PSA for Parents Considering HS Magnets

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kid’s home school IS Blair. Are you saying he’d do better outside of the magnet?!

Going to Blair and going to the magnet at Blair are NOT the same thing. 🙄

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Kids (and families) should not make a decision on whether to attend a magnet solely on whether they think it will get them into an ivy or any other selective school. You should choose magnet if you want your kid to learn the material, be with a like-minded cohort, and if you want them to have a magnet high school experience. Attending a magnet is not a free ticket to college.

OP here. I completely agree but just wanted to make people aware of this. I see many magnet parents surprised with this come senior year.

It’s the same with all the parents in the fancy Bethesda districts. A smart kids college prospects are hurt going someplace where lots of kids do well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are there three separate groups for Blair: SMCs, CAP, and general?

I don't have a kid in CAP, so I'm not sure. However, SMCS is separate from the general population. SMCS seniors and their families have access to both high school profiles.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, this is a well known fact. Colleges have certain quotas and will take very small number of students from each school. I know of a family that are in one of the worst schools in Frederick and their DDs have got into top schools with very mediocre grades. Why? Because most of the kids in that school are barely passing.

My kid went to SMCS program in PHS. Most of the students are performing at very high levels. However, only very few students are selected for top colleges because of the quota system. Most get into UMD with $$$ merit aid. Once in UMD, these students are able to do well in hard subjects like CS, premed, engineering and very few drop out of these programs. So, getting into a good college is not the end all. The aim of HS should be to get into a good major and also be able to do very well in college and be well prepared to get into a well paying job after that.

So much for education as an end in itself.

Dreary, isn't it?

And it's not like a kid comes out of a giant state school majoring in CS develops interests in anything else. Probably got rid of their distribution requirements with APs, don't read books, don't study history, have no practice in critically interpreting or filtering information...

The part I really don't get, your kid's been doing almost nothing but coding and math for the past four years already. They could probably just go out and get a job doing it now. But you're shoving them into another diploma mill because everyone around you is doing it. It's so grim.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, this is a well known fact. Colleges have certain quotas and will take very small number of students from each school. I know of a family that are in one of the worst schools in Frederick and their DDs have got into top schools with very mediocre grades. Why? Because most of the kids in that school are barely passing.

My kid went to SMCS program in PHS. Most of the students are performing at very high levels. However, only very few students are selected for top colleges because of the quota system. Most get into UMD with $$$ merit aid. Once in UMD, these students are able to do well in hard subjects like CS, premed, engineering and very few drop out of these programs. So, getting into a good college is not the end all. The aim of HS should be to get into a good major and also be able to do very well in college and be well prepared to get into a well paying job after that.

So much for education as an end in itself.

Dreary, isn't it?

And it's not like a kid comes out of a giant state school majoring in CS develops interests in anything else. Probably got rid of their distribution requirements with APs, don't read books, don't study history, have no practice in critically interpreting or filtering information...

The part I really don't get, your kid's been doing almost nothing but coding and math for the past four years already. They could probably just go out and get a job doing it now. But you're shoving them into another diploma mill because everyone around you is doing it. It's so grim.

You need a diploma but where is not that important despite what people here say. The issue is affordability for some of us where we are not high income, live modestly as in small homes dcum would call a tear down and save since birth and the most we can afford is UMD.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Kids (and families) should not make a decision on whether to attend a magnet solely on whether they think it will get them into an ivy or any other selective school. You should choose magnet if you want your kid to learn the material, be with a like-minded cohort, and if you want them to have a magnet high school experience. Attending a magnet is not a free ticket to college.

OP here. I completely agree but just wanted to make people aware of this. I see many magnet parents surprised with this come senior year.

It’s the same with all the parents in the fancy Bethesda districts. A smart kids college prospects are hurt going someplace where lots of kids do well.

+1

This is so true for all the W schools. It’s better to be a smart kid at a non W school or even a Title 1 school.

The competition is cut throat at the W schools with so many kids with inflated grades and money for tutoring and money for club sports and private lessons.

I’ve said this many time only to be mocked by others, but it’s true. It’s better not to go to a W school

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, this is a well known fact. Colleges have certain quotas and will take very small number of students from each school. I know of a family that are in one of the worst schools in Frederick and their DDs have got into top schools with very mediocre grades. Why? Because most of the kids in that school are barely passing.

My kid went to SMCS program in PHS. Most of the students are performing at very high levels. However, only very few students are selected for top colleges because of the quota system. Most get into UMD with $$$ merit aid. Once in UMD, these students are able to do well in hard subjects like CS, premed, engineering and very few drop out of these programs. So, getting into a good college is not the end all. The aim of HS should be to get into a good major and also be able to do very well in college and be well prepared to get into a well paying job after that.

So much for education as an end in itself.

Dreary, isn't it?

And it's not like a kid comes out of a giant state school majoring in CS develops interests in anything else. Probably got rid of their distribution requirements with APs, don't read books, don't study history, have no practice in critically interpreting or filtering information...

The part I really don't get, your kid's been doing almost nothing but coding and math for the past four years already. They could probably just go out and get a job doing it now. But you're shoving them into another diploma mill because everyone around you is doing it. It's so grim.

I do think this part is true. There's a lot out there (Coursera, etc) to teach yourself, SMCS prepares you well for life, and I'm not sure attending a particular college is actually all that necessary to getting a good job...most techies just learn stuff on the job. - former Blair grad, working in stem now

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Maybe because I’m not a Maryland native, but I just can’t wrap my mind around people fighting to get into UMD.

