Anonymous wrote:My cousins, siblings and I all went to a variety of schools starting in the early aughts: UNC-CH (in state), American University, George Mason University, Manhattan College, Pace University, Frostburg State University, Eastern Carolina University, UMCP, Bryn Mawr, WVU, UMass - Amherst, Western Carolina University. Those of us with ambition have been professionally successful…alma mater really hasn’t been relevant.

I do *not* get the obsession.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:JMU, VCU, Christopher Newport, in some cases VA Tech, Mason, West Virginia, and some other OOS schools (College of Charleston, USF, Alabama, Kentucky, etc.). Honestly, there are lots of options for kids who might not have the highest stats but did okay. It's just that this board seems obsessed with only the top 50.

+1,000

I apologize for the length of this post, but I've been lurking on this forum for about a week, seeking information, and finally felt compelled to share my thoughts.

I have no issue with parents wanting the absolute best opportunities for their children. God knows I do, and there's nothing inherently wrong with both valuing and pursuing a T-50 institution personally or for your child. Generally - or certainly on this forum however - there seems to be a particularly strong focus on those institutions, sometimes to the complete disrespect of anything else. I've lived in the DC region since 1993, but grew up in Philadelphia in a solidly middle class family with first-generation college graduate parents. The two areas couldn't be any different. Few of my closest neighborhood friends graduated from college, and my family would've been just as proud if I went to East Stroudsburg or UPenn. Some might call that a low bar. We just view it as casting a much wider net to the end of what makes one successful.

I'm no mathematician, but of all the college students in this country, my guess is that less than 10% attend T-50 institutions. Are the rest of those colleges, where the majority of our children attend, garbage and not worthy of attending for those whom they may be the only option? Neither life nor success is linear, so we can't act like only high-achieving kids who attend the most highly regarded institutions, are the only people who will ultimately be successful.

I graduated from a T-25 state flagship, and got my masters degree from a T-25 private. I have done well in my career (professionally and from an earnings perspective), but I have friends and former classmates who've done "better" in those categories. Of the most successful folks I've worked with, almost none graduated from schools with the prestige of my alma maters. The CEO of a former employer graduated from a SUNY school. Another went to Louisville, and another, the University of Richmond. My current boss graduated from Miami of Ohio, and past bosses/colleagues have graduated from JMU, Frostburg, and small directional state schools in the midwest.

There's no question that prestigious schools can open doors but the most successful people, the real achievers and impact-makers, are those one's who work their tails off, and make the absolute most of every opportunity that they have.

Our second and youngest is currently sweating out the RD college acceptance season (actually, we are probably more than them). They (using the non-binary term only to protect their identity) have a 3.2 GPA, 1200 SATs, and documented challenges with ADD and executive functioning (they had an IEP since 7th grade). They have two acceptances in hand - one from a small in-state school; one from a mid-tier private in the Northeast with substantial merit $; one waitlist from a large state school; and three rejections from a large sought after in-state school, a large OOS, and a selective STEM-focused private in the Northeast that we knew was a stretch. They are awaiting what we think is their first choice - another STEM-focused private in the Northeast, and another large in-state. They are exceptionally bright and more importantly, an exceptional person in every aspect (kind, respectful, hard-working, honest, independent thinker, values family). They have yet to figure out who they are, and how to tap into their full potential. Our message to them is that wherever you end up, that is where you should be, and do everything you can to maximize the opportunity.

Its not about groupthink, and I certainly don't believe that we all must value and pursue the same things for ourselves and our families. But I do believe that for our kids sake, we should evangelize a far less narrow definition of, and potential path to, success.

Anonymous wrote:I'm sorry, but this the third thread in the past couple months with similar subject.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I work at the University of Missouri. Admissions are guaranteed for 24 ACT / 1160 SAT and a 2.0+ GPA. This is the state flagship; other state schools are even easier. It's crazy to me as a native New Yorker that so many locals send their talented, accomplished kids to Mizzou. But then they are having a good time, graduating without debt and still getting into law and med school, so maybe I am the crazy one. Still trying to figure that out.

Weird that ppl send their kids here given the peer group.

It is a low floor high ceiling group, I guess. Certain programs have more rigorous requirements, like engineering and journalism. I can see if OOS tuition is not financially feasible, but we live in a relatively well-off area, where there are plenty of parents who could have been putting money away. So I find it weird, too.

My decision depends on peer group. For my kids, peer group is very important. If they’re surrounded by a bunch of slackers, I fear they will be slackers too. And the environment is super important to get them to internally motivate. However, that might not be the case for everyone’s kid.

And we are lucky that we don’t have to consider financial aid offers, which I know drives a lot of people to schools like this.

Anonymous wrote:If everything is so hard to get into now, where do regular kids go, the ones with As and Bs, not all APs, average SAT scores...?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I work at the University of Missouri. Admissions are guaranteed for 24 ACT / 1160 SAT and a 2.0+ GPA. This is the state flagship; other state schools are even easier. It's crazy to me as a native New Yorker that so many locals send their talented, accomplished kids to Mizzou. But then they are having a good time, graduating without debt and still getting into law and med school, so maybe I am the crazy one. Still trying to figure that out.

My kid with an SAT mid 1300s will attend Mizzou’s J-School. The top Journalism programs were a HUGE reach with their stats, plus the tuition made them completely out of reach.

They are getting enough merit aid to be a bit less expensive than our in-state flagship. The school has all the extras my kid wants: rah rah athletics, large enough campus, cute and close downtown, greek life. Add to that, their highly rated J-school.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I work at the University of Missouri. Admissions are guaranteed for 24 ACT / 1160 SAT and a 2.0+ GPA. This is the state flagship; other state schools are even easier. It's crazy to me as a native New Yorker that so many locals send their talented, accomplished kids to Mizzou. But then they are having a good time, graduating without debt and still getting into law and med school, so maybe I am the crazy one. Still trying to figure that out.

My kid with an SAT mid 1300s will attend Mizzou’s J-School. The top Journalism programs were a HUGE reach with their stats, plus the tuition made them completely out of reach.

They are getting enough merit aid to be a bit less expensive than our in-state flagship. The school has all the extras my kid wants: rah rah athletics, large enough campus, cute and close downtown, greek life. Add to that, their highly rated J-school.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If everything is so hard to get into now, where do regular kids go, the ones with As and Bs, not all APs, average SAT scores...?

What can you afford. If you are full pay, there are a lot of options.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I work at the University of Missouri. Admissions are guaranteed for 24 ACT / 1160 SAT and a 2.0+ GPA. This is the state flagship; other state schools are even easier. It's crazy to me as a native New Yorker that so many locals send their talented, accomplished kids to Mizzou. But then they are having a good time, graduating without debt and still getting into law and med school, so maybe I am the crazy one. Still trying to figure that out.

My kid with an SAT mid 1300s will attend Mizzou’s J-School. The top Journalism programs were a HUGE reach with their stats, plus the tuition made them completely out of reach.

They are getting enough merit aid to be a bit less expensive than our in-state flagship. The school has all the extras my kid wants: rah rah athletics, large enough campus, cute and close downtown, greek life. Add to that, their highly rated J-school.

Anonymous wrote:I work at the University of Missouri. Admissions are guaranteed for 24 ACT / 1160 SAT and a 2.0+ GPA. This is the state flagship; other state schools are even easier. It's crazy to me as a native New Yorker that so many locals send their talented, accomplished kids to Mizzou. But then they are having a good time, graduating without debt and still getting into law and med school, so maybe I am the crazy one. Still trying to figure that out.