Anonymous wrote:TJ Parent here: I agree with PP who said that most TJ kids are a standout at something. My son's "thing" is mobile app programming. TJ is not for every highly able, highly motivated child because the amount of homework is extreme (read: 5 hours/night; 6-8 hours on Sat AND Sun) which bogs them down quite considerably. While my son enjoys it, he definitely has his moments where he has questioned his decision -- and we have also had our moments where we want to pull him and send him to his base HS. Think carefully about deciding to allow your child to attend -- it affects the whole family. Case in point, we RARELY do anything as a family anymore (even a family dinner out). My son typically can't join us -- he's got to study.

THIS. My child is happy at TJ and has his thing(s) and loves his friends, but I think the amount of homework is ridiculous. While 4-5 hours a night is rare, 3 is probably the norm (but tack that onto the end of a long day of school/extracurriculars--getting home after 9PM + 3 hours of HW makes for a long day.) And you do lose at least one day of every weekend, especially if your child is involved any any activities that have weekend requirements (band, sports, etc.) Our entire family revolves around his TJ schedule and to be honest, I am glad we're almost done with it. I have another high schooler at a different, well-regarded school, and the difference in the homework load is striking and I don't think her academic experience is lacking. I often wish we had skipped TJ for our base school. It saddens me that my child is going to leave for college soon, and it feels like we've barely seen him over the last four years. Perhaps this is not an issue for some families, but it's turned out to be a real issue for us. But, I should also mention that my child has been adamant about staying at TJ, crazy homework and all. But as a parent, TJ lost its luster by the middle of sophomore year. For a number of reasons... Can't wait for graduation.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:TJ mom here: You asked for a portrait. Most of the TJ students that I have met are outstanding in something. That is, they are head and shoulders above the rest of the ordinary students and very motivated to pursue it. I have not yet met a TJ student that does not spend a great deal of time on homework -- that is a downside of TJ if your student does not like or tolerate a lot of homework time. TJ is like going to junior college at 14.

OP here. Thanks. This is helpful. This does not sound like my daughter. We are going to really talk with her about why she wants to go through the application process. If she has a good reason (I think it could be a good opportunity to learn x, I want to work through the application process), great. If not, we will try to gently dissuade her. She is smart, but not any smarter than any of her peers. She loves (some types of) science but also has non-STEM interests and aptitudes.

Pretty sure 99.9 percent of TJ students also have amazing non-STEM interests. It's her life -- why dissuade her?

Another TJ parent here. Homework has not been anywhere near the amount folks scared us about. Yes, there has been homework. Yes, some nights DS has stayed up late to get it done. I think has to do more with organization than amount.

My DS has also had some incredible experiences - most recently HackTJ, and met some great friends and teachers. He's also played sports and joined clubs. If the school is appealing bc of the grind aspect, it's probably not the right spot. There is so much more to the TJ experience than homework!

Anonymous wrote:TJ Parent here: I agree with PP who said that most TJ kids are a standout at something. My son's "thing" is mobile app programming. TJ is not for every highly able, highly motivated child because the amount of homework is extreme (read: 5 hours/night; 6-8 hours on Sat AND Sun) which bogs them down quite considerably. While my son enjoys it, he definitely has his moments where he has questioned his decision -- and we have also had our moments where we want to pull him and send him to his base HS. Think carefully about deciding to allow your child to attend -- it affects the whole family. Case in point, we RARELY do anything as a family anymore (even a family dinner out). My son typically can't join us -- he's got to study.

this sounds awful even if it is for a good cause....and even if the teen thinks the challenge is good. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.

Anonymous wrote:TJ is not for every highly able, highly motivated child because the amount of homework is extreme (read: 5 hours/night; 6-8 hours on Sat AND Sun) which bogs them down quite considerably. While my son enjoys it, he definitely has his moments where he has questioned his decision -- and we have also had our moments where we want to pull him and send him to his base HS. Think carefully about deciding to allow your child to attend -- it affects the whole family. Case in point, we RARELY do anything as a family anymore (even a family dinner out). My son typically can't join us -- he's got to study.

My child is a freshman at TJ and appears to have the opposite experience. *sometimes* there is homework that takes 2-3 hours but that is a not a usual event. Usually spends an hour, hour-and-a-half max a day, does some on bus home, never on bus there. Weekends are usually relatively free. Nowhere near 5 hours a night or on weekends. Not to say there's no stress but unlike what we were told or what we've heard, we have not seen the hours get crazy yet. Usually in bed by 10pm.

TJ Parent here: I agree with PP who said that most TJ kids are a standout at something. My son's "thing" is mobile app programming. TJ is not for every highly able, highly motivated child because the amount of homework is extreme (read: 5 hours/night; 6-8 hours on Sat AND Sun) which bogs them down quite considerably. While my son enjoys it, he definitely has his moments where he has questioned his decision -- and we have also had our moments where we want to pull him and send him to his base HS. Think carefully about deciding to allow your child to attend -- it affects the whole family. Case in point, we RARELY do anything as a family anymore (even a family dinner out). My son typically can't join us -- he's got to study.

Anonymous wrote:

I have not yet met a TJ student that does not spend a great deal of time on homework -- that is a downside of TJ if your student does not like or tolerate a lot of homework time. TJ is like going to junior college at 14.

