I should have kept my kid at Wilson; college admits are much better than the Big3

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is a troll post. My daughter who went to Wilson is at Yale now. Not a legacy. She certainly works very hard but got all As her first and second semester at Yale. She was not even the valedictorian at Wilson. It was a difficult year for her. Maybe if she went to GDS it would have been easy but she stepped up and handled it just fine. Same for her friends who are at Columbia and Brown. AP exams are not graded by DCPS teachers. They are graded anonymously by AP graders. You have to know your stuff to do well on APs. Wilson is a mixed bag but the top 25% of kids there are very good.

OP is a troll but you, an alleged Wilson parent with a daughter at Yale who not only has a 4.0 at college she has many Wilson friends at Ivies, also with 4.0s(!) is not a troll. Got it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here.
The other thing that is that my kid and other friends who left DCPS for private (Big5 and otherwise) are having a hard time with academics this fall. It hasn't been easy to suddenly be accountable for writing and reading.
Don't get me wrong--it's been AWESOME to watch as a parent (my kid is learning!!!) and they're all getting there. But the learning curve has been straight up. My kid is getting his/her first B (ever).
Meanwhile, their peers left in DCPS will have better college outcomes, having done 10% of the work. I just shake my head.

And to the poster who said that the kids at Wilson are disadvantaged unlike their coddled private peers? Give me a break. We're talking about wealthy, upper NW white people at Wilson.
Many are wealthier than I am. In fact, most are. These kids are at no disadvantage. They're just attending a high school that asks nothing of them and the colleges are non the wiser.

Read the bolded again. And again. And maybe it will click. Also note, with the college rankings obsession, the Ivies are balancing wanting to load up with rich kids and wanting to finesse the data they send to US News. Perfect GPAs, title 1 urban public school, and URMs are the top hooks. I remember one Ivy admissions book said the "golden goose" applicant is a rich Black girl with a 4.0 GPA who clicks 'no' on financial aid.

Wait. Are the kids from Wilson all rich or are they in a T1 school? Can’t be T1 if everyone is rich. Oh, you mean the Wilson kids you know who are all rich because you limit yourself to knowing only the rich kids? Do you ever get out of that bubble?

It is shocking how ignorant these top ten college admissions offices are! How can they be so foolish as to admit these little schemers from public schools? We should send them some emails to set them straight.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So a Wilson parent came to the private school forum to crow about a handful of college results and the private school parents are the whiny ones?

Hopefully, they can return the STA backpacks and phones before they leave….

lol

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Everybody at these top colleges gets the same degree whether you purportedly struggled through or breezed through with all A’s. Seems to me the kids at Wilson get the best deal and the Big 3 parents resent it.

Is there a metric somewhere that tracks the long term success of Big 3 vs. Wilson or similar public high school? Not really interested in who is better at writing term papers but post college real world stats.

You know what happens to be the bottom of the senior class at Ivies if you're not loaded and connected? Unemployment or underemployment. It's not like getting into an Ivy makes you a shoo-in for a six-figure job or medical school. If you crash and burn at at a prestige college it is deeply embarrassing when you go onto work a regular job. Everyone knows you crashed and burned.

[Anonymous]

PP’s wishful thinking. Spiteful as well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Everybody at these top colleges gets the same degree whether you purportedly struggled through or breezed through with all A’s. Seems to me the kids at Wilson get the best deal and the Big 3 parents resent it.

Is there a metric somewhere that tracks the long term success of Big 3 vs. Wilson or similar public high school? Not really interested in who is better at writing term papers but post college real world stats.

You know what happens to be the bottom of the senior class at Ivies if you're not loaded and connected? Unemployment or underemployment. It's not like getting into an Ivy makes you a shoo-in for a six-figure job or medical school. If you crash and burn at at a prestige college it is deeply embarrassing when you go onto work a regular job. Everyone knows you crashed and burned.

I know tons of Ivy grads working as middling GS13s the same as people with degrees from University of Phoenix.

There’s even an Ivy grad in my neighborhood who moved back home and walks dogs for a living.

