Free advice from a senior high school parent

[Anonymous]

You’re both at NCS? That explains a lot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What a pathetic thread. The only goal of HS is to get into the right college. How about an actual education for your child?

Assuming similar SES, what does a better education 'get' you? Better jobs? Better job performance? Thinking deeper thoughts? Better small talk at cocktail parties? It's not any different than using it to get to a better college.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, what's striking to me is how all the privates seem to have the same college outcomes: Bullis, Sidwell, NCS, Holy Child. They're getting kids into the exact same schools. There is no longer any benefit for suffering through Sidwell or NCS over Flint Hill or St. Andrews.

The way things are going, the admissions will be BETTER from these easier schools this year or next. The schools that are holding out on to super strict grading (NCS, Sidwell, to a lesser degree GDS and STA) are going to have to pivot or really become irrelevant.

Holy Child? You must have this school confused with some other private school. HC does not have impressive college outcomes like some of the other schools on your list.

Well they are this year. they got 4 girls into Wake Forest and NCS got zero.

I'm not a HC parent but this year it appears you could do well there with a reasonable amount of effort, have a good high school experience and get into Wake. OR you can work your ass off at NCS, end up with a 3.7 or 3.8 and get rejected form Wake (-as one example).

It's frustrating.

Since when did WF become a prize?!? I would be very disappointed if my NCS daughter attended WF.

Huh? It's super popular and only about the top 15% of the NCS class can even get into Wake these days.
If you're looking down your nose at Wake I hope your daughter is in the top 5% of her class and has a 3.9+ as a senior.

It may be super popular at HC, but it is not/will not be an option for my daughter. My daughter didn’t choose NCS to end up at WF. However, that’s a fine school for HC students to aspire to, I suppose.

P.S. NCS, and the vast majority of elite private schools, don’t rank students.

yeah, I know. I have an NCS daughter.
I would bet a lot that you don't have a senior or junior with your degree of cluelessness.
The only girls getting into WF (just given as an example) from NCS in the past 3 years had above a 3.85. Which puts them in the top 10-20% of the class, depending on year.
So I really hope you have a true genius on your hands if your daughter is such a stellar applicant that she is in the top 10% of her NCS class and so securely there that she can veto schools at the level of Wake.

“So I really hope you have a true genius on your hands if your daughter is such a stellar applicant that she is in the top 10% of her NCS class.”

Your daughter doesn’t attend NCS. If she did you would know that NCS doesn’t rank.

I hope your daughter has a great time at WF, or wherever she ends up.

what are you talking about? NCS has the cum laude society--that's the top 20% of the grade. It puts a marker in the sand of where the 20% percentile of a graduating class is.
College counseling pretty openly says what the 50% GPA is.
Then it's pretty easy to figure out where the rest of the girls lie.
Then Scoir data gives the info (such as WF has only taken girls with a 3.85 or above in the past 4 years).
It's not rocket science.
Clearly you don't have a junior or senior.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, what's striking to me is how all the privates seem to have the same college outcomes: Bullis, Sidwell, NCS, Holy Child. They're getting kids into the exact same schools. There is no longer any benefit for suffering through Sidwell or NCS over Flint Hill or St. Andrews.

The way things are going, the admissions will be BETTER from these easier schools this year or next. The schools that are holding out on to super strict grading (NCS, Sidwell, to a lesser degree GDS and STA) are going to have to pivot or really become irrelevant.

Holy Child? You must have this school confused with some other private school. HC does not have impressive college outcomes like some of the other schools on your list.

Well they are this year. they got 4 girls into Wake Forest and NCS got zero.

I'm not a HC parent but this year it appears you could do well there with a reasonable amount of effort, have a good high school experience and get into Wake. OR you can work your ass off at NCS, end up with a 3.7 or 3.8 and get rejected form Wake (-as one example).

It's frustrating.

Since when did WF become a prize?!? I would be very disappointed if my NCS daughter attended WF.

Huh? It's super popular and only about the top 15% of the NCS class can even get into Wake these days.
If you're looking down your nose at Wake I hope your daughter is in the top 5% of her class and has a 3.9+ as a senior.

It may be super popular at HC, but it is not/will not be an option for my daughter. My daughter didn’t choose NCS to end up at WF. However, that’s a fine school for HC students to aspire to, I suppose.

P.S. NCS, and the vast majority of elite private schools, don’t rank students.

yeah, I know. I have an NCS daughter.
I would bet a lot that you don't have a senior or junior with your degree of cluelessness.
The only girls getting into WF (just given as an example) from NCS in the past 3 years had above a 3.85. Which puts them in the top 10-20% of the class, depending on year.
So I really hope you have a true genius on your hands if your daughter is such a stellar applicant that she is in the top 10% of her NCS class and so securely there that she can veto schools at the level of Wake.

