Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Virginia is clearly the higher ranked undergraduate university - I think we can all agree on that.
And it takes mostly Virginia students unlike Michigan which is mostly out of state students.

+1. Statistically, UVA is ahead of Michigan. It's now become very difficult to get into. I agree with those above who think the UVA-bashing may be disgruntled students or parents. Many families close to me did not get their UVA legacy admitted this year. These are triple-legacy families who have extensively supported UVA and, of course, their kids have the 4.44+ GPA and 35-36 ACT and necessary ECs. This is a very upsetting issue for NoVA families, especially legacies, trying to get in from NoVA.

Not a NoVA family. My kid isn’t applying to UVA any time soon. I still think UVA is overrated.

Where are you applying? Could your DC get in if he/she did apply? Be honest.

My kid isn’t applying this year. I go on this board to see what the discussions are like around various colleges. My assertions come from being married to someone who works in higher ed and from my own experiences at both public and prep schools.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Virginia is clearly the higher ranked undergraduate university - I think we can all agree on that.
And it takes mostly Virginia students unlike Michigan which is mostly out of state students.

+1. Statistically, UVA is ahead of Michigan. It's now become very difficult to get into. I agree with those above who think the UVA-bashing may be disgruntled students or parents. Many families close to me did not get their UVA legacy admitted this year. These are triple-legacy families who have extensively supported UVA and, of course, their kids have the 4.44+ GPA and 35-36 ACT and necessary ECs. This is a very upsetting issue for NoVA families, especially legacies, trying to get in from NoVA.

Not a NoVA family. My kid isn’t applying to UVA any time soon. I still think UVA is overrated.

Where are you applying? Could your DC get in if he/she did apply? Be honest.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Virginia is clearly the higher ranked undergraduate university - I think we can all agree on that.
And it takes mostly Virginia students unlike Michigan which is mostly out of state students.

+1. Statistically, UVA is ahead of Michigan. It's now become very difficult to get into. I agree with those above who think the UVA-bashing may be disgruntled students or parents. Many families close to me did not get their UVA legacy admitted this year. These are triple-legacy families who have extensively supported UVA and, of course, their kids have the 4.44+ GPA and 35-36 ACT and necessary ECs. This is a very upsetting issue for NoVA families, especially legacies, trying to get in from NoVA.

Not a NoVA family. My kid isn’t applying to UVA any time soon. I still think UVA is overrated.

Anonymous wrote:Virginia is clearly the higher ranked undergraduate university - I think we can all agree on that.
And it takes mostly Virginia students unlike Michigan which is mostly out of state students.

+1. Statistically, UVA is ahead of Michigan. It's now become very difficult to get into. I agree with those above who think the UVA-bashing may be disgruntled students or parents. Many families close to me did not get their UVA legacy admitted this year. These are triple-legacy families who have extensively supported UVA and, of course, their kids have the 4.44+ GPA and 35-36 ACT and necessary ECs. This is a very upsetting issue for NoVA families, especially legacies, trying to get in from NoVA.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Virginia is clearly the higher ranked undergraduate university - I think we can all agree on that.
And it takes mostly Virginia students unlike Michigan which is mostly out of state students.

Because it’s three spots ahead in US News? That’s margin of error, not clear superiority.

o.k., I just said it's "higher ranked."

Anonymous wrote:Virginia is clearly the higher ranked undergraduate university - I think we can all agree on that.
And it takes mostly Virginia students unlike Michigan which is mostly out of state students.

Because it’s three spots ahead in US News? That’s margin of error, not clear superiority.

Virginia is clearly the higher ranked undergraduate university - I think we can all agree on that.
And it takes mostly Virginia students unlike Michigan which is mostly out of state students.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There are a lot of people on this board with an odd bias against UVA. It has been a top ranked school for as long as I can remember and prestigious in the eyes of the many who consider it a public Ivy along with Michigan and Cal. Increasingly selective, it clearly has national cache due to intense competition from out of state students (not to mention many in state who are disappointed when they don't get in). It's not only popular with Virginia students or mid Atlantic, students come from all across the country and internationally to study at UVA. Don't let anyone tell you it isn't a top school or prestigious.

