Shooting below your weight

[Anonymous]

My kid went to undergrad at an SEC school with 100% merit for tuition. Then got into a top 20 law school with 80% merit too. I think it worked out well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:USC if you have high stats.

Do you mean University of Southern California? Costs $90k/yr.

Yes and 50% off if NMF…

50 percent off tuition, not room and board. USC also seems more likely to reject NMF than other schools, especially if they don’t need financial aid (since merit aid is simply substituted for financial aid, not additive).

[Anonymous]

I think you will find that any school on the national list in top 120, and any school in the liberal arts list top 80 to 100 or so, and the top 10 regional college in each region will provide an excellent education and land your child a career or a spot in grad school.

Our DC had choices at schools ranked (at the time) 28-120 national and any one of them would have been awesome and a great fit. Chose one in the 60s with a lot of merit aid and is very happy and thriving. Classmates are super smart and motivated. Professors are accessible (no TA taught classes). Job and grad school placement is excellent.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Apply to Minnesota. It was s really long and gives merit early if you are a strong candidate.

wonder why Minnesota isn’t mentioned more on DCUM. Other than rough winters, it’s a fantastic school - and kinder, friendlier more authentic folks - I’d take a minnesota state school kid over a Nescac lax bro any day of the week

I feel like grass is always greener…I have a bunch of family in MN sending their kids to other state schools (believe there is reciprocity) because they think UMN sucks. They live in the area and know it well, so I take their advice.

The education is probably fine, but they and their friends think the college experience is severely lacking.

My NOVA kid loves it and so does his in-state friends. So this isn’t factual, just personal preference.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's punching below your weight, OP.

What matters most is fit. Where your student feels most at home, comfortable. This is where I want to be. Single most important factor.

+1000

Where will your DC thrive socially and emotionally as well as academically? That’s the key question that is often missing in the process.

Please. Telling my friends and neighbors “my DC is so socially and emotionally happy their school” pales in comparison to “my DC goes to Yale.”

C’mon. You know this.

DP: I totally disagree with you on that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think you will find that any school on the national list in top 120, and any school in the liberal arts list top 80 to 100 or so, and the top 10 regional college in each region will provide an excellent education and land your child a career or a spot in grad school.

Our DC had choices at schools ranked (at the time) 28-120 national and any one of them would have been awesome and a great fit. Chose one in the 60s with a lot of merit aid and is very happy and thriving. Classmates are super smart and motivated. Professors are accessible (no TA taught classes). Job and grad school placement is excellent.

Look at what schools are in the 120-175 range. There are some decent well-known universities there. So I think people can dip well below 120 & still get a fine education. The question is whether friends & family along the east coast can handle the humiliation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's punching below your weight, OP.

What matters most is fit. Where your student feels most at home, comfortable. This is where I want to be. Single most important factor.

+1000

Where will your DC thrive socially and emotionally as well as academically? That’s the key question that is often missing in the process.

Please. Telling my friends and neighbors “my DC is so socially and emotionally happy their school” pales in comparison to “my DC goes to Yale.”

C’mon. You know this.

Imagine how many points one gets for “My DC is so socially and emotionally happy AT YALE.” 😜

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's punching below your weight, OP.

What matters most is fit. Where your student feels most at home, comfortable. This is where I want to be. Single most important factor.

+1000

Where will your DC thrive socially and emotionally as well as academically? That’s the key question that is often missing in the process.

Please. Telling my friends and neighbors “my DC is so socially and emotionally happy their school” pales in comparison to “my DC goes to Yale.”

C’mon. You know this.

DP: I totally disagree with you on that.

Sorry. That was sarcasm. Just making from of the strivers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I really hate the characterization that you're "shooting below your weight". Choosing the best college is the whole package, bet fit, etc. If that's Auburn or St Joes, or where ever, then so be it. Don't both accept the $$$$$ and act like you're too good for the school.

Please. A kid with the grades and scores for Duke or Northwestern is going to be the cream of the crop for a school like St. Joe’s. It is definitely several tiers lower and that’s a real consideration for OP. Why wouldn’t it be?

Why is it a consideration? A kid with good stats is going to get a fine education no matter where they go. If you’re concerned about the tier of a certain colleges, you are concerned with prestige, not education.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How is he in at both UVA and W&M already? W&M doesn't have EA, only ED1, ED2, and RD. Calling troll.

DP. WM let top RD candidates know they got accepted early.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:USC if you have high stats.

Do you mean University of Southern California? Costs $90k/yr.

Yes and 50% off if NMF…

50 percent off tuition, not room and board. USC also seems more likely to reject NMF than other schools, especially if they don’t need financial aid (since merit aid is simply substituted for financial aid, not additive).

yeah. I live in Los Angeles and USC is full of shiny happy people - the sons and daughters of very wealthy, well placed people.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's punching below your weight, OP.

What matters most is fit. Where your student feels most at home, comfortable. This is where I want to be. Single most important factor.

+1000

Where will your DC thrive socially and emotionally as well as academically? That’s the key question that is often missing in the process.

Please. Telling my friends and neighbors “my DC is so socially and emotionally happy their school” pales in comparison to “my DC goes to Yale.”

C’mon. You know this.

DP: I totally disagree with you on that.

+1 Yes it’s wunnerful that your kid got in Yale. But this isn’t 1980.

These days a Yale acceptance comes attached to a whole file cabinet full of suspicions that kid was cutting corners on phony charities, had family connections pulling strings, had daddy donate a new wing of the Chemistry building, had thousands of $ in SAT prep, had uncle provide documentation for bogus extra test time learning disability, and so on.

Everybody knows a dozen brilliant kids who didn’t even get waitlisted at a T10 because they weren’t related to f’ing Susan “Down with the capitalist patriarchy—but please wait til my kid graduates from Brown before starting the revolution” Sarandon.

[Anonymous]

What is NMF?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's punching below your weight, OP.

What matters most is fit. Where your student feels most at home, comfortable. This is where I want to be. Single most important factor.

+1000

Where will your DC thrive socially and emotionally as well as academically? That’s the key question that is often missing in the process.

Please. Telling my friends and neighbors “my DC is so socially and emotionally happy their school” pales in comparison to “my DC goes to Yale.”

C’mon. You know this.

DP: I totally disagree with you on that.

+1 Yes it’s wunnerful that your kid got in Yale. But this isn’t 1980.

These days a Yale acceptance comes attached to a whole file cabinet full of suspicions that kid was cutting corners on phony charities, had family connections pulling strings, had daddy donate a new wing of the Chemistry building, had thousands of $ in SAT prep, had uncle provide documentation for bogus extra test time learning disability, and so on.

Everybody knows a dozen brilliant kids who didn’t even get waitlisted at a T10 because they weren’t related to f’ing Susan “Down with the capitalist patriarchy—but please wait til my kid graduates from Brown before starting the revolution” Sarandon.

DP but no, it really doesn't. Only in the mad minds of saddo DCUM mommies whose kids don't get in.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I really hate the characterization that you're "shooting below your weight". Choosing the best college is the whole package, bet fit, etc. If that's Auburn or St Joes, or where ever, then so be it. Don't both accept the $$$$$ and act like you're too good for the school.

Please. A kid with the grades and scores for Duke or Northwestern is going to be the cream of the crop for a school like St. Joe’s. It is definitely several tiers lower and that’s a real consideration for OP. Why wouldn’t it be?

Why is it a consideration? A kid with good stats is going to get a fine education no matter where they go. If you’re concerned about the tier of a certain colleges, you are concerned with prestige, not education.

That’s like saying any intelligent child will do fine in HS including the inner city public. You full well know that the environment matters.