Sidwell Junior - GPA concerns

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are the Sidwell Ivy admits this year (non-URM or athletic recruits) big donors? Anyone know?

Yes in the ED/EA round. RD still to come.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Admissions into HYPS category schools is like a game of snakes and ladders: Your DC can dodge a dozen obstacles through HS and get within striking distance of the final desired outcome, only to be devoured by the Big Donor/Legacy etc etc snake that will bring you back to square one.

Hopefully it's not ALL the way back to square one (fingers crossed and toes crossed!).

Please remember that not all the kids that fit into your description above are applying to Ivy. And I know many like this (not just at Sidwell) who still have no T50 admits via ED or EA rounds this year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are the Sidwell Ivy admits this year (non-URM or athletic recruits) big donors? Anyone know?

URM + VIP + Major Donors

How do you know if someone is a major donor? honest question?

I'm not PP - but there are annual public reports on donors within $$-categories (unless they ask to be anonymous). So maybe this is how they are judging?

I'd also add to the "URM + VIP + Major Donors" post that ED this year tended to be a combo of legacy parent with one of the three (maybe more, I don't know).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Admissions into HYPS category schools is like a game of snakes and ladders: Your DC can dodge a dozen obstacles through HS and get within striking distance of the final desired outcome, only to be devoured by the Big Donor/Legacy etc etc snake that will bring you back to square one.

My kid is not even going to play this game. She's a 3.89 junior in highest level classes and will likely attempt to ED to a school in the 20-30s. The rest of her preliminary list is in the 20-70 range.

Just be sure they like the 20-70 range schools - we know top stats kids like yours that were deferred ED from T20-T30 schools. RD still in play.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Admissions into HYPS category schools is like a game of snakes and ladders: Your DC can dodge a dozen obstacles through HS and get within striking distance of the final desired outcome, only to be devoured by the Big Donor/Legacy etc etc snake that will bring you back to square one.

My kid is not even going to play this game. She's a 3.89 junior in highest level classes and will likely attempt to ED to a school in the 20-30s. The rest of her preliminary list is in the 20-70 range.

Just be sure they like the 20-70 range schools - we know top stats kids like yours that were deferred ED from T20-T30 schools. RD still in play.

So top 10 Sidwelk kids getting in no where in top 50?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Admissions into HYPS category schools is like a game of snakes and ladders: Your DC can dodge a dozen obstacles through HS and get within striking distance of the final desired outcome, only to be devoured by the Big Donor/Legacy etc etc snake that will bring you back to square one.

My kid is not even going to play this game. She's a 3.89 junior in highest level classes and will likely attempt to ED to a school in the 20-30s. The rest of her preliminary list is in the 20-70 range.

Just be sure they like the 20-70 range schools - we know top stats kids like yours that were deferred ED from T20-T30 schools. RD still in play.

So top 10 Sidwelk kids getting in no where in top 50?

Many deferrals among the very strong students (who knows if it's top 10) at all the top DMV privates

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Admissions into HYPS category schools is like a game of snakes and ladders: Your DC can dodge a dozen obstacles through HS and get within striking distance of the final desired outcome, only to be devoured by the Big Donor/Legacy etc etc snake that will bring you back to square one.

My kid is not even going to play this game. She's a 3.89 junior in highest level classes and will likely attempt to ED to a school in the 20-30s. The rest of her preliminary list is in the 20-70 range.

Just be sure they like the 20-70 range schools - we know top stats kids like yours that were deferred ED from T20-T30 schools. RD still in play.

So top 10 Sidwelk kids getting in no where in top 50?

Many deferrals among the very strong students (who knows if it's top 10) at all the top DMV privates

This is emerging as the new pattern: All preferred categories (VLAUDs: VIPs, Legacies, Athletes, URMs, Donors) tend to clear top schools in ED/EA. The unhooked plebeians sort out through RD.

[Anonymous]

What is a VLAUD

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP You should be worried if your kid is shooting for Ivy's/Stanford/Duke/MIT and even highly selective state schools.

