Anonymous
Post 02/09/2014 12:43     Subject: If your child attends a 'reach' school...
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:The top-ranked colleges usually do not offer as much student support and accommodations than the lower-ranked ones. So if your child starts to struggle at the former, he will probably need a bit more inner resources and resiliency to overcome the hurdles. I would not worry about it. The most important criteria is fit, ie: "gut feeling"

I am convinced top-ranked universities do not offer a "better" education. The rankings are notoriously flawed, as we all know, and what you are buying is the reputation of the diploma, not the quality of the education. However "top" schools are unfortunately so well recognized by others that a diploma from such a place will probably boost your child's career, or at the worst not hurt it. And this is why we all play the game...


May help him/her get a foot in the door easier -- particularly with people impressed by that stuff. After that though, it will be up to the kid. For whatever reason, the world is not run by Ivy League grads.


The big advantage of attending a top school is the connections your kid will make through his/her peer group. That's what I've observed, at least. But the smarter and more motivated your kid, the less it matters where he/she goes to college. So in some ways it's probably the reach kids at Ivy League schools who probably benefit the most from the experience.
Anonymous
Post 02/07/2014 17:44     Subject: If your child attends a 'reach' school...
Anonymous wrote:The top-ranked colleges usually do not offer as much student support and accommodations than the lower-ranked ones. So if your child starts to struggle at the former, he will probably need a bit more inner resources and resiliency to overcome the hurdles. I would not worry about it. The most important criteria is fit, ie: "gut feeling"

I am convinced top-ranked universities do not offer a "better" education. The rankings are notoriously flawed, as we all know, and what you are buying is the reputation of the diploma, not the quality of the education. However "top" schools are unfortunately so well recognized by others that a diploma from such a place will probably boost your child's career, or at the worst not hurt it. And this is why we all play the game...


May help him/her get a foot in the door easier -- particularly with people impressed by that stuff. After that though, it will be up to the kid. For whatever reason, the world is not run by Ivy League grads.
Anonymous
Post 02/05/2014 21:13     Subject: If your child attends a 'reach' school...
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:DC attends a top 5 school that is a reach for anybody. In addition, DC was at about the lower 1/4 of SATs accepted by this school. DC is doing great, in terms of grades, friends and confidence.

Like 11:29, this university (it maybe the same one) offers a lot in the way of support, including a summer bridge program for entering freshman they think may need extra help.


Even the kids at the 25th % for these types of schools are really bright. The range of scores for these schools doesn't really dip down into "not smart". I wonder if it might be a bigger issue for the "good but not great" schools where there really might be a significant difference between the capabilities of the kids at the low end vs. the kids at the top.


Yes, the 25th percentile of SATs is at about 2100 for the very top schools. Not dumb at all.
Anonymous
Post 02/05/2014 20:27     Subject: If your child attends a 'reach' school...
Know a current student at an Ivy. Straight As in HS, good in math and science, great extra curriculars. Has always been a hard worker. Goes to an Ivy and found classes packed with science students who were already far more advanced. Felt like her science background just wasn't strong enough and dropped the hard sciences. She'll be just fine in life, loves her school, her friends, will leave with a great network. No regrets. But the difficulty of the major, and the background you bring to it might make a difference. If seeking medical school entrance is to satisfy a parent that's too bad. If it is what the kid/student really wants, weigh all possibilities. Find out how supportive the intended major /department is. Attitudes probably vary from school to school and department to department.
Anonymous
Post 02/05/2014 16:10     Subject: If your child attends a 'reach' school...
Anonymous wrote:I am asking generally as my child hasn't yet formulated a list...we are meeting with counselors in a few weeks to do that. I wonder if a student who gets a big 'break' in admissions ever hackers for the 'match' level school


Getting into college from this area will be way harder than doing the work in college.
Anonymous
Post 02/05/2014 10:23     Subject: Re:If your child attends a 'reach' school...
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:It depends on the major. I do know of several kids who dropped out of STEM programs at top schools because they weren't on the genius track and couldn't keep up. But they stayed at their schools and did fine in other disciplines.
this is one thing which scares me
had a niece who went to school as premed, came out with a psychology degree, and know of a kid who was bioengineering, he came out with a psychology degree too
both kids went to expensive private schools, turning down big scholarships from their state schools


...and one of the the kids I know in this camp graduated with an English degree then went back to community college five years later to do the pre-med requirements he couldn't handle at his dream school. Now, at 40, he's a doctor. Go figure.
To me it comes back to fit. If your kids graduate in decent shape from one of the top public or private schools around here, he/she will be able to handle the academic coursework just about anywhere (if anything they tend to be overprepared, especially for freshman year). But there's a difference between being a STEM student at a big state school that has football and other fun collegiate stuff to balance out the grind, vs. at a smaller, ivory-towerish school where virtually everyone is intensely driven. If you're on the MD/PhD track, it doesn't matter anyway -- there's no reason for a smart STEM kid to take on massive debt as an undergrad. In other words, don't assume your reach school is the best option, just because you were lucky enough to get in.


