Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sounds like he likes challenging himself. What’s the problem?

I mean isn't better to get straight As in regular classes?

No, not really.

Anonymous wrote:I have a lot of those type of kids in my AP math classes. Hard working, good, B/B+ students. They typically end up at Mason or JMU. Sometimes an out of state flagship.

That sounds terrible, you can get into those schools without taking an AP classes, in fact mason accepts everyone. WOW so this is why we need to do something about admissions too many students for the spots

Anonymous wrote:I'm not OP but have a similar kid. Why is everyone focusing on MIT? Of course that's not on the table! I think the question is ... what IS on the table?
I'm assuming OP is from NOVA, which probably makes UVA and VT much harder. (For a similar kid from MD, would VT be a possibility, especially if the end SAT ends up more like 1550?). What OOS schools might be realistic?

I wouldn't pay full tuition for a OOS school, but University of South Carolina is a good option and sometimes has scholarships available for OOS.

Virginia has a TON of options for in state so I would start digging into others.

Anonymous wrote:I'm not OP but have a similar kid. Why is everyone focusing on MIT? Of course that's not on the table! I think the question is ... what IS on the table?
I'm assuming OP is from NOVA, which probably makes UVA and VT much harder. (For a similar kid from MD, would VT be a possibility, especially if the end SAT ends up more like 1550?). What OOS schools might be realistic?

Former kids with this profile got into Alabama, South Carolina, UT Knoxville, NC State, Georgia state, and Towson from an FCPS school. One got into auburn but on a rotc scholarship so that was probably a hook.

I have a lot of those type of kids in my AP math classes. Hard working, good, B/B+ students. They typically end up at Mason or JMU. Sometimes an out of state flagship.

I'm not OP but have a similar kid. Why is everyone focusing on MIT? Of course that's not on the table! I think the question is ... what IS on the table?
I'm assuming OP is from NOVA, which probably makes UVA and VT much harder. (For a similar kid from MD, would VT be a possibility, especially if the end SAT ends up more like 1550?). What OOS schools might be realistic?

MIT is a lot more than grades and scores, although he doesn’t have either. UVA is more about stats so he’s not getting in either.
Realistically, try JMU.

Say bye-bye to MIT, but he might have an interesting life ahead. SAT score is on the lower side, state u is the best option for him.

He's not getting into UVA with those grades. No way. Zero. Highly unlikely he'll get into Tech either. And MIT?? C'mon, get real.

Of course, he still has half of high school left. His junior year is critical. He needs LOTS of As this year, they need to be in AP classes, and if he does that he's back in the running for UVA and Tech. Not MIT though.

No, As in regular classes will not get him where he wants to be.

Anonymous wrote:MIT alum here - MIT isn't happening for a lot of reasons. Mostly even if he had perfect grades and SATs it's still not enough. MIT needs serious, major hooks. I say that because I had those and still did not get in every HYPSM that I applied to.

Let me add - you also do NOT want him to go to MIT. People do get asked to leave - take some time off and come back if they want to try again. You want him to be successful. Find a school that matches the life and rigor for better balance. I don't know that UVA is it either.

MIT alum here - MIT isn't happening for a lot of reasons. Mostly even if he had perfect grades and SATs it's still not enough. MIT needs serious, major hooks. I say that because I had those and still did not get in every HYPSM that I applied to.

Anonymous wrote:Sounds like he likes challenging himself. What’s the problem?

I mean isn't better to get straight As in regular classes?

He will be competing against kids who have all As in all the hardest classes. That’s just the reality. MIT is not going to happen unless he has some international math/science recognition. The others may be possible.

Sounds like he likes challenging himself. What’s the problem?

Curious what others think. My kid refuses to take regular-level classes, even in subjects that are clearly not his strength. Every year, he loads up on AP and DE courses across the board. He usually starts with low grades like Cs or even a D early on, then slowly pulls up to a B or B+ by the end. That’s the pattern. There’s no collapse or dramatic recovery, just a grind to stay afloat and finish with a decent grade. He took a regular class once, got an easy A, and decided he’s never doing that again. He says regular classes are for “dumb kids” and will not budge.

The one area where he excels without any issue is computer science. He takes the most advanced CS classes offered at his school, including AP CS A and dual enrollment CS, and consistently earns straight As. It is clearly where he’s strongest.

He is a junior now with a 1450 SAT. We’ve enrolled him in an SAT prep course that he attends three times a week to try to push that score higher before senior year. His target schools are UVA and Virginia Tech, and MIT is the dream.

Outside of computer science, his transcript is mostly Bs in the hardest available classes. AP U.S. History, AP Macroeconomics, AP Lang, DE Gov, AP Calc AB — all of them land in the B range. Meanwhile, I see so many posts on this forum about students getting perfect As in everything and having near-perfect GPAs.

So what’s the actual outlook for a kid like this? Does strong performance in advanced CS and solid but not stellar grades elsewhere hold up at schools like UVA or Virginia Tech? Or does it just look like overreaching without follow-through? I’m wondering if anyone has had a kid like this and knows how it played out.