Big 3 (or thereabouts) College Results - Class of 2021

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid is at a Big 3 also. We have one solid EA acceptance which we thought was a borderline safety school but is looking better and better to attend with all the deferrals my kid has gotten (and to schools where the kid fell squarely within the Naviance acceptance range). And we are full-pay so that has not made a difference.

I do think the public school students with 4.5 GPAs and 10 AP classes are winning out this year compared to the top one-third of students at private schools that have a 3.5 - 3.7 GPA and no AP classes. My kid has a GPA in this range and solid ACT results (34-36) but with test scores becoming increasingly irrelevant, all that stands out is a deflated 3.5 against an inflated 4.5.

All I can hope is that this is a long process that will continue to unfold until June 1. The public school kids are applying to a lot more schools and getting into to places. However, they can only attend one college so I'm hoping the deferrals turn into acceptances or waitlists which then turn into acceptances.

High School counselors at our Big 3 are MIA and seem to be unaccountable and untouchable. If they are feeling panicked, they are definitely not showing it. Plus, they never guarantee results. They always say, "it looks like", "we hope" or "Naviance shows." So with that vague language, they effectively hedge their bets.

This is utterly laughable. If a public school kid with 10 APs and a 4.5 GPA is "winning out" over a top 1/3 private school kid with a 3.5 it's because the public school kid is objectively a stronger applicant. That public school kid would be at or near the very top of the class, and you're deluding yourself if you think that the very top students in the DMV's public school systems -- which are among the best in the country -- don't compare well with a top 1/3 student at a Big 3.

There also appears to be this misconception among private school parents that every public school kid has 10 APs and a 4.5 GPA. That's simply not the case. You all need to get off your high horses.

I never thought I'd see the day where Big 3 parents would be complaining that they're at an unfair disadvantage over public high schools. Wow.

I have one in public and one in private--it is sort of funny to watch this elitist freak-out.

Yep, me too. I have one kid at Wilson (DCPS) and one at a Big3 school. Wilson admits are running circles around Big3 admits this admission season.

I too find this highly entertaining. Yes, I pay Big3 tuition but at my core I identify more with Wilson kids. I silently can't stand the elitism.

But don’t you think the Wilson kids will be in for a shock come college? A strong student at a big 3 will find the work load easier in some cases. Maybe they are at Tufts instead of Princeton for UG but they have the preparation to graduate with a very high GPA without being stressed by the workload and then going on to a more impressive grad school than the Wilson grad who struggles to keep up at an ivy.

You’re off your rocker if you think top public students aren’t good students. They may struggle more with their first seminars, but I would expect a student at a private that focuses on small classes and individual fees back would be just as lost in a massive 101 seminar where they are expected to teach themselves

+1000 Yes, you have no clue how smart and competent many WIlson kids are. Especially those that get into Ivies. Their life skills are off the charts compared to coddled private school kids who think they are so brilliant.

Give me a break. You act as if all Wilson kids are the same. They are not. Lots of Ward 3 kids who attend Wilson live in million dollar houses and high-income neighborhoods. They have parents who give them every advantage and in many cases more advantages, than many kids at independent schools. We have a child at an independent school who has been far less coddled than his Wilson friends from a JKLM feeder school to Deal. These Ward 3 Wilson kids go on ski trips, attend expensive summer camps, play club/travel sports that cost a lot to do, have parents that find them internships and jobs, and pay for expensive enrichment classes and summer programs. There are lots of pampered kids at Wilson with helicopter parents just like there are in the burbs. There are lots of kids who aren't that way. Wilson kids are not all the same and neither are independent school kids. Some of the Ward 3 parents at my kid's public are more insufferable, entitled, and obliviously privileged than the parents at my other's independent school. Finally, both of my kids have life skills because we as parents do not coddle them. So many parents expect nothing of their kids except that they go to school and participate in activities that will look good or college. To me that is coddling. Our kids do laundry, make dinner, work, etc. Those are all life skills. Give me the kid who does well while having responsibilities outside school and college prep anyday. Those kids will do well in any college.

