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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]DC is seeking confirmation on whether a middle school student with mostly A grades and a near-4.0 GPA, who will complete Algebra 1 in 8th grade, is likely to be among the top of the class after accepting their TJ offer. Based on feedback from current TJ parents, students entering with only Algebra 1 may face a steep learning curve to keep pace with peers who have progressed further in pre-calculus based math.  How true is this?[/quote]

First off, there's no such thing as class rank at TJ. It doesn't exist and it isn't calculated, so don't spend any time worrying about that. If your motivation is college - no matter what high school you're attending - STOP thinking about that until the end of your sophomore year and just focus on what you're doing in high school.

You'll have access to an excellent course load that, by the time you reach your senior year, will still be advanced well beyond what you could reasonably get at your high school, and mostly in the sciences and computer sciences. Yes, there are super-advanced math courses you won't have access to, but in science and CS, it's a very limited number of courses you won't be able to get to if you want. You'll have a chance to sample the amazing research facilities through electives in your sophomore and junior year, so you can figure out if you're really into data architecture or robotics or astronomy or oceanography or neuroscience, and then when you're a senior you'll get to complete a research project using college-level equipment with college-level faculty.

You'll probably have a much better idea than anyone at your base school of how you'd like to impact the world, which will help you find a course of study at the university level that matches with your needs rather than being hyper-concerned with rankings and prestige. You'll also have a pretty good shot to have mid-tier schools throwing money at you because a lot of them are desperate to bring in TJ talent and many of them have individual programs that are stellar even if they haven't reached a level of prestige yet.

TJ isn't always the best for college admissions, but it's fairly obviously the best for college success and eventually professional placement.[/quote]

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