How to get into UVA from Langley?

[Anonymous]

Princeton opened up again to CC transfers last year. I hope this wave will continue with skyrocketing costs and the spectre of distance learning.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Princeton opened up again to CC transfers last year. I hope this wave will continue with skyrocketing costs and the spectre of distance learning.

I wish that were for regular community college transfers but it’s not. Low income and military from community college.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:1) Talk to the Langely College Counselor. Ask her (it used to be a she - I don't know if it is anymore) if your student is on track to get the "most rigorous" box checked off. This indicates to UVA that your student has indeed taken the most rigorous courses offered at Langley. That includes math because they want to see a well-rounded applicant even if they aren't going into math. Same with foreign language - take four years and AP courses. UVA requires two years of foreign language as an ungraduate student so foreign language skills are highly desired.
2) your student should be in the top 10% of the class. 95% of those accepted to UVA are in the top 10%. Ask the counselor about where your student stands. If they are vague and say "we don't rank", insist on it. (see no. 4 below)
3) Be aware that the counselor writes their own letter to Virginia colleges on behalf of your child.
4) The counselor will show you the Naviance chart for ACT/SAT (if applicable next year due to COVID) and GPA. This chart will show you the range of scores that got previous students from Langley in to UVA. Remember your student is competing against other students at Langley for slots. Your counselor also provides to UVA a class profile every year indicating what courses the top students are taking and what the top GPA is for your students' class. UVA can tell in a matter of seconds where you child will rank.
5) The counselor will guide your student to other Virginia universities if they think UVA is not a possibility. That happened to my DS. That's why you cannot look at Selectivity numbers for public schools like UVA and compare them to privates . . the students self-select to the Virginia universities that they apply. Remember the counselor is paid ultimately by the Commonwealth and they have their own professional reputation to be concerned about so they won't whole-heartedly recommend a student for UVA who is a better candidate for JMU.
6) Are you hooked? Talk it over with the counselor. Increasingly, legacy status and $$$ donations isn't helping.
7) are you otherwise hooked being URM, first generation or anything else?
8) If unhooked, then your child's GPA (weighted obviously) should be a 4.49 or higher. That's the 75th percentile for students who actually showed up at UVA last fall. a 4.35 was the median GPA and a 4.21 for bottom 25th percentile. Generally, speaking unhooked kids at the best NOVA high schools should be aiming for a 4.49 or higher. https://research.schev.edu//enrollment/B10_FreshmenProfile.asp.
9) for ACT, the breakdown is 34 for 75th percentile/33 for median and 30 for bottom 25th percentile.
10) for SAT, the breakdown is 1500/1430 and 1340, although I understand the numbers are higher for class of 2024. who knows what will happen now that schools are going test-optional?
10) Apply for the Jefferson Scholarship competition if your child is a super-star (ask counselor).
11) UVA received a record 41,000 applications last year. Due to COVID, most higher education experts think that next year parents will be trying to take advantage of in-state schools more than ever because savings have been hurt. Or they lost jobs, etc.
12) Apply ED if your student is willing to commit.
13) As to ECs, leadership positions are very important. National prizes, eagle scout, or other demonstrations of leadership speak volumes.
14) Go to College Confidential or Reddit and read the stats and ECs of students accepted or rejected for 2024. Above everything else, this will give you an idea of the student UVA is looking for.
15) A very smart way to get into UVA (which most parents at Langley sniff at) is to go to NOVA and meet all the requirements for a third-year transfer. About 600-700 students transfer in to UVA at the beginning of third year. It's economical and much easier than doing the conventional route.
16) Visit the other in-state schools. William & Mary is also a wonderful school (takes about the same stats to get in) but much smaller. Don't get your child's hope up for any of these schools because it truly has become a lottery.
17) When my kids applied, 7-10 applications was the norm. Now I'm seeing 15. Make good use of the ED application. Most of my children's friends got in ED or EA.

