How NEGATIVE are college admissions from a top private versus public

[Anonymous]

Test optional has changed things dramatically. The DEI initiatives have also changed things. To suggest that all is how it used to be before these changes is inaccurate.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's not new; it just feels new every year to the people going through it for the first time [cue the annual "no, it's really different this time" posters].

Part of the reason is that the handful of people who choose a school believing it would change their child's college application outcomes look at the matriculations and only see the colleges on the list that they want to see, and knowing nothing about the students or why those chose the schools they chose or why they got into the schools they got into, naively assume this means their kid will get into the school of their choice. Also, they probably don't appreciate how great the other schools on the list actually are and how much fit matters to individual kids. It is completely naive to assume all students choose a college based on where it lands on the USNWR list. Once you dig in, if you are really doing your homework, that list goes out the window.

Very True...Another part of it is the obsession this area has with private schools. It's not necessarily like this in other parts of the country. The lenses are severely cloudy here. There are great public schools around the country and the top magnets are amazing. That's the real competition not the handful of kids you know.

[Anonymous]

The kids who are in the top 10% group in public school are almost certainly less coddled than private school kids.
It takes a lot of grit and motivation to be successful at a school like Jackson Reed. You have large chaotic classes. There are fights in the hallway sometimes.
You may be self studying for APs because you are missing a teacher. There are some very impressive kids at public schools so it makes sense that colleges would want them. Sure, they may not have done multivariable calculus or written a 20 page paper because JR does not offer those opportunities but so what - they will learn and figure it out in college. It is all about showing the potential for growth

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The kids who are in the top 10% group in public school are almost certainly less coddled than private school kids.
It takes a lot of grit and motivation to be successful at a school like Jackson Reed. You have large chaotic classes. There are fights in the hallway sometimes.
You may be self studying for APs because you are missing a teacher. There are some very impressive kids at public schools so it makes sense that colleges would want them. Sure, they may not have done multivariable calculus or written a 20 page paper because JR does not offer those opportunities but so what - they will learn and figure it out in college. It is all about showing the potential for growth

Agreed. And even kids in the top 10-25% often go to good state schools and LACs. Public schools offer some benefits that privates don’t have.
I think private schools do a better job teaching kids how to study but there are some public school kids who figure it out on their own.
Ultimately it is best not to get obsessed by the top 15 colleges and universities. If you are able to send your kids to private schools, they will be blessed with many advantages in life that will help them be successful no matter which college they attend.
We need to stop with the resource hoarding

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you’re at a top private, you need to be more strategic about what elite sport your kid can get recruited for and showing that they care a lot about the poor and less fortunate. They probably should be starting their nonprofit serving the poor by 8th grade at the latest. Obviously sports needs to start from toddlerhood.

I know you think you’re funny but this is literally what people do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It seems bizarre the college AOs want to incentivize families to send their kids to bad public schools and/or ones in podunk nowhere.

Or maybe they are realizing a kid with some grit who earned their grades and other honors without help from the resources money buys would be excellent additions to their schools. Think about it, would you hire Carl and Brook’s daughter from the country club who has had every door automatically open for her and thousands of dollars invested in her to make her the perfect being or a person with just about equal accomplishments who did it all on her own?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:College matriculation at our private is still much better than our local public schools. This may not be the case if your local public is a “W” school but probably that parity has existed for a long time. Colleges are less interested in umc white or Asian kids generally, it is not specific to private schools.

That must be why selective schools are majority Black, Latino, and poor.

Oh. Wait.

Our son was accepted at Duke and Brown. Currently at a public school many of you wouldn’t let your kids near. He did not get financial aid (190k) and we didn’t get merit so he is going to UMD with significant merit. Want to point out that there aren’t a lot of black and brown kids at selective schools because we can’t afford it. It’s unfortunate because we thought that being black and first gen college combo would be favorable but it wasn’t for those 2 schools. They didn’t care but UMD is giving him a chance.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Test optional has changed things dramatically. The DEI initiatives have also changed things. To suggest that all is how it used to be before these changes is inaccurate.

Yes, schools are (belatedly) realizing that automatically preferring rich white kids from private schools isn't what they want to do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We sent our kids to DCPS through 8th grade (Deal). My kid's friends who were decent but not fabulous students went on to JR and got high 4.0+ GPAs and are now got into better schools than my kid who went on to a Big3 and worked really, really hard for a 3.8.

The JR kids were missing teachers for semesters at a time. but it doesn't matter for GPAs as then the whole class is given an A when this happens. last year this was in physics C. meanwhile my kids killed himself for an A.


It is what it is.

but yes, it is happening. Please go into private with your eyes WIDE open. You are doing this as an investment in learning which is invaluable your kid will very, very likely get into an inferior college.

The biggest problem with your post is the word "inferior." You all put way too much credit in name prestige and USNWR. They need to stop publishing that rag because it is killing kids' mental health.

[Anonymous]

Just keep in mind as you read that there is a very, very dedicated troll who hates private schools and makes stuff up all the time. Jeff removes posts and threads from that person all the time but he can’t catch all of them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It seems bizarre the college AOs want to incentivize families to send their kids to bad public schools and/or ones in podunk nowhere.

Or maybe they are realizing a kid with some grit who earned their grades and other honors without help from the resources money buys would be excellent additions to their schools. Think about it, would you hire Carl and Brook’s daughter from the country club who has had every door automatically open for her and thousands of dollars invested in her to make her the perfect being or a person with just about equal accomplishments who did it all on her own?

Carl and Brook's daughter is a figment of your imagination.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It seems bizarre the college AOs want to incentivize families to send their kids to bad public schools and/or ones in podunk nowhere.

Or maybe they are realizing a kid with some grit who earned their grades and other honors without help from the resources money buys would be excellent additions to their schools. Think about it, would you hire Carl and Brook’s daughter from the country club who has had every door automatically open for her and thousands of dollars invested in her to make her the perfect being or a person with just about equal accomplishments who did it all on her own?

Laughing at the idea that a kid from MCPS gets grit. Get a grip. And I’m saying this as a parent whose kid went to a public school system with metal detectors.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's not new; it just feels new every year to the people going through it for the first time [cue the annual "no, it's really different this time" posters].

Part of the reason is that the handful of people who choose a school believing it would change their child's college application outcomes look at the matriculations and only see the colleges on the list that they want to see, and knowing nothing about the students or why those chose the schools they chose or why they got into the schools they got into, naively assume this means their kid will get into the school of their choice. Also, they probably don't appreciate how great the other schools on the list actually are and how much fit matters to individual kids. It is completely naive to assume all students choose a college based on where it lands on the USNWR list. Once you dig in, if you are really doing your homework, that list goes out the window.

I have one kid who graduated pre-covid and one post...it is new and very different for a variety of reasons that have been beaten to death.

[Anonymous]

I beg to disagree about the grit and Montgomery county public schools. It’s not an easy road and the kids do need grit there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I beg to disagree about the grit and Montgomery county public schools. It’s not an easy road and the kids do need grit there.

Delusional.