Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Application numbers are restricted so the top students don’t get all of the acceptances. They need to spots open at top colleges for the next tier of students.

This is it.
Do you guys not get it or are all your kids in the top 10%?

I have a straight A student at GDS. Do you really want him applying to all the top 20 schools? your B student is not going to get admitted if both our kids apply.

I thought we are in a free country... How could a school restrict kids how many schools they can apply?

Because GDS is a private school, and sending your child there is entirely voluntary. If you doin't like their rules, you should pull your kids out and find a school that allows you to apply to more than 10 colleges.

Not a GDS parent but this comment has no basis in reality. Parents applying to HS don't know that GDS is going to restrict applications.

Caveat emptor. I don't know of any highly selective independent school in the area that allows students to apply to as many colleges as they want. Do you?

I know that ours gives good counseling advice on how many to apply to but doesn't restrict. I am ok with this. I am also in the "10-12 is plenty" camp - there is a lot of value in putting in the work to create a thoughtful list. With that work done, a student can also submit higher quality applications. Finally, if they still get shut out of top 10, top 20, top 30 - it will all be fine (but I know others aren't ok with some of these stances).

But despite my own feelings, I'm still saying it's not really fair to say "you chose private school and if you don't like it go elsewhere" when a person who applied for their child to start at GDS for 9th grade might not have been hyper focused on the details of college admissions. For some people this sort of detail might not be discovered until later, not to mention policies change over time (they have at our school, for sure).

I know it's hard to believe, but there are actually parents who do not choose a Big X HS with Ivy-or-bust college placement in mind.

Is this a Big-3? AFAIK, Sidwell, GDS, and the Cathedral schools all limit to around 10.

NCS does not limit. As a NCS family, we support that.

NCS has the reputation as being the worst of the pressure-cooker schools in this area. Not great from a mental health perspective to allow limitless college apps.

You attack a school for a different reason because the school does not match your claim? For one thing, NCS is not the worst of the pressure-cooker schools. Another big 3 is (you can figure it out). Based on our experience, limiting the number of colleges a student can apply creates a lot of anxieties.

Limiting the number might work in the old days. But under test optional and other changes in policies (e.g. first gen), non-top students in private schools benefit the most from applying widely.

For those non- top students, don’t they benefit from the top students skipping those applications? If a top kid applied to more than 10-12, they would likely add safeties that the non- top kids are applying.

yes, i don't understand why people think that unlimited apps would benefit the average student. This actually really hurts the average student.

If NCS allows unlimited apps it makes sense as their college admissions this year were really bimodal--more than the other top high schools. Girls (non sports recruits) seemed to either
get into top schools or schools ranked 100+. In contrast, GDS seemed to get a larger number of kids into top 50 schools---a few to each school. NCS (for non sports admits) was literally either Princeton/Penn for the top kids or Penn State/Alabama for some of the rest. I really wonder if this is because those Princeton/Penn kids also got all the Michigan, Virginia, etc. spots.

Do you have support for your claim? I do not think this is true.

DP - the kids post instagram pages that have a lot of this information. They were shared in this forum earlier this spring.

Not every kid posts to Instagram so this GDS person who is trying to say NCS students were either HYPSM or 100+ has no basis if using Instagram. At our Big 3, only 1/2 of the students posted their school this year and it whether they posted or not was not related to the competitiveness of their school because I know of multiple students who didn't post for Ivy, top 10, top 20, top 50....

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hmm. I have kids at Sidwell and have sometimes wondered if the Sidwell kids might be better served with a cap. It’s such an inhumane process. Works out generally by spring for most, but it’s a slog.

There is a cap. It is just that some abuse it.

What's the cap? My friend at Sidwell says no cap, just a recommendation.

Your friend is correct - it's a recommendation at Sidwell and that comes with guidance on how to create a balanced list that is also manageable and results in high quality applications.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hmm. I have kids at Sidwell and have sometimes wondered if the Sidwell kids might be better served with a cap. It’s such an inhumane process. Works out generally by spring for most, but it’s a slog.