You're missing the point and I see that you don't have kids at Wilson. Being "not coddled" at Wilson is not about extracurriculars but about being schooled in an environment that isn't functional but learning to make it work. That is what the Wilson kids learn. I have a kid at a Big3 and one at Wilson. When my Big3 kid writes to a teacher, they write back. Their assignments are not lost. Their teachers don't go missing for weeks on end. Their classes are not filled with kids who are disruptive. The entire environment is functional. It's easy. The academics might not be easy but the rest is set up to run smoothly and help the kids to succeed.

In contrast, at DCPS each kid is one of hundreds in a grade. Teachers don't know the students. Assignments get lost or misgraded. Teaching is uneven (from AWESOME to horrible). Classes are disrupted by students who don't care. As a result, kids learn to advocate for themselves. They learn to problem solve and go with plan C when plan A and plan B don't work out because the system won't allow it. They learn to stand out (in a good way) in a cast of hundreds of other students. And on and on and on. It makes for very resilient kids who can problem solve well beyond their years because (in the school environment---I'm not talking about home), very little is handed to them and they learn to trouble shoot and bounce back.

NP. We’re not missing the point - you are. Plenty of independent school kids who are not coddled. Plenty of Wilson kids who are. Is that too difficult a concept to grasp? Signed PS grad with kids in independent schools. Pluses and minuses to both. Your long answer was just a more detailed, and often inaccurate, stereotype.

private parents aren't paying 40k+ for their kids to get lost in the shuffle. Sure the kids may have to self advocate, but that looks a lot different when the kid is the customer and the school inherently cares

And there are plenty of PS kids who also don’t get lost in a shuffle ( regardless of your personal experience) and have great teachers who care. Plenty of mediocre teachers at both. See how this works?

Lets assume what you say is true. You've said kids at privates can get lost in the shuffle (just like public), kids can get terrible or great teachers (just like public), and it's basically a tenant of DCUM that you don't do private for college. Why do you think people pay for private if, like you seem to believe, there is no advantage over public?

Actually. I never said there wasn’t any advantage. Read much? What I said is that you are stereotyping. Sounds great in a college essay about how disadvantaged and resilient your Wilson grad is because he’s in the school of hard knocks but you overstate and stereotype and it’s annoying.

so the stereotype is true? The advantage is that the school cares about and supports the kid- that's also the stereotype. You can both say there is an advantage, but there really is (well, you can say that, it just isn't logical)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid is at a Big 3 also. We have one solid EA acceptance which we thought was a borderline safety school but is looking better and better to attend with all the deferrals my kid has gotten (and to schools where the kid fell squarely within the Naviance acceptance range). And we are full-pay so that has not made a difference.

I do think the public school students with 4.5 GPAs and 10 AP classes are winning out this year compared to the top one-third of students at private schools that have a 3.5 - 3.7 GPA and no AP classes. My kid has a GPA in this range and solid ACT results (34-36) but with test scores becoming increasingly irrelevant, all that stands out is a deflated 3.5 against an inflated 4.5.

All I can hope is that this is a long process that will continue to unfold until June 1. The public school kids are applying to a lot more schools and getting into to places. However, they can only attend one college so I'm hoping the deferrals turn into acceptances or waitlists which then turn into acceptances.

High School counselors at our Big 3 are MIA and seem to be unaccountable and untouchable. If they are feeling panicked, they are definitely not showing it. Plus, they never guarantee results. They always say, "it looks like", "we hope" or "Naviance shows." So with that vague language, they effectively hedge their bets.

This is utterly laughable. If a public school kid with 10 APs and a 4.5 GPA is "winning out" over a top 1/3 private school kid with a 3.5 it's because the public school kid is objectively a stronger applicant. That public school kid would be at or near the very top of the class, and you're deluding yourself if you think that the very top students in the DMV's public school systems -- which are among the best in the country -- don't compare well with a top 1/3 student at a Big 3.

There also appears to be this misconception among private school parents that every public school kid has 10 APs and a 4.5 GPA. That's simply not the case. You all need to get off your high horses.

I never thought I'd see the day where Big 3 parents would be complaining that they're at an unfair disadvantage over public high schools. Wow.

I have one in public and one in private--it is sort of funny to watch this elitist freak-out.

Yep, me too. I have one kid at Wilson (DCPS) and one at a Big3 school. Wilson admits are running circles around Big3 admits this admission season.

I too find this highly entertaining. Yes, I pay Big3 tuition but at my core I identify more with Wilson kids. I silently can't stand the elitism.

