Georgia Irvin and Yield per Admission

[Anonymous]

Can anyone tell us what she does? We are just your average family and we have no connections, I think my child is great, but I am trying to put him in the best position possible when we apply to schools. I KNOW a bunch of people have said the EC is a waste of time, but I still would like to know what do they do or what do they claim they do?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We used her and did not find it very helpful. They actually told us our DC would not test well and we should maybe look at other schools. Turns out he tested very well and scored in the high 90s. I actually called them this week to follow up a quick question but to talk to them costs $100 per 15 minutes. the answer to my question would have taken 30 seconds to answer.

I would think she would be helpful if you very new to the area and wanted some help wading throuhg all the different options.

Did you use the full service?

[Anonymous]

Georgia is a sounding board. She provides good, common sense advice. Yes, you might get it elsewhere, but then again, if like us, you are new to the area, new to the whole independent school "thing," and at a preschool that primarily serves children headed for public school, you might not. She and Pam meet with your child for about an hour; they will then advise you on the best schools to apply to. They will read your applications if you like. They also write a recommendation for your child. I did not expect this to carry much weight, given that they had only had one glimpse of our child, and I don't know whether it did. They are in contact with the schools before decisions are made; I don't know any more about this part of the process and was too squeamish to ask. Once you get your letters, they will discuss the wait list process with you and share whatever they've learned about this year's applicant pool and about your child's applications.

We hired Georgia because we had no idea what we were doing, and we did not have other good sources of information. When we did so, I worried that hiring a consultant was somehow illegitimate and that we would be buying an advantage that others did not have. I no longer feel that way. After speaking to friends at schools like NCRC, I now realize that the directors of those schools do exactly what Georgia does and perhaps even more.

I have found it useful to have an informed, impartial third party to consult throughout this process. Georgia and Pam improved our decisionmaking and provided a steadying hand. Unlike a PP, our child did not get into every school to which we applied, but I am still happy with our decision to work with Georgia. If you can afford the service and you see it for what it is--not a genie in a bottle--then I think you will not be disappointed.

[Anonymous]

Two comments. One, a really good way to get a lot of Georgia's thoughts and input on the schools in this area is to buy her book!!! You can buy it used at amazon.com for about $5 -- a bargain. Then you can use what you already know about your own child to help you choose which schools seem like a good fit, and proceed from there. This forum is a nice place to bounce your thoughts, questions, etc. off other interested, well-informed adults. For free.

Second, do not try to "game" or prep for child for the WPSIII or any other test. It is a real disservice to your child because it is not likely to work, and if it did, that would be a disaster. You don't want your child to get into a school that is not right for him/her, because you will be setting your child up for an extremely hard and frustating time. There are so many good schools in this region--don't fixate on ones that will make you proud to tell others your child attends. Instead, really try to pick one that is honestly the best for your child. Keep in mind that none of the ones discussed on this forum are "easy" or for slackers!!! So let your child score exactly as is and then go from there. Just my opinion, of course.

[Anonymous]

Wow - actual thoughtful and rational responses to this subject. Thanks to the two PPs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Two comments. One, a really good way to get a lot of Georgia's thoughts and input on the schools in this area is to buy her book!!! You can buy it used at amazon.com for about $5 -- a bargain. Then you can use what you already know about your own child to help you choose which schools seem like a good fit, and proceed from there. This forum is a nice place to bounce your thoughts, questions, etc. off other interested, well-informed adults. For free.

Second, do not try to "game" or prep for child for the WPSIII or any other test. It is a real disservice to your child because it is not likely to work, and if it did, that would be a disaster. You don't want your child to get into a school that is not right for him/her, because you will be setting your child up for an extremely hard and frustating time. There are so many good schools in this region--don't fixate on ones that will make you proud to tell others your child attends. Instead, really try to pick one that is honestly the best for your child. Keep in mind that none of the ones discussed on this forum are "easy" or for slackers!!! So let your child score exactly as is and then go from there. Just my opinion, of course.

