I disagree with the posters discouraging the consultant. We did not use one for PK admission and were shut out; we used one for K admission and she steered us back to a choice we had ruled out in the PK year. It turned out to be the perfect choice -- what she did was to help us overcome a lot of misperceptions (many garnered from DCUM unfortunately and "confirmed" by a really wretched tourguide) and got us to at least *apply* to the formerly-avoided-school. She also helped us get a sense of DC's abilities relative to the schools we were considering.

Maybe consultants aren't for everyone and it was costly, but I remain convinced that if we hadn't seen her, we'd have missed out on a school we now love.

tantrums wont' be perceived as cute in Pre-K and neither will "rejecting things he is not interested in". Start working on those two things now, before the play dates and before Pre-K. Kids do get counseled out.

OP here. Wow, what a helpful bunch. Thank you all for your constructive and encouraging comments. I've just finished doing the preschool rounds, so perhaps it's why I feel a bit overwhelmed. The process was pretty stressful.

For those who asked more about DC, he is very physically active, shows signs of being gifted, is moderately extroverted, seems to have a fairly long attention span for things he enjoys, but is dismissive of anything that doesn't interest him. He has a strong personality, but is generally a nice kid. Recently, he's begun to talk himself out of tantrums. It's hilarious to listen to his not-so-inner dialogue, but he is learning to calm himself, to our great joy. We are biased as his parents, but think he's a great kid. Is that enough information?

The reason I thought a consultant might be helpful is that there is so much information on DC Urban Moms and Dads that I can't keep it all straight. We thought Beauvoir sounded great, then I read that they are intolerant of active kids. We thought Sidwell might be good, then we read that the lower school program is weak. Maret sounds like it might be the best match for us, as we don't want DC in a high-pressure environment. I'm sure all of this info needs to be digested with a grain of salt, or two, or three.

We want DC to enjoy learning and have as fun and prolonged a childhood as possible. Nix on hours of drill-oriented homework. So far, Maret's the only one that we that we've heard about where no bells were raised. GDS is another that's been recommended to us, but it sounds like you have to be a pretty self-motivated student to thrive there. It's too early to tell with DC, but what if he needs more structured encouragement?

I was also thinking that we needed a consultant because I didn't find the visit process was that helpful to me in distinguishing between the preschools. Most of the schools had polished presentations. Yet two of the schools that were less polished in their presentation seemed to be the ones that have better stuff going on in the classroom. I was biased towards the ones that let you observe the classrooms for a short time, but not all preschools did. Talking to parents wasn't all that helpful either. I felt like all of the schools connected you with their cheerleaders. I thought an experienced consultant might have a clearer, unbiased inside track on what's going on in the schools. Is that delusional?

Do the schools I mentioned allow parents to observe classrooms for an extended time, as opposed to a 10 second look through a window?

Thanks in advance for any advice. From reading DCUM, it seems like if your child doesn't get into the right school at an early age, it's relatively difficult to shift to another, making it important to get the decision right the first time.

We used a consultant but only because we had specific issues that needed to be diagnosed and then addressed. Theodra Washington & Jen Hursey were very helpful in identifying what our child needed and then helping us find the set of schools where our child's needs would be met.

However, if your child has no issues, I'd say you just need to do the legwork, visit schools, etc. You will learn a lot about your preferences and what might fit your child-family just from going to Open Houses.

Then apply to the set you feel are a good fit. Sometimes the hardest part (if you are lucky) is choosing from the ones that accept your child...or... Letting go of 'the one' you wanted but didn't get accepted to . There are a lot of great choices out there. Good luck

Ooooh- let us be your consultant! Tell us some basics and we'll get you started on your search.

make a spreadsheet with columns like "open house dates," "distance," "tuition," etc. Prioritize, attend the most likely open houses. It'll become clear. You do have to invest though, just consider it your hobby/part-time job for the next year.

Tell us about your DC, your family, what location is preferable to you and we will tell you everything you need to know.

I wouldn't worry about it, even if you work FT. You can do the "research" on a Saturday. I did. The web searching will take a minimal amount of time. Plug in your parameters in terms of private/parochial/distance and you'll come up with a few schools. Narrow it by age range. Some won't start until K, some will end at grade 6 or 8, some will go through 12... Some will be single sex... How far out are you looking for? You can start there. You'd be amazed at how rapidly your list narrows to a few schools. Transportation. Some have buses. Some don't. Do you care? From there you can narrow by hours. Some have extended hours and some don't. Does that matter to you? Does that narrow your list? Now it gets much more manageable because your list is much smaller.

Compare size, curricula, extras, prices, class size, mission statements, read blogs, etc. but you won't really know until you attend an open house, and even a consultant couldnt help you with that.

Estimated time? Tops? (pre-visits): 3 hours

It depends on how much time you have versus money you have. If you, e.g., work FT, it might make more sense to get professional help.

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, you do not need one. I used one with first dc because i had just moved here and didn't even know the names of the schools, but it was a TOTAL waste of money. The DC scene is just no that big and it's easy to get info on all of them. It's also so easy to eliminate some based on the specific criteria for your family so then you can focus on fewer. Don't waste your money and just spend a little time researching the schools web sites. Get the dates and march through the process. It's really not as big a deal as everyone makes it out to be here.

I could've written this post. So frustrating. Absolutely agree, OP. Save your money. Buy a book, get on the web, read the posts (you will get some information about the schools that you can't from the standard info put out by the schools. Take it with a grain of salt, but dont discount it. IME, there are grains of truth in all of it), and definitely make appointments to see the schools yourself. Often, the school I was sure I was going to love was the one we knew we'd never apply to after the campus visit, and vice versa. It's an interesting process. Don't be intimidated by it. It's not nearly the big deal it's made out to be once you get started. GL.

Agree with PPs... and go to tons of open houses next fall.

DCUM is the only consultant you need to get started. Read these boards- not because everything here is true, but some of it is and you'll be able to figure out quickly which posts are genuine. Then visit the websites of the schools and go from there.

Your child is three and nobody understands dc like you do. Save your money. You can do this!

Honestly, you do not need one. I used one with first dc because i had just moved here and didn't even know the names of the schools, but it was a TOTAL waste of money. The DC scene is just no that big and it's easy to get info on all of them. It's also so easy to eliminate some based on the specific criteria for your family so then you can focus on fewer. Don't waste your money and just spend a little time researching the schools web sites. Get the dates and march through the process. It's really not as big a deal as everyone makes it out to be here.

My head is spinning over possible options and choices for private school education. DC is only 3 but it seems many decisions must be made next fall. Most of the elite schools seem to have the largest intake in pre-K. Does anyone have experience using an educational consultant to provide additional advice and guidance on applying to private schools? if so, any recommendations? How much do educational consultants generally charge?