It’s a very decent local school. While it’s not Williams or CalTech, as many here have said, the name of your undergrad matters less for your career than people think it does.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are there three separate groups for Blair: SMCs, CAP, and general?

I don't have a kid in CAP, so I'm not sure. However, SMCS is separate from the general population. SMCS seniors and their families have access to both high school profiles.

CAP and regular Blair kids also get into top colleges. It's not that separate. Classes are together. Non magnet kids can take mag electives. Magnet just adds a letter/mag profile in addition to school profile.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe because I’m not a Maryland native, but I just can’t wrap my mind around people fighting to get into UMD.

It’s a very decent local school. While it’s not Williams or CalTech, as many here have said, the name of your undergrad matters less for your career than people think it does.

+1

It only matter to the parents so the can brag but after you get your first job, no one cares where you went.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, this is a well known fact. Colleges have certain quotas and will take very small number of students from each school. I know of a family that are in one of the worst schools in Frederick and their DDs have got into top schools with very mediocre grades. Why? Because most of the kids in that school are barely passing.

My kid went to SMCS program in PHS. Most of the students are performing at very high levels. However, only very few students are selected for top colleges because of the quota system. Most get into UMD with $$$ merit aid. Once in UMD, these students are able to do well in hard subjects like CS, premed, engineering and very few drop out of these programs. So, getting into a good college is not the end all. The aim of HS should be to get into a good major and also be able to do very well in college and be well prepared to get into a well paying job after that.

So much for education as an end in itself.

Dreary, isn't it?

And it's not like a kid comes out of a giant state school majoring in CS develops interests in anything else. Probably got rid of their distribution requirements with APs, don't read books, don't study history, have no practice in critically interpreting or filtering information...

The part I really don't get, your kid's been doing almost nothing but coding and math for the past four years already. They could probably just go out and get a job doing it now. But you're shoving them into another diploma mill because everyone around you is doing it. It's so grim.

You need a diploma but where is not that important despite what people here say. The issue is affordability for some of us where we are not high income, live modestly as in small homes dcum would call a tear down and save since birth and the most we can afford is UMD.

Plenty of private schools will offer merit bringing the costs in line. Plenty of out of state schools cost the same (even oos), or less. We planned on state school too, initially, but it's not the cheapest or best option.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are there three separate groups for Blair: SMCs, CAP, and general?

I don't have a kid in CAP, so I'm not sure. However, SMCS is separate from the general population. SMCS seniors and their families have access to both high school profiles.

CAP and regular Blair kids also get into top colleges. It's not that separate. Classes are together. Non magnet kids can take mag electives. Magnet just adds a letter/mag profile in addition to school profile.

Yes, I know. I have a kid at Blair. My point was that the magnet kids are evaluated separately using the magnet profile, at least at UMD. One of the AO’s confirmed when asked how UMD uses school profiles and evaluates transcripts. UMD also recalculates GPA because of differences across MD school systems and private schools.

And that’s why regular and CAP students also get into UMD and top schools. AO’s know that the magnets are separate programs that students had to apply countywide.

[Anonymous]

https://moco360.media/2022/09/13/here-are-the-colleges-where-bethesda-area-high-school-grads-applied-got-accepted-and-enrolled/

This is an interesting metric to look at. You can kind of tell, or make a guess based on the college where the Blair kids are coming from, be it cap or smacs or regular. No guarantee you're right, but you can also compare to W schools and Einstein for perspective.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, this is a well known fact. Colleges have certain quotas and will take very small number of students from each school. I know of a family that are in one of the worst schools in Frederick and their DDs have got into top schools with very mediocre grades. Why? Because most of the kids in that school are barely passing.

My kid went to SMCS program in PHS. Most of the students are performing at very high levels. However, only very few students are selected for top colleges because of the quota system. Most get into UMD with $$$ merit aid. Once in UMD, these students are able to do well in hard subjects like CS, premed, engineering and very few drop out of these programs. So, getting into a good college is not the end all. The aim of HS should be to get into a good major and also be able to do very well in college and be well prepared to get into a well paying job after that.

So much for education as an end in itself.

Dreary, isn't it?

And it's not like a kid comes out of a giant state school majoring in CS develops interests in anything else. Probably got rid of their distribution requirements with APs, don't read books, don't study history, have no practice in critically interpreting or filtering information...

The part I really don't get, your kid's been doing almost nothing but coding and math for the past four years already. They could probably just go out and get a job doing it now. But you're shoving them into another diploma mill because everyone around you is doing it. It's so grim.

Your post makes no sense. Most kids only get one elective a semester except for when they drop foreign language so so if they do band or something else there is little time to fit in CS classes and not all schools offer them. Ours only has a limited number of classes.

You cannot get a good job without a degree.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Kids (and families) should not make a decision on whether to attend a magnet solely on whether they think it will get them into an ivy or any other selective school. You should choose magnet if you want your kid to learn the material, be with a like-minded cohort, and if you want them to have a magnet high school experience. Attending a magnet is not a free ticket to college.

OP here. I completely agree but just wanted to make people aware of this. I see many magnet parents surprised with this come senior year.

It’s the same with all the parents in the fancy Bethesda districts. A smart kids college prospects are hurt going someplace where lots of kids do well.

+1

This is so true for all the W schools. It’s better to be a smart kid at a non W school or even a Title 1 school.

The competition is cut throat at the W schools with so many kids with inflated grades and money for tutoring and money for club sports and private lessons.

I’ve said this many time only to be mocked by others, but it’s true. It’s better not to go to a W school

lol comparing W schools to Blair magnet - and no it's not better to go to title 1 school, school quality matters as well.