Rigor at TJ compared to regular FCPS high Schools

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:+1. My kid is currently at TJ. Older kid went to base HS.

Same courses. Same curriculum. At TJ often 2 semesters worth of course are crammed into 1. And that actually hurts the learning.

My older learnt his fundamentals much better at his base school.

TJ works for the top third of the class, who are truly academically advanced. But the remaining 2/3's struggle. Only consolation is the TJ diploma.

Not even sure the TJ diploma worth anything!? Especially considering how brutal it is for TJ kids applying to college. My TJ kid senior has 1550+ SAT but not stellar GPA thanks for the rigor/tough grading of TJ. I was told by a TJ counselor that my kid will have no chance admitting to UVA, W&M or V-Tech. Perhaps VCU is more likely!!

PP here: cograts on the 1550..can u share the GPA. Curious to hear what is considered (at least by 1 parent) as an average GPA.

[Anonymous]

Not PP - but a TJ diploma is highly respected when it comes to admissions.

UVA, VT, WM have to limit TJ kids but this is not a constraint for OOS schools. They will admit a TJ kid with less than stellar GPA ( eg 3.75 to 4.0W GPA) any day..

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Not PP - but a TJ diploma is highly respected when it comes to admissions.

UVA, VT, WM have to limit TJ kids but this is not a constraint for OOS schools. They will admit a TJ kid with less than stellar GPA ( eg 3.75 to 4.0W GPA) any day..

With aid? We aren't made of money.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My DC has a 4.0 W GPA after junior year. His counselor claims that it places him around 50% percentile compared to other TJ Kids. Does that seem right?

He also said - UVA etc are out of reach for a 4.0 W - but did say that MANY good OOS schools would welcome a student of that profile.

Who knows.

I personally would consider George Mason too, specially if DC is inclined to some of the popular Majors. It has been rising in rankings and the location is great for Jobs and salary.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not PP - but a TJ diploma is highly respected when it comes to admissions.

UVA, VT, WM have to limit TJ kids but this is not a constraint for OOS schools. They will admit a TJ kid with less than stellar GPA ( eg 3.75 to 4.0W GPA) any day..

With aid? We aren't made of money.

Agree. Not with merit. Its shocking how many TJ kids are full pay OOS. But they do get admissions, if that's a consolation. BTW - I dont think UVA offers merit to that many TJ kids, even if they get in

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DC has a 4.0 W GPA after junior year. His counselor claims that it places him around 50% percentile compared to other TJ Kids. Does that seem right?

He also said - UVA etc are out of reach for a 4.0 W - but did say that MANY good OOS schools would welcome a student of that profile.

Who knows.

I personally would consider George Mason too, specially if DC is inclined to some of the popular Majors. It has been rising in rankings and the location is great for Jobs and salary.

+1

If you pick an in demand field (CS, Business Analytics, Accounting etc) GMU is a great option

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DC has a 4.0 W GPA after junior year. His counselor claims that it places him around 50% percentile compared to other TJ Kids. Does that seem right?

He also said - UVA etc are out of reach for a 4.0 W - but did say that MANY good OOS schools would welcome a student of that profile.

Who knows.

I personally would consider George Mason too, specially if DC is inclined to some of the popular Majors. It has been rising in rankings and the location is great for Jobs and salary.

+1

If you pick an in demand field (CS, Business Analytics, Accounting etc) GMU is a great option

It would also be easier to transfer to UVA since I think the CS programs are still fairly similar.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:FCPS reputation appears to be dependent on recognizing and rewarding all hard working students, including Asian American students:

https://www.fcps.edu/news/264-fcps-students-named-2024-national-merit-semifinalists

One does not have to be an expert in heritage and cultures, but a significant number of the student names appear to be of Asian American ethnicity.

You would expect that of a program whose sole criteria (in this instance) is performance on a standardized exam.

I love standardized tests because they're easy to game through prep, and we have the means to prioritize education. This also helps thin the competition by eliminating less affluent students. Of course, there are other ways to identify qualified applicants but they are less advantageous for me.

You sound racist implying hard working asian american students efforts as gaming through prep in a demeaning way, and foolishly implying children from middle class asian families as affluent students.

From the perspective of a lot of people, "middle class" is affluent.

Believe it or not, the ability to prioritize extras for your child's education above and beyond what the public education system provides is a privilege. Failing to understand that is pretty aggressively elitist.

Providing bonus admissions points to a kid because their parents earn some arbitrary dollar amount, or their race earns them membership to some scholarly club isn't exactly fair. I guess those kids who don't qualify should have chosen different parents if they wanted a better chance at TJ.

