This is what unhooked umc kids are against

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Meh. I didn't read the article, but too much is assumed about why certain kids get in.

We are plenty well-off, at potential-big-donor level. Kids didn't do any special ECs. Kids did not submit a resume. No research, no internship. Two attend T10s. Their essays were genuine and written by them (I am the only person who reviewed them), and they had great academic stats. Was wealth a factor? If it was, we didn't need to signal any of the above special stuff.

Admissions consultants are here to sell their services, which they do by convincing people that their services are necessary. Consider whether their services are truly necessary.

Personally, I suspect their services are most helpful for kids with unique needs, but that is a different topic.

^And in the category of admissions consultants, I am including pay-to-play programs. Sorry if that wasn't clear.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've had two kids at a very top all-boys private school in nyc and I see some of this. But parents were fixated on getting the kid into the right k-12 or k-8/9 and then the right HS. There were counselors for that. Once that was locked it, it was mostly about fostering the right peer group, not building a resume. They would get the guys out for a weekend at our place out east". My kids aren't the rich ones (we get FA), But these parents encourage their kids mixing with the kids they approve of. And that's a mix of wealth and/or bright in some way (math winners or debate champs or student government heads). Drinking is fine, drugs are not. The billionaire son whose spending too many weekends doing club drugs is greeted with a hug and may be invited to the box at the Yankees game, but won't be asked on the trip to the Bermuda house.

For college - if their double legacy, sure. They may work hard for that. But these families are also doing REA to Notre Dame or okay if the kid wants USC or perfectly happy with Middlebury.

TLDR, I'm fascinated more with the social engineering and protecting the downside in HS than the college stuff, which doesnt seem off the charts.

You have lost perspective. To most of the world, it’s off the charts.

I think you missed the point

[Anonymous]

I think this stuff helps the most for kids with some weakness in the application elsewhere. At least it did for mine.

[Anonymous]

More than ever schools will be looking for wealthy prospective donors.

[Anonymous]

I don't think these pay to play programs listed in the app are how colleges find wealthy prospective donors. AOs are too busy to deal with that. The advancement office would do that, using tools like DonorSearch, and then provide such list to the admissions director.

[Anonymous]

I am surprised that people are shocked, shocked that money and connections can buy you an edge even when the measures are “objective”.

I have a friend who is a tenured professor at a well respected school. When his and his friends’ kids were of HS age, they ran a round robin of research internships. You take my kid and make sure they produce and publish something, and I’ll take yours. Impressive, right?

When my son was in [public] HS, he was a TOC level debater. That circle is very much dominated by private school kids, and some came to the tournaments with as many as 8 coaches. When they got to quarterfinals, the coaches fan out to watch the competitors, take notes and report on their weaknesses. Super helpful if your parents can pay for the time, food lodging and airfare for 8 people.

[Anonymous]

I almost wish colleges were just completely transparent and offered a $1MM admission ticket to anyone with say at least a 1200 SAT.

Maybe even do a reverse-auction and just say we will sell 50 admission slots per year to the 50 highest bidders, and after that all this curating is meaningless.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The colleges and universities do see through this to an extent. Any programs that are pay-to-play are generally discounted. Competitive programs like the MIT summer research programs or Telluride are more highly valued.

Mountain school just has a semester away tuition. It’s for an entire semester and it’s a very rigorous admissions process. The others I’m not sure about.

It is also favors celebrity kids. IYKYK

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Knowing this, it seems like a waste to even try to get into an Ivy

https://www.businessinsider.com/inside-ivy-league-prep-ultrawealthy-30k-schools-and-resumes-2025-9

On the other hand, why do billionaires even need this kind of college counseling service when they can just use their influence and connections?

Someone sold them a bill of goods. The article is a sales job.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:These kids are extreme outliers. I have two kids at T10s and they're just normal kids (we get substantial financial aid as well) I've met several of their friends who also are just average kids. I am also a teacher at a local high school that sends 2-4 kids to a T10 every year Yes, they are smart and hardworking, but they aren't rich and doing anything crazy to get into these schools.

Two at different ivies. Same experience: mostly normal but super bright kids. Down to earth and dedicated to their studies, good supportive friends.
Less than half there are full pay, and among the full pay most are the kids of doctors and lawyers 400kHHI full pay, not 10 million net worth uber rich. With the majority who are on aid, the ivies have much more SES diversity than my kids private high school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am surprised that people are shocked, shocked that money and connections can buy you an edge even when the measures are “objective”.

I have a friend who is a tenured professor at a well respected school. When his and his friends’ kids were of HS age, they ran a round robin of research internships. You take my kid and make sure they produce and publish something, and I’ll take yours. Impressive, right?

When my son was in [public] HS, he was a TOC level debater. That circle is very much dominated by private school kids, and some came to the tournaments with as many as 8 coaches. When they got to quarterfinals, the coaches fan out to watch the competitors, take notes and report on their weaknesses. Super helpful if your parents can pay for the time, food lodging and airfare for 8 people.

Well mine got in unhooked to multiple T10/ivy and did not do any of that BS. So do others. Most of the admitted ones are not “curated” to these extremes

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The colleges and universities do see through this to an extent. Any programs that are pay-to-play are generally discounted. Competitive programs like the MIT summer research programs or Telluride are more highly valued.

Agree, plus admissions views applications different depending school and region. An application from a student from a student at Philips Academy is going to look very different than application from a student in Indiana at a public high school. Grades, classes, and test scores would need to both be high- but they know the kid at public school in Indiana isn’t going to have access to lot of these outlandish programs.

[Anonymous]

I had no idea the Mountain School was tough to get into. Our neighbor who did it is normal rich (big law parent) and did it as a break from a school in which he was socially rather unhappy. It seemed to work well for him. He ended up at an OK SLAC, but I don't think he was using it as any kind of admissions boost.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Knowing this, it seems like a waste to even try to get into an Ivy

https://www.businessinsider.com/inside-ivy-league-prep-ultrawealthy-30k-schools-and-resumes-2025-9

On the other hand, why do billionaires even need this kind of college counseling service when they can just use their influence and connections?

No one needs this to get into a top school. Recognize advertising when you see it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Knowing this, it seems like a waste to even try to get into an Ivy

https://www.businessinsider.com/inside-ivy-league-prep-ultrawealthy-30k-schools-and-resumes-2025-9

On the other hand, why do billionaires even need this kind of college counseling service when they can just use their influence and connections?

Interesting: Nguyen said that exclusive semester-away programs like The Mountain School, The Island School, and Alzar School — each costing around $30,000 or more per term — have become increasingly popular among his clients.

Kid at T10, and has met several kids who've done these semester away programs at 2 of these schools. It's VERY VERY popular and a signal to AO.

I’m surprised that those schools are considered big pluses on an application. I know kids who have gone to all three of them. I am pretty sure they did it for the experience and to gain some maturity. None are at top colleges now.

My kid desperately wants to go the the Island School but I never saw it as a significant college bump--just an amazing experience and possible essay topic.