Reply to Would you prefer European-style admissions?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]European way, at least in the UK, is also somewhat holistic. Academic proficiency matters more there, though, and I think they consider the right mix of holistic and academic qualifications.

Not sure their system would work in the US unless we also switched to making kids lock in their majors when they enter college. For example, great math and physics test scores are going to matter if you want to major in physics, but not so much history. [/quote]

+1  Europeans lock in much earlier to their course of study as teens.  And most European colleges are much more focused on that course of study too---definitely not as many electives that are not related to their primary focus (i.e. major).  More practical I guess, but I prefer the American way which allows a bit more freedom for a teenager to change their mind about what to do.[/quote]

Except that nowadays they need to be locked into a “narrative” from the age of 14 to get into one of these elite colleges. If you think teens should have the freedom to explore their interests you should hate everything about the current American admissions process. [/quote]

Some kids, yes, who are groomed for T10 schools, sure.  But other teenagers just remain, clueless teenagers, who might study business, or computer science, or English depending on the day with no need to lockin.[/quote]

+1. The vast, vast, majority of colleges in the US have high admissions rates. The problem isn’t the system. It’s the parents who are obsessed with getting their kids into the T10. [/quote]

Let’s be clear, it’s not individual parents, it’s a culture. If your kid is good at school and/or tests, the only way to opt out is to move away from areas like the DMV. If you simply tell your kid that those aren’t your values, and you won’t pay for those schools, the kid will be judged a weirdo and a failure when they don’t go to a T25, just as much as if they had joined a cult. [/quote]

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