“So I really hope you have a true genius on your hands if your daughter is such a stellar applicant that she is in the top 10% of her NCS class.”

Your daughter doesn’t attend NCS. If she did you would know that NCS doesn’t rank.

I hope your daughter has a great time at WF, or wherever she ends up.

what are you talking about? NCS has the cum laude society--that's the top 20% of the grade. It puts a marker in the sand of where the 20% percentile of a graduating class is.
College counseling pretty openly says what the 50% GPA is.
Then it's pretty easy to figure out where the rest of the girls lie.
Then Scoir data gives the info (such as WF has only taken girls with a 3.85 or above in the past 4 years).
It's not rocket science.
Clearly you don't have a junior or senior.

1. You originally said “top 10%,” not top 20%;
2. The Cum Laude Society only considers a student’s grades from 10th through 12th grade, so it’s an incomplete picture of a student’s cumulative high school GPA; and
3. It’s not “pretty easy to figure out where the rest of the girls lie” because NCS does NOT rank. You’ll know the top 20% (based on 10th through 12th grade GPA) near the end of SENIOR year, and that’s it!

Move along.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, what's striking to me is how all the privates seem to have the same college outcomes: Bullis, Sidwell, NCS, Holy Child. They're getting kids into the exact same schools. There is no longer any benefit for suffering through Sidwell or NCS over Flint Hill or St. Andrews.

The way things are going, the admissions will be BETTER from these easier schools this year or next. The schools that are holding out on to super strict grading (NCS, Sidwell, to a lesser degree GDS and STA) are going to have to pivot or really become irrelevant.

Holy Child? You must have this school confused with some other private school. HC does not have impressive college outcomes like some of the other schools on your list.

Well they are this year. they got 4 girls into Wake Forest and NCS got zero.

I'm not a HC parent but this year it appears you could do well there with a reasonable amount of effort, have a good high school experience and get into Wake. OR you can work your ass off at NCS, end up with a 3.7 or 3.8 and get rejected form Wake (-as one example).

It's frustrating.

Since when did WF become a prize?!? I would be very disappointed if my NCS daughter attended WF.

Huh? It's super popular and only about the top 15% of the NCS class can even get into Wake these days.
If you're looking down your nose at Wake I hope your daughter is in the top 5% of her class and has a 3.9+ as a senior.

It may be super popular at HC, but it is not/will not be an option for my daughter. My daughter didn’t choose NCS to end up at WF. However, that’s a fine school for HC students to aspire to, I suppose.

P.S. NCS, and the vast majority of elite private schools, don’t rank students.

yeah, I know. I have an NCS daughter.
I would bet a lot that you don't have a senior or junior with your degree of cluelessness.
The only girls getting into WF (just given as an example) from NCS in the past 3 years had above a 3.85. Which puts them in the top 10-20% of the class, depending on year.
So I really hope you have a true genius on your hands if your daughter is such a stellar applicant that she is in the top 10% of her NCS class and so securely there that she can veto schools at the level of Wake.

“So I really hope you have a true genius on your hands if your daughter is such a stellar applicant that she is in the top 10% of her NCS class.”

Your daughter doesn’t attend NCS. If she did you would know that NCS doesn’t rank.

I hope your daughter has a great time at WF, or wherever she ends up.

what are you talking about? NCS has the cum laude society--that's the top 20% of the grade. It puts a marker in the sand of where the 20% percentile of a graduating class is.
College counseling pretty openly says what the 50% GPA is.
Then it's pretty easy to figure out where the rest of the girls lie.
Then Scoir data gives the info (such as WF has only taken girls with a 3.85 or above in the past 4 years).
It's not rocket science.
Clearly you don't have a junior or senior.

1. You originally said “top 10%,” not top 20%;
2. The Cum Laude Society only considers a student’s grades from 10th through 12th grade, so it’s an incomplete picture of a student’s cumulative high school GPA; and
3. It’s not “pretty easy to figure out where the rest of the girls lie” because NCS does NOT rank. You’ll know the top 20% (based on 10th through 12th grade GPA) near the end of SENIOR year, and that’s it!

Move along.

I've lost track of what you're even arguing. My fundamental point is that girls getting into WF from NCS in recent year have needed a very high GPA.
It's not some sort of low tier school like you're suggesting. The girls getting in there have done incredibly well at NCS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You’re both at NCS? That explains a lot.

