Do most independent schools give siblings early admissions notification?
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Anonymous
| Wondering how the process works - is there any typical process, or is it school by school? |
Anonymous
| I don't know of any schools that give early notice to siblings. |
Anonymous
| We were notified a day or so in advance by phone when our 3rd child was not admitted. We were not notified in advance when our 2nd child was accepted. |
Anonymous
| Sheridan notifies in December so you can apply out if need be. I love that - I wish our school is that. |
Anonymous
| I heard a lot of schools switched to a february notice for siblings this year vice March 1. I believe Sidwell did, but don't have first hand knowledge. |
Anonymous
| Our children's school calls a couple days before letters come out if a sibling is not admitted. |
Anonymous
| We were notified in December but our official letter didn't come until March 1st. |
Anonymous
Just curious why they said your third child was not admitted. That would be so upsetting to me! |
Anonymous
Also curious, as we might be in a similar situation with our second child. Hope it turned out for the best! |
Anonymous
| Our school said they couldn't due to an agreement with the AISGW schools. It had to do with FA. I did ask if I should pay the deposit at another school to hold that spot and they said "no". |
Anonymous
Our third child was not admitted because of early warning signs of a severe reading disorder and some anxiety. Turns out the school was right to not admit our third child and DC #3, has been happily at a school for kids with learning disabilities for many years now. It was stressful and upsetting at the time and of course, we still worry about the future for DC #3 who will never be a strong reader. |
pbraverman
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As a relatively new phenomenon, some DC-area schools encourage siblings to apply early. (It's a mystery that early admission is not more of a thing, as in colleges.) Though nothing is final until decisions are announced to families, in general these schools will give some early indication of whether parents should feel encouraged or discouraged by Sibling #2's (or 3's or 4's) chances. Most (but certainly not all) schools will raise concerns they have about siblings early, usually in the form of a phone call from an admission officer. Those calls usually take the form of: "We really love Susie, but I want to let you know that Jimmy's reading scores are raising some questions. I don't know what the Committee will ultimately do, but I wanted you to know that it may not be a sure thing." In my opinion, in these cases parents would be well advised to assume that Jimmy will not be offered a spot. It is possible that he will be, depending on other circumstances, and that would be a bonus. However, it's important to be realistic: this admittedly elliptical way of saying things is a strong recommendation to distribute your applicant's eggs to more baskets. Hope that's helpful. Peter _____________________ Disclaimer: The anonymity here makes me uncomfortable; it's easy to be uninformed, personal, or simply mean-spirited if people don't identify themselves. For that reason, I have an account so you know whose words you're reading. I have more than 20 years' experience as a teacher and administrator in independent schools, and I have counseled hundreds of students in finding their next schools. I hope I can be helpful to some folks. If you don't like something I've said, you're in good company — there's a long line of past students and parents ahead of you.  If you want to chat further, please feel free to contact me offline: peter <at> arcpd <dot> com
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Anonymous
| Not the Big 3. |
Anonymous
Sidwell notified siblings early this year. |
pbraverman
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I've been doing this for 15 years and I don't know what the "Big 3" are. (Please, don't tell me. I don't want to know.) That said, at least two of the most competitive schools in DC have notified siblings early in the last few years. Peter |