But don’t you think the Wilson kids will be in for a shock come college? A strong student at a big 3 will find the work load easier in some cases. Maybe they are at Tufts instead of Princeton for UG but they have the preparation to graduate with a very high GPA without being stressed by the workload and then going on to a more impressive grad school than the Wilson grad who struggles to keep up at an ivy.

You’re off your rocker if you think top public students aren’t good students. They may struggle more with their first seminars, but I would expect a student at a private that focuses on small classes and individual fees back would be just as lost in a massive 101 seminar where they are expected to teach themselves

+1000 Yes, you have no clue how smart and competent many WIlson kids are. Especially those that get into Ivies. Their life skills are off the charts compared to coddled private school kids who think they are so brilliant.

Give me a break. You act as if all Wilson kids are the same. They are not. Lots of Ward 3 kids who attend Wilson live in million dollar houses and high-income neighborhoods. They have parents who give them every advantage and in many cases more advantages, than many kids at independent schools. We have a child at an independent school who has been far less coddled than his Wilson friends from a JKLM feeder school to Deal. These Ward 3 Wilson kids go on ski trips, attend expensive summer camps, play club/travel sports that cost a lot to do, have parents that find them internships and jobs, and pay for expensive enrichment classes and summer programs. There are lots of pampered kids at Wilson with helicopter parents just like there are in the burbs. There are lots of kids who aren't that way. Wilson kids are not all the same and neither are independent school kids. Some of the Ward 3 parents at my kid's public are more insufferable, entitled, and obliviously privileged than the parents at my other's independent school. Finally, both of my kids have life skills because we as parents do not coddle them. So many parents expect nothing of their kids except that they go to school and participate in activities that will look good or college. To me that is coddling. Our kids do laundry, make dinner, work, etc. Those are all life skills. Give me the kid who does well while having responsibilities outside school and college prep anyday. Those kids will do well in any college.

You're missing the point and I see that you don't have kids at Wilson. Being "not coddled" at Wilson is not about extracurriculars but about being schooled in an environment that isn't functional but learning to make it work. That is what the Wilson kids learn. I have a kid at a Big3 and one at Wilson. When my Big3 kid writes to a teacher, they write back. Their assignments are not lost. Their teachers don't go missing for weeks on end. Their classes are not filled with kids who are disruptive. The entire environment is functional. It's easy. The academics might not be easy but the rest is set up to run smoothly and help the kids to succeed.

In contrast, at DCPS each kid is one of hundreds in a grade. Teachers don't know the students. Assignments get lost or misgraded. Teaching is uneven (from AWESOME to horrible). Classes are disrupted by students who don't care. As a result, kids learn to advocate for themselves. They learn to problem solve and go with plan C when plan A and plan B don't work out because the system won't allow it. They learn to stand out (in a good way) in a cast of hundreds of other students. And on and on and on. It makes for very resilient kids who can problem solve well beyond their years because (in the school environment---I'm not talking about home), very little is handed to them and they learn to trouble shoot and bounce back.

NP. We’re not missing the point - you are. Plenty of independent school kids who are not coddled. Plenty of Wilson kids who are. Is that too difficult a concept to grasp? Signed PS grad with kids in independent schools. Pluses and minuses to both. Your long answer was just a more detailed, and often inaccurate, stereotype.

private parents aren't paying 40k+ for their kids to get lost in the shuffle. Sure the kids may have to self advocate, but that looks a lot different when the kid is the customer and the school inherently cares

And there are plenty of PS kids who also don’t get lost in a shuffle ( regardless of your personal experience) and have great teachers who care. Plenty of mediocre teachers at both. See how this works?

Lets assume what you say is true. You've said kids at privates can get lost in the shuffle (just like public), kids can get terrible or great teachers (just like public), and it's basically a tenant of DCUM that you don't do private for college. Why do you think people pay for private if, like you seem to believe, there is no advantage over public?

Actually. I never said there wasn’t any advantage. Read much? What I said is that you are stereotyping. Sounds great in a college essay about how disadvantaged and resilient your Wilson grad is because he’s in the school of hard knocks but you overstate and stereotype and it’s annoying.

