Big 3 Nightmare

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread seems to be primarily about GDS. Is Sidwell similar or STA/NCS?

Also, how does GDS address the needs of families who are seeking need based and merit aid? Do they allow those families to apply more broadly? DC is on considerable FA at another school and I would not be ok if DC had to limit options for matching with a school with adequate funding because of arbitrary school rules.

Sidwell has no limit but the other CCO issues are similar (plus some!) to the GDS complaints.

Sidwell '22 parent here. To name just one stellar example, 20 kids chose Brown as their ED. Which everyone figured out only after the deadline, by talking to each other. Obviously a CC can't say, J'im are you _sure_ about Brown? Because I need to tell you that Susan and Peter are also ED'ing Brown, and Susan's mother is a double legacy there, and Susan has a hidden disability that she's overcome, and Peter's parents are donating $500k this year.

But. An excellent and strategic CC can get across the same point, which is, Jim think about your 1b for ED, because Brown is a reaaaaaallllllll long shot, probably.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Sorry I’m late but what is Big 3? 🤣😂

Showing your ignorance.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why are public school parents so insecure & nosy?

in case you weren't aware, this is the college forum, and public school parents read and post on here, too.

There needs to be a separate college forum for private school parents.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread seems to be primarily about GDS. Is Sidwell similar or STA/NCS?

Also, how does GDS address the needs of families who are seeking need based and merit aid? Do they allow those families to apply more broadly? DC is on considerable FA at another school and I would not be ok if DC had to limit options for matching with a school with adequate funding because of arbitrary school rules.

The NCS process is much more transparent and you have access to more data. That does not mean everyone at NCS is thrilled with their outcomes or with the process, but having been through it at both schools, we found the NCS approach less stressful. There are very few scenarios where having less information is better than having more information.

You may have more data at NCS but there are plenty of unhappy parents and students regarding college outcomes at NCS.
Yes, the education is outstanding but it is hard for students not to question why they worked so hard in HS to end up at a school like Bates or Wisconsin.
Not throwing shade at these schools. They are excellent but lots of kids who had a more chill HS experience also end up at the same place. How is the stress and crazy amount of work at top high schools like GDS and NCS worth it?

Better college prep.

We all like to think that and it is true up to a point. But it often leads to burnout in HS. Most public school kids do just fine in college.
There is a cost to the high pressure/high stress environment of the top privates. We are ignoring all the anxiety and mental health issues at these schools.
I believe it might be time to dial things back a little. The Ivy obsession needs to stop

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have a Big3 3.9 student who frankly would be thrilled by Wisconsin. She is applying next year. She is done with high stress.

Be sure to show LOTS of interest, and even so, don't expect to be able to tap out and take what would seem like a low stress road. We know of multiple very high stats kids like yours who applied ED to schools like this and were deferred (IN ED!!!) - it's nuts. Hope that doesn't happen to you but just be mentally prepared for the possibility.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread seems to be primarily about GDS. Is Sidwell similar or STA/NCS?

Also, how does GDS address the needs of families who are seeking need based and merit aid? Do they allow those families to apply more broadly? DC is on considerable FA at another school and I would not be ok if DC had to limit options for matching with a school with adequate funding because of arbitrary school rules.

The NCS process is much more transparent and you have access to more data. That does not mean everyone at NCS is thrilled with their outcomes or with the process, but having been through it at both schools, we found the NCS approach less stressful. There are very few scenarios where having less information is better than having more information.

You may have more data at NCS but there are plenty of unhappy parents and students regarding college outcomes at NCS.
Yes, the education is outstanding but it is hard for students not to question why they worked so hard in HS to end up at a school like Bates or Wisconsin.
Not throwing shade at these schools. They are excellent but lots of kids who had a more chill HS experience also end up at the same place. How is the stress and crazy amount of work at top high schools like GDS and NCS worth it?

Better college prep.

We all like to think that and it is true up to a point. But it often leads to burnout in HS. Most public school kids do just fine in college.
There is a cost to the high pressure/high stress environment of the top privates. We are ignoring all the anxiety and mental health issues at these schools.
I believe it might be time to dial things back a little. The Ivy obsession needs to stop

Yes of course you want the competition to dial it back.

We’re not talking about Ivies here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why are public school parents so insecure & nosy?

in case you weren't aware, this is the college forum, and public school parents read and post on here, too.

There needs to be a separate college forum for private school parents.

Or maybe - a thread that has a title that is clearly about private schools? (Oh wait - that's THIS thread)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread seems to be primarily about GDS. Is Sidwell similar or STA/NCS?

Also, how does GDS address the needs of families who are seeking need based and merit aid? Do they allow those families to apply more broadly? DC is on considerable FA at another school and I would not be ok if DC had to limit options for matching with a school with adequate funding because of arbitrary school rules.

