Is TJ worth it for student aiming aiming for top schools like HPSM, Duke, Caltech?

[Anonymous]

Many dont want to go to high school sized colleges. That is the big part of it. Not that there is anything wrong with it.

[Anonymous]

Why resurrect this old thread?

[Anonymous]

Noone knows what HYPSM, Duke , Cal Tech are looking for.

It's like reading tea leaves.

These places are not letting in a lot of students from base schools and a lot more from TJ. In part because that's where all the best students are concentrated and in part because there are so many opportunities at TJ that let you stand display how outstanding you are.

I don't know about now with the new admissions process but it used to be that if you barely got into TJ, you were better off not going unless you are really motivated.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hello,

Planning ahead for DS. We understand that a big advantage of TJ is simply the peer group and great teachers. However, for college admissions we are wondering if sticking out and graduating high in the base HS is better than going to TJ and risking being in the middle of the pack. I recognize admissions for TJ are also different now and getting in is never guaranteed anyways.

Much, much harder to stand out from TJ than base school. This is a well known fact. You have the top 1.5% of students in various counties at one high school and then of those 400+ you take the top 2% at elite universities. So you need to be at the top of the top to get in coming out if TJ. Look at UVA, where the average TJ SAT for admission is 1562 and 4.4 wGPA. So a 1550 and 4.3 doesn’t get you in out of TJ, but certainly would out of a base school and give you a shot at Duke, etc. coming out of your base school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hello,

Planning ahead for DS. We understand that a big advantage of TJ is simply the peer group and great teachers. However, for college admissions we are wondering if sticking out and graduating high in the base HS is better than going to TJ and risking being in the middle of the pack. I recognize admissions for TJ are also different now and getting in is never guaranteed anyways.

Much, much harder to stand out from TJ than base school. This is a well known fact. You have the top 1.5% of students in various counties at one high school and then of those 400+ you take the top 2% at elite universities. So you need to be at the top of the top to get in coming out if TJ. Look at UVA, where the average TJ SAT for admission is 1562 and 4.4 wGPA. So a 1550 and 4.3 doesn’t get you in out of TJ, but certainly would out of a base school and give you a shot at Duke, etc. coming out of your base school.

I agree there seems to be a higher hurdle for TJ students getting into UVA, but that seems to mostly stem from the focus on GPA more than anything else.
4.3 at TJ has trouble getting in, 4.4 has much less trouble getting in, the SAT scores don't seem to matter much as after high 1400s.

There are more than 11 kids getting into HYPSM+ from TJ.
Probably more than the next 10 virginia high schools combined.
TJ is on the radar for all these schools,
They aren't treating TJ grads the same as base school grads.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hello,

Planning ahead for DS. We understand that a big advantage of TJ is simply the peer group and great teachers. However, for college admissions we are wondering if sticking out and graduating high in the base HS is better than going to TJ and risking being in the middle of the pack. I recognize admissions for TJ are also different now and getting in is never guaranteed anyways.

Much, much harder to stand out from TJ than base school. This is a well known fact. You have the top 1.5% of students in various counties at one high school and then of those 400+ you take the top 2% at elite universities. So you need to be at the top of the top to get in coming out if TJ. Look at UVA, where the average TJ SAT for admission is 1562 and 4.4 wGPA. So a 1550 and 4.3 doesn’t get you in out of TJ, but certainly would out of a base school and give you a shot at Duke, etc. coming out of your base school.

I agree there seems to be a higher hurdle for TJ students getting into UVA, but that seems to mostly stem from the focus on GPA more than anything else.
4.3 at TJ has trouble getting in, 4.4 has much less trouble getting in, the SAT scores don't seem to matter much as after high 1400s.

There are more than 11 kids getting into HYPSM+ from TJ.
Probably more than the next 10 virginia high schools combined.
TJ is on the radar for all these schools,
They aren't treating TJ grads the same as base school grads.