In our experience, Georgia definitely did NOT help your child to game the WPPSI. That is misinformation. She spends about one hour assessing your child so that can form her own opinion on which schools would suit him/her. In my opinion you cannot game the WPPSI unless you have access to it before hand. I certainly did not.

[Anonymous]

8:48 here: I agree with PP.

[Anonymous]

I didn't mean to imply that Georgia tries to prep children for WPSIII, which is why it was a separate comment. I just mentioned it because the topic had come up tangentially in prior posts.

[Anonymous]

To the pp who suggested buying Irvin's book instead of using her: The book is useful, sure. But it reveals nothing of the character and personality of the schools, the students, and the parents. If you live in NW and have tons of friends with kids in all these schools, maybe you can find out that stuff on your own. But if you don't, Irvin seems like a good source of that information. That's why I would consider using her.

[Anonymous]

I second what the pp said. In our case we already had a shortlist of schools. She went through each school and , based on her assessment of our DC told us which we would and would not suit him and why. The book does not give you such a personal perspective. We got into all the schools we applied to so what she had told us really helped in our final decision as to which school to choose. I found her service invaluable and worth it if you can afford it.

[Anonymous]

PP "If you can afford it" is a very key phrase!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:PP "If you can afford it" is a very key phrase!!

Agreed. But in the same vein, those who cannot afford should not necessarily pooh pooh it just because they can't afford it. Not saying that is always the reason but it certainly seems that way sometimes.

[Anonymous]

In my opinion, hiring a consultant to help you with this process is somewhat like hiring a wedding consultant. You certainly could go through the process on your own and do well - as we did and several other people we know - or you can hire someone to help you navigate through. Certainly would be helpful if you were busy people, just relocating to DC - which there are so many in this area - and need assistance. Also, there are many service-oriented people in this area who need and like assistance with many things. Probably the same types who hire decorators or personal trainers. I think Ms. Irwin and any of the other people who do what she does (are there others?) have tapped into a great market. That said, it must be frustrating to hire her thinking you have a competitive edge. I have a feeling that you don't get a real edge - except help wading through the mountains of information and maybe a little inside info (like we are searching for on these boards - ie: number of applicants/inside scoop on sibling preference, etc).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP "If you can afford it" is a very key phrase!!

Agreed. But in the same vein, those who cannot afford should not necessarily pooh pooh it just because they can't afford it. Not saying that is always the reason but it certainly seems that way sometimes.

I think the reasons that some people pooh pooh it are because:

A) They can't afford it, or don't want to afford it, or see it as yet another way that parents try to game the system. Is it a way to game the system? I don't know. I do know that access to these schools was once limited by race. In the absence of the race factor, access became limited by affordability. In the absence of the affordability factor, access then became limited by the WPPSI. In the absence of differentiators in the WPPSI score (lots of 90th plus percentiles in this area), access MAY now be limited by those who hire a consultant. Again, this is perception.
B) There is a level of mystery around exactly what the consultants do. No one who has paid the $3K is going to divulge the information or insights that they received. For those who didn't use a consultant, there is a perception (in the absence of information about what these services really offer) that use of a consultant is unfair or provides some distinct advantage. Does the consultant inhibit a leveled playing field? Don't know. I never used one. Only those who use the consultant know.
C) Much of the information that folks who use a consultant state is provided by the consultant is actually available on the web (i.e., washingtonian.com, nais.org, dcurbanmom.com, each individual school's website). So either there is actually more that the consultant is offering in the way of some competitive advantage or these folks are just not internet savvy or these folks just don't have the time to look up the information.

[Anonymous]

Well I am a Beauvoir parent and I guess I will just start asking around as I meet people and get to know them. If the overwhelming number of people I talk to used her I guess we have an answer...we did not but we were new to the area and wouldn't have known anyway. I will report my findings when I get them, if I can.....