High school magnet test

[Anonymous]

With the extended application deadline from Nov 6th to Nov 13 - do people think there will be a knock-on effect in terms of end results - will we all have to wait a week longer to hear who got places?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:In keeping with the HS magnet process of choosing candidates this year, does anyone know for sure, what kind of stats they have?

Is it only straight A students with 99 Maps / Language & Math? and 2000 Lexiles?

Or is there usually some variation on this?

I think there is variation. There are approx. 12,500 8th graders. How many students have straight A's AND 99% MAP scores, etc? Let's say MCPS has a higher concentration of 99% students in some zip codes and more students overall than the national average--so let's assume 2-3% of students fit the description instead of 1% for test scores. That would be 250-375 students. Statistically, all of those students do not have all A's. But let's assume 80-85% do-- so approx. 318 students max. There are more magnet seats at the high school level in various programs: Poolesville (STEM, Humanities, Global), Blair STEM and CAP, RMIB, and Wheaton (DCC). Also, historically, MCPS accepts at least 40% additional students to most programs to account for yield.

Not all of these students will apply to the same programs because of individual strengths and/or interests, or apply to any of these magnet programs for various reasons, e.g., commute/distance, friends, local AP/IB options, etc. Also, consider that some students with straight A's and 99% scores OR with a few B's or mid-90's MAP scores may better show more interest in language or computer programming, for example, through their activities, awards, etc. in their short answers. Because MCPS is not transparent about the admissions process, we don't know how much weight is given to grades, test scores, students' answers/essays, etc. Finally, we don't know how many students applied this year. Because MCPS extended the deadline, it seems safe to conclude that fewer students applied this year and the difference was significant to extend the deadline one week.

Good analysis. The quiet extension of the deadline is interesting in itself. I don't delete emails from MCPS, checked spam, and did not receive it.

OP here: thanks. I also couldn't find a copy of the email. Didn't delete any emails and checked spam.

Maybe only a few schools had lower pools than normal. But one Pyle poster said she got it, and another said she didn’t. I’m Cabin John and got one.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:In keeping with the HS magnet process of choosing candidates this year, does anyone know for sure, what kind of stats they have?

Is it only straight A students with 99 Maps / Language & Math? and 2000 Lexiles?

Or is there usually some variation on this?

I think there is variation. There are approx. 12,500 8th graders. How many students have straight A's AND 99% MAP scores, etc? Let's say MCPS has a higher concentration of 99% students in some zip codes and more students overall than the national average--so let's assume 2-3% of students fit the description instead of 1% for test scores. That would be 250-375 students. Statistically, all of those students do not have all A's. But let's assume 80-85% do-- so approx. 318 students max. There are more magnet seats at the high school level in various programs: Poolesville (STEM, Humanities, Global), Blair STEM and CAP, RMIB, and Wheaton (DCC). Also, historically, MCPS accepts at least 40% additional students to most programs to account for yield.

Not all of these students will apply to the same programs because of individual strengths and/or interests, or apply to any of these magnet programs for various reasons, e.g., commute/distance, friends, local AP/IB options, etc. Also, consider that some students with straight A's and 99% scores OR with a few B's or mid-90's MAP scores may better show more interest in language or computer programming, for example, through their activities, awards, etc. in their short answers. Because MCPS is not transparent about the admissions process, we don't know how much weight is given to grades, test scores, students' answers/essays, etc. Finally, we don't know how many students applied this year. Because MCPS extended the deadline, it seems safe to conclude that fewer students applied this year and the difference was significant to extend the deadline one week.

Good analysis. The quiet extension of the deadline is interesting in itself. I don't delete emails from MCPS, checked spam, and did not receive it.

OP here: thanks. I also couldn't find a copy of the email. Didn't delete any emails and checked spam.

Maybe only a few schools had lower pools than normal. But one Pyle poster said she got it, and another said she didn’t. I’m Cabin John and got one.

The email did not go out until after the 11/6 deadline had passed (on 11/10) so it was easy to miss.

[Anonymous]

So do people think the results/offers deadline will also be extended?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So do people think the results/offers deadline will also be extended?

MCPS never provided a hard date-- just late January. Therefore, I don't think the extended application deadline will significantly affect offer notifications.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So do people think the results/offers deadline will also be extended?

MCPS never provided a hard date-- just late January. Therefore, I don't think the extended application deadline will significantly affect offer notifications.

I've seen "Early Feb" somewhere, maybe they snuck in that change to buy more time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So do people think the results/offers deadline will also be extended?

MCPS never provided a hard date-- just late January. Therefore, I don't think the extended application deadline will significantly affect offer notifications.

I've seen "Early Feb" somewhere, maybe they snuck in that change to buy more time.

The FAQ still says results will be distributed in late January, but the letter they sent home to applicants says "Parents and Grade 8 applicants will receive results in ParentVUE in early February 2021."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So do people think the results/offers deadline will also be extended?

MCPS never provided a hard date-- just late January. Therefore, I don't think the extended application deadline will significantly affect offer notifications.

I've seen "Early Feb" somewhere, maybe they snuck in that change to buy more time.

The FAQ still says results will be distributed in late January, but the letter they sent home to applicants says "Parents and Grade 8 applicants will receive results in ParentVUE in early February 2021."

Yes, that's where I saw it. Thanks.

[Anonymous]

We got two letters from Blair (big envelop) and RM normal envelop on Feb 1, 2020.

Later we found a pdf on mymcps. That file lists their decisions on each of our applications (RM and Blair) and a link to make our selection.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We got two letters from Blair (big envelop) and RM normal envelop on Feb 1, 2020.

Later we found a pdf on mymcps. That file lists their decisions on each of our applications (RM and Blair) and a link to make our selection.

so was Blair the offer of a spot and RM a waitlist / rejection?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We got two letters from Blair (big envelop) and RM normal envelop on Feb 1, 2020.

Later we found a pdf on mymcps. That file lists their decisions on each of our applications (RM and Blair) and a link to make our selection.

This was pre-Covid however, PP - now everything is in flux and this is not a date for anyone to pin their hopes on, realistically.

[Anonymous]

pp, I was just to share what was like when the decision was made.

ppp RM just used normal envelop for all (rejected or accepted)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:pp, I was just to share what was like when the decision was made.

ppp RM just used normal envelop for all (rejected or accepted)

I don’t think any of that is relevant this year. The info we have is that results will be made available through ParentVue. And since you needed to use ParentVue to apply, all applicants have a valid account. So unlike some other things (like report cards), there should be no need to use US mail.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:pp, I was just to share what was like when the decision was made.

ppp RM just used normal envelop for all (rejected or accepted)

I don’t think any of that is relevant this year. The info we have is that results will be made available through ParentVue. And since you needed to use ParentVue to apply, all applicants have a valid account. So unlike some other things (like report cards), there should be no need to use US mail.

+1 we are not even getting paper report cards - I had to print from parentvue

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:pp, I was just to share what was like when the decision was made.

ppp RM just used normal envelop for all (rejected or accepted)

I don’t think any of that is relevant this year. The info we have is that results will be made available through ParentVue. And since you needed to use ParentVue to apply, all applicants have a valid account. So unlike some other things (like report cards), there should be no need to use US mail.

+1 we are not even getting paper report cards - I had to print from parentvue

They’ve said they’ll send paper report cards to households without active ParentVue accounts, but that shouldn’t apply to any families who applied for HS magnets.