There is a cap. It is just that some abuse it.

What's the cap? My friend at Sidwell says no cap, just a recommendation.

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Application numbers are restricted so the top students don’t get all of the acceptances. They need to spots open at top colleges for the next tier of students.

This is it.
Do you guys not get it or are all your kids in the top 10%?

I have a straight A student at GDS. Do you really want him applying to all the top 20 schools? your B student is not going to get admitted if both our kids apply.

I thought we are in a free country... How could a school restrict kids how many schools they can apply?

Because GDS is a private school, and sending your child there is entirely voluntary. If you doin't like their rules, you should pull your kids out and find a school that allows you to apply to more than 10 colleges.

Not a GDS parent but this comment has no basis in reality. Parents applying to HS don't know that GDS is going to restrict applications.

Caveat emptor. I don't know of any highly selective independent school in the area that allows students to apply to as many colleges as they want. Do you?

I know that ours gives good counseling advice on how many to apply to but doesn't restrict. I am ok with this. I am also in the "10-12 is plenty" camp - there is a lot of value in putting in the work to create a thoughtful list. With that work done, a student can also submit higher quality applications. Finally, if they still get shut out of top 10, top 20, top 30 - it will all be fine (but I know others aren't ok with some of these stances).

But despite my own feelings, I'm still saying it's not really fair to say "you chose private school and if you don't like it go elsewhere" when a person who applied for their child to start at GDS for 9th grade might not have been hyper focused on the details of college admissions. For some people this sort of detail might not be discovered until later, not to mention policies change over time (they have at our school, for sure).

I know it's hard to believe, but there are actually parents who do not choose a Big X HS with Ivy-or-bust college placement in mind.

Is this a Big-3? AFAIK, Sidwell, GDS, and the Cathedral schools all limit to around 10.

NCS does not limit. As a NCS family, we support that.

NCS has the reputation as being the worst of the pressure-cooker schools in this area. Not great from a mental health perspective to allow limitless college apps.

You attack a school for a different reason because the school does not match your claim? For one thing, NCS is not the worst of the pressure-cooker schools. Another big 3 is (you can figure it out). Based on our experience, limiting the number of colleges a student can apply creates a lot of anxieties.

Limiting the number might work in the old days. But under test optional and other changes in policies (e.g. first gen), non-top students in private schools benefit the most from applying widely.

For those non- top students, don’t they benefit from the top students skipping those applications? If a top kid applied to more than 10-12, they would likely add safeties that the non- top kids are applying.

yes, i don't understand why people think that unlimited apps would benefit the average student. This actually really hurts the average student.

If NCS allows unlimited apps it makes sense as their college admissions this year were really bimodal--more than the other top high schools. Girls (non sports recruits) seemed to either
get into top schools or schools ranked 100+. In contrast, GDS seemed to get a larger number of kids into top 50 schools---a few to each school. NCS (for non sports admits) was literally either Princeton/Penn for the top kids or Penn State/Alabama for some of the rest. I really wonder if this is because those Princeton/Penn kids also got all the Michigan, Virginia, etc. spots.

Do you have support for your claim? I do not think this is true.

DP - the kids post instagram pages that have a lot of this information. They were shared in this forum earlier this spring.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hmm. I have kids at Sidwell and have sometimes wondered if the Sidwell kids might be better served with a cap. It’s such an inhumane process. Works out generally by spring for most, but it’s a slog.

There is a cap. It is just that some abuse it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Application numbers are restricted so the top students don’t get all of the acceptances. They need to spots open at top colleges for the next tier of students.

This is it.
Do you guys not get it or are all your kids in the top 10%?

I have a straight A student at GDS. Do you really want him applying to all the top 20 schools? your B student is not going to get admitted if both our kids apply.

I thought we are in a free country... How could a school restrict kids how many schools they can apply?

Because GDS is a private school, and sending your child there is entirely voluntary. If you doin't like their rules, you should pull your kids out and find a school that allows you to apply to more than 10 colleges.

