I would be the first to say that TJ is in its own class for STEM and I'm sure for college admissions too. With that said, the graduating class at TJ is six times bigger than St. Albans (480 at TJ vs. 74 at St. Albans). Eighteen students from TJ getting into Princeton would represent approximately 4% of the TJ student body. For 35% of the TJ student body to get into an Ivy (or Stanford/MIT), that would be 168 different kids. I'd be curious to see if they hit that number, but there's probably no way to tell because of the multiple-admits.

With that said, though, most years STA I think has about 20% admitted to the Ivies and I'd think TJ would routinely have a higher percentage.

Its true. I have seen the list of Princeton admits from DC, MD, and VA schools. There are 0 from GDS, 2 from St Albans, 2 from Sidwell, 1 from Maret, and 18 from Thomas Jefferson. I am not the famed Thomas Jefferson booster.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, it helps that a St. A parent is on the board of Princeton...

Only 2 St Albans seniors got into Princeton. From Thomas Jefferson, the number was 18.

Complete lie about TJ. 18 kids did NOT get into Princeton this year. Or any year.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, it helps that a St. A parent is on the board of Princeton...

Only 2 St Albans seniors got into Princeton. From Thomas Jefferson, the number was 18.

Oh, god. There's that TJ poster again. Can we settle this once and for all. STA mom, post the 2012 placement when it becomes available, and TJ booster-mom, do the same. Let the rest of us decide.

Anonymous wrote:Well, it helps that a St. A parent is on the board of Princeton...

Only 2 St Albans seniors got into Princeton. From Thomas Jefferson, the number was 18.

We have had 3 kids go through the college application process from a Big 3, and while I agree with the PP who suggested that the kids in the middle of the class benefit the most from the imprimatur these schools offer, they're not going to benefit to the point of getting into Wesleyan, Cornell, Chicago or some of the other schools cited in that post. I'd say a middle-of-the-pack kid has a better shot at NYU, Colby, Bates, Emory or Kenyon -- all very good schools, but not as selective. Overall, though PP is correct that it doesn't make a lot of sense to choose a Big 3 for college prospects -- there are just too many variables that enter into the equation.

Yes, every year when I get the matriculation list for GDS, I look at the bottom rather than the top. And, consistently, I think everything on the list looks choice-worthy.

Having just gone through the college process with one child at a big3 school and about to go through it with a second. our observation is that the kids in the "middle of the pack" at the top privates probably benefit the most in terms of college placement. They may not be getting into the very top Ivys or LACs, but plenty of those kids are at places such as Cornell, U Va, Carnegie Mellon, Tufts, Claremont-McKenna, Wash U, Colby, Bates, Wesleyan, even U Chicago, Northwestern and Hopkins. Lots at U Michigan, USC.

I think it makes less of a difference for the kids at the absolute top, whether at private or public, they have a good chance at the very top schools, but always a crap shoot unless a billionaire legacy or recruited athlete.

The very very much stronger and more personal college advising made a big difference to these kids, plus they were way better prepared for college once they got there, as compared to kids with similar testing and degree of academic innate talent who were at even places like Whitman, BCC and for sure Wilson or Walls, based on our kids friends at those schools. The schools know that if they went through the rigor of Sidwell or St Albans or GDS, even if B students there and don't test phenomenally that when they get to college they will have good study habits, be able to write, and likely be better prepared for college than kids that got somewhat lost at a big public.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How is the middle of the class doing this year re: college admissions?

Yes. I'd also like to know the basic academic profile of middle of the class students. For example: Their GPA range, test scores, ECs, and if they were placed in a lower math track from 9th grade on.

Ah, the Easter Bunny brought sarcasm this morning! On one level, of course it is silly to parse this stuff when only the families and college counselor really know the circumstances of any given student's college results. On another level, people care about college acceptances and it's a relatively harmless past time to chew over for a couple of weeks in the fall and spring each year. I think most people understand that the admissions landscape has changed; that there are lots of great schools; that it's about picking the right college for the individual kid; and that it's the kids' achievements, not the high school, that matters. But it's still entertaining to hear this stuff (or we wouldn't red Hesse threads).

