DD wants top SLACs But Doesn't Have Grades

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Getting baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack on topic.

OP, I'm somewhat hesitant to give advice because the college game has changed greatly, with admissions getting increasingly tougher each year so what was feasible five years ago is not so much today. The best is to really talk to the school's college counselor. They will have hard data from the school's own students and can give a pretty good idea of what's realistic in a rapidly changing environment.

I will say that it used to be the case that an applicant like your daughter, from an excellent private school in Washington, would have a reasonable chance at ED admissions at most of the SLACs outside Amherst/Williams/Swarthmore. Even at places like Bowdoin, with those grades and scores + one other major factor, she would have a reasonable shot in ED. That "major factor" is the hook, for some it would be legacy, recruited athlete, full freight, or minority (ideally a combination of the above).

And your daughter is of Asian heritage. This may be her big hook. The LACs are still struggling to reach their diversity goals compared to the big name Ivies who pretty much hoover up the talented POC applicants. A non-trad Asian background is more unique and that helps. But I would talk to the school's college counselor.

I would also look at places like Kenyon, which is very similar to many of the eastern LACs except for the location. Denison as well. Oberlin? Hamilton?

Be very careful about the women's colleges. It is a different environment than a coed school. It's not for everyone, so don't be tempted to go to a "name" women's college like Bryn Mawr or Smith just because it's the highest ranked school you got into. You really need to want to be at a women's college.

OP here. Thank you very much for the info.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:"Top local private."

This makes a difference. What do her grades actually look like? Does she always get A's in certain subjects? Are the B's grouped in other certain subjects? Or does she randomly get As and Bs?

If she has a strong group of subjects and if she takes the most rigorous courses in that group, getting Bs in her weak subjects even if they are basically "on grade level" won't matter. If she applies to every top 50 SLAC she will get in somewhere.

If she culls through the top 50 for the 20 or 25 that she likes best (read DO NOT just apply to the top 20 or 25) making sure to have the same number in each group of 1-10/11-20/21-30, she will get in somewhere.

If she has a strong suit where she stands out, the schools will know she can do the work and if OP you can pay the bill, it will work out.

LOL top local private makes no difference. Colleges/universities have many applicants who with stronger stats from other private and public schools.

This is just not true. DD got into Amherst (four yrs ago, but still pretty recent) with a 3.68 gpa and nearly perfect test scores from top local private. She was top 15% of her class with the most rigorous coursework. No way would she have gotten in from a local public even with the same relative stats (aka grade weighting for aps, etc).

How on earth would you know that? Idiotic comment.

DP here with a kid at Amherst. That is NOT an idiotic comment. Amherst likes certain schools - the top local privates and the public magnets, and the only way a kid from a regular public school is getting in with those numbers is if they're a URM, recruited athlete or legacy.

Congrats on having a kid at Amherst. Did they give you access to their admissions office afterwards so you could see the records of the all "regular public school" kids who applied so you could see how they got in? Or, anticipating that you'll say "that's what my kid tells me," did they give access to your kid?

You have no basis for your statement. That your kid got in says nothing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:"Top local private."

This makes a difference. What do her grades actually look like? Does she always get A's in certain subjects? Are the B's grouped in other certain subjects? Or does she randomly get As and Bs?

If she has a strong group of subjects and if she takes the most rigorous courses in that group, getting Bs in her weak subjects even if they are basically "on grade level" won't matter. If she applies to every top 50 SLAC she will get in somewhere.

If she culls through the top 50 for the 20 or 25 that she likes best (read DO NOT just apply to the top 20 or 25) making sure to have the same number in each group of 1-10/11-20/21-30, she will get in somewhere.

If she has a strong suit where she stands out, the schools will know she can do the work and if OP you can pay the bill, it will work out.

LOL top local private makes no difference. Colleges/universities have many applicants who with stronger stats from other private and public schools.

This is just not true. DD got into Amherst (four yrs ago, but still pretty recent) with a 3.68 gpa and nearly perfect test scores from top local private. She was top 15% of her class with the most rigorous coursework. No way would she have gotten in from a local public even with the same relative stats (aka grade weighting for aps, etc).

How on earth would you know that? Idiotic comment.

DP here with a kid at Amherst. That is NOT an idiotic comment. Amherst likes certain schools - the top local privates and the public magnets, and the only way a kid from a regular public school is getting in with those numbers is if they're a URM, recruited athlete or legacy.

Amherst is a fine school, but... I've had multiple kids graduate HS in the past few years from public, top 10% of their class (estimate), and I don't know of any of their cohort who applied to Amherst. It is just not on the radar of public school kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:"Top local private."

This makes a difference. What do her grades actually look like? Does she always get A's in certain subjects? Are the B's grouped in other certain subjects? Or does she randomly get As and Bs?

If she has a strong group of subjects and if she takes the most rigorous courses in that group, getting Bs in her weak subjects even if they are basically "on grade level" won't matter. If she applies to every top 50 SLAC she will get in somewhere.

