How selective is SJC?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It would be lovely if GZ people would just leave well enough alone. If they are secure in their school’s offerings they would not give a whit about the kids applying to SJC.

As for SJC, they do what they do well. I hope their numbers don’t climb too much that they too abandon the “average” kids. There needs to be a place for kids who want Catholic education but don’t have the money or stellar resume that other schools say they require.

SJC has risen from the ashes when they were headed toward closure not all that long ago. More power to them!

I agree with a lot of what you said.

But how can you answer the OP's question about how difficult it will be to get into ST John's without making some sort of comparison to other somewhat similar schools?

If SJC is, indeed, experiencing this huge growth in applicants, the school will start becoming more selective academically. It's no different than what happened at UMD.

But it probably has a ways to go. That's not a criticism, its a fact.

So people should know that there are still a fair number of average students at St John's. Nobody should be offended by that observation.

[Anonymous]

But some people send their kids to the honors program there. It can't just be because it's cheaper than other privates. Is it?

[Anonymous]

There's a lot more Gonzaga hate than SJC hate on this thread. Both excellent schools. No need to bash either one.

[Anonymous]

<<There's a lot more Gonzaga hate than SJC hate on this thread. Both excellent schools. No need to bash either one.>>

Yeah I can't imagine the hate is coming from Gonzaga. I genuinely want to know why people get so negative whenever SJC comes up...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:<<There's a lot more Gonzaga hate than SJC hate on this thread. Both excellent schools. No need to bash either one.>>

Yeah I can't imagine the hate is coming from Gonzaga. I genuinely want to know why people get so negative whenever SJC comes up...

Remember what the original question was here.

The poster wanted to know how "selective" SJC was. The underlying question seemed to be "How hard will it be for my DC to gain admissions" or "What
s the level of academic aptitude/interest of my DC's classmates should we send her/him there?"

The SJC posters on here don't like anything that could be read as negative so they attack the poster. Or they point to the Honors program as if that was the whole school.

People on the other side have opinions that have been formed by the history of the school which entered a long downward spiral in the 1980's.

St John's rise looks like it has been due to 1.) Money from the alumni, of which there are many. 2.) The need for an alternative to the DC public school system and to some degree some Maryland public schools. 3.) The desire of Catholics in the area to send their DCs to a Catholic high school which is not named Prep, Gonzaga, St Anselms, Visitation, Stone Ridge, Holy Cross or Holy Child.

[Anonymous]

<<The poster wanted to know how "selective" SJC was. The underlying question seemed to be "How hard will it be for my DC to gain admissions" or "What
s the level of academic aptitude/interest of my DC's classmates should we send her/him there?" >>

I have a child who would probably be described as average and is at SJC. We were prepared to send our child to public school, but our child wanted to go to SJC.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:But some people send their kids to the honors program there. It can't just be because it's cheaper than other privates. Is it?

I have a kid in the Scholars program at SJC. Without going into details, I’m pretty sure my kid would have been accepted at lots of other private schools. We like the vibe and community at SJC. It is not elitist or snobby. I’m sure there are some students with lots of money but it does not feel like it. Parents and kids all seem down to earth. The academics are strong enough to challenge my highly academically gifted kid and the school has a lot of other things to offer. Yes, sports is a big deal but they have put money into science, music and an entrepreneurship program. We also like the faith and service aspect. Most Catholic schools try to stay affordable and welcoming to lots of students. They are not trying to be super selective or take only the very highest performing kids. I like that approach to education. People who don’t like it probably won’t be happy at SJC or most other Catholic schools.

[Anonymous]

The deal with SJC is that part of their mission is to embrace a diverse student body. That was the entire reason the Lasallian Brothers were originally formed.

So the schools is quite selective -- since they don't accept kids based solely on test scores or transcripts you get a wide range of kids. It isn't good enough to just have a high HSPT. If your teacher recommendations aren't great and your have a HSPT you won't get in. If you have a great transcript, low HSPT and great teacher recs you have a better shot than the previous kid even though they may have a higher HSPT.

That is the beauty of a Lasallian school.

[Anonymous]

I not a Gonzaga parent, not even a Catholic school parent, but am a long time DC private school parent. I can tell you that, in the private school world of the DC area, STJ is considered inferior academically to Gonazaga per the common wisdom.

In response to OP's original question, STJ is not considerd very competitive at all. STJ, like Bullis, is regarded as the safety school or back up school for kids who cannot get in to any other private or Catholic school because of less than stellar grades and/or test scores.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I not a Gonzaga parent, not even a Catholic school parent, but am a long time DC private school parent. I can tell you that, in the private school world of the DC area, STJ is considered inferior academically to Gonazaga per the common wisdom.

