPA is 3.95 from their website.

There is absolutely no rhyme or rhythm to list any specifications /criteria of acceptances. Many kids with Math Class Algebra1 , GPA-3.93, no STEM Extra Curriculars have got acceptances while many kids with Math class Algebra 2, GPA -4.0, SOL Scores of 600 in Math classes, AMC8 Honor rolls, Science Olympiad State Medal winners, avid Science Buffs who can single handedly win Science Bowl competitions have been waitlisted.

I would take this so called Holistic Review with a grain of salt before advising anyone on what works/what doesn't. While I do not want to discourage anyone from applying, I wouldn't waste time in fixating on TJ as the base schools would be getting better and better in years to come with more competent/motivated/hardworking students joining them thanks to this Social Experiment/Debacle of 2025...

That sounds like a win, not a debacle.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Will there be an open house for admitted kids, so they can make an informed choice about whether to accept? TJ is a lifestyle choice. I found it eye-opening when we went to the open house years ago. Not from FCPS and wasn’t very plugged in, didn’t appreciate what the opportunity was and wasn’t right off the bat.

I have a kid who was admitted. Can anyone elaborate on this? What do you mean by “what it was and what it isn’t”? My kid is not from FCPS but 4.0, science fair winner, algebra 2. Not an all-in on science kid but likes science and math and thinks he wants to pursue a career in them. Is TJ not right for kids like that? We are not yet decided on what to do. I do want him to be a well rounded , well balanced person.

Your child sounds a lot like my child who was accepted a number of years ago. He was very bright and loved math, was not involved in STEM extracurriculars, but was interested in an eventual career in something related to science or math. He loved TJ and went on to a university known for engineering/math and majored in computer science.

The kids who have the best experience at TJ tend to be the kids who were not highly involved in nothing but STEM activities in middle school, but instead the ones who had a wide range of interests. My child was highly involved in sports in middle school and at TJ, playing on a sports team every season there and even involved with a musical activity outside of school. He got great grades and great standardized test scores without ever needing any outside instruction or tutoring.

So, yes, it is possible for a young person to go to TJ and still be well-rounded and well-balanced.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You do realize that many of the families that cannot pay for prep classes or have a way to get kids to prep classes or know that prep classes are a thing because they don't know much about TJ and know that prep classes might be helpful are also not playing travel sports. Same reason, time commitment and expense will prevent the families in question from participating in travel sports.

The Travel sports thing only works when you are referencing other middle to upper middle class families who have different priorities. I would guess that most of the travel sports families are not interested in TJ or worried about Prep classes.

Some of the people complaining about TJ Admissions prepping are people who have known about tutoring centers yet chose to sign their kids up for expensive sports instead. Anecdotal, yes. I do know of at least 2 families like this

I would choose travel sports over test prep for my kid, any day. I'm also not whining about TJ. My sons go there and . . . shocker, they find time for travel sports.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So how is TJ going to handle transportation for all these new kids? TJ/FCPS couldn't handle it before, thus the carpooling/buying cars, etc. Going to be interesting to watch that play out.

Please find a hobby.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There are so many good programs at all of the high schools in FFX county as well as the ability to take college-level classes if you desire. I truly do not understand the craziness around TJ. I have friends whose kids go there and they mostly like it, but it has issues too, just like all schools do. I guess I could understand if my kid was truly just a self-motivated academic likely to become a research scientist or a professor, but I just don't understand otherwise why it would be worth it to commute further away and lose time being a kid. And for the parents that put their kids in rigorous test prep programs for their entire childhood, I just think it is sad. I would love to know how some of these kids' lives turn out, I worry they will have emotional problems.

They go on to be computer scientists and work ja ob where they answer to some white sales guy who makes way more money than they do and went to a state college.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How does the process favor URM when it’s race blind? That doesn’t make sense.

The per school minimum quota acts as a racial factor, when Asians are clustered in certain schools that do well.
It is worse in Loudoun which set a maximum quota per school as well as a minimum. At least for TJ, the remaining seats after the minimum quota are available to all schools.

"acts as a" does not equal is.

Sounds like Asians need to stop self-segregating.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

I have a kid who was admitted. Can anyone elaborate on this? What do you mean by “what it was and what it isn’t”? My kid is not from FCPS but 4.0, science fair winner, algebra 2. Not an all-in on science kid but likes science and math and thinks he wants to pursue a career in them. Is TJ not right for kids like that? We are not yet decided on what to do. I do want him to be a well rounded , well balanced person.

Your kid is a full 2 years ahead in math compared to many of the kids being admitted.
4.0 + enjoys STEM + algebra II = good fit for TJ.
high grades + few STEM extracurriculars + algebra I = most likely not smart enough in math and not interested enough in STEM for TJ.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How does the process favor URM when it’s race blind? That doesn’t make sense.

The per school minimum quota acts as a racial factor, when Asians are clustered in certain schools that do well.
It is worse in Loudoun which set a maximum quota per school as well as a minimum. At least for TJ, the remaining seats after the minimum quota are available to all schools.

"acts as a" does not equal is.

Sounds like Asians need to stop self-segregating.

People were gaming the system and now a lot of people are angry that is no longer as ways as being at one of the good schools and taking a few prep classes.