It is factually inaccurate that all the area private’s had someone manning the phones every day leading up to the end of the year, including over the holidays.

It seems that if other private schools have some counselors available in their offices over the holidays, yet Sidwell doesn’t, that’s something that Sidwell needs to examine.

Applying ED2 theoretically gives you an additional edge, which is why, if you are clear on your top choice school, it is a smart option. It is also legally binding. If your daughter was “wrestling with ED2 as a strategic move at a school she’s not in love with”, she would have been told by anyone she asked that she should not apply ED2 to that school. This is not hard.

The students were going in to request changes to their college lists up thru the 8th of Jan and, if your child got their application in on time per the college deadline, they were not considered late if the official transcripts trailed slightly behind. I’m not sure how much hand holding you expect here. If your kid changed their mind up until the LAST day, the transcript still went out. The more you share the details of your frustration, it’s very clear what happened here and where the accountability sits.

This sounds like late, poor planning on your end. Sorry. The number of messages the students received about deadlines for declaring their choices was almost borderline absurd. Reminders constantly. And the school bent over backwards to make sure that transcripts were sent on time. Sorry but if your kid was changing his/her mind up until literally the very last second, I don’t see how that is anyone’s fault other than his/her own.

Yet the college counselors are not reachable.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They asked students to plan their application activities in advance --- It's not like closing a hospital ER....

No but these are teenagers. Most of them aren’t in love with one school and done Nov 1. Mine changed his mind and wanted to add several schools the last week of school but the office was closed so no transcripts.

Or a student doesn’t get in ED, so then goes to a list of other schools but is wrestling with ED2 as a strategic move at a school she’s not in love with. Yet the college counselors are reachable. It’s challenging.

Anonymous wrote:They asked students to plan their application activities in advance --- It's not like closing a hospital ER....

No but these are teenagers. Most of them aren’t in love with one school and done Nov 1. Mine changed his mind and wanted to add several schools the last week of school but the office was closed so no transcripts.

Anonymous wrote:Sour. Grapes.

We have the simplest of expectations: that our kids’ private should follow a “no-doofuses” hiring policy.

You are probably also the parent that when the counselor suggests schools that they think are a fit for your child, you’re angry because HYP, Duke, Stanford, MIT, Northwestern, Columbia, etc weren’t on the list. So you tell your kid to apply anyway because “the counselor doesn’t get you”...and then your DC doesn’t get in to said schools (surprise!) and it’s all the counselor’s fault.

Sour. Grapes.

How would you know how well the counselor writes? Did they run their letter of recommendation by you?

How would you know? Sounds like sour grapes that you didn't get your share of entitlement.

Anonymous wrote:Can we agree that the college counselors cannot be held accountable to get every kid into their top choice school? Let’s get real people. I understand why you feel entitled after 4 years of private tuition...that it somehow entitles you to get the college golden ticket, but it just doesn’t work that way.

What our seniors are entitled to is a college counselor who has taken the time to know their backgrounds thoroughly, can advise based on solid experience, and is able to write well. Unfortunately, that’s not consistently the case.

Anonymous wrote:At StA CC works with the 9th Graders --- that seems to help

As a STA parent who has already been through the process, what do they do? I don’t recall anything until junior year.