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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I don't care about the "fit."  If you kid gets into HYPS, you make it "fit." [/quote]

I hope this is a troll post. Clearly you haven't been around families whose kids end up having to drop out or take a leave of absence from an elite school. Each year I learn of several students from our top public HS who did nothing but achieve during their teens and won their spots legitimately at their universities but were unable to handle the pressure/expectations/adjustment. Fortunately, many of these top schools have very liberal leave policies because this is far from uncommon. But it does make you think twice about the knee-jerk impulse to send a kid to the school with the lowest admit rates, the most famous name or the greenest, ivy-covered campus. Fit is essential. I have one friend who toured campuses looking specifically for the "purple hair factor." Her kid needed to see that there were plenty of kids in his vein, not just the ones that appear on the cover of the brochure. My own kid chose a lower-ranked school over many top names because he immediately felt comfortable and liked the vibe at his chosen school. [/quote]

I find it highly unlikely that you have several kids a year who are accepted at elite schools but struggle to such a degree that a leave of absence (or more) is required.

Graduation rates in 4 years are very high at elite schools and there are relatively few kids who need leaves.  It would be highly unusual to have such kids clustered from one high school and in the very unlike event it did happen (not just once, but in multiple years) the school would adjust its admissions.

Of course some people struggle a bit when they go from THE superstar to a class full of superstars, but almost all manage the transition without serious issues.  And of course, some people will end up struggling some from the new found freedom of college wherever they go.
[/quote]

You highly doubt my account? Perhaps you don't have close enough ties with the parent community to hear about when it happens. It does, far more often than you'd expect. I'm not talking dozens, but each year several kids are struggling by Thanksgiving and leave school altogether midway through second semester. Many of the parents are embarrassed to divulge this. I'm grateful to those who are either open enough overall or trust their friends enough to share. I'm always grateful to hear these stories because it reminds me to reinforce to my kid that he needs to know the academic and mental health resources on campus, to understand that professors are there to help, and to recognize that success in high school is not the same as success in college.

Of course, this isn't limited just to kids at elite schools. Listen. Pay attention. Your own kids will be better for it.[/quote]

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