Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:TJ is really hard. Only the ones with ‘natural’ smarts should go here.

rest all just struggle

Natural smarts ... hmm how do you identify that in ES/MS? all the kids who get into TJ are smart, you only find after the fact whether someone will excel at top 10%, 25%, 50%, or bottom half. Some cheat too, does that count as 'smarts'? Then some others do not know how to cheat, does that count as not 'smart'?

There is a lot in between, TJ is hard, it comes down to mental maturity of the kids to handle it before they have the college level age maturity.

Counting cheating as smarts is unethical. I hope my nuero-surgeon didn’t cheat on his medical tests.
I know there is cheating by some parents to get into TJ, do well in TJ, and go to a top school. There is a certain group of parents at TJ that figure if they are “smart” enough to cheat & get ahead , it just shows you were stupid. Some TJ parents pay over $100K for “help” for their kid’s college applications.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:TJ is really hard. Only the ones with ‘natural’ smarts should go here.

rest all just struggle

Natural smarts ... hmm how do you identify that in ES/MS? all the kids who get into TJ are smart, you only find after the fact whether someone will excel at top 10%, 25%, 50%, or bottom half. Some cheat too, does that count as 'smarts'? Then some others do not know how to cheat, does that count as not 'smart'?

There is a lot in between, TJ is hard, it comes down to mental maturity of the kids to handle it before they have the college level age maturity.

Anonymous wrote:I mean, TJ is just a trap. It makes getting into college much harder and the high school experience is a very fast-paced grind.

The typical TJ kid would easily be top 10% in their base HS and have a better shot at UVA and even Ivies.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My daughter, 4.51, 34 ACT, rejected by UVA, accepted by U Chicago and WASP, humanities major

Her friend, average GPA, 1550 SAT, legacy, rejected by UVA, accepted by Georgetown, CS major

Another friend, 4.3ish GPA, 1560 GPA, rejected at UVA, accepted by Cornell, engineering

They all are well rounded kids with spectacular EC achievements.

Your daughter's ACT is a bit low. The 75th percentile last fall had a 35. The next friend couldn't count on legacy as the Virginia publics no longer consider legacy. The SAT at 1550 is great, but you still need the entire package, which is a 4.4-4.5 GPA (median and 75th percentile). The third friend with a GPA of 4.3 is too low. Even the median had a 4.4.

https://research.schev.edu//enrollment/B10_FreshmenProfile.asp

Isn’t the class 35% test optional? lol

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:TJ is really hard. Only the ones with ‘natural’ smarts should go here.

rest all just struggle

Natural smarts ... hmm how do you identify that in ES/MS? all the kids who get into TJ are smart, you only find after the fact whether someone will excel at top 10%, 25%, 50%, or bottom half. Some cheat too, does that count as 'smarts'? Then some others do not know how to cheat, does that count as not 'smart'?

There is a lot in between, TJ is hard, it comes down to mental maturity of the kids to handle it before they have the college level age maturity.

PP here: A standardized test like the PSAT.

My kid is currently a senior at TJ.

Doing ok. But reports that a good 25% to 30% of his class regularly bombs core courses like M4, Physics Honors.

And there are kids who take AP Physics C in Sophomore year and land up with C’s.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I hear there are many TJ kids going to Mason. What gpa do they need for uva or vtech?

Here are the stats from Naviance for TJ (and it does not break it down by major, gender, etc. - just the average stats for admission):

UVA: wGPA: 4.48 SAT 1553
VaTech: wGPA: 4.36 SAT 1537

thank you. people do not understand how high the gpas are at TJ and that you compete against the others in your high school first, not just for uva but for any school. Sure TJ gets in "more" and you can be "only" top third and get in but when you are in the TJ peer group being top third is very difficult. better to stay at the home school and be the only kid with a 1550 and top of the class and have a shot at ivies than grind at TJ only to get shut out of UVA.

I despise when TJ parents think their above avg or avg TJ kid would absolutely be at the top of their base school.

I have had one kid in base HS and one at TJ. Any TJ kid who is in the top half of the class would absolutely be in the top 5% at any of base FCPS HS.

The rigor, grading, content and expectations are significantly higher at TJ. At base HS, it was at most 30 minutes of effort at home per week to get an A and that is often close to 100% of total points due to bonus points on tests, etc.

My kid struggled with the rigor at TJ and would've been absolutely fantastic at base, top 5% then comfortably get into UVA. Instead the mental torture and agony was too much for all of us, with the hit on GPA, ending up getting into a school that ends up being bottom safety for TJ kids. That said, fast forward 4 years of college was a breeze with all the tough courses, and now sitting pretty with job offers from 3 top tier companies in senior year. DC was saying it's like getting admission from Harvard, Princeton, and Yale. This would not have happened if not for TJ and the peer group acquired from there. They stuck together, helped, pushed, and motivated each other, without possibly saying anything. It's been a long 8 years, although if the ultimate goal is landing on a career with the top employers in STEM, then TJ has worked out. I am sure base HS would also be okay, however, the peer group is something when you connect with the right friends at TJ.