You're just irritated that your $45K a year does not buy what colleges in 2021 really want and what Wilson students have for free.
Meanwhile, those Wilson kids will go to the exact same colleges as your child, only with $200K in their pockets from high school.

I'm a Big3 and a Wilson parent so see the picture very clearly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid is at a Big 3 also. We have one solid EA acceptance which we thought was a borderline safety school but is looking better and better to attend with all the deferrals my kid has gotten (and to schools where the kid fell squarely within the Naviance acceptance range). And we are full-pay so that has not made a difference.

I do think the public school students with 4.5 GPAs and 10 AP classes are winning out this year compared to the top one-third of students at private schools that have a 3.5 - 3.7 GPA and no AP classes. My kid has a GPA in this range and solid ACT results (34-36) but with test scores becoming increasingly irrelevant, all that stands out is a deflated 3.5 against an inflated 4.5.

All I can hope is that this is a long process that will continue to unfold until June 1. The public school kids are applying to a lot more schools and getting into to places. However, they can only attend one college so I'm hoping the deferrals turn into acceptances or waitlists which then turn into acceptances.

High School counselors at our Big 3 are MIA and seem to be unaccountable and untouchable. If they are feeling panicked, they are definitely not showing it. Plus, they never guarantee results. They always say, "it looks like", "we hope" or "Naviance shows." So with that vague language, they effectively hedge their bets.

This is utterly laughable. If a public school kid with 10 APs and a 4.5 GPA is "winning out" over a top 1/3 private school kid with a 3.5 it's because the public school kid is objectively a stronger applicant. That public school kid would be at or near the very top of the class, and you're deluding yourself if you think that the very top students in the DMV's public school systems -- which are among the best in the country -- don't compare well with a top 1/3 student at a Big 3.

There also appears to be this misconception among private school parents that every public school kid has 10 APs and a 4.5 GPA. That's simply not the case. You all need to get off your high horses.

I never thought I'd see the day where Big 3 parents would be complaining that they're at an unfair disadvantage over public high schools. Wow.

I have one in public and one in private--it is sort of funny to watch this elitist freak-out.

Yep, me too. I have one kid at Wilson (DCPS) and one at a Big3 school. Wilson admits are running circles around Big3 admits this admission season.

I too find this highly entertaining. Yes, I pay Big3 tuition but at my core I identify more with Wilson kids. I silently can't stand the elitism.

But don’t you think the Wilson kids will be in for a shock come college? A strong student at a big 3 will find the work load easier in some cases. Maybe they are at Tufts instead of Princeton for UG but they have the preparation to graduate with a very high GPA without being stressed by the workload and then going on to a more impressive grad school than the Wilson grad who struggles to keep up at an ivy.

You’re off your rocker if you think top public students aren’t good students. They may struggle more with their first seminars, but I would expect a student at a private that focuses on small classes and individual fees back would be just as lost in a massive 101 seminar where they are expected to teach themselves

+1000 Yes, you have no clue how smart and competent many WIlson kids are. Especially those that get into Ivies. Their life skills are off the charts compared to coddled private school kids who think they are so brilliant.

Give me a break. You act as if all Wilson kids are the same. They are not. Lots of Ward 3 kids who attend Wilson live in million dollar houses and high-income neighborhoods. They have parents who give them every advantage and in many cases more advantages, than many kids at independent schools. We have a child at an independent school who has been far less coddled than his Wilson friends from a JKLM feeder school to Deal. These Ward 3 Wilson kids go on ski trips, attend expensive summer camps, play club/travel sports that cost a lot to do, have parents that find them internships and jobs, and pay for expensive enrichment classes and summer programs. There are lots of pampered kids at Wilson with helicopter parents just like there are in the burbs. There are lots of kids who aren't that way. Wilson kids are not all the same and neither are independent school kids. Some of the Ward 3 parents at my kid's public are more insufferable, entitled, and obliviously privileged than the parents at my other's independent school. Finally, both of my kids have life skills because we as parents do not coddle them. So many parents expect nothing of their kids except that they go to school and participate in activities that will look good or college. To me that is coddling. Our kids do laundry, make dinner, work, etc. Those are all life skills. Give me the kid who does well while having responsibilities outside school and college prep anyday. Those kids will do well in any college.