I agree with this. I honestly think that much of the anti UVA bias comes from parents whose kids were already rejected or who anticipate that they won’t or can’t get in.

I’ve been posting a lot on this thread. I don’t have a kid who is applying to uva anytime soon. I just know a lot about higher ed (DH works in higher ed) and am the person with personal experience at prep schools. I’m just a knowleadable person trying to correct misperceptions. UVA is a fine school, but it’s just not in the same league as even the very top publics (Berkeley and Michigan).

You are incorrect. UVA is now always ranked higher for public university than Michigan and sometimes even higher than UCLA and Berkeley.



UVA is ahead of Michigan in all the public university rankings. In some, UVA is even ahead of UCLA and Berkeley.

UVA no. 1 public university in the nation. http://www.cavalierdaily.com/article/2016/09/uva-r...ublic-college-business-insider

No. 2 public university: https://news.virginia.edu/content/among-nations-el...no-2-public-university-ranking

UVA no. 3 behind berkely and UCLA but ahead of Michigan. https://news.virginia.edu/content/us-news-lists-uv...iversities-27th-straight-year'

UCLA and UVA tied for no. 2. http://newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/ucla-named-among...news-and-world-report-rankings

UVA ranks 2nd public universities. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Virginia

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There are a lot of people on this board with an odd bias against UVA. It has been a top ranked school for as long as I can remember and prestigious in the eyes of the many who consider it a public Ivy along with Michigan and Cal. Increasingly selective, it clearly has national cache due to intense competition from out of state students (not to mention many in state who are disappointed when they don't get in). It's not only popular with Virginia students or mid Atlantic, students come from all across the country and internationally to study at UVA. Don't let anyone tell you it isn't a top school or prestigious.

I agree with this. I honestly think that much of the anti UVA bias comes from parents whose kids were already rejected or who anticipate that they won’t or can’t get in.

I’ve been posting a lot on this thread. I don’t have a kid who is applying to uva anytime soon. I just know a lot about higher ed (DH works in higher ed) and am the person with personal experience at prep schools. I’m just a knowleadable person trying to correct misperceptions. UVA is a fine school, but it’s just not in the same league as even the very top publics (Berkeley and Michigan).

As an undergraduate institution, I think UVA is clearly in the same league as Michigan and Berkeley. Don't forget, it was actually ranked the top public on USNews for many years. Only Berkeley and UCLA are ahead now. Michigan has been moving up in selectivity recently by admitting many more students from OOS. Michigan and Berkeley are both huge schools that are significantly larger than top privates (only NYU and USC are similar size, and I am not thinking of them as top privates.) UVA stays within the size range of Harvard, Penn, and Cornell for instance, which perhaps has contributed to its historical appeal. Although it is off topic for this thread, I will also say William & Mary is a great in-state option at the undergraduate level.

UVA graduate law and business schools are comparable to Berkeley and Michigan. They are all top notch. UVA's medical school is well respected, but perhaps a level below Michigan. (Berkeley does not have a medical school, but it has strong ties to the nearby UC San Francisco, which is one of the tops in the country.)

Where UVA cannot match Berkeley and Michigan is as a research university and for across-the-board graduate programs. Berkeley is particularly strong here and has historically been viewed as one of the tops in the world, even rivaling Harvard. They are both strong in graduate STEM and research. This is really what is being rated in the global university rankings, and this explains why UVA is ranked much lower in those rankings. It does not have research citations and scholarly output at the same level as Berkeley and Michigan.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wake Forest has a serious cachet among wealthy prep school families. It sounds like a lot of public university alums post here, so the allure of a selective private education full of snobby rich kids is over your head.

Wow, way to be an elitist douche. I graduated with honors from Andover. I'm well versed in "the allure of a selective private education." You know how many kids went to Wake Forest from Andover last year? 0. 5 kids went to Michigan and 10 went to UVA. Why? Because UVA and Michigan are better than Wake Forest.

