Anonymous
06/02/2026 13:09
Subject: All AP/DE classes, 1580 SAT, strong grades, but terrible attendance. Does it matter?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Great SAT but 7 APs is barely anything these days. Any good extracurriculars?
Yes, they have a bunch of projects with other kids from school. The irony is that some of the missed school time has been to work on these outside projects with those same kids. So in my kid's mind, it is worth it.
This whole version of high school feels bizarre to me. I grew up thinking the formula was: attend school every day, get good grades, take challenging classes, get a high 1300s SAT or above, and that was the path. But now, if a kid is aiming for highly competitive schools, it seems like that alone is not enough anymore. They have to time-slice everything and sometimes even miss school to focus on extracurriculars, projects, and competitions.
Look at this data. It is wild. In the 1970s and 1980s, MIT average SAT scores were roughly around 1350, which carried a much higher percentile ranking than a similar score today. In the early 1990s, MIT's average SAT scores were around 1370. Since 2015, SAT scores for admitted students have increased by roughly 55 points, and current admitted students are averaging around 1550 to 1560. The recent middle 50% range is about 1510 to 1580, with Math often near perfect.
I am not saying attendance does not matter, but the system feels very strange when the same schools and colleges seem to reward the extras that sometimes require students to miss school. Some kids are even flying during the school week for competitions tied to these projects and missing three days of school at a time.
Why are the absences unexcused if they are for legitimate projects and EC?
My kid missed something like 30 days this year—everything excused. The 3 excused sick days show on the transcript. The other 25+ days don’t even show up as absences because they were for college visits and academic competitions—all excused, all coded as school extensions.
Anonymous
06/02/2026 13:05
Subject: All AP/DE classes, 1580 SAT, strong grades, but terrible attendance. Does it matter?
High Bs won’t be enough to get in where he wants.
Anonymous
06/02/2026 12:56
Subject: All AP/DE classes, 1580 SAT, strong grades, but terrible attendance. Does it matter?
Anonymous wrote:I can't write a solid recommendation letter for a kid missing over 10% of my classes for optional reasons. Part of life is showing up.
Your child will have to find a teacher with an alternate mindset.
But no, from a transcript standpoint it really doesn't matter.
This exactly. And at the elite colleges, the letter of recommendation (or lack of a glowing one) could tip the scales against your DC.
Anonymous
06/02/2026 12:54
Subject: All AP/DE classes, 1580 SAT, strong grades, but terrible attendance. Does it matter?
I can't write a solid recommendation letter for a kid missing over 10% of my classes for optional reasons. Part of life is showing up.
Your child will have to find a teacher with an alternate mindset.
But no, from a transcript standpoint it really doesn't matter.
Your child will have to find a teacher with an alternate mindset.
But no, from a transcript standpoint it really doesn't matter.
Anonymous
06/02/2026 12:51
Subject: Re:All AP/DE classes, 1580 SAT, strong grades, but terrible attendance. Does it matter?
Such crap. The tests and classes have been dumbed down. The students in the 1970s and 1980s were academics. They weren’t doing club sports unless they were clearly heading towards D1 and the 1970s played varsity sports after school and the top went on to D1 schools without killing themselves.
Now parents with money are training their average kids with private tutors private coaches intense camps to try and compete with the naturally gifted. There’s a lot of them, a lot more competition.
Now parents with money are training their average kids with private tutors private coaches intense camps to try and compete with the naturally gifted. There’s a lot of them, a lot more competition.
Anonymous
06/02/2026 12:29
Subject: All AP/DE classes, 1580 SAT, strong grades, but terrible attendance. Does it matter?
Anonymous wrote:Great SAT but 7 APs is barely anything these days. Any good extracurriculars?
Yes, they have a bunch of projects with other kids from school. The irony is that some of the missed school time has been to work on these outside projects with those same kids. So in my kid's mind, it is worth it.
This whole version of high school feels bizarre to me. I grew up thinking the formula was: attend school every day, get good grades, take challenging classes, get a high 1300s SAT or above, and that was the path. But now, if a kid is aiming for highly competitive schools, it seems like that alone is not enough anymore. They have to time-slice everything and sometimes even miss school to focus on extracurriculars, projects, and competitions.