Sidwell has no limit but the other CCO issues are similar (plus some!) to the GDS complaints.

Sidwell '22 parent here. To name just one stellar example, 20 kids chose Brown as their ED. Which everyone figured out only after the deadline, by talking to each other. Obviously a CC can't say, J'im are you _sure_ about Brown? Because I need to tell you that Susan and Peter are also ED'ing Brown, and Susan's mother is a double legacy there, and Susan has a hidden disability that she's overcome, and Peter's parents are donating $500k this year.

But. An excellent and strategic CC can get across the same point, which is, Jim think about your 1b for ED, because Brown is a reaaaaaallllllll long shot, probably.

Same at GDS this year. Is it always Brown?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why are public school parents so insecure & nosy?

in case you weren't aware, this is the college forum, and public school parents read and post on here, too.

There needs to be a separate college forum for private school parents.

Or maybe - a thread that has a title that is clearly about private schools? (Oh wait - that's THIS thread)

Maybe you can all pay Jeff $50k/yr to give you a marvelous, magical forum just for you!

Or start your own site.

Or stop being so insecure.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why are public school parents so insecure & nosy?

in case you weren't aware, this is the college forum, and public school parents read and post on here, too.

There needs to be a separate college forum for private school parents.

Why? I'm a private school parent (who also had another kid go through public school) and I disagree, so I'm curious why you think this. Does it bother you that public school students apply to and get accepted at many of the same schools as private school students? Do you really believe that your situation is so different from other families?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why are public school parents so insecure & nosy?

in case you weren't aware, this is the college forum, and public school parents read and post on here, too.

There needs to be a separate college forum for private school parents.

Or maybe - a thread that has a title that is clearly about private schools? (Oh wait - that's THIS thread)

Maybe you can all pay Jeff $50k/yr to give you a marvelous, magical forum just for you!

Or start your own site.

Or stop being so insecure.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP you are correct. I'm also the parent of a senior and the Big 3 results in terms of top 20 schools are worse this year than in the past for unhooked Big 3 kids.

Love them or hate them, the top private school kids are working their butts off and not seeing a correlation with high acceptance rates at competitive schools.

This is a national trend with test optional and the added impact of elite privates eliminating AP's makes it harder to compete.

So it is a bummer that yes, my kid works way harder than their sibling in public; yes, their big 3 private is more rigorous than public; yes, our kid in public may actually fare better in the admissions game. I think the money we spent on private was worth it in that it was the right fit for our kid, and I know they will be well-prepared for college.
But they sure as heck are not going to an Ivy, despite what, on paper, seem to be the right qualifications.

You're comparing apples to oranges. Public kids who take multiple APs or who are in magnet programs work their butts off too, and that's the competition for your private school kid. Not the public school kid in honors programs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread seems to be primarily about GDS. Is Sidwell similar or STA/NCS?

Also, how does GDS address the needs of families who are seeking need based and merit aid? Do they allow those families to apply more broadly? DC is on considerable FA at another school and I would not be ok if DC had to limit options for matching with a school with adequate funding because of arbitrary school rules.

The NCS process is much more transparent and you have access to more data. That does not mean everyone at NCS is thrilled with their outcomes or with the process, but having been through it at both schools, we found the NCS approach less stressful. There are very few scenarios where having less information is better than having more information.

You may have more data at NCS but there are plenty of unhappy parents and students regarding college outcomes at NCS.
Yes, the education is outstanding but it is hard for students not to question why they worked so hard in HS to end up at a school like Bates or Wisconsin.
Not throwing shade at these schools. They are excellent but lots of kids who had a more chill HS experience also end up at the same place. How is the stress and crazy amount of work at top high schools like GDS and NCS worth it?

Bates parent here from a highly regarded DMV public school. Your mindset is 1990s. The median GPA for my kid's HS for Bates was 4.6w. Wisconsin is a similarly tough admit nowadays. None of the kids who go to these schools from the DC area had a "chill HS experience." Sorry that your kid has to slum with mine, we're very glad that we chose not to put our kids in overpriced mediocre privates only to end up in the exact same place as hardworking public school kids. Hope your kid didn't inherit your sense of entitlement.

Is your highly regarded public school in MoCo? because if it is, everyone is aware now of the unlimited retakes, the C + B = A as the final grade, and equity-driven GPA outcomes. I'm not saying your kid isn't deserving. I am saying that any moderately intelligent kid attending at MoCo HS will emerge with a 4.2w or better just by breathing.

This is not the case at GDS, NCS, STA and especially Sidwell, where two English teachers will not give As. To anyone.

