TJ acceptances

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Even AAP was too easy for DC, as it commonly is for most advanced students. So we stopped all frivolous purchases like athletic gear and electronics, and used that money towards academic enrichment in middle school. DC is enrolled in the highest level Biology and Physics at TJ, and certainly in the top segment of their class, according to their counselor.

You realize people at TJ have hobbies and sports? You can be smart and play sports at the same time…

What are you trying to say? That has nothing to do with anything.
You can brag, without sound like you are trying to put others down.
What about music instruments? Some good piece cost thousands and many TJ students owns it.
Even at TJ, sports is a big things and they needs to purchase equipment.

+ 1. It’s really sad that people are doing all this academic stuff with no sports or music or even personal interests. You know in college, they will be looking for at least 1 sport? Why would you replace sports with more school if your son is so top notch in the class? It’s really sad… you don’t have to brag about how easy school is for your son, because in that message it really sounded like you were putting others down and trying to make your son sound like Einstein or something.

You can cry all you want. FCPS admits more advanced academics students into TJ than below average students with sports. The poor performing students quit sports, when those students could have continued sports if they stayed back at base school

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: I know kids who were in Alg. 2, all hns, and 4.0 gpa that got rejected. But, there are kids in normal Algebra with a lower gpa and accepted. How does the whole process work? Are the sps questions personal questions? Also, I heard many kids did not get the pse question right, and wrote an essay for the wrong answer and still got in… If you got accepted this year, lmk how they select their students. Thanks.

It’s literally a lottery system. There you go!

If by lottery you mean a system that objectively selects the very best and brightest then sure.

Definitely agree! Just because you can’t prep your way in by memorizing questions does not mean they still don’t pick the brightest students…

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My child got in, and she told me all she did was literally write the first thing that came to
mind when looking at the question. Everyone is overthinking this… she was at a non-aap school, and just did the administrating process… you guys are taking it too far with prep, or politics. If your kid does not love STEM and needs to prep to get into TJ, it’s gonna be harsh… Just look at the criteria’s and get a good overall understanding of the process (which your schools should get during the fall anyway)

It's a lottery process.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: I know kids who were in Alg. 2, all hns, and 4.0 gpa that got rejected. But, there are kids in normal Algebra with a lower gpa and accepted. How does the whole process work? Are the sps questions personal questions? Also, I heard many kids did not get the pse question right, and wrote an essay for the wrong answer and still got in… If you got accepted this year, lmk how they select their students. Thanks.

It’s literally a lottery system. There you go!

If by lottery you mean a system that objectively selects the very best and brightest then sure.

Definitely agree! Just because you can’t prep your way in by memorizing questions does not mean they still don’t pick the brightest students…

Bright enough to write sob story essay but can't pass lowest level math class?

[Anonymous]

When does round 2 offers come out?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:When does round 2 offers come out?

May 15th

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Even AAP was too easy for DC, as it commonly is for most advanced students. So we stopped all frivolous purchases like athletic gear and electronics, and used that money towards academic enrichment in middle school. DC is enrolled in the highest level Biology and Physics at TJ, and certainly in the top segment of their class, according to their counselor.

What are you trying to say? That has nothing to do with anything.
You can brag, without sound like you are trying to put others down.
What about music instruments? Some good piece cost thousands and many TJ students owns it.
Even at TJ, sports is a big things and they needs to purchase equipment.

Use your family budget wisely. Reap what you sow. If family dedicates their limited budget on sports, that may help improve their child's competency in sports and get them on school teams. If they redirect it towards academic enrichment, that is where they would see the improvement in their child.

Every family sow their own way, no need to belittle others.
Sometimes the one on the Crew Team is the one who get into Harvard, and not the one with 17 AP.
Some outdated thinking, that the only recipe for success is highest test score, and getting ahead as much as it could. Not always the case.

[Anonymous]

Anyone got tips for how you even get into TJ? Like essay structure and stuff, and if we should do prepping?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Anyone got tips for how you even get into TJ? Like essay structure and stuff, and if we should do prepping?

Prep is not worth it with the current structure. I supported the changes but at schools with lots of kids applying results seem to be sort of a crap shoot.