Look at this data. It is wild. In the 1970s and 1980s, MIT average SAT scores were roughly around 1350, which carried a much higher percentile ranking than a similar score today. In the early 1990s, MIT's average SAT scores were around 1370. Since 2015, SAT scores for admitted students have increased by roughly 55 points, and current admitted students are averaging around 1550 to 1560. The recent middle 50% range is about 1510 to 1580, with Math often near perfect.
I am not saying attendance does not matter, but the system feels very strange when the same schools and colleges seem to reward the extras that sometimes require students to miss school. Some kids are even flying during the school week for competitions tied to these projects and missing three days of school at a time.
Anonymous
06/02/2026 12:24
Subject: All AP/DE classes, 1580 SAT, strong grades, but terrible attendance. Does it matter?
Anonymous wrote:Great SAT but 7 APs is barely anything these days. Any good extracurriculars?
This is 7 this year, last year was the same.
Anonymous
06/02/2026 12:15
Subject: All AP/DE classes, 1580 SAT, strong grades, but terrible attendance. Does it matter?
Big deal
Anonymous
06/02/2026 11:46
Subject: All AP/DE classes, 1580 SAT, strong grades, but terrible attendance. Does it matter?
No one cares about attendance, OP.
But colleges do care about extra-curriculars and what kids do in the summer. Make sure there's so interesting stuff in that area.
But colleges do care about extra-curriculars and what kids do in the summer. Make sure there's so interesting stuff in that area.
Anonymous
06/02/2026 11:44
Subject: All AP/DE classes, 1580 SAT, strong grades, but terrible attendance. Does it matter?
Great SAT but 7 APs is barely anything these days. Any good extracurriculars?
Anonymous
06/02/2026 11:42
Subject: All AP/DE classes, 1580 SAT, strong grades, but terrible attendance. Does it matter?
Anonymous wrote:I would think the biggest place it would impact would be teacher recommendation letters. If you aren't there much, a teacher may not agree to write the letter. Or if they do write it, they may mention the frequent absences.
This. Also, why the reason for the absences? It's something to be mindful of. They won't have the same ability to skip classes on college, but the ease with which they can skip classes will be significantly increase, so this student could be heading for a surprising fall if it's not addressed now before college.
Anonymous
06/02/2026 11:34
Subject: All AP/DE classes, 1580 SAT, strong grades, but terrible attendance. Does it matter?
I would think the biggest place it would impact would be teacher recommendation letters. If you aren't there much, a teacher may not agree to write the letter. Or if they do write it, they may mention the frequent absences.
Anonymous
06/02/2026 11:22
Subject: All AP/DE classes, 1580 SAT, strong grades, but terrible attendance. Does it matter?
Try to find out if it appears on the transcript. Some schools care, some don't.
What is the reason for the poor attendance? That's the real question.
What is the reason for the poor attendance? That's the real question.
Anonymous
06/02/2026 11:10
Subject: All AP/DE classes, 1580 SAT, strong grades, but terrible attendance. Does it matter?
It matters not.
Anonymous
06/02/2026 11:07
Subject: All AP/DE classes, 1580 SAT, strong grades, but terrible attendance. Does it matter?
Does anyone have experience with this, and how did you handle it?
My junior is taking seven AP and dual-enrollment classes, has mostly As and high Bs, and already has a 1580 SAT. However, their attendance record is showing a high number of unexcused absences.
They are keeping up with the work, turning things in, and showing up for tests, so from their perspective, it does not feel like a major issue. At the same time, we keep getting phone calls and attendance warnings from the school.
I am trying to understand the real-world impact. Did this affect college admissions, counselor recommendations, transcripts, or anything else? And for those who dealt with something similar, how did you find a good middle ground with your student and the school?
My junior is taking seven AP and dual-enrollment classes, has mostly As and high Bs, and already has a 1580 SAT. However, their attendance record is showing a high number of unexcused absences.
They are keeping up with the work, turning things in, and showing up for tests, so from their perspective, it does not feel like a major issue. At the same time, we keep getting phone calls and attendance warnings from the school.
I am trying to understand the real-world impact. Did this affect college admissions, counselor recommendations, transcripts, or anything else? And for those who dealt with something similar, how did you find a good middle ground with your student and the school?