good luck. Post back with any questions.[/quote



To this wonderful person who took her/his time to write this, thank you! Such great help, especially for parents like me who grew up abroad, did not go thru the experience of applying to college in the US and are many times clueless of the system! Thanks a lot!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:1) Talk to the Langely College Counselor. Ask her (it used to be a she - I don't know if it is anymore) if your student is on track to get the "most rigorous" box checked off. This indicates to UVA that your student has indeed taken the most rigorous courses offered at Langley. That includes math because they want to see a well-rounded applicant even if they aren't going into math. Same with foreign language - take four years and AP courses. UVA requires two years of foreign language as an ungraduate student so foreign language skills are highly desired.
2) your student should be in the top 10% of the class. 95% of those accepted to UVA are in the top 10%. Ask the counselor about where your student stands. If they are vague and say "we don't rank", insist on it. (see no. 4 below)
3) Be aware that the counselor writes their own letter to Virginia colleges on behalf of your child.
4) The counselor will show you the Naviance chart for ACT/SAT (if applicable next year due to COVID) and GPA. This chart will show you the range of scores that got previous students from Langley in to UVA. Remember your student is competing against other students at Langley for slots. Your counselor also provides to UVA a class profile every year indicating what courses the top students are taking and what the top GPA is for your students' class. UVA can tell in a matter of seconds where you child will rank.
5) The counselor will guide your student to other Virginia universities if they think UVA is not a possibility. That happened to my DS. That's why you cannot look at Selectivity numbers for public schools like UVA and compare them to privates . . the students self-select to the Virginia universities that they apply. Remember the counselor is paid ultimately by the Commonwealth and they have their own professional reputation to be concerned about so they won't whole-heartedly recommend a student for UVA who is a better candidate for JMU.
6) Are you hooked? Talk it over with the counselor. Increasingly, legacy status and $$$ donations isn't helping.
7) are you otherwise hooked being URM, first generation or anything else?
8) If unhooked, then your child's GPA (weighted obviously) should be a 4.49 or higher. That's the 75th percentile for students who actually showed up at UVA last fall. a 4.35 was the median GPA and a 4.21 for bottom 25th percentile. Generally, speaking unhooked kids at the best NOVA high schools should be aiming for a 4.49 or higher. https://research.schev.edu//enrollment/B10_FreshmenProfile.asp.
9) for ACT, the breakdown is 34 for 75th percentile/33 for median and 30 for bottom 25th percentile.
10) for SAT, the breakdown is 1500/1430 and 1340, although I understand the numbers are higher for class of 2024. who knows what will happen now that schools are going test-optional?
10) Apply for the Jefferson Scholarship competition if your child is a super-star (ask counselor).
11) UVA received a record 41,000 applications last year. Due to COVID, most higher education experts think that next year parents will be trying to take advantage of in-state schools more than ever because savings have been hurt. Or they lost jobs, etc.
12) Apply ED if your student is willing to commit.
13) As to ECs, leadership positions are very important. National prizes, eagle scout, or other demonstrations of leadership speak volumes.
14) Go to College Confidential or Reddit and read the stats and ECs of students accepted or rejected for 2024. Above everything else, this will give you an idea of the student UVA is looking for.
15) A very smart way to get into UVA (which most parents at Langley sniff at) is to go to NOVA and meet all the requirements for a third-year transfer. About 600-700 students transfer in to UVA at the beginning of third year. It's economical and much easier than doing the conventional route.
16) Visit the other in-state schools. William & Mary is also a wonderful school (takes about the same stats to get in) but much smaller. Don't get your child's hope up for any of these schools because it truly has become a lottery.
17) When my kids applied, 7-10 applications was the norm. Now I'm seeing 15. Make good use of the ED application. Most of my children's friends got in ED or EA.

good luck. Post back with any questions.[/quote



To this wonderful person who took her/his time to write this, thank you! Such great help, especially for parents like me who grew up abroad, did not go thru the experience of applying to college in the US and are many times clueless of the system! Thanks a lot!