The old admissions process excluded groups much more broadly than the new admissions process does. The old admissions process essentially zeroed out the admissions points for students from low-income families.

People keep bringing up race but it is not a factor in the new admissions process. You are not being oppressed simply because groups that are unlike yours now have realistic access to TJ, any more than men were oppressed when women gained access to the vote.

The new TJ admission system was ruled unconstitutional by US District Court since it discriminated against Asian applicants.

Ironic! Clinton appointed crazies countered it in the appeal process. So now it sits with supreme court. Colleges have been smacked for asian american discrimination, now it is the public school crazies turn.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Not PP - but a TJ diploma is highly respected when it comes to admissions.

UVA, VT, WM have to limit TJ kids but this is not a constraint for OOS schools. They will admit a TJ kid with less than stellar GPA ( eg 3.75 to 4.0W GPA) any day..

So with all the inflated grade points for silly honors for all classes, a 3.75 today is like a real 2.75?

[Anonymous]

I dont know about other schools, but at TJ, for example, even the Hons Chem is taught at a AP Chem level.

Colleges are aware of this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My DC has a 4.0 W GPA after junior year. His counselor claims that it places him around 50% percentile compared to other TJ Kids. Does that seem right?

He also said - UVA etc are out of reach for a 4.0 W - but did say that MANY good OOS schools would welcome a student of that profile.

Who knows.

Good luck from another TJ parent who’s child struggled through freshman (COVID year) and sophomore year. Personally I found the teachers and admin ridiculous. Like DC missed English quiz this week (excused absence). Teacher was pissed and make the makeup quiz impossible. Kids took 50% instead of trying the makeup.

Anyway, was told 2024 class average Weighted gpa is about 4.1. Look through the scattergrams and there is a webpage the kids know about that is from the previous class. It gives a student profile, gpa at time of application, ECs, whether they applied ED,EA or something else. It will also give you some insights. Make sure to apply to Alabama ($$ for SATs), Pitt, and George Mason.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:FCPS reputation appears to be dependent on recognizing and rewarding all hard working students, including Asian American students:

https://www.fcps.edu/news/264-fcps-students-named-2024-national-merit-semifinalists

One does not have to be an expert in heritage and cultures, but a significant number of the student names appear to be of Asian American ethnicity.

You would expect that of a program whose sole criteria (in this instance) is performance on a standardized exam.

I love standardized tests because they're easy to game through prep, and we have the means to prioritize education. This also helps thin the competition by eliminating less affluent students. Of course, there are other ways to identify qualified applicants but they are less advantageous for me.

You sound racist implying hard working asian american students efforts as gaming through prep in a demeaning way, and foolishly implying children from middle class asian families as affluent students.

From the perspective of a lot of people, "middle class" is affluent.

Believe it or not, the ability to prioritize extras for your child's education above and beyond what the public education system provides is a privilege. Failing to understand that is pretty aggressively elitist.

Providing bonus admissions points to a kid because their parents earn some arbitrary dollar amount, or their race earns them membership to some scholarly club isn't exactly fair. I guess those kids who don't qualify should have chosen different parents if they wanted a better chance at TJ.

The old admissions process excluded groups much more broadly than the new admissions process does. The old admissions process essentially zeroed out the admissions points for students from low-income families.

People keep bringing up race but it is not a factor in the new admissions process. You are not being oppressed simply because groups that are unlike yours now have realistic access to TJ, any more than men were oppressed when women gained access to the vote.

The new TJ admission system was ruled unconstitutional by US District Court since it discriminated against Asian applicants.

Ironic! Clinton appointed crazies countered it in the appeal process. So now it sits with supreme court. Colleges have been smacked for asian american discrimination, now it is the public school crazies turn.

I know it's so crazy since most can fathom how this race-blind selection process that favors Asians discriminates against the most well represented group.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I dont know about other schools, but at TJ, for example, even the Hons Chem is taught at a AP Chem level.

Colleges are aware of this.

Maybe some instate schools but outside of VA nobody even has heard of TJ.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I dont know about other schools, but at TJ, for example, even the Hons Chem is taught at a AP Chem level.

Colleges are aware of this.

Maybe some instate schools but outside of VA nobody even has heard of TJ.

NP. Moved here from somewhere else. Everyone has heard of Stuy and TJ.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I dont know about other schools, but at TJ, for example, even the Hons Chem is taught at a AP Chem level.

Colleges are aware of this.

Maybe some instate schools but outside of VA nobody even has heard of TJ.

NP. Moved here from somewhere else. Everyone has heard of Stuy and TJ.

Everyone from Northern VA has but everyone outside this area has never heard of it.