If she culls through the top 50 for the 20 or 25 that she likes best (read DO NOT just apply to the top 20 or 25) making sure to have the same number in each group of 1-10/11-20/21-30, she will get in somewhere.

If she has a strong suit where she stands out, the schools will know she can do the work and if OP you can pay the bill, it will work out.

LOL top local private makes no difference. Colleges/universities have many applicants who with stronger stats from other private and public schools.

This is just not true. DD got into Amherst (four yrs ago, but still pretty recent) with a 3.68 gpa and nearly perfect test scores from top local private. She was top 15% of her class with the most rigorous coursework. No way would she have gotten in from a local public even with the same relative stats (aka grade weighting for aps, etc).

How on earth would you know that? Idiotic comment.

DP here with a kid at Amherst. That is NOT an idiotic comment. Amherst likes certain schools - the top local privates and the public magnets, and the only way a kid from a regular public school is getting in with those numbers is if they're a URM, recruited athlete or legacy.

Amherst is a fine school, but... I've had multiple kids graduate HS in the past few years from public, top 10% of their class (estimate), and I don't know of any of their cohort who applied to Amherst. It is just not on the radar of public school kids.

Why do people feel compelled to make these stupid blanket statements? You're just making up facts and revealing yourself to be an imbecile. Over 50% of students at Amherst came from public schools....now that's an actual fact.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:"Top local private."

This makes a difference. What do her grades actually look like? Does she always get A's in certain subjects? Are the B's grouped in other certain subjects? Or does she randomly get As and Bs?

If she has a strong group of subjects and if she takes the most rigorous courses in that group, getting Bs in her weak subjects even if they are basically "on grade level" won't matter. If she applies to every top 50 SLAC she will get in somewhere.

If she culls through the top 50 for the 20 or 25 that she likes best (read DO NOT just apply to the top 20 or 25) making sure to have the same number in each group of 1-10/11-20/21-30, she will get in somewhere.

If she has a strong suit where she stands out, the schools will know she can do the work and if OP you can pay the bill, it will work out.

LOL top local private makes no difference. Colleges/universities have many applicants who with stronger stats from other private and public schools.

This is just not true. DD got into Amherst (four yrs ago, but still pretty recent) with a 3.68 gpa and nearly perfect test scores from top local private. She was top 15% of her class with the most rigorous coursework. No way would she have gotten in from a local public even with the same relative stats (aka grade weighting for aps, etc).

How on earth would you know that? Idiotic comment.

DP here with a kid at Amherst. That is NOT an idiotic comment. Amherst likes certain schools - the top local privates and the public magnets, and the only way a kid from a regular public school is getting in with those numbers is if they're a URM, recruited athlete or legacy.

Amherst is a fine school, but... I've had multiple kids graduate HS in the past few years from public, top 10% of their class (estimate), and I don't know of any of their cohort who applied to Amherst. It is just not on the radar of public school kids.

Why do people feel compelled to make these stupid blanket statements? You're just making up facts and revealing yourself to be an imbecile. Over 50% of students at Amherst came from public schools....now that's an actual fact.

Holy moly! HALF of Amherst students are from privates!!! You proved the prev poster's point!

[Anonymous]

Half are from private school because they give only need based financial aid - no merit.

So of course half the class is going to be fanilies who are wealthy and whose kids went to private school. The othe hal will be students with significant financial need, most of whom went to public school.

What you won’t find are very many families that make $130-160,000 a year unless they were very diligent about saving for college.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:"Top local private."

This makes a difference. What do her grades actually look like? Does she always get A's in certain subjects? Are the B's grouped in other certain subjects? Or does she randomly get As and Bs?

If she has a strong group of subjects and if she takes the most rigorous courses in that group, getting Bs in her weak subjects even if they are basically "on grade level" won't matter. If she applies to every top 50 SLAC she will get in somewhere.

If she culls through the top 50 for the 20 or 25 that she likes best (read DO NOT just apply to the top 20 or 25) making sure to have the same number in each group of 1-10/11-20/21-30, she will get in somewhere.

If she has a strong suit where she stands out, the schools will know she can do the work and if OP you can pay the bill, it will work out.

LOL top local private makes no difference. Colleges/universities have many applicants who with stronger stats from other private and public schools.

This is just not true. DD got into Amherst (four yrs ago, but still pretty recent) with a 3.68 gpa and nearly perfect test scores from top local private. She was top 15% of her class with the most rigorous coursework. No way would she have gotten in from a local public even with the same relative stats (aka grade weighting for aps, etc).

How on earth would you know that? Idiotic comment.

DP here with a kid at Amherst. That is NOT an idiotic comment. Amherst likes certain schools - the top local privates and the public magnets, and the only way a kid from a regular public school is getting in with those numbers is if they're a URM, recruited athlete or legacy.