I agree that it’s funny that people think it’s like a golden ticket from Willy Wonka.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Everybody at these top colleges gets the same degree whether you purportedly struggled through or breezed through with all A’s. Seems to me the kids at Wilson get the best deal and the Big 3 parents resent it.

Is there a metric somewhere that tracks the long term success of Big 3 vs. Wilson or similar public high school? Not really interested in who is better at writing term papers but post college real world stats.

You know what happens to be the bottom of the senior class at Ivies if you're not loaded and connected? Unemployment or underemployment. It's not like getting into an Ivy makes you a shoo-in for a six-figure job or medical school. If you crash and burn at at a prestige college it is deeply embarrassing when you go onto work a regular job. Everyone knows you crashed and burned.

Is it the same as being a private school bottom 20% lifer who ends up full pay at Elon? Deeply embarrassing to have paid so much over twelve years for so little return?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Everybody at these top colleges gets the same degree whether you purportedly struggled through or breezed through with all A’s. Seems to me the kids at Wilson get the best deal and the Big 3 parents resent it.

Is there a metric somewhere that tracks the long term success of Big 3 vs. Wilson or similar public high school? Not really interested in who is better at writing term papers but post college real world stats.

You know what happens to be the bottom of the senior class at Ivies if you're not loaded and connected? Unemployment or underemployment. It's not like getting into an Ivy makes you a shoo-in for a six-figure job or medical school. If you crash and burn at at a prestige college it is deeply embarrassing when you go onto work a regular job. Everyone knows you crashed and burned.

Is it the same as being a private school bottom 20% lifer who ends up full pay at Elon? Deeply embarrassing to have paid so much over twelve years for so little return?

And yet that kid will end up an MD at a hedge fund or something like that. They’ll be fine.

[Anonymous]

Of course they’ll be fine. Mom and Dad paid for college and will give them a down payment for their house. They would have to be a complete idiot to fail. Kids like that don’t know what working hard really means.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Everybody at these top colleges gets the same degree whether you purportedly struggled through or breezed through with all A’s. Seems to me the kids at Wilson get the best deal and the Big 3 parents resent it.

Is there a metric somewhere that tracks the long term success of Big 3 vs. Wilson or similar public high school? Not really interested in who is better at writing term papers but post college real world stats.

You know what happens to be the bottom of the senior class at Ivies if you're not loaded and connected? Unemployment or underemployment. It's not like getting into an Ivy makes you a shoo-in for a six-figure job or medical school. If you crash and burn at at a prestige college it is deeply embarrassing when you go onto work a regular job. Everyone knows you crashed and burned.

Nope, nobody ends up unemployed or underemployed unless they don't want to work. There are tons of companies coming on campus and everyone who wants a job gets a job. Of course, not everyone ends up at GS and not everyone wants to work in IB. I graduated in 2005 and the lowest salary offered at that time was 85K, which is around 121K in today's money. What do you mean by "crash and burn"? It's not like we compared grades or cared and most employers didn't ask for grades.
In my experience, the students who are most likely to drop out are the rich and famous, as they have less incentives to graduate. The Wilson kids worked their b*tts off to get in and they will make the best of their opportunity.
You have a very limited mindset too, as sometimes getting a lower paid entry job turns into something much bigger. My friend stayed after graduation and worked in the admission office at my Ivy for around 3 years. She was paid decent money, but nothing like IB. Guess who's making $$$$$ now consulting and having an amazing work/life balance?
It's so sad and disturbing that you want these kids to fail. They will not fail. They will do well in college, get great jobs, go to good grad schools. The network is amazing and we take care of each other. I got a job through an alumnus when I was 7 months pregnant. I helped a young kid get his first job and now he's an incredibly successful energy trader. My husband never had to truly interview for any jobs and he's a VP at a huge biomed. For the kids who have to work after graduation, the network is invaluable. The rest don't care, as they already know everyone from Andover and will work in arts or at NPR, Clinton Foundation, the Nature Conservancy etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Everybody at these top colleges gets the same degree whether you purportedly struggled through or breezed through with all A’s. Seems to me the kids at Wilson get the best deal and the Big 3 parents resent it.

