My kid isn't getting in

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Try being an applicant from a "big 3" private where the schools grade deflate, don't have APs, don't rank the class, and don't have traditional "weighted" GPAs. These schools have relied the notion that colleges know who they are and respect their rigor. No longer. Result: plenty of high achievers who are getting sub-par results.

+2 Colleges are much more interested in seeing a 4.6 GPA and 8 AP classes, then my DC’s measly 3.3 GPA and no APs (even with a 34 ACT). The colleges just don’t care about the test scores and the deflated grades at the big3 schools are doing a huge disservice to these kids. My DC is striking out at schools that would have been safeties pre-pandemic.

Your DC is not competing against the public school kids.

I get what you are saying, but in a way they are competing against public school kids. Take Wisconsin, for example. This used to be a likely for a kid at the Big3 with a high score (ACT 32-35 or 1450+ SAT) and lower GPA (3.1-3.4). But Wisconsin is now flooded with applications from kids that have crazy high GPAs and low test scores that they don’t have to submit. 3 years ago these kids would not have even bothered applying to Wisconsin because their test scores were too low. Now these kids are applying and getting admitted. As a result, the previous likely school for a private school student with the stats described above is now a reach. There just aren’t that many spots and the big state schools like the APs and high GPAs way more than a high test score. So the Big3 kid is striking out at these schools and having to look a tier lower, which seems crazy when these are very strong students.

PP here again. This is not a dig at the public school kids getting in TO. Good for them! It is more a dig at the private schools that are crippling these kids with low GPAs from deflated grading systems and no APs.

This 100%

My DD has friends in FCPS with strong GPAs but low SATs in the 1100-1250 range. Didn't submit scores, got into Wisconsin and similar level schools. Others, Big 3 with good (for Big 3) GPAs (3.5-3.75) and high SATs who were shut out. The kids who got in laugh and say that they wouldn't have gotten in a few years ago.

That's why this year makes no sense.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Try being an applicant from a "big 3" private where the schools grade deflate, don't have APs, don't rank the class, and don't have traditional "weighted" GPAs. These schools have relied the notion that colleges know who they are and respect their rigor. No longer. Result: plenty of high achievers who are getting sub-par results.

+2 Colleges are much more interested in seeing a 4.6 GPA and 8 AP classes, then my DC’s measly 3.3 GPA and no APs (even with a 34 ACT). The colleges just don’t care about the test scores and the deflated grades at the big3 schools are doing a huge disservice to these kids. My DC is striking out at schools that would have been safeties pre-pandemic.

Your DC is not competing against the public school kids.

I get what you are saying, but in a way they are competing against public school kids. Take Wisconsin, for example. This used to be a likely for a kid at the Big3 with a high score (ACT 32-35 or 1450+ SAT) and lower GPA (3.1-3.4). But Wisconsin is now flooded with applications from kids that have crazy high GPAs and low test scores that they don’t have to submit. 3 years ago these kids would not have even bothered applying to Wisconsin because their test scores were too low. Now these kids are applying and getting admitted. As a result, the previous likely school for a private school student with the stats described above is now a reach. There just aren’t that many spots and the big state schools like the APs and high GPAs way more than a high test score. So the Big3 kid is striking out at these schools and having to look a tier lower, which seems crazy when these are very strong students.

PP here again. This is not a dig at the public school kids getting in TO. Good for them! It is more a dig at the private schools that are crippling these kids with low GPAs from deflated grading systems and no APs.

This 100%

My DD has friends in FCPS with strong GPAs but low SATs in the 1100-1250 range. Didn't submit scores, got into Wisconsin and similar level schools. Others, Big 3 with good (for Big 3) GPAs (3.5-3.75) and high SATs who were shut out. The kids who got in laugh and say that they wouldn't have gotten in a few years ago.

That's why this year makes no sense.

Whatever inputs Wisconsin used in their algorithm determined that the shutout kids were unlikely to attend (yield).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Try being an applicant from a "big 3" private where the schools grade deflate, don't have APs, don't rank the class, and don't have traditional "weighted" GPAs. These schools have relied the notion that colleges know who they are and respect their rigor. No longer. Result: plenty of high achievers who are getting sub-par results.

+2 Colleges are much more interested in seeing a 4.6 GPA and 8 AP classes, then my DC’s measly 3.3 GPA and no APs (even with a 34 ACT). The colleges just don’t care about the test scores and the deflated grades at the big3 schools are doing a huge disservice to these kids. My DC is striking out at schools that would have been safeties pre-pandemic.

Your DC is not competing against the public school kids.

I get what you are saying, but in a way they are competing against public school kids. Take Wisconsin, for example. This used to be a likely for a kid at the Big3 with a high score (ACT 32-35 or 1450+ SAT) and lower GPA (3.1-3.4). But Wisconsin is now flooded with applications from kids that have crazy high GPAs and low test scores that they don’t have to submit. 3 years ago these kids would not have even bothered applying to Wisconsin because their test scores were too low. Now these kids are applying and getting admitted. As a result, the previous likely school for a private school student with the stats described above is now a reach. There just aren’t that many spots and the big state schools like the APs and high GPAs way more than a high test score. So the Big3 kid is striking out at these schools and having to look a tier lower, which seems crazy when these are very strong students.

PP here again. This is not a dig at the public school kids getting in TO. Good for them! It is more a dig at the private schools that are crippling these kids with low GPAs from deflated grading systems and no APs.