(https://www.andover.edu/files/PhillipsAcademySchoolProfile2017-2018.pdf)

Cherry picking from the #1 prep school in the world. What does that prove? The median family income of a student from Wake Forest is $221,500, it is top 10 in wealthiest student bodies in the US.

The median family income of a student from Virginia is $155,500.

As I said, WF has serious cachet among wealthy. While UVA is fantastic, but there's a segment of rich people that turn their nose down on a big public U education - they want their kids in small classes, around very high % of other smart rich kids.

https://www.gds.org/page/academics/college-counseling/matriculation-map
GDS Past three years:
11 to Michigan
4 to UVA
1 to Wake Forest

https://www.holton-arms.edu/scholar/college-counseling/matriculation
Holton Arms, class of 2014-2017:
15 to UVA
3 to Michigan
0 to Wake Forest

Choate Rosemary, past 5 years:
22 to Michigan
7 to UVA
0 to Wake Forest
https://www.choate.edu/uploaded/Documents/Academics/College_Profile.pdf

Phillips Exeter, class of 2015-2017:
25 to Michigan
4 to UVA
0 to Wake Forest
https://www.exeter.edu/sites/default/files/documents/college_matriculation.pdf

St. Paul’s, class of 2013-2016:
11 to UMich
9 to UVA
5 to Wake Forest
https://s3.amazonaws.com/k12-prod-us-east-1-media-pub/36/misc/misc_134107.pdf

Lawrenceville, class 2015-2017:
15 to UMich
15 to UVA
5 to Wake Forest
https://www.lawrenceville.org/page/academics/college-counseling

I find it somewhat bizarre that all this money is spent simply to get into excellent public schools that are still fairly easy to get into from Michigan and VA instate.

Kids at these HS don’t consider HS simply a way to get into a certain college.

Yeah, right.

NP. You are focking clueless.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There are a lot of people on this board with an odd bias against UVA. It has been a top ranked school for as long as I can remember and prestigious in the eyes of the many who consider it a public Ivy along with Michigan and Cal. Increasingly selective, it clearly has national cache due to intense competition from out of state students (not to mention many in state who are disappointed when they don't get in). It's not only popular with Virginia students or mid Atlantic, students come from all across the country and internationally to study at UVA. Don't let anyone tell you it isn't a top school or prestigious.

I agree with this. I honestly think that much of the anti UVA bias comes from parents whose kids were already rejected or who anticipate that they won’t or can’t get in.

I’ve been posting a lot on this thread. I don’t have a kid who is applying to uva anytime soon. I just know a lot about higher ed (DH works in higher ed) and am the person with personal experience at prep schools. I’m just a knowleadable person trying to correct misperceptions. UVA is a fine school, but it’s just not in the same league as even the very top publics (Berkeley and Michigan).

It sucks in all the hard majors. It excels in the easy majors. That's why it's not respected globally.

Anonymous wrote:There are a lot of people on this board with an odd bias against UVA. It has been a top ranked school for as long as I can remember and prestigious in the eyes of the many who consider it a public Ivy along with Michigan and Cal. Increasingly selective, it clearly has national cache due to intense competition from out of state students (not to mention many in state who are disappointed when they don't get in). It's not only popular with Virginia students or mid Atlantic, students come from all across the country and internationally to study at UVA. Don't let anyone tell you it isn't a top school or prestigious.

I agree with this. I honestly think that much of the anti UVA bias comes from parents whose kids were already rejected or who anticipate that they won’t or can’t get in.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wake Forest has a serious cachet among wealthy prep school families. It sounds like a lot of public university alums post here, so the allure of a selective private education full of snobby rich kids is over your head.

Wow, way to be an elitist douche. I graduated with honors from Andover. I'm well versed in "the allure of a selective private education." You know how many kids went to Wake Forest from Andover last year? 0. 5 kids went to Michigan and 10 went to UVA. Why? Because UVA and Michigan are better than Wake Forest.

(https://www.andover.edu/files/PhillipsAcademySchoolProfile2017-2018.pdf)

Cherry picking from the #1 prep school in the world. What does that prove? The median family income of a student from Wake Forest is $221,500, it is top 10 in wealthiest student bodies in the US.