You are most welcome. And best of luck!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:1) Talk to the Langely College Counselor. Ask her (it used to be a she - I don't know if it is anymore) if your student is on track to get the "most rigorous" box checked off. This indicates to UVA that your student has indeed taken the most rigorous courses offered at Langley. That includes math because they want to see a well-rounded applicant even if they aren't going into math. Same with foreign language - take four years and AP courses. UVA requires two years of foreign language as an ungraduate student so foreign language skills are highly desired.
2) your student should be in the top 10% of the class. 95% of those accepted to UVA are in the top 10%. Ask the counselor about where your student stands. If they are vague and say "we don't rank", insist on it. (see no. 4 below)
3) Be aware that the counselor writes their own letter to Virginia colleges on behalf of your child.
4) The counselor will show you the Naviance chart for ACT/SAT (if applicable next year due to COVID) and GPA. This chart will show you the range of scores that got previous students from Langley in to UVA. Remember your student is competing against other students at Langley for slots. Your counselor also provides to UVA a class profile every year indicating what courses the top students are taking and what the top GPA is for your students' class. UVA can tell in a matter of seconds where you child will rank.
5) The counselor will guide your student to other Virginia universities if they think UVA is not a possibility. That happened to my DS. That's why you cannot look at Selectivity numbers for public schools like UVA and compare them to privates . . the students self-select to the Virginia universities that they apply. Remember the counselor is paid ultimately by the Commonwealth and they have their own professional reputation to be concerned about so they won't whole-heartedly recommend a student for UVA who is a better candidate for JMU.
6) Are you hooked? Talk it over with the counselor. Increasingly, legacy status and $$$ donations isn't helping.
7) are you otherwise hooked being URM, first generation or anything else?
8) If unhooked, then your child's GPA (weighted obviously) should be a 4.49 or higher. That's the 75th percentile for students who actually showed up at UVA last fall. a 4.35 was the median GPA and a 4.21 for bottom 25th percentile. Generally, speaking unhooked kids at the best NOVA high schools should be aiming for a 4.49 or higher. https://research.schev.edu//enrollment/B10_FreshmenProfile.asp.
9) for ACT, the breakdown is 34 for 75th percentile/33 for median and 30 for bottom 25th percentile.
10) for SAT, the breakdown is 1500/1430 and 1340, although I understand the numbers are higher for class of 2024. who knows what will happen now that schools are going test-optional?
10) Apply for the Jefferson Scholarship competition if your child is a super-star (ask counselor).
11) UVA received a record 41,000 applications last year. Due to COVID, most higher education experts think that next year parents will be trying to take advantage of in-state schools more than ever because savings have been hurt. Or they lost jobs, etc.
12) Apply ED if your student is willing to commit.
13) As to ECs, leadership positions are very important. National prizes, eagle scout, or other demonstrations of leadership speak volumes.
14) Go to College Confidential or Reddit and read the stats and ECs of students accepted or rejected for 2024. Above everything else, this will give you an idea of the student UVA is looking for.
15) A very smart way to get into UVA (which most parents at Langley sniff at) is to go to NOVA and meet all the requirements for a third-year transfer. About 600-700 students transfer in to UVA at the beginning of third year. It's economical and much easier than doing the conventional route.
16) Visit the other in-state schools. William & Mary is also a wonderful school (takes about the same stats to get in) but much smaller. Don't get your child's hope up for any of these schools because it truly has become a lottery.
17) When my kids applied, 7-10 applications was the norm. Now I'm seeing 15. Make good use of the ED application. Most of my children's friends got in ED or EA.

good luck. Post back with any questions.

Hi, does this mean to get into UVA it’s easier to go to a non top HS? So your kid can make it to 10% easier. Please be kind in your feedback. We are trying from last couple of months to buy a home in Langley/MCLean or Madison and this makes me rethink our decision.

Are you saying you're rethinking your decision to attach your house buying decision at the hip with the odds of getting into UVA ?!

It’s all about getting good public education. We will have to pay so much more to get a run down home for 1.1 M in Langley district. If our kids can’t get into good in-state universities because they couldn’t be in top 10%. Then yes it may make us sad. Rather if we go to Loudon, for example, Briar Woods HS our kids will still get good public education, we can get cheaper renovated home and our kids may have a higher chance of getting into good in-state Uni. Please don’t quote me on this my kids are in MS still and since buying a house is not an easy decision we would like to check all the boxes.

I would look into records of where seniors were accepted to for an idea of what to expect.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Princeton opened up again to CC transfers last year. I hope this wave will continue with skyrocketing costs and the spectre of distance learning.

I wish that were for regular community college transfers but it’s not. Low income and military from community college.

And it’s about <12 kids a year. Plus some of the transfers have to do 3 years at Princeton, not two.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OMG. This thread is eye-opening.

My kid at another high performing fcps had over a 1500 SAT, over a 4.0 weighted, strong extracurriculars, strong essays and one of the most rigorous course loads at her school and was rejected from UVA for the class of 2024.

My suggestion is to not do regular admission if UVA is a top choice.