You're missing the point and I see that you don't have kids at Wilson. Being "not coddled" at Wilson is not about extracurriculars but about being schooled in an environment that isn't functional but learning to make it work. That is what the Wilson kids learn. I have a kid at a Big3 and one at Wilson. When my Big3 kid writes to a teacher, they write back. Their assignments are not lost. Their teachers don't go missing for weeks on end. Their classes are not filled with kids who are disruptive. The entire environment is functional. It's easy. The academics might not be easy but the rest is set up to run smoothly and help the kids to succeed.

In contrast, at DCPS each kid is one of hundreds in a grade. Teachers don't know the students. Assignments get lost or misgraded. Teaching is uneven (from AWESOME to horrible). Classes are disrupted by students who don't care. As a result, kids learn to advocate for themselves. They learn to problem solve and go with plan C when plan A and plan B don't work out because the system won't allow it. They learn to stand out (in a good way) in a cast of hundreds of other students. And on and on and on. It makes for very resilient kids who can problem solve well beyond their years because (in the school environment---I'm not talking about home), very little is handed to them and they learn to trouble shoot and bounce back.

NP. We’re not missing the point - you are. Plenty of independent school kids who are not coddled. Plenty of Wilson kids who are. Is that too difficult a concept to grasp? Signed PS grad with kids in independent schools. Pluses and minuses to both. Your long answer was just a more detailed, and often inaccurate, stereotype.

private parents aren't paying 40k+ for their kids to get lost in the shuffle. Sure the kids may have to self advocate, but that looks a lot different when the kid is the customer and the school inherently cares

And there are plenty of PS kids who also don’t get lost in a shuffle ( regardless of your personal experience) and have great teachers who care. Plenty of mediocre teachers at both. See how this works?

Lets assume what you say is true. You've said kids at privates can get lost in the shuffle (just like public), kids can get terrible or great teachers (just like public), and it's basically a tenant of DCUM that you don't do private for college. Why do you think people pay for private if, like you seem to believe, there is no advantage over public?

Actually. I never said there wasn’t any advantage. Read much? What I said is that you are stereotyping. Sounds great in a college essay about how disadvantaged and resilient your Wilson grad is because he’s in the school of hard knocks but you overstate and stereotype and it’s annoying.

You're just irritated that your $45K a year does not buy what colleges in 2021 really want and what Wilson students have for free.
Meanwhile, those Wilson kids will go to the exact same colleges as your child, only with $200K in their pockets from high school.

I'm a Big3 and a Wilson parent so see the picture very clearly.

WTF are you talking about? My kids just started a Big 3. If I agreed with you, then I could pull them out and also put them in Wilson. There are many benefits we decided we get from our Big 3. Our Big 3 is a great school. So is Wilson. Just stop overstating the hardships at Wilson and stereotyping the differences. It makes you look stupid.

[Anonymous]

Why do people want to move to an area with better public schools, even though they have to pay more for a similar house? The reason is that the education, on average, is much better in the better school: peers, on average, are better; teachers, on average, are better; facilities, on average, are better; course offerings, on average, are better. The expected education outcome is better. Otherwise, why would invest in schools at all?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why do people want to move to an area with better public schools, even though they have to pay more for a similar house? The reason is that the education, on average, is much better in the better school: peers, on average, are better; teachers, on average, are better; facilities, on average, are better; course offerings, on average, are better. The expected education outcome is better. Otherwise, why would invest in schools at all?

Exactly! You also have some families who value different grades. I have two kids at top elementary school in DC, I plan to go private for middle/High. You have some people that do private for elementary and middle, public for High.

[Anonymous]

Uh, I asked both of my Wilson kids if they ever had a teacher who didn't know their name; they both said no. I would also agree that there is a lot of privilege there, and lots of people with money, not unlike area privates. The STEM program is very rigorous and going to school there is not like the war zone it was presented to be. They both have previously said that class disruption is much less than at Deal; likely due to maturity.

This group of seniors is having excellent admissions because they are a particularly smart group. When my youngest is a senior, I predict it won't be as a good.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why do people want to move to an area with better public schools, even though they have to pay more for a similar house? The reason is that the education, on average, is much better in the better school: peers, on average, are better; teachers, on average, are better; facilities, on average, are better; course offerings, on average, are better. The expected education outcome is better. Otherwise, why would invest in schools at all?