We are at another big 3 and the party line is "All the colleges know how hard our school is and that no one gets all A's" Our kid took the most rigorous classes and had a similar GPA- bit higher and a 1540 SAT plus good ec's etc etc. Guess what - Rejected early at Ivy. Friend with similar stats rejected at Michigan. I know a dozen examples. Yes alums, athletes and URM are still getting in - but the regular "smart" kids who don't have the 4.0 Plus because our schools don't weight and now we don't have AP's are getting shut out.

Things are changing the colleges want the 4.8's and don't care that our schools don't give out 4.0's easily And our schools are too arrogant to acknowledge it. If this continues to play out with lackluster admissions something will hopefully change. Too Late for my kid.

Your kid would have been rejected whether there was grade deflation or not. You don't get it. The only Big 3 kids the T20 want are hooked kids.

PP here I do get it - this may be true now but the schools need to acknowledge and deal with this reality and they do not. The world has changed and our Big 3 still acts like if you are just a great student you have a shot at top 10-15 schools and its utter BS. The admissions counselors keep a poker face and are not honest or forthcoming with their advice. But I am sorry the grade deflation does not help.

what do you want them to do? Honest question. How are they going to "deal with the reality?"

They only thing the high schools are in control of is their grading. And inflating their grading (pushing more kids up into the 3.8+ range) would only make this problem worse. Then you'd have twice as many big donor kids who will be in play for the top schools. Right now you only have the the smart big donor kids.
The last thing you need to do is make grades at Sidwell, etc. irrelevant and give everyone As for attending.

There are kids with 3.85 grades+ now. They're not getting in without hooks. Inflating grades to expand this cohort is not going to help anyone.

I am not certain with the PP is actually trying to indicate...however, maybe they are asking that Sidwell gives the "scared straight" speech to parents before applying.

Basically, tell prospective parents that if they think admission to Sidwell is going to translate into admission to a Top 10 just based on good grades/merit, then they are sadly mistaken. That your completely unhooked, smart kid in any given year will always compete against legacy, athlete, big donor, URM whatever...and Harvard will probably only accept X kids each year, because that is what they always accept each year.

Just make it abundantly clear that your odds are terrible...so in 13, 7 or 4 years from now when you are upset at least they can say..."I told you so"

do you think that many parents actually believe attending Sidwell will help with college admissions?

No! It helps with life and with the admissions, plus I’ve never ever worried about whether I’m getting a good RoI. It’s as sound of an investment as I could think of in a co-ed, effectively secular, DC school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What is a VLAUD

VIPs, Legacies, Athletes, URMs, Donors

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The letters can indicate this stuff. The school knows and finds ways.

Are you from Sidwell CCO? How do you know the couselor's letter indicates a student has accomendations?

No one wants a Varsity Blues on their hands. So there are ways to signal when fakers. There are obvious bs certificates or highly exaggerated situations. Kids talk too

No college counselor is going to share private disability information in a rec letter. They don’t even know the kids well enough to assess whether their disability is “fake” or not. And they’re not qualified to make that assessment, even if they did have the time to do a full neuropsych evaluation. You’re being ridiculous.

No, I’m not. The school has cracked down on it. It’s too much of a reputation risk

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The letters can indicate this stuff. The school knows and finds ways.

Are you from Sidwell CCO? How do you know the couselor's letter indicates a student has accomendations?

No one wants a Varsity Blues on their hands. So there are ways to signal when fakers. There are obvious bs certificates or highly exaggerated situations. Kids talk too

No college counselor is going to share private disability information in a rec letter. They don’t even know the kids well enough to assess whether their disability is “fake” or not. And they’re not qualified to make that assessment, even if they did have the time to do a full neuropsych evaluation. You’re being ridiculous.

No, I’m not. The school has cracked down on it. It’s too much of a reputation risk

About time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What is a VLAUD

I suggest LUVDAs instead of VLAUDs. Rolls off the tongue better.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What is a VLAUD

I suggest LUVDAs instead of VLAUDs. Rolls off the tongue better.

New PP on this particular issue, Personally, I like the ominous sound of VLAUD. (VLAUUUUUUD)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What is a VLAUD

I suggest LUVDAs instead of VLAUDs. Rolls off the tongue better.

Lol. First check the meaning of LUVDA in certain languages spoken by a huge swathe of humanity! It refers to a certain portion of the male anatomy in some South Asian languages!! Might be an appropriate reference after all!!