In response to OP's original question, STJ is not considerd very competitive at all. STJ, like Bullis, is regarded as the safety school or back up school for kids who cannot get in to any other private or Catholic school because of less than stellar grades and/or test scores.

Like you said, you know nothing.

[Anonymous]

The timing of this thread is interesting -- the day SJC had its massive open house. I think it is meant to discourage interested families. Hopefully, they will see through the intentionally planted negative comments and view SJC for what it is, an environment that welcomes a diverse student body academically and ethnically. Please ignore the private school parents, who, like PP said, know nothing about catholic schools or public school parents who think anyone paying for education is wasting their money. And, the Gonzaga purple butts.

[Anonymous]

<<In response to OP's original question, STJ is not considerd very competitive at all. STJ, like Bullis, is regarded as the safety school or back up school for kids who cannot get in to any other private or Catholic school because of less than stellar grades and/or test scores.>>

I guess what I'm wondering is -- why is this the view? Why is it considered this way?

Also to the PPs who mention the academic diversity aspect, and purposely keeping it mixed....surely if there was an abundance of high-achieving applicants, it would not remain this way, no?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:<<In response to OP's original question, STJ is not considerd very competitive at all. STJ, like Bullis, is regarded as the safety school or back up school for kids who cannot get in to any other private or Catholic school because of less than stellar grades and/or test scores.>>

I guess what I'm wondering is -- why is this the view? Why is it considered this way?

Also to the PPs who mention the academic diversity aspect, and purposely keeping it mixed....surely if there was an abundance of high-achieving applicants, it would not remain this way, no?

SJC offers a program called Benilde for students with mild to moderate learning differences which few catholic or private schools offer so that adds to the diverse learning community and is part of the LaSaillian tradition. If you go to the website, you will see the diverse offerings. Some schools like SJC are mission driven to serve many students. I am wondering why there is so much hate, that is the question, perhaps it is ignorance under the guise of elitism. Why is it considered this way???

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:<<In response to OP's original question, STJ is not considerd very competitive at all. STJ, like Bullis, is regarded as the safety school or back up school for kids who cannot get in to any other private or Catholic school because of less than stellar grades and/or test scores.>>

I guess what I'm wondering is -- why is this the view? Why is it considered this way?

Also to the PPs who mention the academic diversity aspect, and purposely keeping it mixed....surely if there was an abundance of high-achieving applicants, it would not remain this way, no?

It is considered this way because it most recently (1990s) almost went under. The school was dying so they changed it up, let in girls, JROTC isn't mandatory and the school has flourished. If we were all in say 1978 this is exactly what was being said about Gonzaga when it almost went under. They changed it up and were able to rebuild also. Both schools have seen some dark days but both are flourishing now. It is great that there are so many choices for kids.

There is an abundance of high achieving applicants. There is an entire scholars program (enter GZ mother to talk about how she wasn't impressed with the teachers at the brunch) filled with high achieving students. There is also the Benilde program where kids with learning disabilities are embraced, supported and required to take the same classes as all the other students so they too will be ready for college. There are kids who aren't in either program who are the typical kids smart and average kids but generally good kids who want to be at SJC.

Funny how this all comes up right at the SJC vs GZ game is this weekend!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:<<In response to OP's original question, STJ is not considerd very competitive at all. STJ, like Bullis, is regarded as the safety school or back up school for kids who cannot get in to any other private or Catholic school because of less than stellar grades and/or test scores.>>

I guess what I'm wondering is -- why is this the view? Why is it considered this way?

Also to the PPs who mention the academic diversity aspect, and purposely keeping it mixed....surely if there was an abundance of high-achieving applicants, it would not remain this way, no?

I have 52 nieces and nephews... countless cousins. They attend Gonzage, Prep, STC, GC, O'Connell, Bullis, STA, Blair magnet, WJ, BCC, and many other schools.

SJC is a down to earth private school with a very accepting atmosphere. That is why it is very popular among a certain cohort of people. They have a high success rate at educating kids at the highest level as well as accepting kids with learning differences. They are not getting rid of the program that helps struggling kids because that is part of their core values. They don't need to only accept "high-achieving" applicant... since their most successful alum... were not high achieving students.

Why do "some people have a negative view"... They have this "view" because they only see a few kids that seriously struggle with school going to SJC and they make assumption the rest of the kids are similar.

I worked at a parochial school for 10 years and the smartest kids did not always get into Gonzaga and Prep. It's true, they would be blocked by legacy kids. So there is also a feeling that it is "hard to get in" to Gonzaga and Prep, but it's not because smart kids get in.