My daughter is very good academic and extra curriculum activity. She is super talented. However we were not even waiting listed for holton. Is it possible that I waived the application fee. That could have back fired. Just want an opinion for future reference.

Anonymous wrote:How many private schools do people typically apply to in order to get in somewhere?

We applied to 3 for 3rd and got in at all, which I wasn’t really expecting. I feel like people normally apply to 5-6 but we didn’t like that many schools.

How many private schools do people typically apply to in order to get in somewhere?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yeah, this is a private school forum, but talking about acceptances for 4th and 5th graders is kind of silly IMO. 9th grade? Makes sense.

Waiting to apply until 9th grade is the crazy part. Serious private school families get in much earlier.

“Serious” is one way to put it. Another is terrified that your child won’t make the cut when the decision isn’t wholly based on YOU and your career and money. We live in a wealthy are with excellent public schools so we weren’t fearful our child wouldn’t go to a good HS. Our child had developed into a very mature and strong student by 8th grade with some passions and some opinions. We were able to select a private high school that suits this child right now at this stage of their life.

Anonymous wrote:My daughter applied for 5th grade at GDS and is on the waitlist. She has the best scores in her school, strong recommendations, and is very talented in extracurricular activities. I know 5th grade is not a main entry point, but I’d like to know if she can get off the waitlist. Has anyone on the waitlist ever gotten into GDS?

GDS waitlists nearly everyone. In an entry year, the odds are exceptionally low to get off the waitlist. In a non-entry year, I would say the odds are very close to zero. That said, it may help your application next year if you reapply.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Basis Mclean: Admitted
GDS: Admitted
Potomac School: Waitlisted
HA: Admitted.

Potomac School was her first choice!

Over Basis?

Hello, Basis troll. You’re up early this morning.

Anonymous wrote:Yeah, this is a private school forum, but talking about acceptances for 4th and 5th graders is kind of silly IMO. 9th grade? Makes sense.

Waiting to apply until 9th grade is the crazy part. Serious private school families get in much earlier.

Anonymous wrote:Basis Mclean: Admitted
GDS: Admitted
Potomac School: Waitlisted
HA: Admitted.

Potomac School was her first choice!

Over Basis?

Anonymous wrote:Why are people so keen on Holton? I don't have a daughter, but anecdotally I've not great things about it. I thought NCS was the better school if you are looking for an all-girl school? Is HA like the conversative counterpart to NCS? I guess I don't understand why it would be the only school that someone is looking at?

What now, honey??

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Daughter got waitlisted at the potomac school & got into madeira. everybody else that applied (from her school) also got waitlisted, so are they just politely rejecting? does anybody actually get off the waitlist? We've also heard that they only take 1 boy 1 girl from each school, so does anyone know anything about that?
Potomac was her top choice and she doesnt want to go anywhere else. we'll be reaching out and letting them know it's her top choice, hopefully that may have some effect...

If the Potomac WL is unsuccessful, Madeira is a great school as well. Congrats!

+1 DD absolutely loves Madeira. And, if it’s helpful, she didn’t know if she’d like all girls. It took her all of two weeks to figure out how amazing all girls is. Regardless, hope your DD gets in where she wants!

I have a junior at Madeira. It has been an incredible experience for her.

My daughter applied for 5th grade at GDS and is on the waitlist. She has the best scores in her school, strong recommendations, and is very talented in extracurricular activities. I know 5th grade is not a main entry point, but I’d like to know if she can get off the waitlist. Has anyone on the waitlist ever gotten into GDS?

Anonymous wrote:We got in off of Maret WL and love it

Would be interested to hear which grade and the timing of your admittance from WL. Still during regular admissions season? Or at a random later date?

Anonymous wrote:How many new students do GDS, Sidwell, and Maret take for 9th?

Maret is about 24-28 with 7-10 siblings and 500 plus applications for 9th. It has become very popular because of the non pressure cooker reputation.

Anonymous wrote:Why are people so keen on Holton? I don't have a daughter, but anecdotally I've not great things about it. I thought NCS was the better school if you are looking for an all-girl school? Is HA like the conversative counterpart to NCS? I guess I don't understand why it would be the only school that someone is looking at?

We only applied to HA. It was before NCS admitted (3rd grade). Might have looked at NCS too... it's closer to us. Many classmates have chosen HA over NCS. It has a "fun vibe" and isn't a grind "pressure cooker" like NCS but still offers a challenging STEAM experience.

Anonymous wrote:Why are people so keen on Holton? I don't have a daughter, but anecdotally I've not great things about it. I thought NCS was the better school if you are looking for an all-girl school? Is HA like the conversative counterpart to NCS? I guess I don't understand why it would be the only school that someone is looking at?

NCS and Holton are on-par with each other, although DCUM might have you think otherwise. The largest difference is that NCS is religious and Holton is secular. NCS has a very strong emphasis on writing, Holton has a stronger science program.
I personally found the music curriculum to be stronger at Holton too. And I feel NCS is a tad more conservative than Holton (I think Holton is somewhere in the middle of the spectrum).
All small differences, but for those of us that live in MD and don't need to commute into DC, Holton is a great choice.
And with the current state of MCPS schools, lots of us are looking to go private.