Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Once you get out of areas where everyone is obsessed with prestige and comparing themselves with everyone else, your life gets vastly better. Go to a good school, live in a moderate-sized city with real people, and quietly be a big fish in a smaller pond with little pressure to constantly compete with others. It’s heavenly.

+1

+1. Lots to be said about a mid-sized city away from the Coasts. Decent houses that don’t cost over a million. Enough money for private school and/or save for college. Less traffic. Down-to-earth people with non-elite college degrees who are living good lives. Kids with less structured childhoods. Being able to scrape by with only one full-time breadwinner. It’s not perfect but there are a lot of pluses.

Anonymous wrote:Why is everyone fighting so hard to get their kids into a "top 30-ish" school?

Less than 5% of college students attend a top 50 college. About 2.4% of college students in the US attend a top 30 college. Roughly 1% attend a "top 20" college. What is the point in fighting to be such a tiny fraction of college students.

Who is “everyone” OP? From your own stats, you can see that most people aren’t fighting for this. Are you talking about people on this board? If so, the reason is that most people on DCUM went to a top 30 school themselves, so they just want their kids to do the same thing they did. It’s not strange to want that.

For some groups, it’s about fitting in and having social capital. The “strivers” that get a lot of flak on this board often didn’t have the kind of access/exposure that kids whose parents have attended elite schools for a couple generations have.

A tiny percentage of athletes make the Olympics, why do people fight to make it? A tiny percentage of musicians get record contracts, why do people fight for them? Some people are strongly motivated to be very successful. You don't need to share that mindset to understand it, it's all around you.

Anonymous wrote:Why is everyone fighting so hard to get their kids into a "top 30-ish" school?

Less than 5% of college students attend a top 50 college. About 2.4% of college students in the US attend a top 30 college. Roughly 1% attend a "top 20" college. What is the point in fighting to be such a tiny fraction of college students.

Because strivers just can’t help themselves. Striving is all that they know.

Anonymous wrote:Once you get out of areas where everyone is obsessed with prestige and comparing themselves with everyone else, your life gets vastly better. Go to a good school, live in a moderate-sized city with real people, and quietly be a big fish in a smaller pond with little pressure to constantly compete with others. It’s heavenly.

Yes, this is Sacramento, except I’m not a big fish.

Anonymous wrote:Once you get out of areas where everyone is obsessed with prestige and comparing themselves with everyone else, your life gets vastly better. Go to a good school, live in a moderate-sized city with real people, and quietly be a big fish in a smaller pond with little pressure to constantly compete with others. It’s heavenly.

+1

Once you get out of areas where everyone is obsessed with prestige and comparing themselves with everyone else, your life gets vastly better. Go to a good school, live in a moderate-sized city with real people, and quietly be a big fish in a smaller pond with little pressure to constantly compete with others. It’s heavenly.

DD found her people at her school. She is surrounded by fun, social kids who are smart and hard-working. They are at a rigorous school, so they all understand that people have to grind, and they’ll often study together in between meals and social activities. It has made it much easier to balance social life and studying because everyone understands and is in the same boat.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why is everyone fighting so hard to get their kids into a "top 30-ish" school?

Less than 5% of college students attend a top 50 college. About 2.4% of college students in the US attend a top 30 college. Roughly 1% attend a "top 20" college. What is the point in fighting to be such a tiny fraction of college students.

People like to be with their peers. 1% like to be with 1%, 5% be with 5%. 50%tile kids in a 1%tile environment would not be happy, and vis versa.

huh??

Anonymous wrote:Why is everyone fighting so hard to get their kids into a "top 30-ish" school?

Less than 5% of college students attend a top 50 college. About 2.4% of college students in the US attend a top 30 college. Roughly 1% attend a "top 20" college. What is the point in fighting to be such a tiny fraction of college students.

People like to be with their peers. 1% like to be with 1%, 5% be with 5%. 50%tile kids in a 1%tile environment would not be happy, and vis versa.

bragging rights2

Anonymous wrote:facts. parents need to chill for real and stop trying to live endlessly on competitive treadmills that only a few per cent are focused on.

Most of the US hasn't even heard of these so-called elite colleges.

Most of the U.S. can’t find their own country on a map.

facts. parents need to chill for real and stop trying to live endlessly on competitive treadmills that only a few per cent are focused on.

Most of the US hasn't even heard of these so-called elite colleges.

Why is everyone fighting so hard to get their kids into a "top 30-ish" school?

Less than 5% of college students attend a top 50 college. About 2.4% of college students in the US attend a top 30 college. Roughly 1% attend a "top 20" college. What is the point in fighting to be such a tiny fraction of college students.