Less competitive applicants from her school with lighter course loads and lower SATs (in one case 200 points lower, but that might have been a fluke) were accepted in the early rounds over much more qualified applicants who did the regular admissions round.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I know a kid (not from Langley) that had nearly all A's with 12 APs (4.45 GPA), 1550 SATs, good extra curricular activities (showed leadership and state champions) who was waitlisted at UVA, and rejected at 10 other schools (including her yield-protecting safety). She did end up getting into Northwestern and W & M.

I know of a different kid from 2024 with similar stats and a similar story.

I think this is not uncommon from fcps.

[Anonymous]

What about checking the box for the spring semester? So kid goes to CC in the fall and can join UVA in the spring. My niece did that and got into her state's selective university. Just finished her degree there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I know a kid (not from Langley) that had nearly all A's with 12 APs (4.45 GPA), 1550 SATs, good extra curricular activities (showed leadership and state champions) who was waitlisted at UVA, and rejected at 10 other schools (including her yield-protecting safety). She did end up getting into Northwestern and W & M.

I know of a different kid from 2024 with similar stats and a similar story.

I think this is not uncommon from fcps.

Colleges looking for so much more than just numbers. Those kids lacking it.

[Anonymous]

Any idea on the numbers for UVA or W&M from individual FCPS schools?

Does Langley, McLean, etc., get more spots than schools like Justice, Lee or Mount Vernon even if the enrollment is the same?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:1) Talk to the Langely College Counselor. Ask her (it used to be a she - I don't know if it is anymore) if your student is on track to get the "most rigorous" box checked off. This indicates to UVA that your student has indeed taken the most rigorous courses offered at Langley. That includes math because they want to see a well-rounded applicant even if they aren't going into math. Same with foreign language - take four years and AP courses. UVA requires two years of foreign language as an ungraduate student so foreign language skills are highly desired.
2) your student should be in the top 10% of the class. 95% of those accepted to UVA are in the top 10%. Ask the counselor about where your student stands. If they are vague and say "we don't rank", insist on it. (see no. 4 below)
3) Be aware that the counselor writes their own letter to Virginia colleges on behalf of your child.
4) The counselor will show you the Naviance chart for ACT/SAT (if applicable next year due to COVID) and GPA. This chart will show you the range of scores that got previous students from Langley in to UVA. Remember your student is competing against other students at Langley for slots. Your counselor also provides to UVA a class profile every year indicating what courses the top students are taking and what the top GPA is for your students' class. UVA can tell in a matter of seconds where you child will rank.
5) The counselor will guide your student to other Virginia universities if they think UVA is not a possibility. That happened to my DS. That's why you cannot look at Selectivity numbers for public schools like UVA and compare them to privates . . the students self-select to the Virginia universities that they apply. Remember the counselor is paid ultimately by the Commonwealth and they have their own professional reputation to be concerned about so they won't whole-heartedly recommend a student for UVA who is a better candidate for JMU.
6) Are you hooked? Talk it over with the counselor. Increasingly, legacy status and $$$ donations isn't helping.
7) are you otherwise hooked being URM, first generation or anything else?
8) If unhooked, then your child's GPA (weighted obviously) should be a 4.49 or higher. That's the 75th percentile for students who actually showed up at UVA last fall. a 4.35 was the median GPA and a 4.21 for bottom 25th percentile. Generally, speaking unhooked kids at the best NOVA high schools should be aiming for a 4.49 or higher. https://research.schev.edu//enrollment/B10_FreshmenProfile.asp.
9) for ACT, the breakdown is 34 for 75th percentile/33 for median and 30 for bottom 25th percentile.
10) for SAT, the breakdown is 1500/1430 and 1340, although I understand the numbers are higher for class of 2024. who knows what will happen now that schools are going test-optional?
10) Apply for the Jefferson Scholarship competition if your child is a super-star (ask counselor).
11) UVA received a record 41,000 applications last year. Due to COVID, most higher education experts think that next year parents will be trying to take advantage of in-state schools more than ever because savings have been hurt. Or they lost jobs, etc.
12) Apply ED if your student is willing to commit.
13) As to ECs, leadership positions are very important. National prizes, eagle scout, or other demonstrations of leadership speak volumes.
14) Go to College Confidential or Reddit and read the stats and ECs of students accepted or rejected for 2024. Above everything else, this will give you an idea of the student UVA is looking for.
15) A very smart way to get into UVA (which most parents at Langley sniff at) is to go to NOVA and meet all the requirements for a third-year transfer. About 600-700 students transfer in to UVA at the beginning of third year. It's economical and much easier than doing the conventional route.
16) Visit the other in-state schools. William & Mary is also a wonderful school (takes about the same stats to get in) but much smaller. Don't get your child's hope up for any of these schools because it truly has become a lottery.
17) When my kids applied, 7-10 applications was the norm. Now I'm seeing 15. Make good use of the ED application. Most of my children's friends got in ED or EA.