The median family income of a student from Virginia is $155,500.

As I said, WF has serious cachet among wealthy. While UVA is fantastic, but there's a segment of rich people that turn their nose down on a big public U education - they want their kids in small classes, around very high % of other smart rich kids.

https://www.gds.org/page/academics/college-counseling/matriculation-map
GDS Past three years:
11 to Michigan
4 to UVA
1 to Wake Forest

https://www.holton-arms.edu/scholar/college-counseling/matriculation
Holton Arms, class of 2014-2017:
15 to UVA
3 to Michigan
0 to Wake Forest

Choate Rosemary, past 5 years:
22 to Michigan
7 to UVA
0 to Wake Forest
https://www.choate.edu/uploaded/Documents/Academics/College_Profile.pdf

Phillips Exeter, class of 2015-2017:
25 to Michigan
4 to UVA
0 to Wake Forest
https://www.exeter.edu/sites/default/files/documents/college_matriculation.pdf

St. Paul’s, class of 2013-2016:
11 to UMich
9 to UVA
5 to Wake Forest
https://s3.amazonaws.com/k12-prod-us-east-1-media-pub/36/misc/misc_134107.pdf

Lawrenceville, class 2015-2017:
15 to UMich
15 to UVA
5 to Wake Forest
https://www.lawrenceville.org/page/academics/college-counseling

I find it somewhat bizarre that all this money is spent simply to get into excellent public schools that are still fairly easy to get into from Michigan and VA instate.

Kids at these HS don’t consider HS simply a way to get into a certain college.

Yeah, right.

Do you have personal experience with any of these schools (esp the NE boarding schools)? Of course kids want to get into a top college, but they also value the experience of being at the school. It’s not like most high schools, where kids just want to get through it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wake Forest has a serious cachet among wealthy prep school families. It sounds like a lot of public university alums post here, so the allure of a selective private education full of snobby rich kids is over your head.

Wow, way to be an elitist douche. I graduated with honors from Andover. I'm well versed in "the allure of a selective private education." You know how many kids went to Wake Forest from Andover last year? 0. 5 kids went to Michigan and 10 went to UVA. Why? Because UVA and Michigan are better than Wake Forest.

(https://www.andover.edu/files/PhillipsAcademySchoolProfile2017-2018.pdf)

Cherry picking from the #1 prep school in the world. What does that prove? The median family income of a student from Wake Forest is $221,500, it is top 10 in wealthiest student bodies in the US.

The median family income of a student from Virginia is $155,500.

As I said, WF has serious cachet among wealthy. While UVA is fantastic, but there's a segment of rich people that turn their nose down on a big public U education - they want their kids in small classes, around very high % of other smart rich kids.

https://www.gds.org/page/academics/college-counseling/matriculation-map
GDS Past three years:
11 to Michigan
4 to UVA
1 to Wake Forest

https://www.holton-arms.edu/scholar/college-counseling/matriculation
Holton Arms, class of 2014-2017:
15 to UVA
3 to Michigan
0 to Wake Forest

Choate Rosemary, past 5 years:
22 to Michigan
7 to UVA
0 to Wake Forest
https://www.choate.edu/uploaded/Documents/Academics/College_Profile.pdf

Phillips Exeter, class of 2015-2017:
25 to Michigan
4 to UVA
0 to Wake Forest
https://www.exeter.edu/sites/default/files/documents/college_matriculation.pdf

St. Paul’s, class of 2013-2016:
11 to UMich
9 to UVA
5 to Wake Forest
https://s3.amazonaws.com/k12-prod-us-east-1-media-pub/36/misc/misc_134107.pdf

Lawrenceville, class 2015-2017:
15 to UMich
15 to UVA
5 to Wake Forest
https://www.lawrenceville.org/page/academics/college-counseling

I find it somewhat bizarre that all this money is spent simply to get into excellent public schools that are still fairly easy to get into from Michigan and VA instate.

Kids at these HS don’t consider HS simply a way to get into a certain college.

Yeah, right.