Not a GDS parent but this comment has no basis in reality. Parents applying to HS don't know that GDS is going to restrict applications.

Caveat emptor. I don't know of any highly selective independent school in the area that allows students to apply to as many colleges as they want. Do you?

I know that ours gives good counseling advice on how many to apply to but doesn't restrict. I am ok with this. I am also in the "10-12 is plenty" camp - there is a lot of value in putting in the work to create a thoughtful list. With that work done, a student can also submit higher quality applications. Finally, if they still get shut out of top 10, top 20, top 30 - it will all be fine (but I know others aren't ok with some of these stances).

But despite my own feelings, I'm still saying it's not really fair to say "you chose private school and if you don't like it go elsewhere" when a person who applied for their child to start at GDS for 9th grade might not have been hyper focused on the details of college admissions. For some people this sort of detail might not be discovered until later, not to mention policies change over time (they have at our school, for sure).

I know it's hard to believe, but there are actually parents who do not choose a Big X HS with Ivy-or-bust college placement in mind.

Is this a Big-3? AFAIK, Sidwell, GDS, and the Cathedral schools all limit to around 10.

NCS does not limit. As a NCS family, we support that.

NCS has the reputation as being the worst of the pressure-cooker schools in this area. Not great from a mental health perspective to allow limitless college apps.

You attack a school for a different reason because the school does not match your claim? For one thing, NCS is not the worst of the pressure-cooker schools. Another big 3 is (you can figure it out). Based on our experience, limiting the number of colleges a student can apply creates a lot of anxieties.

Limiting the number might work in the old days. But under test optional and other changes in policies (e.g. first gen), non-top students in private schools benefit the most from applying widely.

For those non- top students, don’t they benefit from the top students skipping those applications? If a top kid applied to more than 10-12, they would likely add safeties that the non- top kids are applying.

yes, i don't understand why people think that unlimited apps would benefit the average student. This actually really hurts the average student.

If NCS allows unlimited apps it makes sense as their college admissions this year were really bimodal--more than the other top high schools. Girls (non sports recruits) seemed to either
get into top schools or schools ranked 100+. In contrast, GDS seemed to get a larger number of kids into top 50 schools---a few to each school. NCS (for non sports admits) was literally either Princeton/Penn for the top kids or Penn State/Alabama for some of the rest. I really wonder if this is because those Princeton/Penn kids also got all the Michigan, Virginia, etc. spots.

Do you have support for your claim? I do not think this is true.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hmm. I have kids at Sidwell and have sometimes wondered if the Sidwell kids might be better served with a cap. It’s such an inhumane process. Works out generally by spring for most, but it’s a slog.

There is a cap. It is just that some abuse it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Application numbers are restricted so the top students don’t get all of the acceptances. They need to spots open at top colleges for the next tier of students.

This is it.
Do you guys not get it or are all your kids in the top 10%?

I have a straight A student at GDS. Do you really want him applying to all the top 20 schools? your B student is not going to get admitted if both our kids apply.

I thought we are in a free country... How could a school restrict kids how many schools they can apply?

Because GDS is a private school, and sending your child there is entirely voluntary. If you doin't like their rules, you should pull your kids out and find a school that allows you to apply to more than 10 colleges.

Not a GDS parent but this comment has no basis in reality. Parents applying to HS don't know that GDS is going to restrict applications.

Caveat emptor. I don't know of any highly selective independent school in the area that allows students to apply to as many colleges as they want. Do you?

I know that ours gives good counseling advice on how many to apply to but doesn't restrict. I am ok with this. I am also in the "10-12 is plenty" camp - there is a lot of value in putting in the work to create a thoughtful list. With that work done, a student can also submit higher quality applications. Finally, if they still get shut out of top 10, top 20, top 30 - it will all be fine (but I know others aren't ok with some of these stances).

But despite my own feelings, I'm still saying it's not really fair to say "you chose private school and if you don't like it go elsewhere" when a person who applied for their child to start at GDS for 9th grade might not have been hyper focused on the details of college admissions. For some people this sort of detail might not be discovered until later, not to mention policies change over time (they have at our school, for sure).