good luck. Post back with any questions.

Hi, does this mean to get into UVA it’s easier to go to a non top HS? So your kid can make it to 10% easier. Please be kind in your feedback. We are trying from last couple of months to buy a home in Langley/MCLean or Madison and this makes me rethink our decision.

Yes, if you really want UVA and if your child is a super-star and will make top 10%, and will have the GPA, test-scores and ECs, you would be better off applying from a Virginia county that sends only one or zero students a year to UVA. Many parents joke that they want to move to Nellysford, VA (one of the poorest regions) late in junior year to apply from there. Approx. 600 students from FCPS get into UVA every year but when you divide that amongst the 22 high schools, maybe 30 offers go to Langley, 28 to Mclean, etc., but some of those students don't attend because they use UVA as a safety, as my child did, while applying to Ivys. There's also the fierce competition from the TJ students which sends 60-80 students a year to UVA (it fluctuates). It is true that some counties send no students so if you were to apply from there (and your residence didn't look contrived), it would be easier than from Langley, but you have to consider the quality of teaching and of the guidance counselor in that region. You can find that map - county by county acceptance - on Dean J.'s blog. The worst competition, by far, is in NOVA/FCPS/TJ, which is why there is so much bitterness when parents pay taxes for 20 years to support the Virginia school system and their high-stats. kid can't get in. If your child isn't a superstar academically, then getting into the best public (Mclean, Langley, etc.) would be the best bet. Get them the very best education you can and then see where you are junior year about options. (Higher Ed is about to go through big change - who knows what we will be facing by the time your child graduates?). Don't discount the other VA institutions. I know of many students who were very happy at GMU, JMU, CNU, Virginia Tech, etc.

Back to moving to 22101, I know of families that rent apartments in the area to get the right zip code and use that as their base (to be honest, sometimes, the apartment is just the kid living alone or empty, but that's hard for FCPS to monitor). There are also smaller townhouses in the King's Manor subdivision.

Another area to consider is the Ashburn/Loudoun County part of NOVA. Dean J says that she finds herself spending more time there than ever before because the area is booming and the public high schools are churning out high stats kids. There's less pressure on the students there, as well. Langley and Mclean can be a pressure cooker because they offer all the top AP courses. Go to the Langley website and look at the advanced math and science courses offered - it's very impressive - but can make average students feel inferior. Also, with traffic getting so bad in NOVA (well, pre-covid), moving further out from D.C. makes a lot of sense.

Is that helpful?

Thank you this is helpful.

The PP or you are not the first one who have told me about this. I have heard the same from other parents too. However, we were still persistent on these schools and as we personally liked them on our tour. Also our kids will be surrounded by kids who have similar goals. We are moving from a N.J. district which is in top 10 if I remove magnets. In the past we have been in a district which was at 150. There is a big difference in quality of education and parents who value education. I have kids who are high honor and honor roll in MS. So yes they are doing well. They also do sports and Boy Scouts.

My husband thinks it’s stupid to take so much debt and still live in a fixer upper. When you can buy a beautiful home for under 900 K. Hmm no wonder some of the families I know of whose kids went to Loudon HSs are in UVA, whilst those who went to Langley ended up in JMU. They are all good schools. They are all doing similar jobs. Honestly, I am confused, lol.

