Sidwell throttling down college admissions?

[Anonymous]

More like "Sidwell throttling down college admissions office."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:More like "Sidwell throttling down college admissions office."

+1000

[Anonymous]

Huh? I don’t get it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Huh? I don’t get it.

The engine this year has been sputtering.

[Anonymous]

"The engine this year has been sputtering."

I guess I disagree. Seems like everything evened out after the regular results came in.

[Anonymous]

By regular, I mean regular admits came in.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you think this is the dumbest thread ever, you probably haven't been on DCUM for long.

That said, in our family's experience the college application process at Sidwell plays out more subtly than it's portrayed here. We've had two kids graduate and I've never heard of a kid being flat-out told that s/he can't apply to a specific college. Instead, counselors will hint at how competitive the student's cohort is, and parents can either get that or not, or choose to back off or not. The counselors will write the school recommendation anyway, but, of course, it might not be as supportive as the family might like. OTOH, teacher recommendations can count for a lot more (I say this as a former admissions staffer from many years back). As far as phone calls to admissions officers, honestly that doesn't happen anywhere near as much as people think, and when the calls are made, they're nowhere near as influential either. That said, phone calls can make a difference for wait-listed students. My personal take: do not pick Sidwell or any other school because you think your kid is going to waltz into whatever your fantasy school is for him/her. And, more fundamentally, stop obsessing about college -- there's so much more to life and parenting than that.

PP, assuming you do want your child to have the option of attending a top rank school, is Sidwell not the right place?

Unlike other cities and states in the country - barring SF, Boston, NY - many, many, many kids in this area "want the option of attending a top rank school." Don't be ridiculous.

Sidwell will definitely reprogram your kid to want that no matter what. Will take strong personality, parenting, or life values to buck that mentality there and be happy with what life does hand you.

Being top 10% of any strong public or top private school around here will increase your odds. Add in major donor or super athlete or URM or quirky talent and you could be Top 25% and get into "top rank school."

It’s really like the top 5% of the class have a good chance. Just remember there are a lot of Sidwells(and huge public schools/magnets ) across the country. The demand exceeds supply. If you are an elite athlete and do well in school it helps some because your kid can raise the gpa of the team(which is tracked), but colleges are only taking the top 3-10% athletes depending on the sport.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
"The engine this year has been sputtering."

I guess I disagree. Seems like everything evened out after the regular results came in.

Almost everyone got into college, but the caliber of colleges is off.

[Anonymous]

I think it i was very difficult year at many schools, and many kids did not get into their top picks. Do you think Sidwell 's performance was especially off? And was it because of the counseling staff ? I ask because I have a kid entering upper school.

[Anonymous]

How did the Cathedral Schools and Maret do?

[Anonymous]

"Almost everyone got into college, but the caliber of colleges is off." ?? I don't think you actually know a single kid in the current graduating class.

And again, I guess I disagree. HYP all there this year. I don't have a list handy but it seemed like expectations were met.

On the counseling side. School is much, much better than five or six years ago. I have heard that Potomac and NCS did really well this year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How did the Cathedral Schools and Maret do?

NCS was amazing, as usual. Not to be snarky, but that school impresses me more and more each year with where it sends its girls to college. Don't make any mistake, these girls earn it. Navy Seal Training for Girls. It's a pressure cooker and not an ideal high school experience, but the payoff always comes senior year.

[Anonymous]

Really? The 6th graders were just learning about integers a couple of months ago. How much a pressure cooker and Navy seal training is this?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Really? The 6th graders were just learning about integers a couple of months ago. How much a pressure cooker and Navy seal training is this?

I can only speak for the Upper School. The influx of star students from across the DMV in 9th grade really ratchets up the competiton, particularly in STEM.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Think through what you're asking. All schools balance students' desires for where to go and where the school thinks they can get in. The school cannot back 20 kids who apply to Harvard. That is not how college admissions works. The school has 20 kids apply and then chooses which ones to get behind. That is true at every TT school in the nation. Nothing to do with Sidwell.

Public schools don't keep students from applying to specific colleges.