Actually, no sarcasm was intended. I'd really like to know the academic profile of a middle of the class STA senior. And don't tell me to go have a chat with the school's college counselor. I'm well aware that the admissions landscape has changed. Blah, blah, blah.

I'm not the alleged sarcastic poster. But in a general way, I'd like to know are the middle of the pack boys doing okay in college placement, and again, in a general way what their profiles might look like. Top students at STA (or Sidwell, or TJ, or Whitman, etc., etc.) will always place well. It's the ability to place those without the perfect SAT scores which the rest of us are really concerned about.

I think this is a reasonable question and concern, but I'm not sure there's any way to really get the specific information you are looking for (matching a profile of a kid up with his college acceptances) unless you are already at a school (and can say, "my kid is a B student with 1900 SATs, what's reasonable?") or can ask friends with kids who have gone through the college process. If the question is being asked with an eye to "is private school 'worth it' in the sense that it will significantly improve my DC's college placement?" I think the answer is probably not. You've got to buy in that the experience itself is worth it (whether because of overall quality of preparation for college; or getting to be on a sports team in HS; or small classes with lots of instruction in writing; or a great arts program; etc etc). Not that satisfying an answer, I know.

Thanks for providing me with some additional perspective to chomp on. We're weighing whether or not the experience(s) is really worth it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How is the middle of the class doing this year re: college admissions?

Yes. I'd also like to know the basic academic profile of middle of the class students. For example: Their GPA range, test scores, ECs, and if they were placed in a lower math track from 9th grade on.

Ah, the Easter Bunny brought sarcasm this morning! On one level, of course it is silly to parse this stuff when only the families and college counselor really know the circumstances of any given student's college results. On another level, people care about college acceptances and it's a relatively harmless past time to chew over for a couple of weeks in the fall and spring each year. I think most people understand that the admissions landscape has changed; that there are lots of great schools; that it's about picking the right college for the individual kid; and that it's the kids' achievements, not the high school, that matters. But it's still entertaining to hear this stuff (or we wouldn't red Hesse threads).

Actually, no sarcasm was intended. I'd really like to know the academic profile of a middle of the class STA senior. And don't tell me to go have a chat with the school's college counselor. I'm well aware that the admissions landscape has changed. Blah, blah, blah.

I'm not the alleged sarcastic poster. But in a general way, I'd like to know are the middle of the pack boys doing okay in college placement, and again, in a general way what their profiles might look like. Top students at STA (or Sidwell, or TJ, or Whitman, etc., etc.) will always place well. It's the ability to place those without the perfect SAT scores which the rest of us are really concerned about.

I think this is a reasonable question and concern, but I'm not sure there's any way to really get the specific information you are looking for (matching a profile of a kid up with his college acceptances) unless you are already at a school (and can say, "my kid is a B student with 1900 SATs, what's reasonable?") or can ask friends with kids who have gone through the college process. If the question is being asked with an eye to "is private school 'worth it' in the sense that it will significantly improve my DC's college placement?" I think the answer is probably not. You've got to buy in that the experience itself is worth it (whether because of overall quality of preparation for college; or getting to be on a sports team in HS; or small classes with lots of instruction in writing; or a great arts program; etc etc). Not that satisfying an answer, I know.

Anonymous wrote:Since these were all early admits, the final matriculation numbers for the full class should be revealing. Please post a copy of the final newspaper that provides those. In fact, if you have last year's final newspaper, post that now so we can see the improvement. Thanks

Ask again in June, that's when the kids publish the last editions of the school papers, and maybe somebody'll bite and post the list. If people are really curious, the school's 5-year matriculation list can give people a sense of the range of schools attended by STA grads, which is broad: http://www.stalbansschool.org/page.aspx?pid=722

Since these were all early admits, the final matriculation numbers for the full class should be revealing. Please post a copy of the final newspaper that provides those. In fact, if you have last year's final newspaper, post that now so we can see the improvement. Thanks

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How is the middle of the class doing this year re: college admissions?