Amherst is a fine school, but... I've had multiple kids graduate HS in the past few years from public, top 10% of their class (estimate), and I don't know of any of their cohort who applied to Amherst. It is just not on the radar of public school kids.

Why do people feel compelled to make these stupid blanket statements? You're just making up facts and revealing yourself to be an imbecile. Over 50% of students at Amherst came from public schools....now that's an actual fact.

Holy moly! HALF of Amherst students are from privates!!! You proved the prev poster's point!

Firstly, fewer than half of Amherst students are from privates. Secondly, the PP stated that Amherst isn't on public school students radar, implying that they don't apply. Thirdly, you are yet anther reading challenged idiot.

[Anonymous]

So what kind of grades does it take to get in to these schools? I have a 9th grader so don’t have access to Naviance yet.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:"Top local private."

This makes a difference. What do her grades actually look like? Does she always get A's in certain subjects? Are the B's grouped in other certain subjects? Or does she randomly get As and Bs?

If she has a strong group of subjects and if she takes the most rigorous courses in that group, getting Bs in her weak subjects even if they are basically "on grade level" won't matter. If she applies to every top 50 SLAC she will get in somewhere.

If she culls through the top 50 for the 20 or 25 that she likes best (read DO NOT just apply to the top 20 or 25) making sure to have the same number in each group of 1-10/11-20/21-30, she will get in somewhere.

If she has a strong suit where she stands out, the schools will know she can do the work and if OP you can pay the bill, it will work out.

LOL top local private makes no difference. Colleges/universities have many applicants who with stronger stats from other private and public schools.

This is just not true. DD got into Amherst (four yrs ago, but still pretty recent) with a 3.68 gpa and nearly perfect test scores from top local private. She was top 15% of her class with the most rigorous coursework. No way would she have gotten in from a local public even with the same relative stats (aka grade weighting for aps, etc).

How on earth would you know that? Idiotic comment.

DP here with a kid at Amherst. That is NOT an idiotic comment. Amherst likes certain schools - the top local privates and the public magnets, and the only way a kid from a regular public school is getting in with those numbers is if they're a URM, recruited athlete or legacy.

Congrats on having a kid at Amherst. Did they give you access to their admissions office afterwards so you could see the records of the all "regular public school" kids who applied so you could see how they got in? Or, anticipating that you'll say "that's what my kid tells me," did they give access to your kid?

You have no basis for your statement. That your kid got in says nothing.

We have gone to the get-togethers for local families. My kid is well-acquainted with the kids at Amherst from the DC area. The vast majority of them are from private and public magnet schools. The 2 kids I can think of from regular public schools are both recruited athletes. Those are the facts.

Of course Amherst takes kids from public schools. But there are also very aware of geographic diversity among their students and so the unhooked kid from the public high in Fargo, North Dakota, with a 3.8/1500 SAT is going to get in to Amherst long before the kid with those numbers from McLean high, and maybe even a Sidwell kid with those numbers. And the kid with those numbers at Sidwell is going to get in before the McLean HS kid because Amherst knows that a 3.8 at Sidwell is harder to get than a 3.8 at McLean.

[Anonymous]

Mmmmmm really. No. If the public school kid is more interesting, they’ll take the public school kid. Sidwell kids have lots of opportunities to make themselves interesting. They’re havent cornered the smart market. Interesting public school kids get accepted too.some are not even recruited athletes. (Though I’ve known those too.)

Sorry I’m not fixing above typos.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So what kind of grades does it take to get in to these schools? I have a 9th grader so don’t have access to Naviance yet.

3.8-5.0 unweighted.

[Anonymous]

3.8-4.0 (not 5). Typo.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Lots of good suggestions for SLACs, but it wasn't entirely clear to me from your post that she even wants an SLAC. Just that she is interested because she thinks it would be easier to get into ED. Am I misunderstanding the priorities and thinking?

There are many reasons why someone would like a SLAC but is that what she wants or does she just think she is more likely to get in?

Sorry for the late response. OP here. Little of both. She likes the smaller atmosphere and also thinks it might be easier to get in given the ED rates for an Amherst or a Middlebury.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Don't get overanxious, its early. Wait for this year's grades and SATs next June. Junior year is tough and grades this year matter more than grades in 9th and 10th. You'll get the best advice from the school's college counselor. If by "top private" you mean one of the schools most talked about on this board - NCS, SFS, GDS, Maret, WIS, Potomac, etc. - a mix of As and Bs are solid grades. Very few students have straight As at these schools. Typical college destinations include all the SLACs but it depends on the classes taken and a lot on the teacher and counselor recommendations. But a good list would include reaches (all the top SLACS), matches (> than 50/50 odds), and foundations (pretty assured admission). The college counselor will have very specific and clear guidance but they probably don't want to talk to you until after this year's seniors are done.

Thank you. OP here. Yes one of those schools. The question is where to ED.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Have you asked her WHY these schools?

Yes because she has always been at smaller schools. She likes the atmosphere. Loves Loves Middlebury except for the isolation.