Is there a metric somewhere that tracks the long term success of Big 3 vs. Wilson or similar public high school? Not really interested in who is better at writing term papers but post college real world stats.

You know what happens to be the bottom of the senior class at Ivies if you're not loaded and connected? Unemployment or underemployment. It's not like getting into an Ivy makes you a shoo-in for a six-figure job or medical school. If you crash and burn at at a prestige college it is deeply embarrassing when you go onto work a regular job. Everyone knows you crashed and burned.

I know tons of Ivy grads working as middling GS13s the same as people with degrees from University of Phoenix.

There’s even an Ivy grad in my neighborhood who moved back home and walks dogs for a living.

I agree that it’s funny that people think it’s like a golden ticket from Willy Wonka.

I'm like that - I'm a 15 at a financial agency making around $215K but I have a 5MM trust fund and a H who makes between $500k-$750k/year and his family is rich. My coworkers have no idea.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Everybody at these top colleges gets the same degree whether you purportedly struggled through or breezed through with all A’s. Seems to me the kids at Wilson get the best deal and the Big 3 parents resent it.

Is there a metric somewhere that tracks the long term success of Big 3 vs. Wilson or similar public high school? Not really interested in who is better at writing term papers but post college real world stats.

You know what happens to be the bottom of the senior class at Ivies if you're not loaded and connected? Unemployment or underemployment. It's not like getting into an Ivy makes you a shoo-in for a six-figure job or medical school. If you crash and burn at at a prestige college it is deeply embarrassing when you go onto work a regular job. Everyone knows you crashed and burned.

Nope, nobody ends up unemployed or underemployed unless they don't want to work. There are tons of companies coming on campus and everyone who wants a job gets a job. Of course, not everyone ends up at GS and not everyone wants to work in IB. I graduated in 2005 and the lowest salary offered at that time was 85K, which is around 121K in today's money. What do you mean by "crash and burn"? It's not like we compared grades or cared and most employers didn't ask for grades.
In my experience, the students who are most likely to drop out are the rich and famous, as they have less incentives to graduate. The Wilson kids worked their b*tts off to get in and they will make the best of their opportunity.
You have a very limited mindset too, as sometimes getting a lower paid entry job turns into something much bigger. My friend stayed after graduation and worked in the admission office at my Ivy for around 3 years. She was paid decent money, but nothing like IB. Guess who's making $$$$$ now consulting and having an amazing work/life balance?
It's so sad and disturbing that you want these kids to fail. They will not fail. They will do well in college, get great jobs, go to good grad schools. The network is amazing and we take care of each other. I got a job through an alumnus when I was 7 months pregnant. I helped a young kid get his first job and now he's an incredibly successful energy trader. My husband never had to truly interview for any jobs and he's a VP at a huge biomed. For the kids who have to work after graduation, the network is invaluable. The rest don't care, as they already know everyone from Andover and will work in arts or at NPR, Clinton Foundation, the Nature Conservancy etc.

You are painting a completely unrealistic picture. You forget that most of us live in DC. We are surrounded by Ivy grads. I easily know 400 between neighbors, colleagues, parents at my kid's public school, parents are my kid's private school. The vast majority are in regular, unremarkable jobs. if you work in big law, live in Spring Valley and send your kids to STA then maybe all your Ivy acquaintances are like you describe. but if you live in Silver spring, work as a fed and send your kids to public you will discover the absolute army of Ivy grads living unremarkable lives (from a financial and/or prestige perspective) in the DMV.

And also--if you're hoping to set up your kids for success based on "who you know" I'd say a diploma from STA is probably a better bet than an Ivy degree. much smaller and closer network.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Everybody at these top colleges gets the same degree whether you purportedly struggled through or breezed through with all A’s. Seems to me the kids at Wilson get the best deal and the Big 3 parents resent it.

Is there a metric somewhere that tracks the long term success of Big 3 vs. Wilson or similar public high school? Not really interested in who is better at writing term papers but post college real world stats.

