Anonymous
Post 07/11/2018 16:44     Subject: Ugh! Should have hired a tutor for SSAT :(
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Just a quick second on the high scores don’t guaranteed much of anything-we applied from public this year to MS and my DC was WL at all the top schools despite a composite SSAT of 89%. We were flabbergasted-great kid in every other way also. Did get in finally off WL, but a top score isn’t this golden ticket you would think it would be.


yes, this was my son too. Coming from a public. All A's, 90%+ SSAT, top athlete. Didn't get in any of the top 5 schools he applied to. Going to public middle school. However, I can think of 5+ boys at our school alone who also fit this profile and also didn't get in. Which is crazy except when you think about it, most of the top schools only had 5 boy slots total for 6th grade. My son's school could have filled them all. And they're one DC area elementary school out of how many (dozens?) of schools with kids applying to the top privates for middle school. It's just a total lottery. A 90%+ score isn't a guarantee of ANYTHING.


I know connected kids with mediocre grades, low SSATs (below 50%), no leadership positions, one was an athlete and the other played sports but only on teams with no cuts and they both got into a smaller, coveted private folks fall all over themselves to get into. Both kids got in over other kids with high (all had SSATs in at least mid 70% and a couple had upper 90%, extracurriculars, competitive athletes/strong music and arts extracurriculars, A to A- students, very strong recommendations, and good kids. The kids who got in had wealthy, connected parents. It confirmed for me that money and connections still talk. George W. Bush got into Yale with a C average. Same thing happens here at DC privates no matter what they post on their websites. You should know this so that you understand and prepare your kids for the reality that in America family name and connections still matter no matter what you might hear about equity and merit based admissions.
Anonymous
Post 07/11/2018 13:31     Subject: Ugh! Should have hired a tutor for SSAT :(
Anonymous wrote:Just a quick second on the high scores don’t guaranteed much of anything-we applied from public this year to MS and my DC was WL at all the top schools despite a composite SSAT of 89%. We were flabbergasted-great kid in every other way also. Did get in finally off WL, but a top score isn’t this golden ticket you would think it would be.


yes, this was my son too. Coming from a public. All A's, 90%+ SSAT, top athlete. Didn't get in any of the top 5 schools he applied to. Going to public middle school. However, I can think of 5+ boys at our school alone who also fit this profile and also didn't get in. Which is crazy except when you think about it, most of the top schools only had 5 boy slots total for 6th grade. My son's school could have filled them all. And they're one DC area elementary school out of how many (dozens?) of schools with kids applying to the top privates for middle school. It's just a total lottery. A 90%+ score isn't a guarantee of ANYTHING.
Anonymous
Post 07/11/2018 12:31     Subject: Ugh! Should have hired a tutor for SSAT :(
Just a quick second on the high scores don’t guaranteed much of anything-we applied from public this year to MS and my DC was WL at all the top schools despite a composite SSAT of 89%. We were flabbergasted-great kid in every other way also. Did get in finally off WL, but a top score isn’t this golden ticket you would think it would be.
Anonymous
Post 07/10/2018 21:57     Subject: Ugh! Should have hired a tutor for SSAT :(
Anonymous wrote:Our HOS didn't make a big deal of SSAT; didn't see much correlation between admits and SSATs when matched up together. Said grades are more correlated.


How is that possible with all the grade inflation?
Anonymous
Post 07/10/2018 21:48     Subject: Ugh! Should have hired a tutor for SSAT :(
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Community College and Manager of McDonalds it is then!

Just kidding OP. But seriously, it will be fine. Go take a walk and relax!


LOL

OP here. Thanks for the laugh! A walk sounds like an excellent idea.


NP.

Breathe.

Most kids do better on the actual test than the practice test.


Actually that is incorrect for the SSAT. Most kids do better on practice tests. The real thing is always harder.