Uhm . . . there's plenty of fun to be had at the "ivory-towerish" schools. At least this is what the kids I know who are at these schools tell me (including my own 2 kids).
Anonymous
Post 02/05/2014 10:16     Subject: If your child attends a 'reach' school...
Anonymous wrote:DC attends a top 5 school that is a reach for anybody. In addition, DC was at about the lower 1/4 of SATs accepted by this school. DC is doing great, in terms of grades, friends and confidence.

Like 11:29, this university (it maybe the same one) offers a lot in the way of support, including a summer bridge program for entering freshman they think may need extra help.


Even the kids at the 25th % for these types of schools are really bright. The range of scores for these schools doesn't really dip down into "not smart". I wonder if it might be a bigger issue for the "good but not great" schools where there really might be a significant difference between the capabilities of the kids at the low end vs. the kids at the top.
Anonymous
Post 02/05/2014 10:12     Subject: If your child attends a 'reach' school...
Anonymous wrote:DC attends a top 5 school that is a reach for anybody. In addition, DC was at about the lower 1/4 of SATs accepted by this school. DC is doing great, in terms of grades, friends and confidence.

Like 11:29, this university (it maybe the same one) offers a lot in the way of support, including a summer bridge program for entering freshman they think may need extra help.
Anonymous
Post 02/05/2014 10:07     Subject: Re:If your child attends a 'reach' school...
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:It depends on the major. I do know of several kids who dropped out of STEM programs at top schools because they weren't on the genius track and couldn't keep up. But they stayed at their schools and did fine in other disciplines.
this is one thing which scares me
had a niece who went to school as premed, came out with a psychology degree, and know of a kid who was bioengineering, he came out with a psychology degree too
both kids went to expensive private schools, turning down big scholarships from their state schools


...and one of the the kids I know in this camp graduated with an English degree then went back to community college five years later to do the pre-med requirements he couldn't handle at his dream school. Now, at 40, he's a doctor. Go figure.
To me it comes back to fit. If your kids graduate in decent shape from one of the top public or private schools around here, he/she will be able to handle the academic coursework just about anywhere (if anything they tend to be overprepared, especially for freshman year). But there's a difference between being a STEM student at a big state school that has football and other fun collegiate stuff to balance out the grind, vs. at a smaller, ivory-towerish school where virtually everyone is intensely driven. If you're on the MD/PhD track, it doesn't matter anyway -- there's no reason for a smart STEM kid to take on massive debt as an undergrad. In other words, don't assume your reach school is the best option, just because you were lucky enough to get in.
Anonymous
Post 02/04/2014 23:22     Subject: If your child attends a 'reach' school...
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:the scary part is, the student might have a better shot at completing the desired degree at Match U vs Reach U, without the expenditure

I don't see a big (or scary) difference between graduating from Princeton with premed or psychology.
really? in one case, you're prepared to apply to med school, and in the other case, you aren't prepared
Anonymous
Post 02/04/2014 22:31     Subject: If your child attends a 'reach' school...
Anonymous wrote:the scary part is, the student might have a better shot at completing the desired degree at Match U vs Reach U, without the expenditure

I don't see a big (or scary) difference between graduating from Princeton with premed or psychology.
Anonymous
Post 02/04/2014 22:10     Subject: If your child attends a 'reach' school...
the scary part is, the student might have a better shot at completing the desired degree at Match U vs Reach U, without the expenditure
Anonymous
Post 02/04/2014 21:34     Subject: Re:If your child attends a 'reach' school...
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:It depends on the major. I do know of several kids who dropped out of STEM programs at top schools because they weren't on the genius track and couldn't keep up. But they stayed at their schools and did fine in other disciplines.
this is one thing which scares me
had a niece who went to school as premed, came out with a psychology degree, and know of a kid who was bioengineering, he came out with a psychology degree too
both kids went to expensive private schools, turning down big scholarships from their state schools

What's the scary part?
Anonymous
Post 02/04/2014 19:13     Subject: Re:If your child attends a 'reach' school...
Anonymous wrote:It depends on the major. I do know of several kids who dropped out of STEM programs at top schools because they weren't on the genius track and couldn't keep up. But they stayed at their schools and did fine in other disciplines.
this is one thing which scares me
had a niece who went to school as premed, came out with a psychology degree, and know of a kid who was bioengineering, he came out with a psychology degree too
both kids went to expensive private schools, turning down big scholarships from their state schools
Anonymous
Post 02/04/2014 17:58     Subject: Re:If your child attends a 'reach' school...
It depends on the major. I do know of several kids who dropped out of STEM programs at top schools because they weren't on the genius track and couldn't keep up. But they stayed at their schools and did fine in other disciplines.