Are we crazy to turn down a "Big Three" for Potomac?

[Anonymous]

I think people who are fixated on the reputation of the big three are out of step -- a couple of decades ago you could say there were just a couple of tippy-top schools, but given objective criteria -- college placement, rigor of curriculum, quality of students -- you have to say there are more top schools today. Ignoring this would be like saying the only top colleges are in the Ivy League. Potomac is one of the top area schools, it is up to you if you want to be obsessed about the name. Colleges know it is good, isn't that enough?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think people who are fixated on the reputation of the big three are out of step -- a couple of decades ago you could say there were just a couple of tippy-top schools, but given objective criteria -- college placement, rigor of curriculum, quality of students -- you have to say there are more top schools today. Ignoring this would be like saying the only top colleges are in the Ivy League. Potomac is one of the top area schools, it is up to you if you want to be obsessed about the name. Colleges know it is good, isn't that enough?

Potomac is NOT as good a school as STA, NCS, Sidwell, Maret or arguably some others. Potomac does not have the same level of academic rigor, as high a number of NMSF/NMF, or as good a record of getting its graduates into the most competitive colleges. Potomac is in a suburban neighborhood and while it has an attractive campus, it is nothing particularly special. It has a mostly white and preppy student body and is frankly, rather bland. It is more akin to a high performing, wealthy suburban public school than a modern, elite NWDC private school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We chose NPS over a Big 3. Our kids are happy and thriving and we have never regretted our decision.

OMG this is going to be us. We are choosing NPS over two Big 3.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think people who are fixated on the reputation of the big three are out of step -- a couple of decades ago you could say there were just a couple of tippy-top schools, but given objective criteria -- college placement, rigor of curriculum, quality of students -- you have to say there are more top schools today. Ignoring this would be like saying the only top colleges are in the Ivy League. Potomac is one of the top area schools, it is up to you if you want to be obsessed about the name. Colleges know it is good, isn't that enough?

Potomac is NOT as good a school as STA, NCS, Sidwell, Maret or arguably some others. Potomac does not have the same level of academic rigor, as high a number of NMSF/NMF, or as good a record of getting its graduates into the most competitive colleges. Potomac is in a suburban neighborhood and while it has an attractive campus, it is nothing particularly special. It has a mostly white and preppy student body and is frankly, rather bland. It is more akin to a high performing, wealthy suburban public school than a modern, elite NWDC private school.

OP, one big advantage to choosing Potomac over big three is that you don't have to deal with quite as many snobs like this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We chose NPS over a Big 3. Our kids are happy and thriving and we have never regretted our decision.

OMG this is going to be us. We are choosing NPS over two Big 3.

You won't regret it! It's a special school. My kids couldn't be happier anywhere else.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think people who are fixated on the reputation of the big three are out of step -- a couple of decades ago you could say there were just a couple of tippy-top schools, but given objective criteria -- college placement, rigor of curriculum, quality of students -- you have to say there are more top schools today. Ignoring this would be like saying the only top colleges are in the Ivy League. Potomac is one of the top area schools, it is up to you if you want to be obsessed about the name. Colleges know it is good, isn't that enough?

Potomac is NOT as good a school as STA, NCS, Sidwell, Maret or arguably some others. Potomac does not have the same level of academic rigor, as high a number of NMSF/NMF, or as good a record of getting its graduates into the most competitive colleges. Potomac is in a suburban neighborhood and while it has an attractive campus, it is nothing particularly special. It has a mostly white and preppy student body and is frankly, rather bland. It is more akin to a high performing, wealthy suburban public school than a modern, elite NWDC private school.

Um, no. In 2014, NCS had four NMSF and Maret had 1. http://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/1310966/d-c-semifinalists-in-2015-national-merit.pdf. Potomac had seven. http://www.potomacschool.org/news/index.aspx.

Also, when the Washingtonian surveyed educational consultants, it came up with a list of six Academic All-Stars: Sidwell, NCS, St. Albans, GDS, Potomac. http://www.washingtonian.com/articles/work-education/a-private-school-for-every-student/

It's fine to have an opinion, but if you are going to assert facts you shouldn't just make them up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think people who are fixated on the reputation of the big three are out of step -- a couple of decades ago you could say there were just a couple of tippy-top schools, but given objective criteria -- college placement, rigor of curriculum, quality of students -- you have to say there are more top schools today. Ignoring this would be like saying the only top colleges are in the Ivy League. Potomac is one of the top area schools, it is up to you if you want to be obsessed about the name. Colleges know it is good, isn't that enough?