Wow! A walking advertisement.🤮🤮🤮

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You’re both at NCS? That explains a lot.

Wow! A walking advertisement.🤮🤮🤮

Yup, and doesn't even increase your college admission anywhere decent anymore. I'd actually be embarrassed to admit I went to NCS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, what's striking to me is how all the privates seem to have the same college outcomes: Bullis, Sidwell, NCS, Holy Child. They're getting kids into the exact same schools. There is no longer any benefit for suffering through Sidwell or NCS over Flint Hill or St. Andrews.

The way things are going, the admissions will be BETTER from these easier schools this year or next. The schools that are holding out on to super strict grading (NCS, Sidwell, to a lesser degree GDS and STA) are going to have to pivot or really become irrelevant.

Holy Child? You must have this school confused with some other private school. HC does not have impressive college outcomes like some of the other schools on your list.

Well they are this year. they got 4 girls into Wake Forest and NCS got zero.

I'm not a HC parent but this year it appears you could do well there with a reasonable amount of effort, have a good high school experience and get into Wake. OR you can work your ass off at NCS, end up with a 3.7 or 3.8 and get rejected form Wake (-as one example).

It's frustrating.

Since when did WF become a prize?!? I would be very disappointed if my NCS daughter attended WF.

Huh? It's super popular and only about the top 15% of the NCS class can even get into Wake these days.
If you're looking down your nose at Wake I hope your daughter is in the top 5% of her class and has a 3.9+ as a senior.

It may be super popular at HC, but it is not/will not be an option for my daughter. My daughter didn’t choose NCS to end up at WF. However, that’s a fine school for HC students to aspire to, I suppose.

P.S. NCS, and the vast majority of elite private schools, don’t rank students.

yeah, I know. I have an NCS daughter.
I would bet a lot that you don't have a senior or junior with your degree of cluelessness.
The only girls getting into WF (just given as an example) from NCS in the past 3 years had above a 3.85. Which puts them in the top 10-20% of the class, depending on year.
So I really hope you have a true genius on your hands if your daughter is such a stellar applicant that she is in the top 10% of her NCS class and so securely there that she can veto schools at the level of Wake.

“So I really hope you have a true genius on your hands if your daughter is such a stellar applicant that she is in the top 10% of her NCS class.”

Your daughter doesn’t attend NCS. If she did you would know that NCS doesn’t rank.

I hope your daughter has a great time at WF, or wherever she ends up.

what are you talking about? NCS has the cum laude society--that's the top 20% of the grade. It puts a marker in the sand of where the 20% percentile of a graduating class is.
College counseling pretty openly says what the 50% GPA is.
Then it's pretty easy to figure out where the rest of the girls lie.
Then Scoir data gives the info (such as WF has only taken girls with a 3.85 or above in the past 4 years).
It's not rocket science.
Clearly you don't have a junior or senior.

1. You originally said “top 10%,” not top 20%;
2. The Cum Laude Society only considers a student’s grades from 10th through 12th grade, so it’s an incomplete picture of a student’s cumulative high school GPA; and
3. It’s not “pretty easy to figure out where the rest of the girls lie” because NCS does NOT rank. You’ll know the top 20% (based on 10th through 12th grade GPA) near the end of SENIOR year, and that’s it!

Move along.

I've lost track of what you're even arguing. My fundamental point is that girls getting into WF from NCS in recent year have needed a very high GPA.
It's not some sort of low tier school like you're suggesting. The girls getting in there have done incredibly well at NCS.

Good for them. My opinion of WF is not based on its rank or “tier.” It is simply not an option for my children and it’s geographically undesirable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You’re both at NCS? That explains a lot.

Wow! A walking advertisement.🤮🤮🤮

Yup, and doesn't even increase your college admission anywhere decent anymore. I'd actually be embarrassed to admit I went to NCS.

Please worry about yourself and your middling HC business. Honestly, HC shouldn’t even be mentioned when discussing serious academic institutions. It’s a Catholic finishing school—and a very basic one at that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You’re both at NCS? That explains a lot.

Wow! A walking advertisement.🤮🤮🤮

Yup, and doesn't even increase your college admission anywhere decent anymore. I'd actually be embarrassed to admit I went to NCS.

Please worry about yourself and your middling HC business. Honestly, HC shouldn’t even be mentioned when discussing serious academic institutions. It’s a Catholic finishing school—and a very basic one at that.