I have a freshman at TJ this year. I would agree with this. I think a kid who will do well at TJ is one who is not unhappy at the thought of having a great deal of homework and wants an academically challenging course load.

I was on the fence with DD. After she was accepted, to let her know what she would be in for, we sat down and worked up scenarios for several 4 year schedules based on some of the senior research lab topics that interested her. I knew letting her go to TJ was not a bad idea when she looked at the schedules (some of which horrified me), and she said "This sounds awesome!!"

That being said, she feels like she has found a home. She has joined a group activity that she would likely have had little chance of joining at our base high school, and she is having a fantastic time. Yes, there is a TON of homework, but she is enjoying herself.

Agree that there is a lot of homework, just as there would be at the regular school with a schedule of all honors and AP classes. My child at TJ found early on that the key is to be highly organized and efficient when doing homework.

He learned right away to come home from his after school sport and sit down and get his homework done. Freshman year IBET was sometimes frustrating because other kids hadn't quite figured that out yet and weren't getting their work done, even though they weren't involved in any after school activities. That's okay, though, because that is part of the learning process and they all learn from each other.

I have not yet met a TJ student that does not spend a great deal of time on homework -- that is a downside of TJ if your student does not like or tolerate a lot of homework time. TJ is like going to junior college at 14.

I have a freshman at TJ this year. I would agree with this. I think a kid who will do well at TJ is one who is not unhappy at the thought of having a great deal of homework and wants an academically challenging course load.

I was on the fence with DD. After she was accepted, to let her know what she would be in for, we sat down and worked up scenarios for several 4 year schedules based on some of the senior research lab topics that interested her. I knew letting her go to TJ was not a bad idea when she looked at the schedules (some of which horrified me), and she said "This sounds awesome!!"

That being said, she feels like she has found a home. She has joined a group activity that she would likely have had little chance of joining at our base high school, and she is having a fantastic time. Yes, there is a TON of homework, but she is enjoying herself.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:TJ mom here: You asked for a portrait. Most of the TJ students that I have met are outstanding in something. That is, they are head and shoulders above the rest of the ordinary students and very motivated to pursue it. I have not yet met a TJ student that does not spend a great deal of time on homework -- that is a downside of TJ if your student does not like or tolerate a lot of homework time. TJ is like going to junior college at 14.

OP here. Thanks. This is helpful. This does not sound like my daughter. We are going to really talk with her about why she wants to go through the application process. If she has a good reason (I think it could be a good opportunity to learn x, I want to work through the application process), great. If not, we will try to gently dissuade her. She is smart, but not any smarter than any of her peers. She loves (some types of) science but also has non-STEM interests and aptitudes.

Good thinking. My DD has a very good friend who was on the fence about it and ended up going. He is miserable. Has mentioned specifically the homework and uber-competitive classmates. From what I know, I think it is a great fit for some kids but not everyone. Do what's right for your kid.

Anonymous wrote:TJ mom here: You asked for a portrait. Most of the TJ students that I have met are outstanding in something. That is, they are head and shoulders above the rest of the ordinary students and very motivated to pursue it. I have not yet met a TJ student that does not spend a great deal of time on homework -- that is a downside of TJ if your student does not like or tolerate a lot of homework time. TJ is like going to junior college at 14.

OP here. Thanks. This is helpful. This does not sound like my daughter. We are going to really talk with her about why she wants to go through the application process. If she has a good reason (I think it could be a good opportunity to learn x, I want to work through the application process), great. If not, we will try to gently dissuade her. She is smart, but not any smarter than any of her peers. She loves (some types of) science but also has non-STEM interests and aptitudes.

TJ mom here: You asked for a portrait. Most of the TJ students that I have met are outstanding in something. That is, they are head and shoulders above the rest of the ordinary students and very motivated to pursue it. I have not yet met a TJ student that does not spend a great deal of time on homework -- that is a downside of TJ if your student does not like or tolerate a lot of homework time. TJ is like going to junior college at 14.

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Anonymous wrote:TJ admission really is more about test scores than anything else..

I went to MIT, but I won't be encouraging my child to apply.

That's false - the test score is one of 4 things they look at. There are many reasons for your child to not apply, but the fact they use an admission test shouldn't be one of them.

You have to pass the threshold on the test before they will look at the other three things. That puts the test as gatekeeper.

Actually, it is test scores in conjunction with grades in school that are used as the cutoffs for semifinalist. So, a poor test taker with great grades will move on to the next round, as will a kid who maybe wasn't too serious about school in seventh grade or maybe had a tough time adjusting to middle school who is very bright and does great on the test. It is not just the standardized test that determines who moves in to the next round.

But I thought there was a cut-off or minimum score you had to have to advance. Have they changed that?

The minimum score varies with GPA. It is on the TJ admissions website here:

http://www.fcps.edu/pla/TJHSST_Admissions/dec_freshman_winter_semi.html

It is not a difficult test. Roughly half the kids who take it each year move on to the semifinalist round.
The minimum GPA is 3.0 and minimum on the math portion is 30 out of 50. Those are not particularly high cutoffs for selecting kids who can handle the rigor of the coursework at TJ.