My kid also did much worse on the actual SSAT. It was a hard test. I would get prep and do the test later in the year.
Anonymous
Post 07/10/2018 19:58     Subject: Ugh! Should have hired a tutor for SSAT :(
Anonymous wrote:PP captures it well here. Bottom line is that the ISEEE is more similar to other standarized tests our young kids are given, testing what they have been taught/what they know, and is designed for younger children. The SSAT is most similar to the SAT and designed for older kids and tests apititude and reasoning ability not just what information you have retained. The SSAT is a very challenging test for most kids (except the few who naturally think in this style) and truly requires the same kind of prep that everyone does for the SAT because it is so strategy based. Sending your kid in to take it is cruel and stupid since so few kids do it that way. My suspision, the SSAT is specifically designed for use by applicants to top private schools, they are the only ones who use it. That cohort has money so its a test designed to extract money for the testing industry. Of course, that screws those who cant afford expensive prep but want to get their kids a top notch private education.


Cruel and stupid seems a tad on the melodramatic side.


My kid will be 5th grad in the Fall. We are about to start the preparation in a couple of weeks in order to apply 6th grad in Oct. From what I read, now I prefer to take ISEEE. Could you please tell me which level of ISEEE she should take? Can you recommend good but less expensive tutor in this area?
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2017 01:07     Subject: Ugh! Should have hired a tutor for SSAT :(
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:SSAT really only helps if you get in the 90th %.


....aaaaaand that is just not true. The most competive/rigorous of the area privates, basically Sidwell and STA/NCS, want to see everything above (approx.) the 80%, the rest of the schools are more flexible by a matter of degrees on a sliding scale as the competitiveness/rigor decreases.


That's complete and total BS. Sure, lots of applicants get into those two plus GDS with 80%+---AND lots of applicants with those scores get rejected/waitlisted. I'm sure that it's a lower admit percentage with lower scores, but I can absolutely confirm that there are kids admitted to the Big Three with below 50% on everything---and with no hooks. My DC is one (applied to and admitted to two of the three) and the admissions officers at both schools said that DC is definitely not alone (when after the admissions letters came out, we asked whether DC could be successful there, in light of scores). Now a junior with a a 3.4.

Good scores are always better than bad scores, but if a school wants your DC, they will take your DC regardless of scores. And if the school doesn't want your DC, 99% still won't be enough.

But this 80% minimum bit is nothing more than a dcurbanmom urban legend.

Hate to resurrect this old post but did your DC switch from another private to Sidwell or from public to Sidwell? Asking because, we're transitioning from one private to another and the HOS is very involved in "selecting" the schools to which the student should apply. When test scores are middling/lower... you will be given a list of schools that are "appropriate" for your child based on their profile. If a student scores "well below" 80%, I guarantee a place like Sidwell will not be on the list. I also know that the HOS will not support your child's application for a school that he, somehow magically knows will not admit your child.

Just curious how your DC made the switch with scores "well below" 80%.

Thanks.


From a private PK-8, with DC having great grades and recs, interviewed well, lots of extracurriculars and a school leader. This was two years ago, for 9th grade. Our HOS didn't make a big deal of SSAT; didn't see much correlation between admits and SSATs when matched up together. Said grades are more correlated. i don't want to be dismissive of testing, but it's not make or break. Probably helps too that the scores aren't publicly reported, as they are with colleges. Schools can make their own decisions on how to weigh them with each child.
Anonymous
Post 01/07/2017 10:16     Subject: Ugh! Should have hired a tutor for SSAT :(
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:SSAT really only helps if you get in the 90th %.


....aaaaaand that is just not true. The most competive/rigorous of the area privates, basically Sidwell and STA/NCS, want to see everything above (approx.) the 80%, the rest of the schools are more flexible by a matter of degrees on a sliding scale as the competitiveness/rigor decreases.


That's complete and total BS. Sure, lots of applicants get into those two plus GDS with 80%+---AND lots of applicants with those scores get rejected/waitlisted. I'm sure that it's a lower admit percentage with lower scores, but I can absolutely confirm that there are kids admitted to the Big Three with below 50% on everything---and with no hooks. My DC is one (applied to and admitted to two of the three) and the admissions officers at both schools said that DC is definitely not alone (when after the admissions letters came out, we asked whether DC could be successful there, in light of scores). Now a junior with a a 3.4.

