FWIW, some tests are designed to be super-hard so they can see what's going on the upper tail of the spectrum. Most MoCo magnet tests are like this. If you have a relatively easy test, then lots of kids ace the test, and you can't really distinguish among the 20% (or whatever) of the kids who did do extremely well on the easy version of the test.

I'm not sure it's justified from a private school admissions point of view. And if this is what's going on, it certainly doesn't help the boys feel better.

STA

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anyone know how the test went today? Hope all the boys did well!

From what I can piece together, it was brutal. Too many questions to complete on time. Too complicated to keep up a brisk pace. Oh well. I guess we'll be doing our home renovation after all!

I've heard similar comments from non-Beauvoir parents whose sons got in. I think the test that was administered to the boys today is a more difficult one than the Beauvoir applicants took.

Take it from this Beauvoir parent, whose son has aced every test he's ever taken - brutal it is, for Beauvoir and non-Beauvoir alike. DS came home in tears. What I wasn't sure about was whether they set the bar super high, knowing that no one would get close, but interested in how close some would get, or whether they're really looking for the super-genius kids.

While I agree it was a difficult test for Beauvoir applicants, from non-Beauvoir parent descriptions of the test's complexity and duration it sounds as if it was more advanced version was administered. The year ds took it, several boys cried afterwards. Surprisngly, during orientation into form c, STA's lower school head shared that over 90% of the boys in our class scored at least in the 120 i.q. range. SO the STA lower school admissions exam tests i.q.

Anonymous wrote:PP: Congratulations to your son. Do you have a sense for whether there were a lot of applicants this year at 4th grade? Also, do you have any words of wisdom to families who might begin this process in a year or so? Thanks!

Thank you for the congratulations. I do say more and more though, it feels like a mixed blessing.

We're a Beauvoir family, so I can only tell you about the experience from that perspective. I get the sense that our ouplacement director tells each family pretty clearly the odds of getting into one school or another based on test scores/teacher recommendations, as well as helping to steer all children to the schools at which they would be a good fit. Contrary to what many post or assume, I don't think the goal of Beauvoir is to place as many of their kids at STA/NCS as possible. To the contrary, I believe they wished that they were better represented exmission-wise at schools other than the Cathedral schools, GDS, and Maret. The problem with that is that most parents (yes, including us) chose Beauvoir not only because we thought it was a lovely, wonderful school, but because we knew that it would help pave the way to STA. We thought this because of the excellent preparation we expected DS would, and did, receive. We also thought this because it's no secret that Beauvoir is the feeder school for STA. So, really the best advice I have for any parent wanting to one day have the option of sending their DS to STA - do EVERYTHING you can to get him into Beauvoir. In a more direct response to your question, out of the 42 or so boys at Beauvoir, I think STA was the first choice for almost all families. Probably a half-dozen did not apply because our outplacement director convinced them that it was either a lost cause, or would not be a good fit. Probably a half-dozen will get wait-listed/rejected.

I know that for anyone who has a DS not at Beauvior, and applying to STA, it may seem like an uphill battle, competing for the 10 or fewer slots left, but I can say that many families we know who are in private school who might have thought about STA, are no longer, in large part because of the economy, and in large part because there is some question about whether paying so much money, even for such a revered insitution as STA, is really worth it in the long run.

Good luck to all.

PP: Congratulations to your son. Do you have a sense for whether there were a lot of applicants this year at 4th grade? Also, do you have any words of wisdom to families who might begin this process in a year or so? Thanks!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anyone know how the test went today? Hope all the boys did well!

From what I can piece together, it was brutal. Too many questions to complete on time. Too complicated to keep up a brisk pace. Oh well. I guess we'll be doing our home renovation after all!

I've heard similar comments from non-Beauvoir parents whose sons got in. I think the test that was administered to the boys today is a more difficult one than the Beauvoir applicants took.

Take it from this Beauvoir parent, whose son has aced every test he's ever taken - brutal it is, for Beauvoir and non-Beauvoir alike. DS came home in tears. What I wasn't sure about was whether they set the bar super high, knowing that no one would get close, but interested in how close some would get, or whether they're really looking for the super-genius kids.

Did you DS get in?

Yes. We heard last week. But we have not yet accepted. The brutality of that test, and what it might mean as a sign of things to come, is scaring off my heretofore supremely confident son. I hate this process. But my guess is that it's this way everywhere, in both privates and the suburban publics.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anyone know how the test went today? Hope all the boys did well!

From what I can piece together, it was brutal. Too many questions to complete on time. Too complicated to keep up a brisk pace. Oh well. I guess we'll be doing our home renovation after all!

I've heard similar comments from non-Beauvoir parents whose sons got in. I think the test that was administered to the boys today is a more difficult one than the Beauvoir applicants took.

Take it from this Beauvoir parent, whose son has aced every test he's ever taken - brutal it is, for Beauvoir and non-Beauvoir alike. DS came home in tears. What I wasn't sure about was whether they set the bar super high, knowing that no one would get close, but interested in how close some would get, or whether they're really looking for the super-genius kids.

Did you DS get in?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anyone know how the test went today? Hope all the boys did well!

From what I can piece together, it was brutal. Too many questions to complete on time. Too complicated to keep up a brisk pace. Oh well. I guess we'll be doing our home renovation after all!

I've heard similar comments from non-Beauvoir parents whose sons got in. I think the test that was administered to the boys today is a more difficult one than the Beauvoir applicants took.

Take it from this Beauvoir parent, whose son has aced every test he's ever taken - brutal it is, for Beauvoir and non-Beauvoir alike. DS came home in tears. What I wasn't sure about was whether they set the bar super high, knowing that no one would get close, but interested in how close some would get, or whether they're really looking for the super-genius kids.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anyone know how the test went today? Hope all the boys did well!

From what I can piece together, it was brutal. Too many questions to complete on time. Too complicated to keep up a brisk pace. Oh well. I guess we'll be doing our home renovation after all!

I've heard similar comments from non-Beauvoir parents whose sons got in. I think the test that was administered to the boys today is a more difficult one than the Beauvoir applicants took.

Anonymous wrote:Anyone know how the test went today? Hope all the boys did well!

From what I can piece together, it was brutal. Too many questions to complete on time. Too complicated to keep up a brisk pace. Oh well. I guess we'll be doing our home renovation after all!

Anonymous wrote:Anyone know how the test went today? Hope all the boys did well!

How many boys were there?

Anyone know how the test went today? Hope all the boys did well!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Have any Beauvoir families heard from STA yet? I thought letters were supposed to go out this week.

According to my neighbor, the letters went out the other day.

Acceptances only? Or were wait list and rejections included?

Anonymous wrote:Have any Beauvoir families heard from STA yet? I thought letters were supposed to go out this week.

According to my neighbor, the letters went out the other day.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are applying to 4th grade and we are only taking the test next Saturday. I wonder how many boys will be taking the test next weekend? We'll find out soon enough.

Good luck to your son.

Thank you - that is one of the nicest things I have read in this forum!