OMG. This is truly hilarious.

You find it hilarious having multiple offers of $200K+ base salary, plus joining bonus, performance bonus, and RSUs, straight out of college, because TJ rigor helped paved way later in life

Okay

I find YOU hilarious. Agree with PP.
DP

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I hear there are many TJ kids going to Mason. What gpa do they need for uva or vtech?

Here are the stats from Naviance for TJ (and it does not break it down by major, gender, etc. - just the average stats for admission):

UVA: wGPA: 4.48 SAT 1553
VaTech: wGPA: 4.36 SAT 1537

thank you. people do not understand how high the gpas are at TJ and that you compete against the others in your high school first, not just for uva but for any school. Sure TJ gets in "more" and you can be "only" top third and get in but when you are in the TJ peer group being top third is very difficult. better to stay at the home school and be the only kid with a 1550 and top of the class and have a shot at ivies than grind at TJ only to get shut out of UVA.

I despise when TJ parents think their above avg or avg TJ kid would absolutely be at the top of their base school.

I have had one kid in base HS and one at TJ. Any TJ kid who is in the top half of the class would absolutely be in the top 5% at any of base FCPS HS.

The rigor, grading, content and expectations are significantly higher at TJ. At base HS, it was at most 30 minutes of effort at home per week to get an A and that is often close to 100% of total points due to bonus points on tests, etc.

My kid struggled with the rigor at TJ and would've been absolutely fantastic at base, top 5% then comfortably get into UVA. Instead the mental torture and agony was too much for all of us, with the hit on GPA, ending up getting into a school that ends up being bottom safety for TJ kids. That said, fast forward 4 years of college was a breeze with all the tough courses, and now sitting pretty with job offers from 3 top tier companies in senior year. DC was saying it's like getting admission from Harvard, Princeton, and Yale. This would not have happened if not for TJ and the peer group acquired from there. They stuck together, helped, pushed, and motivated each other, without possibly saying anything. It's been a long 8 years, although if the ultimate goal is landing on a career with the top employers in STEM, then TJ has worked out. I am sure base HS would also be okay, however, the peer group is something when you connect with the right friends at TJ.

OMG. This is truly hilarious.

You find it hilarious having multiple offers of $200K+ base salary, plus joining bonus, performance bonus, and RSUs, straight out of college, because TJ rigor helped paved way later in life

Okay

I find YOU hilarious. Agree with PP.
DP

DP.

This doesn't read like you are a DP.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My daughter, 4.51, 34 ACT, rejected by UVA, accepted by U Chicago and WASP, humanities major

Her friend, average GPA, 1550 SAT, legacy, rejected by UVA, accepted by Georgetown, CS major

Another friend, 4.3ish GPA, 1560 GPA, rejected at UVA, accepted by Cornell, engineering

They all are well rounded kids with spectacular EC achievements.

And of course, we're to believe you know the stats of your daughter's friends. Please.

DP

I know my kid's best friend's stats. Certainly their SAT scores and ECs.

If you actually know their SAT scores, that is very, very peculiar.

You must not have a daughter. Girls talk about everything under the sun!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My daughter, 4.51, 34 ACT, rejected by UVA, accepted by U Chicago and WASP, humanities major

Her friend, average GPA, 1550 SAT, legacy, rejected by UVA, accepted by Georgetown, CS major

Another friend, 4.3ish GPA, 1560 GPA, rejected at UVA, accepted by Cornell, engineering

They all are well rounded kids with spectacular EC achievements.

And of course, we're to believe you know the stats of your daughter's friends. Please.

DP

I know my kid's best friend's stats. Certainly their SAT scores and ECs.

If you actually know their SAT scores, that is very, very peculiar.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I hear there are many TJ kids going to Mason. What gpa do they need for uva or vtech?

Here are the stats from Naviance for TJ (and it does not break it down by major, gender, etc. - just the average stats for admission):

UVA: wGPA: 4.48 SAT 1553
VaTech: wGPA: 4.36 SAT 1537

thank you. people do not understand how high the gpas are at TJ and that you compete against the others in your high school first, not just for uva but for any school. Sure TJ gets in "more" and you can be "only" top third and get in but when you are in the TJ peer group being top third is very difficult. better to stay at the home school and be the only kid with a 1550 and top of the class and have a shot at ivies than grind at TJ only to get shut out of UVA.

I despise when TJ parents think their above avg or avg TJ kid would absolutely be at the top of their base school.

