Anonymous wrote:Fax a letter or call -- be courteous to others on the waiting list and to admissions staff by quickly clarifying your status so they can move on to others.

Notify at the last possible moment. 8)

We chose Beauvoir over Sidwell because we really really wanted STA for our son later plus Beauvoir is such a great place for the young child and a fantastic fit for our son.
Having said that, it was a tough decusion given that we really liked Sidwell as well and the fact that we would have been good for k-12. While Beauvoir definitely gives an advantage when applying to STA, there are no guarantees.
So as not to burn our bridges, we sent a really nice note along with the official response document (I'm surprised you didn't get one).
We all loved beauvoir but I did a lot of second guessing during the application process in 3rd grade but our son is now at STA and we could not be happier.

Anonymous wrote:I've gotta say ... whenever I see parents on here trashing other schools, it makes me think less highly of the alternative schools they are trying to talk up. A complete backfire.

But I have a conspiracy theory that they're trashing the school where they're seeking admissions -- to divert all the 99+% DCUMkid competition.

Anonymous wrote:


The co-ed vs single sex education issue aside, these schools have a more well-rounded educational environment than Sidwell. When you think about how athletics are an after-thought at Sidwell, coupled with the scandals the schools has had recently that rivals Landon's, one would be hard pressed to come up with reasons why Sidwell is #1.

Are you really going to do the "sports as an afterthought" thing again? There is already a 50+ page thread on that, and the facts more than bare out that it is an urban legend. Compare the basketball or baseball teams as one small example. Who won the DC Wrestling title this year? Really, it is enough that you are happy with your school, but it really shows an incredible inferiority complex to trash other schools without any basis in fact. If the sports example is one, then it makes the balance of your statements tenuous, at best.

I've gotta say ... whenever I see parents on here trashing other schools, it makes me think less highly of the alternative schools they are trying to talk up. A complete backfire.

Anonymous wrote:I'm with one of the other PPs -- you only need to call, but please do it quickly. Our neighbors declined a spot at Beauvoir two years ago after their financial outlook changed on short notice. The school was incredibly nice about it, assured them that it wouldn't be held against their DC if they wanted to re-apply in another year, but also emphasized how glad they were to hear from the family in time to offer the spot to another student that was eager to attend the school. You can only bring yourself (and your DC) good karma by acting quickly.

Agree 100%

I'm with one of the other PPs -- you only need to call, but please do it quickly. Our neighbors declined a spot at Beauvoir two years ago after their financial outlook changed on short notice. The school was incredibly nice about it, assured them that it wouldn't be held against their DC if they wanted to re-apply in another year, but also emphasized how glad they were to hear from the family in time to offer the spot to another student that was eager to attend the school. You can only bring yourself (and your DC) good karma by acting quickly.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just tell them you chose another school over them and stop trying to show off to people on the forum that you got into Sidwell.

This.

I think it's refreshing to hear a poster say she DOESN'T want her kid to go to Sidwell. This board is so obsessed.

Sure, that's always fun. But did OP really need help figuring out how to say "no thanks"? Sounds like name-dropping to me. Next we'll hear how John Hamm was always trying to ask her out in college, but she didn't think he was attractive enough.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ok, so if Sidwell is not the top school in the area, then what is?

For the whole picture (academics, athletics, social life, college matriculation), I'd put these schools ahead of Sidwell:

STA
Holton
NCS
Potomac (maybe)

I wouldn't.

The co-ed vs single sex education issue aside, these schools have a more well-rounded educational environment than Sidwell. When you think about how athletics are an after-thought at Sidwell, coupled with the scandals the schools has had recently that rivals Landon's, one would be hard pressed to come up with reasons why Sidwell is #1.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ok, so if Sidwell is not the top school in the area, then what is?

For the whole picture (academics, athletics, social life, college matriculation), I'd put these schools ahead of Sidwell:

STA
Holton
NCS
Potomac (maybe)

I wouldn't either, but if I lived in Virginia or wanted a single-sec education, then maybe my list might be different. Hence the point that there is no way to make a single list, or categorize these excellent schools in some tidy package.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just tell them you chose another school over them and stop trying to show off to people on the forum that you got into Sidwell.

This.

I think it's refreshing to hear a poster say she DOESN'T want her kid to go to Sidwell. This board is so obsessed.

Anonymous wrote:Just tell them you chose another school over them and stop trying to show off to people on the forum that you got into Sidwell.

This.

Anonymous wrote:Just tell them you chose another school over them and stop trying to show off to people on the forum that you got into Sidwell.

OP said she didn't get a "decline" form with her acceptance. Which is pretty funny, IMO.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ok, so if Sidwell is not the top school in the area, then what is?

For the whole picture (academics, athletics, social life, college matriculation), I'd put these schools ahead of Sidwell:

STA
Holton
NCS
Potomac (maybe)

I wouldn't.

Just tell them you chose another school over them and stop trying to show off to people on the forum that you got into Sidwell.