This 100%

My DD has friends in FCPS with strong GPAs but low SATs in the 1100-1250 range. Didn't submit scores, got into Wisconsin and similar level schools. Others, Big 3 with good (for Big 3) GPAs (3.5-3.75) and high SATs who were shut out. The kids who got in laugh and say that they wouldn't have gotten in a few years ago.

That's why this year makes no sense.

You keep insisting on comparing public school kids to private school kids when the real competition in among these groups, not between them.

Focus on the private school cohort that wisconsin is admitting. Is your student competitive in this group? Wisconsin is not going to only take public oos or only private oos. They will admit some of each. You have to understand your competition.

[Anonymous]

To build on your Wisconsin example - were the kid who were rejected from the privates actually going to enroll at Wisconsin?

[Anonymous]

Are the private school kids taking calculus? And calculus based physics? When I dig through websites that seems to be important in terms of defining rigor. Calculus is often mentioned specifically and also tracks with the idea that kids are taking the most rigorous curriculum offered at school.

[Anonymous]

Maybe this is Pollyanna-ish, but perhaps you can't see the forest through the trees until RD comes out.

I know of a lot of kids who are smarting from head-scratching ED/EA rejections but then end up at a pretty good school RD (despite the wisdom of this board indicating no one gets in RD). Without the complete picture, hard to pass judgment yet.

(Though, OP, i am not trying to pooh-pooh your hand wringing. I get it. It all feels pretty crazy at this stage and easy to second guess it all. Hang in there).

[Anonymous]

To the private school parents here complaining: you bought the product. It’s not our fault that your Birkin bag doesn’t carry as much as our no-name backpacks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are the private school kids taking calculus? And calculus based physics? When I dig through websites that seems to be important in terms of defining rigor. Calculus is often mentioned specifically and also tracks with the idea that kids are taking the most rigorous curriculum offered at school.

At our school those are required courses, so yes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:To the private school parents here complaining: you bought the product. It’s not our fault that your Birkin bag doesn’t carry as much as our no-name backpacks.

You are missing the point of the discussion entirely.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Maybe this is Pollyanna-ish, but perhaps you can't see the forest through the trees until RD comes out.

I know of a lot of kids who are smarting from head-scratching ED/EA rejections but then end up at a pretty good school RD (despite the wisdom of this board indicating no one gets in RD). Without the complete picture, hard to pass judgment yet.

(Though, OP, i am not trying to pooh-pooh your hand wringing. I get it. It all feels pretty crazy at this stage and easy to second guess it all. Hang in there).

I have to agree, especially since my DC mostly applied RD. Into one great EA safety so far.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:He's been rejected from an ED, deferred from an EA that was considered a safety, rejected from MD Honors, rejected by UVA, did not receive a transcript request last month from the UC's (evidentially a telltale sign you have a rejection coming April 1), received no merit aid from a safety that in the past routinely gave kids like him 10-15K a year, received no scholarship application invitation from another school that in the past routinely gave kids like him big scholarships...I could go on. When you are not full pay there are ways you can tell if a yes is coming from a lot of the schools. Of course there are others, and there's a decent chance he gets into one or two of them, but the trend does not make that feel likely.

What are UCs that don't include a transcript as part of the application?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are the private school kids taking calculus? And calculus based physics? When I dig through websites that seems to be important in terms of defining rigor. Calculus is often mentioned specifically and also tracks with the idea that kids are taking the most rigorous curriculum offered at school.

At our school those are required courses, so yes.

Interesting, physics C is not required and I am pretty sure some kids end at pre-calc or AP stats at my kids' private. That is great everyone takes calculus and physics C.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:He's been rejected from an ED, deferred from an EA that was considered a safety, rejected from MD Honors, rejected by UVA, did not receive a transcript request last month from the UC's (evidentially a telltale sign you have a rejection coming April 1), received no merit aid from a safety that in the past routinely gave kids like him 10-15K a year, received no scholarship application invitation from another school that in the past routinely gave kids like him big scholarships...I could go on. When you are not full pay there are ways you can tell if a yes is coming from a lot of the schools. Of course there are others, and there's a decent chance he gets into one or two of them, but the trend does not make that feel likely.

What are UCs that don't include a transcript as part of the application?

I think they meant University of California schools are are talking about a supplemental transcript with senior grades (so a transcript was required with original application).

[Anonymous]

That's ok. He will be fine. My kid is the highest stat you can imagine and he is happy with UMD-CP Hons. Got rejected by some top colleges also and it was a lottery. At least he was capable enough to be able to be in that lottery. Why worry.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:He's been rejected from an ED, deferred from an EA that was considered a safety, rejected from MD Honors, rejected by UVA, did not receive a transcript request last month from the UC's (evidentially a telltale sign you have a rejection coming April 1), received no merit aid from a safety that in the past routinely gave kids like him 10-15K a year, received no scholarship application invitation from another school that in the past routinely gave kids like him big scholarships...I could go on. When you are not full pay there are ways you can tell if a yes is coming from a lot of the schools. Of course there are others, and there's a decent chance he gets into one or two of them, but the trend does not make that feel likely.

What are UCs that don't include a transcript as part of the application?

UC's ask students to self report their grades and test scores. If you get in, then you have to prove that your report was accurate with transcripts and official score reports. But on the initial application, the student self reports