I have had one kid in base HS and one at TJ. Any TJ kid who is in the top half of the class would absolutely be in the top 5% at any of base FCPS HS.

The rigor, grading, content and expectations are significantly higher at TJ. At base HS, it was at most 30 minutes of effort at home per week to get an A and that is often close to 100% of total points due to bonus points on tests, etc.

I don’t disagree that any average TJ kid would be at the top 5% of a base HS. However, my Langley kid with full load of AP classes does not spend only 30 min of effort for an A. That is just rude and insulting. My kid would have been TJ material. He wasn’t interested and we didn’t push him.

Sorry, did not mean it that way. Of course not every class is going to be like that. Some of the AP classes do take up a lot more effort at any HS.

My kid did not get into TJ in 9th grade. At base HS, even with taking 2 AP classes, I honestly do not remember child spending even anytime at all on school work. Only once in a while would there be 20-30 minutes of work. I was shocked but grade report for half the classes is showing 99 or even over 100 out of 100. On the positive side spent a lot of time on EC's.

One of base HS teachers offered to write a LOR and encouraged child to apply to TJ. Child got in and at TJ, the rigor was quite significant. Had to spend 1-2 hours each day on homework in total during weekdays and 5-6 hours on weekends. The contrast with base HS is really stark.

Um our kids at public schools in APs etc spend more than 1-2 hours a day on homework. This is silly. You are really not in touch.

+1
The TJ parent here is absolutely clueless.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My daughter, 4.51, 34 ACT, rejected by UVA, accepted by U Chicago and WASP, humanities major

Her friend, average GPA, 1550 SAT, legacy, rejected by UVA, accepted by Georgetown, CS major

Another friend, 4.3ish GPA, 1560 GPA, rejected at UVA, accepted by Cornell, engineering

They all are well rounded kids with spectacular EC achievements.

And of course, we're to believe you know the stats of your daughter's friends. Please.

DP

I know my kid's best friend's stats. Certainly their SAT scores and ECs.

If you actually know their SAT scores, that is very, very peculiar.

The kids share this information with each other and it comes up.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I hear there are many TJ kids going to Mason. What gpa do they need for uva or vtech?

Here are the stats from Naviance for TJ (and it does not break it down by major, gender, etc. - just the average stats for admission):

UVA: wGPA: 4.48 SAT 1553
VaTech: wGPA: 4.36 SAT 1537

thank you. people do not understand how high the gpas are at TJ and that you compete against the others in your high school first, not just for uva but for any school. Sure TJ gets in "more" and you can be "only" top third and get in but when you are in the TJ peer group being top third is very difficult. better to stay at the home school and be the only kid with a 1550 and top of the class and have a shot at ivies than grind at TJ only to get shut out of UVA.

I despise when TJ parents think their above avg or avg TJ kid would absolutely be at the top of their base school.

I have had one kid in base HS and one at TJ. Any TJ kid who is in the top half of the class would absolutely be in the top 5% at any of base FCPS HS.

The rigor, grading, content and expectations are significantly higher at TJ. At base HS, it was at most 30 minutes of effort at home per week to get an A and that is often close to 100% of total points due to bonus points on tests, etc.

My kid struggled with the rigor at TJ and would've been absolutely fantastic at base, top 5% then comfortably get into UVA. Instead the mental torture and agony was too much for all of us, with the hit on GPA, ending up getting into a school that ends up being bottom safety for TJ kids. That said, fast forward 4 years of college was a breeze with all the tough courses, and now sitting pretty with job offers from 3 top tier companies in senior year. DC was saying it's like getting admission from Harvard, Princeton, and Yale. This would not have happened if not for TJ and the peer group acquired from there. They stuck together, helped, pushed, and motivated each other, without possibly saying anything. It's been a long 8 years, although if the ultimate goal is landing on a career with the top employers in STEM, then TJ has worked out. I am sure base HS would also be okay, however, the peer group is something when you connect with the right friends at TJ.

OMG. This is truly hilarious.

You find it hilarious having multiple offers of $200K+ base salary, plus joining bonus, performance bonus, and RSUs, straight out of college, because TJ rigor helped paved way later in life

Okay

I find YOU hilarious. Agree with PP.
DP

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My daughter, 4.51, 34 ACT, rejected by UVA, accepted by U Chicago and WASP, humanities major

Her friend, average GPA, 1550 SAT, legacy, rejected by UVA, accepted by Georgetown, CS major

Another friend, 4.3ish GPA, 1560 GPA, rejected at UVA, accepted by Cornell, engineering

They all are well rounded kids with spectacular EC achievements.

And of course, we're to believe you know the stats of your daughter's friends. Please.

DP

I know my kid's best friend's stats. Certainly their SAT scores and ECs.

If you actually know their SAT scores, that is very, very peculiar.