Good scores are always better than bad scores, but if a school wants your DC, they will take your DC regardless of scores. And if the school doesn't want your DC, 99% still won't be enough.

But this 80% minimum bit is nothing more than a dcurbanmom urban legend.

Hate to resurrect this old post but did your DC switch from another private to Sidwell or from public to Sidwell? Asking because, we're transitioning from one private to another and the HOS is very involved in "selecting" the schools to which the student should apply. When test scores are middling/lower... you will be given a list of schools that are "appropriate" for your child based on their profile. If a student scores "well below" 80%, I guarantee a place like Sidwell will not be on the list. I also know that the HOS will not support your child's application for a school that he, somehow magically knows will not admit your child.

Just curious how your DC made the switch with scores "well below" 80%.

Thanks.
Anonymous
Post 01/07/2017 09:02     Subject: Re:Ugh! Should have hired a tutor for SSAT :(
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:OP here, we completely scrapped the SSAT. DC took the ISEE at Prometrics in Bethesda and did really well!! I think what really helped was DC not having to think about answering vs not answering questions when there was uncertainty (and having points subtracted for incorrect answers). It may have also helped that we worked it around our schedule- didn't have to wake up super early, wasn't surrounded by lots of other nervous test takers, took the test on a computer rather than pencil and paper. It made a HUGE difference!!


Congrats, OP. I mean that sincerely. You are a rational and thoughtful parent to take as much stress out of the process as possible and I'm sure your kid appreciates that. Well done.


And also quite affluent. We looked at the difference in fees and couldn't afford that set-up.
Anonymous
Post 01/07/2017 07:13     Subject: Ugh! Should have hired a tutor for SSAT :(
I can say with certainty that at the Sidwell open houses I have attended ( one for middle school and one for upper school) they have never said that "80% is the soft rule" or anything like this. To make such a statement would not be in keeping with the Sidwell ethos, and besides they do admit kids with worse scores and reject others with very high scores. Threy look at each applicant as a whole person, not a set of numbers.
Anonymous
Post 01/06/2017 22:28     Subject: Ugh! Should have hired a tutor for SSAT :(
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:SSAT really only helps if you get in the 90th %.


....aaaaaand that is just not true. The most competive/rigorous of the area privates, basically Sidwell and STA/NCS, want to see everything above (approx.) the 80%, the rest of the schools are more flexible by a matter of degrees on a sliding scale as the competitiveness/rigor decreases.


That's complete and total BS. Sure, lots of applicants get into those two plus GDS with 80%+---AND lots of applicants with those scores get rejected/waitlisted. I'm sure that it's a lower admit percentage with lower scores, but I can absolutely confirm that there are kids admitted to the Big Three with below 50% on everything---and with no hooks. My DC is one (applied to and admitted to two of the three) and the admissions officers at both schools said that DC is definitely not alone (when after the admissions letters came out, we asked whether DC could be successful there, in light of scores). Now a junior with a a 3.4.

Good scores are always better than bad scores, but if a school wants your DC, they will take your DC regardless of scores. And if the school doesn't want your DC, 99% still won't be enough.

But this 80% minimum bit is nothing more than a dcurbanmom urban legend.


I love this post.. thank you!


Not true. SSAT 80% and above was mentioned at Sidwell open house as a soft requirement.


I can say with certainty that even Sidwell admits students with well below 80%. Well below that mark. I'm sure that many or most are above. But if they want your child, and your child is doing very well in a competitive K-8, has great recs, interviews well, and is otherwise a great prospect, a lower score is not going to deny admission.
Anonymous
Post 01/06/2017 21:17     Subject: Ugh! Should have hired a tutor for SSAT :(
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:SSAT really only helps if you get in the 90th %.


....aaaaaand that is just not true. The most competive/rigorous of the area privates, basically Sidwell and STA/NCS, want to see everything above (approx.) the 80%, the rest of the schools are more flexible by a matter of degrees on a sliding scale as the competitiveness/rigor decreases.


