Lessons learned so far: 2024-2025

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:That it's a discouraging process favoring rich kids and kids who gamed the process early by picking certain classes to maximize GPA early on, carefully crafted everything, tutored to the max for scores. My only hope is employers realize the cost and general landscape mean good students with potential end up at all sorts of colleges.

They know, don't worry. I think many employers are less excited about elite schools, especially Ivies.

I’m a hiring manager at a F50 company. Employers are always excited about elite schools. Those applicants get the interviews, and fast tracked for promotions internally. They get ear marked for the best opportunities.

But strong graduates from other schools can fair just as well, it will just take them more effort to stand out during their career and get ahead of the pack and get noticed. Networking is and social climbing at work is crucial for this group.

There are way more than 50 places to work and succeed and make a ton of money un the U.S. Just like there are more than 10 colleges for extraordinary students to attend.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:That it's a discouraging process favoring rich kids and kids who gamed the process early by picking certain classes to maximize GPA early on, carefully crafted everything, tutored to the max for scores. My only hope is employers realize the cost and general landscape mean good students with potential end up at all sorts of colleges.

They know, don't worry. I think many employers are less excited about elite schools, especially Ivies.

I’m a hiring manager at a F50 company. Employers are always excited about elite schools. Those applicants get the interviews, and fast tracked for promotions internally. They get ear marked for the best opportunities.

But strong graduates from other schools can fair just as well, it will just take them more effort to stand out during their career and get ahead of the pack and get noticed. Networking is and social climbing at work is crucial for this group.

There are way more than 50 places to work and succeed and make a ton of money un the U.S. Just like there are more than 10 colleges for extraordinary students to attend.

Exactly. Some of the most accomplished people I know went to no-name state schools. And I also know Ivy grads who are not doing as well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Though I consider myself at this point more than informed when it comes to college admissions, I wasn't quite prepared for the extent to which Harvard and Stanford cater to legacies and donors, at least at our top private, and at least in the early round. It is eye-opening. If you are the very top in a top private (think Dalton/Andover/Harvard-Westlake tier) and unhooked, you target mid-tier Ivies, not HYPS. There are just too many well-connected legacies who are also contributing a lot, active in alumni circles, have already sent other siblings.... these kids are typically but not always strong students, rarely the very top. These families know how the game is played and have been setting this outcome up for a decade, since elementary school. If you've seen it, you know.

+10

At my private, not nearly as good as those, and outside metro DC, I watched the valedictorian and other very top academic students get denied from H while a mediocre B student with deep monetary hooks (father was Harvard law and father was a consistent significant donor to H for decades; the accepted student did not have great ECs and was not on any athletic team) get accepted. Now, H probably considered the accepted student “good enough” academically, but clearly H were not choosing the strongest academic applicants from that private given the strong prospect of ongoing substantial donations.

This sounds like a development advantage rather than a legacy one, since only the child of a Harvard undergrad would be considered legacy for undergraduate admissions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:That it's a discouraging process favoring rich kids and kids who gamed the process early by picking certain classes to maximize GPA early on, carefully crafted everything, tutored to the max for scores. My only hope is employers realize the cost and general landscape mean good students with potential end up at all sorts of colleges.

They know, don't worry. I think many employers are less excited about elite schools, especially Ivies.

I’m a hiring manager at a F50 company. Employers are always excited about elite schools. Those applicants get the interviews, and fast tracked for promotions internally. They get ear marked for the best opportunities.

But strong graduates from other schools can fair just as well, it will just take them more effort to stand out during their career and get ahead of the pack and get noticed. Networking is and social climbing at work is crucial for this group.

Agree with Both points.

Freshman at Ivy who sent out 10 emails /applications for paid summer positions in last month. Have heard positively from 7 of them and interviewed with several by zoom. Kid’s high school friends at non-elite schools have struggled to get responses.

Same. I went to a big state school and it was so hard to land this stuff. My freshmen at an Ivy has numerous to choose from.

[Anonymous]

OOS college right now to any state but CA and MA you are a terrible parent .

The US is about to have disease like never before. And a depression like never before the war on women will be worse than the 1950 s

This is not going to end well

And the draft lol they are not excusing college white boys ask Pete and Russ they said it out loud you fool’s Utube.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Though I consider myself at this point more than informed when it comes to college admissions, I wasn't quite prepared for the extent to which Harvard and Stanford cater to legacies and donors, at least at our top private, and at least in the early round. It is eye-opening. If you are the very top in a top private (think Dalton/Andover/Harvard-Westlake tier) and unhooked, you target mid-tier Ivies, not HYPS. There are just too many well-connected legacies who are also contributing a lot, active in alumni circles, have already sent other siblings.... these kids are typically but not always strong students, rarely the very top. These families know how the game is played and have been setting this outcome up for a decade, since elementary school. If you've seen it, you know.

Not disputing your experience, but in mine, legacies are often times stronger students than non-legacies. My legacy DC and another legacy classmate are in fact “the very top” of their “top private.”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Though I consider myself at this point more than informed when it comes to college admissions, I wasn't quite prepared for the extent to which Harvard and Stanford cater to legacies and donors, at least at our top private, and at least in the early round. It is eye-opening. If you are the very top in a top private (think Dalton/Andover/Harvard-Westlake tier) and unhooked, you target mid-tier Ivies, not HYPS. There are just too many well-connected legacies who are also contributing a lot, active in alumni circles, have already sent other siblings.... these kids are typically but not always strong students, rarely the very top. These families know how the game is played and have been setting this outcome up for a decade, since elementary school. If you've seen it, you know.