TJ averaged 22 in recent years. McLean averaged 4. Don't know about Langley but would guess same or a bit more than McLean (more hooked). Potomac averaged 7 (but has smaller class size, so ratio is comparable).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hello,

Planning ahead for DS. We understand that a big advantage of TJ is simply the peer group and great teachers. However, for college admissions we are wondering if sticking out and graduating high in the base HS is better than going to TJ and risking being in the middle of the pack. I recognize admissions for TJ are also different now and getting in is never guaranteed anyways.

Much, much harder to stand out from TJ than base school. This is a well known fact. You have the top 1.5% of students in various counties at one high school and then of those 400+ you take the top 2% at elite universities. So you need to be at the top of the top to get in coming out if TJ. Look at UVA, where the average TJ SAT for admission is 1562 and 4.4 wGPA. So a 1550 and 4.3 doesn’t get you in out of TJ, but certainly would out of a base school and give you a shot at Duke, etc. coming out of your base school.

I agree there seems to be a higher hurdle for TJ students getting into UVA, but that seems to mostly stem from the focus on GPA more than anything else.
4.3 at TJ has trouble getting in, 4.4 has much less trouble getting in, the SAT scores don't seem to matter much as after high 1400s.

There are more than 11 kids getting into HYPSM+ from TJ.
Probably more than the next 10 virginia high schools combined.
TJ is on the radar for all these schools,
They aren't treating TJ grads the same as base school grads.

About 100+ of last year's TJ class received UVA offers, of which 40+ accepted, and the other 60+ passed them on to accept better ranked universities. How is it a higher bar when over 20% of TJ class are presented with UVA offers? Any other HS school that can beat that?

[Anonymous]

All those schools emphasize significant EC achievements. But if you’re stuck with hard coursework at TJ, you don’t have much time for developing your ECs. So you know the answer.

[Anonymous]

OP none of the parents that expressed interest in TJ in elementary school ended up with kids capable of it. I was strongly against TJ and my child got in and chose to go.

[Anonymous]

I think it really depends on what your alternatives are. I live in Maryland, so I'm not very familiar with high schools in Virginia. But if your alternatives are the equivalent of something like Whitman or one of the magnet programs like Poolesville, I would never in a million years send a kid to TJ expecting some kind of college boost. At the good publics, you will have an exceptional peer group, all the advanced classes, and the opportunity to participate in a huge variety of ECs.

TJ seems like a 100 percent grind, where even the brightest students are working 24/7 to simply stay afloat, much less graduate near the top of their class. College outcomes at Whitman and Poolesville are extremely good, not least because they have the opportunity to distinguish themselves beyond taking a dozen APs and scoring high on test scores. But if the alternative is a high school with lesser opportunities and difficulties finding high achieving peers, I'd reconsider if my kid was inclined to go to a school like TJ.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think it really depends on what your alternatives are. I live in Maryland, so I'm not very familiar with high schools in Virginia. But if your alternatives are the equivalent of something like Whitman or one of the magnet programs like Poolesville, I would never in a million years send a kid to TJ expecting some kind of college boost. At the good publics, you will have an exceptional peer group, all the advanced classes, and the opportunity to participate in a huge variety of ECs.

TJ seems like a 100 percent grind, where even the brightest students are working 24/7 to simply stay afloat, much less graduate near the top of their class. College outcomes at Whitman and Poolesville are extremely good, not least because they have the opportunity to distinguish themselves beyond taking a dozen APs and scoring high on test scores. But if the alternative is a high school with lesser opportunities and difficulties finding high achieving peers, I'd reconsider if my kid was inclined to go to a school like TJ.

Yes college outcomes at Whitman and Poolesville are almost as good as Blair SMCS or RMIB.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hello,

Planning ahead for DS. We understand that a big advantage of TJ is simply the peer group and great teachers. However, for college admissions we are wondering if sticking out and graduating high in the base HS is better than going to TJ and risking being in the middle of the pack. I recognize admissions for TJ are also different now and getting in is never guaranteed anyways.

Much, much harder to stand out from TJ than base school. This is a well known fact. You have the top 1.5% of students in various counties at one high school and then of those 400+ you take the top 2% at elite universities. So you need to be at the top of the top to get in coming out if TJ. Look at UVA, where the average TJ SAT for admission is 1562 and 4.4 wGPA. So a 1550 and 4.3 doesn’t get you in out of TJ, but certainly would out of a base school and give you a shot at Duke, etc. coming out of your base school.