That's complete and total BS. Sure, lots of applicants get into those two plus GDS with 80%+---AND lots of applicants with those scores get rejected/waitlisted. I'm sure that it's a lower admit percentage with lower scores, but I can absolutely confirm that there are kids admitted to the Big Three with below 50% on everything---and with no hooks. My DC is one (applied to and admitted to two of the three) and the admissions officers at both schools said that DC is definitely not alone (when after the admissions letters came out, we asked whether DC could be successful there, in light of scores). Now a junior with a a 3.4.

Good scores are always better than bad scores, but if a school wants your DC, they will take your DC regardless of scores. And if the school doesn't want your DC, 99% still won't be enough.

But this 80% minimum bit is nothing more than a dcurbanmom urban legend.


I love this post.. thank you!


Not true. SSAT 80% and above was mentioned at Sidwell open house as a soft requirement.


For what grade?
Anonymous
Post 01/06/2017 19:22     Subject: Ugh! Should have hired a tutor for SSAT :(
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:SSAT really only helps if you get in the 90th %.


....aaaaaand that is just not true. The most competive/rigorous of the area privates, basically Sidwell and STA/NCS, want to see everything above (approx.) the 80%, the rest of the schools are more flexible by a matter of degrees on a sliding scale as the competitiveness/rigor decreases.


That's complete and total BS. Sure, lots of applicants get into those two plus GDS with 80%+---AND lots of applicants with those scores get rejected/waitlisted. I'm sure that it's a lower admit percentage with lower scores, but I can absolutely confirm that there are kids admitted to the Big Three with below 50% on everything---and with no hooks. My DC is one (applied to and admitted to two of the three) and the admissions officers at both schools said that DC is definitely not alone (when after the admissions letters came out, we asked whether DC could be successful there, in light of scores). Now a junior with a a 3.4.

Good scores are always better than bad scores, but if a school wants your DC, they will take your DC regardless of scores. And if the school doesn't want your DC, 99% still won't be enough.

But this 80% minimum bit is nothing more than a dcurbanmom urban legend.


I love this post.. thank you!


Not true. SSAT 80% and above was mentioned at Sidwell open house as a soft requirement.
Anonymous
Post 12/15/2016 12:51     Subject: Ugh! Should have hired a tutor for SSAT :(
PP captures it well here. Bottom line is that the ISEEE is more similar to other standarized tests our young kids are given, testing what they have been taught/what they know, and is designed for younger children. The SSAT is most similar to the SAT and designed for older kids and tests apititude and reasoning ability not just what information you have retained. The SSAT is a very challenging test for most kids (except the few who naturally think in this style) and truly requires the same kind of prep that everyone does for the SAT because it is so strategy based. Sending your kid in to take it is cruel and stupid since so few kids do it that way. My suspision, the SSAT is specifically designed for use by applicants to top private schools, they are the only ones who use it. That cohort has money so its a test designed to extract money for the testing industry. Of course, that screws those who cant afford expensive prep but want to get their kids a top notch private education.


Cruel and stupid seems a tad on the melodramatic side.
Anonymous
Post 12/15/2016 10:21     Subject: Ugh! Should have hired a tutor for SSAT :(
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:SSAT really only helps if you get in the 90th %.


....aaaaaand that is just not true. The most competive/rigorous of the area privates, basically Sidwell and STA/NCS, want to see everything above (approx.) the 80%, the rest of the schools are more flexible by a matter of degrees on a sliding scale as the competitiveness/rigor decreases.


That's complete and total BS. Sure, lots of applicants get into those two plus GDS with 80%+---AND lots of applicants with those scores get rejected/waitlisted. I'm sure that it's a lower admit percentage with lower scores, but I can absolutely confirm that there are kids admitted to the Big Three with below 50% on everything---and with no hooks. My DC is one (applied to and admitted to two of the three) and the admissions officers at both schools said that DC is definitely not alone (when after the admissions letters came out, we asked whether DC could be successful there, in light of scores). Now a junior with a a 3.4.

Good scores are always better than bad scores, but if a school wants your DC, they will take your DC regardless of scores. And if the school doesn't want your DC, 99% still won't be enough.

But this 80% minimum bit is nothing more than a dcurbanmom urban legend.


I love this post.. thank you!