Yes. I'd also like to know the basic academic profile of middle of the class students. For example: Their GPA range, test scores, ECs, and if they were placed in a lower math track from 9th grade on.

Ah, the Easter Bunny brought sarcasm this morning! On one level, of course it is silly to parse this stuff when only the families and college counselor really know the circumstances of any given student's college results. On another level, people care about college acceptances and it's a relatively harmless past time to chew over for a couple of weeks in the fall and spring each year. I think most people understand that the admissions landscape has changed; that there are lots of great schools; that it's about picking the right college for the individual kid; and that it's the kids' achievements, not the high school, that matters. But it's still entertaining to hear this stuff (or we wouldn't red Hesse threads).

Actually, no sarcasm was intended. I'd really like to know the academic profile of a middle of the class STA senior. And don't tell me to go have a chat with the school's college counselor. I'm well aware that the admissions landscape has changed. Blah, blah, blah.

Well, if you didn't intend sarcasm in asking for a profile that included information about math-tracking and extracurriculars, then you're just out of luck -- nobody in internet land can give that to you (and you are correct, I'm sure the school won't either). You'll just have to wait until your child is in high school, meet with the college counselor, and get the advice then. The Naviance program which many schools use does allow a student to see how prior students at his school with his GPA/score axis have done in applications to any given college.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How is the middle of the class doing this year re: college admissions?

Yes. I'd also like to know the basic academic profile of middle of the class students. For example: Their GPA range, test scores, ECs, and if they were placed in a lower math track from 9th grade on.

Ah, the Easter Bunny brought sarcasm this morning! On one level, of course it is silly to parse this stuff when only the families and college counselor really know the circumstances of any given student's college results. On another level, people care about college acceptances and it's a relatively harmless past time to chew over for a couple of weeks in the fall and spring each year. I think most people understand that the admissions landscape has changed; that there are lots of great schools; that it's about picking the right college for the individual kid; and that it's the kids' achievements, not the high school, that matters. But it's still entertaining to hear this stuff (or we wouldn't red Hesse threads).

Actually, no sarcasm was intended. I'd really like to know the academic profile of a middle of the class STA senior. And don't tell me to go have a chat with the school's college counselor. I'm well aware that the admissions landscape has changed. Blah, blah, blah.

I'm not the alleged sarcastic poster. But in a general way, I'd like to know are the middle of the pack boys doing okay in college placement, and again, in a general way what their profiles might look like. Top students at STA (or Sidwell, or TJ, or Whitman, etc., etc.) will always place well. It's the ability to place those without the perfect SAT scores which the rest of us are really concerned about.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How is the middle of the class doing this year re: college admissions?

Yes. I'd also like to know the basic academic profile of middle of the class students. For example: Their GPA range, test scores, ECs, and if they were placed in a lower math track from 9th grade on.

Ah, the Easter Bunny brought sarcasm this morning! On one level, of course it is silly to parse this stuff when only the families and college counselor really know the circumstances of any given student's college results. On another level, people care about college acceptances and it's a relatively harmless past time to chew over for a couple of weeks in the fall and spring each year. I think most people understand that the admissions landscape has changed; that there are lots of great schools; that it's about picking the right college for the individual kid; and that it's the kids' achievements, not the high school, that matters. But it's still entertaining to hear this stuff (or we wouldn't red Hesse threads).

Actually, no sarcasm was intended. I'd really like to know the academic profile of a middle of the class STA senior. And don't tell me to go have a chat with the school's college counselor. I'm well aware that the admissions landscape has changed. Blah, blah, blah.