Reply to Risks of attending a “Reach” school

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I know Jeff Selingo isn’t universally loved here but his Dream School book had a stat that stuck with me: for every 10 point higher SAT score your peers have at college, it increases the likelihood of dropping out by like 2-3%

I wish I would have made note of the study he referenced.

This is not to say, attending reach schools is a bad idea IMO. But, if you do, I think it’s important to be able to be prepared for what that might feel like[/quote]

Sure. I attended Harvard and had to contend with weaker preparation compared to the elite private school kids, and imposter syndrome as a first-gen student who had no concept of how this daunting new system worked. Was it challenging, in every sense? Yes. Did I learn resilience and perseverance, together with some humility? Also yes. Those qualities were even more beneficial to my professional life than the academics.

It sounds trite, but it is essential to cultivate a growth mindset in your child and allow for mistakes along the way. But I am a big fan of the growth that stems from competing with a high-performing peer group. For the right temperament and with the right support---also feel perfectly good about avoiding overly toxic environments. [/quote]

+1000

The trick, as a parent, is to know if your kid is ready to handle that experience.

Some 18-21 year old kids already have that resilience or are ready to push through and develop it, if necessary. You were, and I was, too.

Others are not there yet and would do much better in a less challenging environment. At least to start. If it goes well, they can take more challenging classes as they progress. [/quote]

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