I know it's hard to believe, but there are actually parents who do not choose a Big X HS with Ivy-or-bust college placement in mind.

Is this a Big-3? AFAIK, Sidwell, GDS, and the Cathedral schools all limit to around 10.

NCS does not limit. As a NCS family, we support that.

NCS has the reputation as being the worst of the pressure-cooker schools in this area. Not great from a mental health perspective to allow limitless college apps.

You attack a school for a different reason because the school does not match your claim? For one thing, NCS is not the worst of the pressure-cooker schools. Another big 3 is (you can figure it out). Based on our experience, limiting the number of colleges a student can apply creates a lot of anxieties.

Limiting the number might work in the old days. But under test optional and other changes in policies (e.g. first gen), non-top students in private schools benefit the most from applying widely.

For those non- top students, don’t they benefit from the top students skipping those applications? If a top kid applied to more than 10-12, they would likely add safeties that the non- top kids are applying.

yes, i don't understand why people think that unlimited apps would benefit the average student. This actually really hurts the average student.

If NCS allows unlimited apps it makes sense as their college admissions this year were really bimodal--more than the other top high schools. Girls (non sports recruits) seemed to either
get into top schools or schools ranked 100+. In contrast, GDS seemed to get a larger number of kids into top 50 schools---a few to each school. NCS (for non sports admits) was literally either Princeton/Penn for the top kids or Penn State/Alabama for some of the rest. I really wonder if this is because those Princeton/Penn kids also got all the Michigan, Virginia, etc. spots.

Anonymous wrote:Hmm. I have kids at Sidwell and have sometimes wondered if the Sidwell kids might be better served with a cap. It’s such an inhumane process. Works out generally by spring for most, but it’s a slog.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Back in the stone ages I dated a guy who went to Exeter and at the time he told me Exeter only allowed students to apply to two Ivies (there may have been other limits too). Maybe GDS should increase their limit to 12 but in general I think a limit is helpful. I assume GDS is transparent about this rule and you could have picked another school or switch to public if it really bothers you.

Not true. Either you made up or the guy you dated lied to you.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Application numbers are restricted so the top students don’t get all of the acceptances. They need to spots open at top colleges for the next tier of students.

This is it.
Do you guys not get it or are all your kids in the top 10%?

I have a straight A student at GDS. Do you really want him applying to all the top 20 schools? your B student is not going to get admitted if both our kids apply.

I thought we are in a free country... How could a school restrict kids how many schools they can apply?

Because GDS is a private school, and sending your child there is entirely voluntary. If you doin't like their rules, you should pull your kids out and find a school that allows you to apply to more than 10 colleges.

Not a GDS parent but this comment has no basis in reality. Parents applying to HS don't know that GDS is going to restrict applications.

Caveat emptor. I don't know of any highly selective independent school in the area that allows students to apply to as many colleges as they want. Do you?

I know that ours gives good counseling advice on how many to apply to but doesn't restrict. I am ok with this. I am also in the "10-12 is plenty" camp - there is a lot of value in putting in the work to create a thoughtful list. With that work done, a student can also submit higher quality applications. Finally, if they still get shut out of top 10, top 20, top 30 - it will all be fine (but I know others aren't ok with some of these stances).

But despite my own feelings, I'm still saying it's not really fair to say "you chose private school and if you don't like it go elsewhere" when a person who applied for their child to start at GDS for 9th grade might not have been hyper focused on the details of college admissions. For some people this sort of detail might not be discovered until later, not to mention policies change over time (they have at our school, for sure).

I know it's hard to believe, but there are actually parents who do not choose a Big X HS with Ivy-or-bust college placement in mind.

Is this a Big-3? AFAIK, Sidwell, GDS, and the Cathedral schools all limit to around 10.

NCS does not limit. As a NCS family, we support that.

NCS has the reputation as being the worst of the pressure-cooker schools in this area. Not great from a mental health perspective to allow limitless college apps.