You know what happens to be the bottom of the senior class at Ivies if you're not loaded and connected? Unemployment or underemployment. It's not like getting into an Ivy makes you a shoo-in for a six-figure job or medical school. If you crash and burn at at a prestige college it is deeply embarrassing when you go onto work a regular job. Everyone knows you crashed and burned.

I know tons of Ivy grads working as middling GS13s the same as people with degrees from University of Phoenix.

There’s even an Ivy grad in my neighborhood who moved back home and walks dogs for a living.

I agree that it’s funny that people think it’s like a golden ticket from Willy Wonka.

+1. Deluded strivers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Everybody at these top colleges gets the same degree whether you purportedly struggled through or breezed through with all A’s. Seems to me the kids at Wilson get the best deal and the Big 3 parents resent it.

Is there a metric somewhere that tracks the long term success of Big 3 vs. Wilson or similar public high school? Not really interested in who is better at writing term papers but post college real world stats.

You know what happens to be the bottom of the senior class at Ivies if you're not loaded and connected? Unemployment or underemployment. It's not like getting into an Ivy makes you a shoo-in for a six-figure job or medical school. If you crash and burn at at a prestige college it is deeply embarrassing when you go onto work a regular job. Everyone knows you crashed and burned.

Nope, nobody ends up unemployed or underemployed unless they don't want to work. There are tons of companies coming on campus and everyone who wants a job gets a job. Of course, not everyone ends up at GS and not everyone wants to work in IB. I graduated in 2005 and the lowest salary offered at that time was 85K, which is around 121K in today's money. What do you mean by "crash and burn"? It's not like we compared grades or cared and most employers didn't ask for grades.
In my experience, the students who are most likely to drop out are the rich and famous, as they have less incentives to graduate. The Wilson kids worked their b*tts off to get in and they will make the best of their opportunity.
You have a very limited mindset too, as sometimes getting a lower paid entry job turns into something much bigger. My friend stayed after graduation and worked in the admission office at my Ivy for around 3 years. She was paid decent money, but nothing like IB. Guess who's making $$$$$ now consulting and having an amazing work/life balance?
It's so sad and disturbing that you want these kids to fail. They will not fail. They will do well in college, get great jobs, go to good grad schools. The network is amazing and we take care of each other. I got a job through an alumnus when I was 7 months pregnant. I helped a young kid get his first job and now he's an incredibly successful energy trader. My husband never had to truly interview for any jobs and he's a VP at a huge biomed. For the kids who have to work after graduation, the network is invaluable. The rest don't care, as they already know everyone from Andover and will work in arts or at NPR, Clinton Foundation, the Nature Conservancy etc.

lol and I will never look at a VP the same way I used to (as a worker bee in biotech who had to climb up with no real connections) again

https://www.etsy.com/listing/760672318/carry-yourself-with-the-confidence-of-a?ga_order=most_relevant&ga_search_type=all&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_search_query=mediocre+white+man&ref=sc_gallery-1-6&frs=1&bes=1&sts=1&listing_id=760672318&listing_slug=carry-yourself-with-the-confidence-of-a&plkey=c661523a0dde2d931d25967aa8af5a2bbfe3ea00%3A760672318

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I attended Brown after graduating from a mediocre high school from which only about half of the students went to college. After struggling for a few weeks, I figured things out and finished the first semester with good grades. None of my public school friends at Brown had any academic issues either. In fact, the truly academically outstanding classmates I knew were all public school graduates.

I thought Brown didn't give grades.

When I was in HS Brown was the quirky Ivy that admiited PS kids who were good writers and very rich kids and well connected kids who weren't

Brown has great applied math and CS programs too which trained people like Adam Leventhal, Meredith Ringel, Eliot Horowitz, Peter Norvig, Nick Haber etc. Nick was my classmate and his work using AI for ASD research is impressive. Brown gives grades in almost all classes, with the exception of a handful of very specific writing seminars. One can select to take a class for grade or pass/fail.