I understand being confused. I'm now in McLean and was considering moving out to Cascades, Sterling or somewhere else in Loudoun just to get out from under the oppressive property taxes we have been paying for decades. Now, with COVID I don't know what we are going to do but I am glad we didn't downsize because our entire family would be trying to function in a small townhouse or small house if we had. At some point we will sell to cash out and curtail all the house-related expenses but we are at a different stage of life. Have you considered renting for a year in the McLean area? There are a lot of rental properties coming on the market. You could move and try out both the area and the school district to see if it's to your liking and lay out a much smaller amount of money while experimenting. Then go out and look at Loudoun areas and schools. Here's Dean J.'s comment about Loudon county and the changes: http://uvaapplication.blogspot.com/2016/10/uva-admission-quotas-for-northern.html. There is one apartment building in the center of McLean with three bedroom units. It's older but perfectly doable for a family and has a pool and gym. I believe you said your child is 8? You will hear a lot about "pyramids". We are in the Churchill (elementary school); Cooper (middle); Langley pyramid. We wanted to avoid Cooper for middle school and did either via private schools, then went back into Langley for the four years. It worked out well but Langley can be a pressure cooker. Your child may not like it. Ours did just fine -don't listen to the "designer bag" and "fancy cars" story - no one carries purses anymore - they wear backpacks and my kids wore basically sweats all four years. Yes, there are drugs, but there are drugs everywhere. Yes, some kids have wealthy background and ski in St. Moritz but we didn't and probably never will.

I do know Asian American families who have leased a one bedroom apartment for their child just to get into the Langley district because they value the education, above all. These figures are from 2012-13 (from wiki) so basically worthless but I would guess the Asian American population to be at about 30% now: The student body was 69.50% White, 20.87% Asian, 4.59% Hispanic, 1.18% Black, and 3.86%. Those are tough kids to compete against and to my kids' frustration, they always won the talent show. On the other hand, we have TJ, which is the best high school in Virginia and Langley as no. 2 and all the colleges know it. McLean is also an xlnt high school, as you probably know. I found the teachers at Langley to be better than most of the private teachers my children had. Also, the advanced AP courses in mathematics and science are way beyond what most private schools can afford to offer, but those courses are taken only by the supernova kids. One of my children didn't take any AP courses.

Another factor to consider is whether or not your child might get into TJ.

Another thing to avoid in purchasing a home in this area is going too far west in the Langley district. Some of those kids spend hours on a bus every day because the buses pick up out near route 7 and then make their way SE to Langley. They are already sleep-deprived and taxed by homework - adding on two hours a day of bus rides isn't great.

Any other questions I can answer?

Why did you have to bring race and your prejudice into this discussion? Please stop talking about Asian Americans. Is that how Langley parents think of and talk about “them” behind closed doors and on Internet forums? Essentially other people that are frustrating competition and cheaters taking away their children’s rightful honors? So disappointing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I know a kid (not from Langley) that had nearly all A's with 12 APs (4.45 GPA), 1550 SATs, good extra curricular activities (showed leadership and state champions) who was waitlisted at UVA, and rejected at 10 other schools (including her yield-protecting safety). She did end up getting into Northwestern and W & M.

I know of a different kid from 2024 with similar stats and a similar story.

I think this is not uncommon from fcps.

Colleges looking for so much more than just numbers. Those kids lacking it.

Give me a break. The ones who got in are not the second coming either. They are all 18 year olds and have not really "done" anything yet beyond their own tiny sphere of childhood (yes of course there are outliers) but the thing is that's OK. It's normal. It's beyond odd to exault 17 year old kids as having made it vs. Not made it in order to get into college. At a certain point it can be a lottery at selective schools. Which I've seen from the backside of admissions (only 2 years, it definitely wasn't my niche)

[Anonymous]

Mindsets need to change around college admissions. So many parents are older and remember when students only applied to 5-6 schools, admissions weren't as competitive, and colleges didn't practice yield protection, etc.

If your kid is going to apply to a bunch of highly selective colleges, you should start to think of it the same way college seniors looked at applying to med schools decades ago - it was more important to get into med school than to get into five.

The media tends to play up the stories of applicants - typically URMs - who get into every Ivy, along with Stanford, Duke and Chicago, and have their pick, and people need to know those stories are click bait and that this is not going to happen to 99.9% of the white or Asian kids applying to top schools in large numbers.

[Anonymous]

Consider buying in DC and your kids will have much better chance of getting into top state schools everywhere with reduced tuition. My cousins got great education at Wilson High, with a lot of AP options and extracurricular activities. They participated in sports (Football, track) And student news which Helped. SAT scores good but not great. GPAs just over 4.0. They ended up at UCLA, Michigan, UNC.