You attack a school for a different reason because the school does not match your claim? For one thing, NCS is not the worst of the pressure-cooker schools. Another big 3 is (you can figure it out). Based on our experience, limiting the number of colleges a student can apply creates a lot of anxieties.

Limiting the number might work in the old days. But under test optional and other changes in policies (e.g. first gen), non-top students in private schools benefit the most from applying widely.

For those non- top students, don’t they benefit from the top students skipping those applications? If a top kid applied to more than 10-12, they would likely add safeties that the non- top kids are applying.

In current admissions landscape, top students also need safeties. They will apply to the same number of safeties whether they are applying to 10 schools or 15 schools. If they apply to more top schools, it increases the chance that they will not end up at safeties. If you follow the trend, you will know a lot of safeties schools for top students will just waitlist them. If the top students express they will go to that school, they will be admitted from the waitlist. On the other hand, if top students get into the top schools they applied, they will not accept the waitlist, and the school will take the average students from the waitlist.

It is more unpredictable where average students will end up unless they just want to go to their safeties. Applying to more schools helps them to get into at least some of their match schools.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Application numbers are restricted so the top students don’t get all of the acceptances. They need to spots open at top colleges for the next tier of students.

This is it.
Do you guys not get it or are all your kids in the top 10%?

I have a straight A student at GDS. Do you really want him applying to all the top 20 schools? your B student is not going to get admitted if both our kids apply.

I thought we are in a free country... How could a school restrict kids how many schools they can apply?

Because GDS is a private school, and sending your child there is entirely voluntary. If you doin't like their rules, you should pull your kids out and find a school that allows you to apply to more than 10 colleges.

Not a GDS parent but this comment has no basis in reality. Parents applying to HS don't know that GDS is going to restrict applications.

Caveat emptor. I don't know of any highly selective independent school in the area that allows students to apply to as many colleges as they want. Do you?

I know that ours gives good counseling advice on how many to apply to but doesn't restrict. I am ok with this. I am also in the "10-12 is plenty" camp - there is a lot of value in putting in the work to create a thoughtful list. With that work done, a student can also submit higher quality applications. Finally, if they still get shut out of top 10, top 20, top 30 - it will all be fine (but I know others aren't ok with some of these stances).

But despite my own feelings, I'm still saying it's not really fair to say "you chose private school and if you don't like it go elsewhere" when a person who applied for their child to start at GDS for 9th grade might not have been hyper focused on the details of college admissions. For some people this sort of detail might not be discovered until later, not to mention policies change over time (they have at our school, for sure).

I know it's hard to believe, but there are actually parents who do not choose a Big X HS with Ivy-or-bust college placement in mind.

Is this a Big-3? AFAIK, Sidwell, GDS, and the Cathedral schools all limit to around 10.

NCS does not limit. As a NCS family, we support that.

NCS has the reputation as being the worst of the pressure-cooker schools in this area. Not great from a mental health perspective to allow limitless college apps.

You attack a school for a different reason because the school does not match your claim? For one thing, NCS is not the worst of the pressure-cooker schools. Another big 3 is (you can figure it out). Based on our experience, limiting the number of colleges a student can apply creates a lot of anxieties.

Limiting the number might work in the old days. But under test optional and other changes in policies (e.g. first gen), non-top students in private schools benefit the most from applying widely.

For those non- top students, don’t they benefit from the top students skipping those applications? If a top kid applied to more than 10-12, they would likely add safeties that the non- top kids are applying.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Application numbers are restricted so the top students don’t get all of the acceptances. They need to spots open at top colleges for the next tier of students.

This is it.
Do you guys not get it or are all your kids in the top 10%?

I have a straight A student at GDS. Do you really want him applying to all the top 20 schools? your B student is not going to get admitted if both our kids apply.

I thought we are in a free country... How could a school restrict kids how many schools they can apply?

Because GDS is a private school, and sending your child there is entirely voluntary. If you doin't like their rules, you should pull your kids out and find a school that allows you to apply to more than 10 colleges.