Do you mean because our girls marry at a higher rate than NCS girls? Silly mom. It's a fact that 87% of HC grads marry before the age of 32, while NCS grads are the least likely to get married at all. I hope their degrees keep them warm at night!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You’re both at NCS? That explains a lot.

Wow! A walking advertisement.🤮🤮🤮

Yup, and doesn't even increase your college admission anywhere decent anymore. I'd actually be embarrassed to admit I went to NCS.

Please worry about yourself and your middling HC business. Honestly, HC shouldn’t even be mentioned when discussing serious academic institutions. It’s a Catholic finishing school—and a very basic one at that.

Do you mean because our girls marry at a higher rate than NCS girls? Silly mom. It's a fact that 87% of HC grads marry before the age of 32, while NCS grads are the least likely to get married at all. I hope their degrees keep them warm at night!

You sound like a lonely, desperate housewife…clearly educated at HC. Please provide the link for the research you cited. I’ll wait.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think it might be true that the very top kids in public are doing as well or better than the very top kids in private. If your only acceptable outcome is an Ivy or MIT, then public might be for you. But know that either way there's like a 98% chance your kid won't hit that goal.

But the middle and bottom of classes at private schools are doing far better than the middle and bottom of classes at public schools. There isn't any question of that. Private school has an enormous safety net.

I'm not saying you should or shouldn't go to private for that reason, but I think it's important to understand that the people who claim that private doesn't help with college admissions are really only talking about the top 10% of the class.

Well of course, the middle percentage of the class at a private will do better. They were already vetted upon admission to the private school, The only kids who got into Sidwell, GDS, NCS from our public were the very, very top kids--those with straight As, 99% testing, PLUS outstanding extracurriculars, etc.

There are plenty of kids at those schools who got in as preschoolers and elementary schoolers before there was any way of knowing what kind of student they'd be or what kind of extracurriculars they would do.

yes, but they're still vetted on admission if you believe that the early IQ testing means anything. Plus the class is culled each year and stragglers are counseled out. Plus the kids get a very strong education from a young age.
There's no comparison to public. 25% of MCPS is chronically truant. They're not even attending school. It's even higher in DCPS.

I have kids in both public and a "Big3" private and the cohorts are entirely different. The private is basically composed entirely of top 10% public kids. Maybe even top 5% public kids. This is not to disparage public school kids---I have one. It's just a very different cohort by the time the grade reaches senior year.

Lol.

Sorry. A lot of the lifers are not top 5-10% kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You’re both at NCS? That explains a lot.

Wow! A walking advertisement.🤮🤮🤮

Yup, and doesn't even increase your college admission anywhere decent anymore. I'd actually be embarrassed to admit I went to NCS.

Please worry about yourself and your middling HC business. Honestly, HC shouldn’t even be mentioned when discussing serious academic institutions. It’s a Catholic finishing school—and a very basic one at that.

Do you mean because our girls marry at a higher rate than NCS girls? Silly mom. It's a fact that 87% of HC grads marry before the age of 32, while NCS grads are the least likely to get married at all. I hope their degrees keep them warm at night!

You sound like a lonely, desperate housewife…clearly educated at HC. Please provide the link for the research you cited. I’ll wait.

You sound like a lonely, desperate NCS grad.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You’re both at NCS? That explains a lot.

Wow! A walking advertisement.🤮🤮🤮

Yup, and doesn't even increase your college admission anywhere decent anymore. I'd actually be embarrassed to admit I went to NCS.

Please worry about yourself and your middling HC business. Honestly, HC shouldn’t even be mentioned when discussing serious academic institutions. It’s a Catholic finishing school—and a very basic one at that.

Do you mean because our girls marry at a higher rate than NCS girls? Silly mom. It's a fact that 87% of HC grads marry before the age of 32, while NCS grads are the least likely to get married at all. I hope their degrees keep them warm at night!

You sound like a lonely, desperate housewife…clearly educated at HC. Please provide the link for the research you cited. I’ll wait.

You sound like a lonely, desperate NCS grad.

You sound like a lonely, desperate HC grad which is the equivalent of a guttersnipe.

I’m still waiting for the cited research. You do know what that means, right? I’m not sure if you learn about research methods and scientific studies at HC.

[Anonymous]

Wow. This is sort of awesome watching you NCS moms duke it out over such small potatoes.

I wouldn’t be embarrassed to have my add go to HC or NCS but I‘do certainly be embarrassed to even stand next to either of you at an open house.

NCS mom, hope your DD gets into someplace acceptable to you so she doesn’t think she is an embarrassment to you.

Such a fun thread. Hope you two keep at it for a few more pages so this thread really pops when people go looking for info on NCS.