1) Get As.
2) Get to Geometry by 8th (not because you need it for getting in but because being at that level will ensure you are at least in the middle of the pack on math if you do get in so would seem to set you up better for success when there.
3) Take the required other honors courses (see FCPS page about TJ application. It says the details there.
4) Have you kid look at Portrait of a Graduate characteristics ahead of time and think about how those apply for them.

That’s really about it. Again, I’m glad they made changes given people broke the old system by prepping for a test designed to be taken without prep, but it does have a fair amount of randomness to it now so no sense stressing out crazily about it. If your kid really needs to be at TJ and nowhere else (because they are genuinely off the charts) can do the froshmore application process for 10th - that seems to do a pretty good job of sweeping in those off the chart kids that the 9th grade wave missed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anyone got tips for how you even get into TJ? Like essay structure and stuff, and if we should do prepping?

Prep is not worth it with the current structure. I supported the changes but at schools with lots of kids applying results seem to be sort of a crap shoot.

1) Get As.
2) Get to Geometry by 8th (not because you need it for getting in but because being at that level will ensure you are at least in the middle of the pack on math if you do get in so would seem to set you up better for success when there.
3) Take the required other honors courses (see FCPS page about TJ application. It says the details there.
4) Have you kid look at Portrait of a Graduate characteristics ahead of time and think about how those apply for them.

That’s really about it. Again, I’m glad they made changes given people broke the old system by prepping for a test designed to be taken without prep, but it does have a fair amount of randomness to it now so no sense stressing out crazily about it. If your kid really needs to be at TJ and nowhere else (because they are genuinely off the charts) can do the froshmore application process for 10th - that seems to do a pretty good job of sweeping in those off the chart kids that the 9th grade wave missed.

I agree, but just know the randomness is crazy. You can still get into TJ with a B+ in 1 or two subjects, which seems really unfair for a straight A student.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Anyone got tips for how you even get into TJ? Like essay structure and stuff, and if we should do prepping?

Do outside prepping only if AAP is too easy for your student. Just AAP by itself is not enough to excel with TJ rigor.

Do not worry about essay, it's mainly used to screen the lowest level math students, they apparently need to build a diverse class.

For others, it's pretty much a lottery.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anyone got tips for how you even get into TJ? Like essay structure and stuff, and if we should do prepping?

Do outside prepping only if AAP is too easy for your student. Just AAP by itself is not enough to excel with TJ rigor.

Do not worry about essay, it's mainly used to screen the lowest level math students, they apparently need to build a diverse class.

For others, it's pretty much a lottery.

A lottery who catches all the Science Olympiad winner team, math olymp winner, debate winner, quiz bowl winner, a big chunk of Algebra 2 kids (not all), some Pre-Cal students, some well known high achiever kids, including the kids with impressive music talent... and etc, and all of them mostly A students who took all honors class.

Its a beautiful lottery.

Though, there are some odds they catch some small fishes, those small fish some back to their pond, some stay and turn out OK.
And there is also a chance applying as sophomore.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anyone got tips for how you even get into TJ? Like essay structure and stuff, and if we should do prepping?

Do outside prepping only if AAP is too easy for your student. Just AAP by itself is not enough to excel with TJ rigor.

Do not worry about essay, it's mainly used to screen the lowest level math students, they apparently need to build a diverse class.

For others, it's pretty much a lottery.

A lottery who catches all the Science Olympiad winner team, math olymp winner, debate winner, quiz bowl winner, a big chunk of Algebra 2 kids (not all), some Pre-Cal students, some well known high achiever kids, including the kids with impressive music talent... and etc, and all of them mostly A students who took all honors class.

Its a beautiful lottery.

Though, there are some odds they catch some small fishes, those small fish some back to their pond, some stay and turn out OK.
And there is also a chance applying as sophomore.

Not all science Olympiad medalists get picked by TJ. In 2025, TJ was defeated by woodson and Langley at regional tournament.
TJ won 1st place at the state tournament with a slight lead of 10 points.

https://www.duosmium.org/results/2025-03-01_VA_mary_washington_regional_c/

https://www.duosmium.org/results/2025-03-29_VA_states_c/

[Anonymous]

Is the waitlist a merit based lottery where you are placed in a group decided from how well you preform as a student and based on that they have a lottery taking students from that group.

[Anonymous]

Is there specific amount students on the waitlist for schools like Eagle Ridge?