Not a GDS parent but this comment has no basis in reality. Parents applying to HS don't know that GDS is going to restrict applications.

Caveat emptor. I don't know of any highly selective independent school in the area that allows students to apply to as many colleges as they want. Do you?

I know that ours gives good counseling advice on how many to apply to but doesn't restrict. I am ok with this. I am also in the "10-12 is plenty" camp - there is a lot of value in putting in the work to create a thoughtful list. With that work done, a student can also submit higher quality applications. Finally, if they still get shut out of top 10, top 20, top 30 - it will all be fine (but I know others aren't ok with some of these stances).

But despite my own feelings, I'm still saying it's not really fair to say "you chose private school and if you don't like it go elsewhere" when a person who applied for their child to start at GDS for 9th grade might not have been hyper focused on the details of college admissions. For some people this sort of detail might not be discovered until later, not to mention policies change over time (they have at our school, for sure).

I know it's hard to believe, but there are actually parents who do not choose a Big X HS with Ivy-or-bust college placement in mind.

Is this a Big-3? AFAIK, Sidwell, GDS, and the Cathedral schools all limit to around 10.

NCS does not limit. As a NCS family, we support that.

NCS has the reputation as being the worst of the pressure-cooker schools in this area. Not great from a mental health perspective to allow limitless college apps.

You attack a school for a different reason because the school does not match your claim? For one thing, NCS is not the worst of the pressure-cooker schools. Another big 3 is (you can figure it out). Based on our experience, limiting the number of colleges a student can apply creates a lot of anxieties.

Limiting the number might work in the old days. But under test optional and other changes in policies (e.g. first gen), non-top students in private schools benefit the most from applying widely.

For those non- top students, don’t they benefit from the top students skipping those applications? If a top kid applied to more than 10-12, they would likely add safeties that the non- top kids are applying.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Application numbers are restricted so the top students don’t get all of the acceptances. They need to spots open at top colleges for the next tier of students.

This is it.
Do you guys not get it or are all your kids in the top 10%?

I have a straight A student at GDS. Do you really want him applying to all the top 20 schools? your B student is not going to get admitted if both our kids apply.

I thought we are in a free country... How could a school restrict kids how many schools they can apply?

Because GDS is a private school, and sending your child there is entirely voluntary. If you doin't like their rules, you should pull your kids out and find a school that allows you to apply to more than 10 colleges.

Not a GDS parent but this comment has no basis in reality. Parents applying to HS don't know that GDS is going to restrict applications.

Caveat emptor. I don't know of any highly selective independent school in the area that allows students to apply to as many colleges as they want. Do you?

I know that ours gives good counseling advice on how many to apply to but doesn't restrict. I am ok with this. I am also in the "10-12 is plenty" camp - there is a lot of value in putting in the work to create a thoughtful list. With that work done, a student can also submit higher quality applications. Finally, if they still get shut out of top 10, top 20, top 30 - it will all be fine (but I know others aren't ok with some of these stances).

But despite my own feelings, I'm still saying it's not really fair to say "you chose private school and if you don't like it go elsewhere" when a person who applied for their child to start at GDS for 9th grade might not have been hyper focused on the details of college admissions. For some people this sort of detail might not be discovered until later, not to mention policies change over time (they have at our school, for sure).

I know it's hard to believe, but there are actually parents who do not choose a Big X HS with Ivy-or-bust college placement in mind.

Is this a Big-3? AFAIK, Sidwell, GDS, and the Cathedral schools all limit to around 10.

NCS does not limit. As a NCS family, we support that.

NCS has the reputation as being the worst of the pressure-cooker schools in this area. Not great from a mental health perspective to allow limitless college apps.

You attack a school for a different reason because the school does not match your claim? For one thing, NCS is not the worst of the pressure-cooker schools. Another big 3 is (you can figure it out). Based on our experience, limiting the number of colleges a student can apply creates a lot of anxieties.

Limiting the number might work in the old days. But under test optional and other changes in policies (e.g. first gen), non-top students in private schools benefit the most from applying widely.