My heart breaks for you, really it does. Your poor kid, whose parents have shelled out hundreds of thousands of dollars to get a leg up on the competition, has to go to college with my kid, whom who you know nothing about but whose capabilities you deride as the beneficiary of unlimited retakes. How classy. Welcome to the real world, private school parent. It only gets better after college admissions. No one - really, no one - is impressed with your kid's privileged HS background. But keep telling yourself it was a good investment and keep sneering at kids who went to public schools. It's a great look, really.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sounds like lots of disenchanted GDS senior parents (like me) lurking here.

Lots of good stuff about this school academically but the CCO is highly variable, but more so is entirely devoid of facts and data, and runs the process like mindful meditation seminar sophomore and junior year and then 0 to 100 senior fall with no straight answers to yes or no questions on whether i should apply here or there.

My favorite was the junior year parents meeting where they started with 5 minutes on whether college is right for your kid. I mean WTF guys - we are at a college prep school.

For the next kid, I will be much more in command of the process, bringing data, and calling out their lack of numerical approach

I also think the 10 school cap has to be raised to 12 or 15. It mostly protects middle of the pack kids but the number hasnt changed in 10 years+. Meanwhile apps are up +20% per year every year since that time.

The limit set at 10 helps the registrar and the CCOs but not the kids.

At the very least, they can make state flagships unlimited.

Why?

Aren't the state flagships generally the land of the middle-of-the-pack kids?

If you allow your top kids to apply to them, then where do the middle kids go?

Serious question. Limiting apps protects everyone from the top 20% kids. This used to work until this year when
SOME (not all) top 20% kids started getting shut out of the top 0-30 schools. The kids likely applied to a few
safeties in the 30-70 range and are now attending one of these. But if you give them the ability to apply to unlimited state
schools in the 30-70 range, then where do the kids who traditionally matched with those schools (the middle-of-the-packers) go?

It's a tenuous balance but these limits are there to help spread the wealth of the admits across the class and protect
the lower ranked kids from losing their spots to the top 20% kids.

No that’s more GMU type schools. Unless you mean flagships in sparsely populated states.

The middle of the class at GDS is not historically (up to and including 2022 at least) matriculating to GMU. They're attending much better schools.

Check out the 2022 Instagram which almost represents the class in full. Your guess is as good as mine as to who the middle 50% kids are but there is no one going to GMU (and very few to similarly ranked schools) and definitely not the full middle 50%.
https://www.instagram.com/gdsseniors22/

This list from the class of 2022 looks good to me. Many good to excellent schools represented here. What exactly is the problem?
If the 2023 list is equally strong, color me impressed by GDS college admissions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread seems to be primarily about GDS. Is Sidwell similar or STA/NCS?

Also, how does GDS address the needs of families who are seeking need based and merit aid? Do they allow those families to apply more broadly? DC is on considerable FA at another school and I would not be ok if DC had to limit options for matching with a school with adequate funding because of arbitrary school rules.

The NCS process is much more transparent and you have access to more data. That does not mean everyone at NCS is thrilled with their outcomes or with the process, but having been through it at both schools, we found the NCS approach less stressful. There are very few scenarios where having less information is better than having more information.

You may have more data at NCS but there are plenty of unhappy parents and students regarding college outcomes at NCS.
Yes, the education is outstanding but it is hard for students not to question why they worked so hard in HS to end up at a school like Bates or Wisconsin.
Not throwing shade at these schools. They are excellent but lots of kids who had a more chill HS experience also end up at the same place. How is the stress and crazy amount of work at top high schools like GDS and NCS worth it?

Bates parent here from a highly regarded DMV public school. Your mindset is 1990s. The median GPA for my kid's HS for Bates was 4.6w. Wisconsin is a similarly tough admit nowadays. None of the kids who go to these schools from the DC area had a "chill HS experience." Sorry that your kid has to slum with mine, we're very glad that we chose not to put our kids in overpriced mediocre privates only to end up in the exact same place as hardworking public school kids. Hope your kid didn't inherit your sense of entitlement.

Is your highly regarded public school in MoCo? because if it is, everyone is aware now of the unlimited retakes, the C + B = A as the final grade, and equity-driven GPA outcomes. I'm not saying your kid isn't deserving. I am saying that any moderately intelligent kid attending at MoCo HS will emerge with a 4.2w or better just by breathing.

This is not the case at GDS, NCS, STA and especially Sidwell, where two English teachers will not give As. To anyone.

I don’t understand why you are being rude. C +B = B in MCPS. It does not equal an A. I agree that there is grade inflation in MCPS but the kids work hard. If you have a problem with the English teachers at Sidwell, you should try to address it at your school rather than trying to feel better by insulting MCPS. Some of the MCPS teachers are also pretty stingy with As.

Unless you've had a kid at GDS, NCS, etc, you can't say they're comparable. They're not. My kid is on a sports team with all MCPS kids who take the hardest classes, very high GPAs, etc, and they don't work even half as hard as their counterparts in top privates. Not saying they're not smart, but their high school experience is absolutely chill in comparison.