Potomac is NOT as good a school as STA, NCS, Sidwell, Maret or arguably some others. Potomac does not have the same level of academic rigor, as high a number of NMSF/NMF, or as good a record of getting its graduates into the most competitive colleges. Potomac is in a suburban neighborhood and while it has an attractive campus, it is nothing particularly special. It has a mostly white and preppy student body and is frankly, rather bland. It is more akin to a high performing, wealthy suburban public school than a modern, elite NWDC private school.

Um, no. In 2014, NCS had four NMSF and Maret had 1. http://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/1310966/d-c-semifinalists-in-2015-national-merit.pdf. Potomac had seven. http://www.potomacschool.org/news/index.aspx.

Also, when the Washingtonian surveyed educational consultants, it came up with a list of six Academic All-Stars: Sidwell, NCS, St. Albans, GDS, Potomac. http://www.washingtonian.com/articles/work-education/a-private-school-for-every-student/


It's fine to have an opinion, but if you are going to assert facts you shouldn't just make them up.

And Potomac had a great number of Presidential Scholars this year:

http://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/15/443889.page

Quick review and counting looks like, with each school's multi-year average in (parentheses):

STA 10 (average 5)
NCS 6 (7)
Potomac 6 (2)
Maret 6 (6)
SFS 7 (11)
GDS 11 (6)
Holton 1 (2)
Landon 1 (1)

[Anonymous]

It's way easier to become a NMSF in Virginia than DC. The cutoff is lower

[Anonymous]

No, that is not true. Although DC is slightly harder, Allthree DMV states/region are in top six highest qualifying scores. It is slightly harder and all three areas are very tough.

[Anonymous]

Re NMSF -- if "commended" is a nationally normed designation (and I think it is), that would enable you to make a better comparison across schools. In any event, it's a better measure of what you're trying to capture (i.e. cohort)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Oh please. Sidwell et al are not Harvard.

And if you told me you were turning down Harvard for something that made good sense for your kid, I wouldn't think that was crazy, either.

My god you people are full of yourselves. The stakes are just not that high.

This is so exactly right on.
I like you, PP.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think people who are fixated on the reputation of the big three are out of step -- a couple of decades ago you could say there were just a couple of tippy-top schools, but given objective criteria -- college placement, rigor of curriculum, quality of students -- you have to say there are more top schools today. Ignoring this would be like saying the only top colleges are in the Ivy League. Potomac is one of the top area schools, it is up to you if you want to be obsessed about the name. Colleges know it is good, isn't that enough?

Potomac is NOT as good a school as STA, NCS, Sidwell, Maret or arguably some others. Potomac does not have the same level of academic rigor, as high a number of NMSF/NMF, or as good a record of getting its graduates into the most competitive colleges. Potomac is in a suburban neighborhood and while it has an attractive campus, it is nothing particularly special. It has a mostly white and preppy student body and is frankly, rather bland. It is more akin to a high performing, wealthy suburban public school than a modern, elite NWDC private school.

OP, one big advantage to choosing Potomac over big three is that you don't have to deal with quite as many snobs like this.

oh, there are plenty of snobs at Potomac too...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think people who are fixated on the reputation of the big three are out of step -- a couple of decades ago you could say there were just a couple of tippy-top schools, but given objective criteria -- college placement, rigor of curriculum, quality of students -- you have to say there are more top schools today. Ignoring this would be like saying the only top colleges are in the Ivy League. Potomac is one of the top area schools, it is up to you if you want to be obsessed about the name. Colleges know it is good, isn't that enough?

Potomac is NOT as good a school as STA, NCS, Sidwell, Maret or arguably some others. Potomac does not have the same level of academic rigor, as high a number of NMSF/NMF, or as good a record of getting its graduates into the most competitive colleges. Potomac is in a suburban neighborhood and while it has an attractive campus, it is nothing particularly special. It has a mostly white and preppy student body and is frankly, rather bland. It is more akin to a high performing, wealthy suburban public school than a modern, elite NWDC private school.

Potomac had both a Siemens semifinalist and an Intel finalist this year - not the same kid. Not sure how much of a role the school played in supporting those students' research interests, but that is impressive. When was the last time that Sidwell, STA, or NCS had either?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No, that is not true. Although DC is slightly harder, Allthree DMV states/region are in top six highest qualifying scores. It is slightly harder and all three areas are very tough.

The cutoff score for DC this year is 224.

The cutoff score for VA is 219. So, for example, a DC school kid who scored 74 on each section is not a NMSF while a VA kid who scored 73 on each section is.

There are no doubt numerous kids at DC independent schools who scored from 219 to 223 and don't show up in your tally for NMSFs, while kids with those exact scores at Potomac did.

My only point in this is that in comparing NSMFs at Potomac to those at DC schools, you're not comparing apples to apples.

[Anonymous]

And your just guessing.