I agree there seems to be a higher hurdle for TJ students getting into UVA, but that seems to mostly stem from the focus on GPA more than anything else.
4.3 at TJ has trouble getting in, 4.4 has much less trouble getting in, the SAT scores don't seem to matter much as after high 1400s.

There are more than 11 kids getting into HYPSM+ from TJ.
Probably more than the next 10 virginia high schools combined.
TJ is on the radar for all these schools,
They aren't treating TJ grads the same as base school grads.

TJ averaged 22 in recent years. McLean averaged 4. Don't know about Langley but would guess same or a bit more than McLean (more hooked). Potomac averaged 7 (but has smaller class size, so ratio is comparable).

I meant public high school. But yes, schools like Potomac will do well because so many of the parents went these schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hello,

Planning ahead for DS. We understand that a big advantage of TJ is simply the peer group and great teachers. However, for college admissions we are wondering if sticking out and graduating high in the base HS is better than going to TJ and risking being in the middle of the pack. I recognize admissions for TJ are also different now and getting in is never guaranteed anyways.

Much, much harder to stand out from TJ than base school. This is a well known fact. You have the top 1.5% of students in various counties at one high school and then of those 400+ you take the top 2% at elite universities. So you need to be at the top of the top to get in coming out if TJ. Look at UVA, where the average TJ SAT for admission is 1562 and 4.4 wGPA. So a 1550 and 4.3 doesn’t get you in out of TJ, but certainly would out of a base school and give you a shot at Duke, etc. coming out of your base school.

I agree there seems to be a higher hurdle for TJ students getting into UVA, but that seems to mostly stem from the focus on GPA more than anything else.
4.3 at TJ has trouble getting in, 4.4 has much less trouble getting in, the SAT scores don't seem to matter much as after high 1400s.

There are more than 11 kids getting into HYPSM+ from TJ.
Probably more than the next 10 virginia high schools combined.
TJ is on the radar for all these schools,
They aren't treating TJ grads the same as base school grads.

About 100+ of last year's TJ class received UVA offers, of which 40+ accepted, and the other 60+ passed them on to accept better ranked universities. How is it a higher bar when over 20% of TJ class are presented with UVA offers? Any other HS school that can beat that?

You seem to be under the impression that TJ should have as many kids getting into UVA as any other high school.
Do you think that there are any other virginia high schools that come close to having the level of academic achievement as TJ students.
The average SAT score of TJ students accepted to UVA is significantly higher than the successful applicants from any other virginia high school.
That's a higher bar.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP none of the parents that expressed interest in TJ in elementary school ended up with kids capable of it. I was strongly against TJ and my child got in and chose to go.

Who the hell expresses interest in TJ in elementary school?
I mean even if you are interested, you don't advertise it because people like you exist.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think it really depends on what your alternatives are. I live in Maryland, so I'm not very familiar with high schools in Virginia. But if your alternatives are the equivalent of something like Whitman or one of the magnet programs like Poolesville, I would never in a million years send a kid to TJ expecting some kind of college boost. At the good publics, you will have an exceptional peer group, all the advanced classes, and the opportunity to participate in a huge variety of ECs.

TJ seems like a 100 percent grind, where even the brightest students are working 24/7 to simply stay afloat, much less graduate near the top of their class. College outcomes at Whitman and Poolesville are extremely good, not least because they have the opportunity to distinguish themselves beyond taking a dozen APs and scoring high on test scores. But if the alternative is a high school with lesser opportunities and difficulties finding high achieving peers, I'd reconsider if my kid was inclined to go to a school like TJ.

If you can distinguish yourself at Whitman, who cares. Enjoy UMD, it's a perfectly fine school and you can go anywhere or do anything with a degree from there.
If you can distinguish yourself at TJ, people notice and you can go to almost any college you want. From which you can go anywhere and do anything you want but with a fancier name on your college degree that noone will care about once you get your graduate degree.