Exactly! You also have some families who value different grades. I have two kids at top elementary school in DC, I plan to go private for middle/High. You have some people that do private for elementary and middle, public for High.

Good luck. Do you know this is easier said than done? At our top (JKLM) DCPS elementary last year, at least 12 kids applied to the top privates at 6th and one got in. ONE. It's not like you can just "go private for middle school" unless you go several tiers down for private.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why do people want to move to an area with better public schools, even though they have to pay more for a similar house? The reason is that the education, on average, is much better in the better school: peers, on average, are better; teachers, on average, are better; facilities, on average, are better; course offerings, on average, are better. The expected education outcome is better. Otherwise, why would invest in schools at all?

Exactly! You also have some families who value different grades. I have two kids at top elementary school in DC, I plan to go private for middle/High. You have some people that do private for elementary and middle, public for High.

Good luck. Do you know this is easier said than done? At our top (JKLM) DCPS elementary last year, at least 12 kids applied to the top privates at 6th and one got in. ONE. It's not like you can just "go private for middle school" unless you go several tiers down for private.

7th grade is a better entry year.

[Anonymous]

^ Those stats of “1 of 12” seem wrong. My DC moved to private in 6th and was admitted to two of the Big3 and Potomac. DC has no siblings above or below on that path and we have no connection to any of the schools. People don’t have to enroll their kids in K to get a spot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:^ Those stats of “1 of 12” seem wrong. My DC moved to private in 6th and was admitted to two of the Big3 and Potomac. DC has no siblings above or below on that path and we have no connection to any of the schools. People don’t have to enroll their kids in K to get a spot.

The numbers include public school kids who have to get in on their own merits with out a HoS working their contacts

[Anonymous]

HOS havent worked contact since 1985.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid is at a Big 3 also. We have one solid EA acceptance which we thought was a borderline safety school but is looking better and better to attend with all the deferrals my kid has gotten (and to schools where the kid fell squarely within the Naviance acceptance range). And we are full-pay so that has not made a difference.

I do think the public school students with 4.5 GPAs and 10 AP classes are winning out this year compared to the top one-third of students at private schools that have a 3.5 - 3.7 GPA and no AP classes. My kid has a GPA in this range and solid ACT results (34-36) but with test scores becoming increasingly irrelevant, all that stands out is a deflated 3.5 against an inflated 4.5.

All I can hope is that this is a long process that will continue to unfold until June 1. The public school kids are applying to a lot more schools and getting into to places. However, they can only attend one college so I'm hoping the deferrals turn into acceptances or waitlists which then turn into acceptances.

High School counselors at our Big 3 are MIA and seem to be unaccountable and untouchable. If they are feeling panicked, they are definitely not showing it. Plus, they never guarantee results. They always say, "it looks like", "we hope" or "Naviance shows." So with that vague language, they effectively hedge their bets.

This is utterly laughable. If a public school kid with 10 APs and a 4.5 GPA is "winning out" over a top 1/3 private school kid with a 3.5 it's because the public school kid is objectively a stronger applicant. That public school kid would be at or near the very top of the class, and you're deluding yourself if you think that the very top students in the DMV's public school systems -- which are among the best in the country -- don't compare well with a top 1/3 student at a Big 3.

There also appears to be this misconception among private school parents that every public school kid has 10 APs and a 4.5 GPA. That's simply not the case. You all need to get off your high horses.

I never thought I'd see the day where Big 3 parents would be complaining that they're at an unfair disadvantage over public high schools. Wow.

I have one in public and one in private--it is sort of funny to watch this elitist freak-out.

Yep, me too. I have one kid at Wilson (DCPS) and one at a Big3 school. Wilson admits are running circles around Big3 admits this admission season.

I too find this highly entertaining. Yes, I pay Big3 tuition but at my core I identify more with Wilson kids. I silently can't stand the elitism.

But don’t you think the Wilson kids will be in for a shock come college? A strong student at a big 3 will find the work load easier in some cases. Maybe they are at Tufts instead of Princeton for UG but they have the preparation to graduate with a very high GPA without being stressed by the workload and then going on to a more impressive grad school than the Wilson grad who struggles to keep up at an ivy.