I just dont care that much about Dalton or Andover. Those are high schools that really cater to a .1%. And they take the rich among the rich. If you're a striker who slipped into Dalton, you're going to hoisted by your own petard. Because HYP is not taking a dozen kids. They don't *want* a dozen Dalton kids. Dalton kids aren't really a force for good on their campus. They'll take the billionaires kids and the questbridge kid and the celeb kid.

But look at Stuy's decision pages. Or Regis HS, a no tuition private. Or HSMSE. These are test-in kids, Im sure a couple have legacy, but there are not billionaire kids. And regular old legacy doesnt help. And guess what -- those kids do great in admissions. Because HYP does want the hard working Stuy kid who does chorus and got the 1600 and holds down a part time job. These kids take full advantage of what Harvard offers. They stick around on weekends, doing shit. They are as likely as anyone to be the next Bloomberg, who actually believes their college was the thing that made a difference in their life.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Though I consider myself at this point more than informed when it comes to college admissions, I wasn't quite prepared for the extent to which Harvard and Stanford cater to legacies and donors, at least at our top private, and at least in the early round. It is eye-opening. If you are the very top in a top private (think Dalton/Andover/Harvard-Westlake tier) and unhooked, you target mid-tier Ivies, not HYPS. There are just too many well-connected legacies who are also contributing a lot, active in alumni circles, have already sent other siblings.... these kids are typically but not always strong students, rarely the very top. These families know how the game is played and have been setting this outcome up for a decade, since elementary school. If you've seen it, you know.

+10

At my private, not nearly as good as those, and outside metro DC, I watched the valedictorian and other very top academic students get denied from H while a mediocre B student with deep monetary hooks (father was Harvard law and father was a consistent significant donor to H for decades; the accepted student did not have great ECs and was not on any athletic team) get accepted. Now, H probably considered the accepted student “good enough” academically, but clearly H were not choosing the strongest academic applicants from that private given the strong prospect of ongoing substantial donations.

Weird, our academically rigorous Baltimore private always gets the top few unhooked kids into H/Y/P. The hooked kids also get in. I think both these responses are tainted by sour grapes.

[Anonymous]

"Because HYP is not taking a dozen kids."

Harvard took 15 from Harvard-Westlake last year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Though I consider myself at this point more than informed when it comes to college admissions, I wasn't quite prepared for the extent to which Harvard and Stanford cater to legacies and donors, at least at our top private, and at least in the early round. It is eye-opening. If you are the very top in a top private (think Dalton/Andover/Harvard-Westlake tier) and unhooked, you target mid-tier Ivies, not HYPS. There are just too many well-connected legacies who are also contributing a lot, active in alumni circles, have already sent other siblings.... these kids are typically but not always strong students, rarely the very top. These families know how the game is played and have been setting this outcome up for a decade, since elementary school. If you've seen it, you know.

+10

At my private, not nearly as good as those, and outside metro DC, I watched the valedictorian and other very top academic students get denied from H while a mediocre B student with deep monetary hooks (father was Harvard law and father was a consistent significant donor to H for decades; the accepted student did not have great ECs and was not on any athletic team) get accepted. Now, H probably considered the accepted student “good enough” academically, but clearly H were not choosing the strongest academic applicants from that private given the strong prospect of ongoing substantial donations.

Weird, our academically rigorous Baltimore private always gets the top few unhooked kids into H/Y/P. The hooked kids also get in. I think both these responses are tainted by sour grapes.

I guess your rigorous Baltimore private doesn't have the kinds of legacy and donor families that elite privates have.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:"Because HYP is not taking a dozen kids."

Harvard took 15 from Harvard-Westlake last year.

Interesting! How many were offspring of bold-faced names?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Though I consider myself at this point more than informed when it comes to college admissions, I wasn't quite prepared for the extent to which Harvard and Stanford cater to legacies and donors, at least at our top private, and at least in the early round. It is eye-opening. If you are the very top in a top private (think Dalton/Andover/Harvard-Westlake tier) and unhooked, you target mid-tier Ivies, not HYPS. There are just too many well-connected legacies who are also contributing a lot, active in alumni circles, have already sent other siblings.... these kids are typically but not always strong students, rarely the very top. These families know how the game is played and have been setting this outcome up for a decade, since elementary school. If you've seen it, you know.

+10

At my private, not nearly as good as those, and outside metro DC, I watched the valedictorian and other very top academic students get denied from H while a mediocre B student with deep monetary hooks (father was Harvard law and father was a consistent significant donor to H for decades; the accepted student did not have great ECs and was not on any athletic team) get accepted. Now, H probably considered the accepted student “good enough” academically, but clearly H were not choosing the strongest academic applicants from that private given the strong prospect of ongoing substantial donations.

Weird, our academically rigorous Baltimore private always gets the top few unhooked kids into H/Y/P. The hooked kids also get in. I think both these responses are tainted by sour grapes.

I guess your rigorous Baltimore private doesn't have the kinds of legacy and donor families that elite privates have.

Definitely have our share of legacies, and my parents donated two scholarships to my brother’s school long after he graduated. Perhaps we’re a little more sophisticated here than you’d like to think

Sorry you were disappointed in your kid’s acceptances but the bitterness is a bad look.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:"Because HYP is not taking a dozen kids."

Harvard took 15 from Harvard-Westlake last year.

Interesting! How many were offspring of bold-faced names?

A number of them were likely athletic recruits as that is a strength of the school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:"Because HYP is not taking a dozen kids."

Harvard took 15 from Harvard-Westlake last year.

So far this year, they've gotten two in (one of whom was questbridge) which is pretty low for them.

HSMSE had 12 to MIT out a class of 135. Some years are outliers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:"Because HYP is not taking a dozen kids."

Harvard took 15 from Harvard-Westlake last year.

Interesting! How many were offspring of bold-faced names?

A number of them were likely athletic recruits as that is a strength of the school.

they clean up at water polo. because nobody else competes.