FAQ: What is the "Big 3"? (or "Big 5", or "Big 10", etc)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There's only a big 1 in DC. Sidwell. Sidwell doesn't show off or play any games. They do what they do, and all the other schools and parents follow.

I've actually never seen or heard of a kid getting into Sidwell and not accepting the spot.

An exception for Maret, but they're like the Juilliard of DC private schools.

All deference and respect to the other schools and parents.

My niece did.
It's not that uncommon if you don't live in Northwest DC.

By the way. Sidwell does not mean Ivy. There are some Sidwell kids who don’t make it to big schools. 100s of thousands in investment evaporated. So chill.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There's only a big 1 in DC. Sidwell. Sidwell doesn't show off or play any games. They do what they do, and all the other schools and parents follow.

I've actually never seen or heard of a kid getting into Sidwell and not accepting the spot.

An exception for Maret, but they're like the Juilliard of DC private schools.

All deference and respect to the other schools and parents.

My niece did.
It's not that uncommon if you don't live in Northwest DC.

By the way. Sidwell does not mean Ivy. There are some Sidwell kids who don’t make it to big schools. 100s of thousands in investment evaporated. So chill.

That’s true for almost all private schools.

[Anonymous]

I keep reading on this forum something along the lines of admission counselors at privates manage (or allocate) which kids are applying to which schools - what does that even mean?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I keep reading on this forum something along the lines of admission counselors at privates manage (or allocate) which kids are applying to which schools - what does that even mean?

The claim is that the college counselors pick which colleges a student will apply to - with an implied threat of forgetting to send HS transcripts to any non-approved colleges. The college counselors allegedly "guide" students to apply to colleges the school deems appropriate for that student (to avoid the wrong students getting in to T10 or T20 or whichever colleges).

Now, I have no reason to believe that really happens at any school, but that seems to be the (unproven) allegation a few others have made.

[Anonymous]

Honestly, given they all want to say we sent as high of a number of students as possible to as high of a caliber a school as possible... I doubt they are discouraging students from applying anywhere so much as trying to get them to not put their eggs all in one basket. I personally got into a college with rolling admissions I was happy to go to should I not get into the other colleges on my list and that allowed me to be far more intentional about where else I applied and the counselors at my high school were NOT happy about it and tried to encourage me to apply to more places to the point it felt like they were actually discouraging me from my first choice. I ended up getting into the top school I applied to, but the frustration could still be felt. I could see how someone might perceive what I experienced as they were trying to deter me from the top school when really it was the lack of "prestigious" schools they truly had a problem with. That being said, no one knows what happens behind closed doors beyond those who experience it and no one truly knows what the intention behind it was beyond those with the intent.