You’re off your rocker if you think top public students aren’t good students. They may struggle more with their first seminars, but I would expect a student at a private that focuses on small classes and individual fees back would be just as lost in a massive 101 seminar where they are expected to teach themselves

+1000 Yes, you have no clue how smart and competent many WIlson kids are. Especially those that get into Ivies. Their life skills are off the charts compared to coddled private school kids who think they are so brilliant.

Give me a break. You act as if all Wilson kids are the same. They are not. Lots of Ward 3 kids who attend Wilson live in million dollar houses and high-income neighborhoods. They have parents who give them every advantage and in many cases more advantages, than many kids at independent schools. We have a child at an independent school who has been far less coddled than his Wilson friends from a JKLM feeder school to Deal. These Ward 3 Wilson kids go on ski trips, attend expensive summer camps, play club/travel sports that cost a lot to do, have parents that find them internships and jobs, and pay for expensive enrichment classes and summer programs. There are lots of pampered kids at Wilson with helicopter parents just like there are in the burbs. There are lots of kids who aren't that way. Wilson kids are not all the same and neither are independent school kids. Some of the Ward 3 parents at my kid's public are more insufferable, entitled, and obliviously privileged than the parents at my other's independent school. Finally, both of my kids have life skills because we as parents do not coddle them. So many parents expect nothing of their kids except that they go to school and participate in activities that will look good or college. To me that is coddling. Our kids do laundry, make dinner, work, etc. Those are all life skills. Give me the kid who does well while having responsibilities outside school and college prep anyday. Those kids will do well in any college.

You're missing the point and I see that you don't have kids at Wilson. Being "not coddled" at Wilson is not about extracurriculars but about being schooled in an environment that isn't functional but learning to make it work. That is what the Wilson kids learn. I have a kid at a Big3 and one at Wilson. When my Big3 kid writes to a teacher, they write back. Their assignments are not lost. Their teachers don't go missing for weeks on end. Their classes are not filled with kids who are disruptive. The entire environment is functional. It's easy. The academics might not be easy but the rest is set up to run smoothly and help the kids to succeed.

In contrast, at DCPS each kid is one of hundreds in a grade. Teachers don't know the students. Assignments get lost or misgraded. Teaching is uneven (from AWESOME to horrible). Classes are disrupted by students who don't care. As a result, kids learn to advocate for themselves. They learn to problem solve and go with plan C when plan A and plan B don't work out because the system won't allow it. They learn to stand out (in a good way) in a cast of hundreds of other students. And on and on and on. It makes for very resilient kids who can problem solve well beyond their years because (in the school environment---I'm not talking about home), very little is handed to them and they learn to trouble shoot and bounce back.

No. Have a Wilson kid. Also come from a backgrownd that tests resalence. If the worse thing that happens to you in life is that you have teachers that don't know who you are or lose your assgnments so that you have to go to plan B or C, you have lived a very lucky life thus far. There are kids--at both Wilson and Independent schools--who have had to deal with chronic life threatening illnesses, the loss of a parent or sibling, domestic violence, etc. The point I was making is that there are lots of kids at Wilson who have lead a pretty charmed life and have parents that are a bit oblivious to how charmed their life has been. There are also kids at Wilson and independent schools who have had to deal with some seious obstacles or challenges. The point of my earlier post is that some Ward 3 parents are as insufferable and smug and obliviously privileged as some private school parents. Wealthy, privileged, entitled, parents exist in both communities. That was my point. I'm curious too what private school your child attends because it sounds nothing like where my other kid atends (where we know kids who had to leave due to the lack of coddling).

[Anonymous]

Enough

[Anonymous]

It's been a bloodbath at the state schools (Michigan, Wisconsin, UVA, UNC, UT).

[Anonymous]

College in the U.S. went from crapshoot to total crapshoot.

Now with no tests, merit, or recommendations plus new quotas for URMs and first time college it’s just like spinning a wheel who picks you for the x colored, x gendered, x race, x geography’s, etc.

Kids are even applying for math or stats (or engineering) just to get IN to the school, then quickly switch to liberal arts or sociology. Total game. So ridiculous.

Meanwhile everyone’s pissed there aren’t enough XYZ folks in finance, stem, med yet no one earns a relevant major or can demonstrate actual interest! Much easier to just do “journalism” blogging about it.