I was a really good kid. Perfect score nearly on SAT, volunteered a lot, good grades. I got counseled into Northwestern because my college prep private school counselor wanted to save some spots at ivies for the legacy kids. And, I was poor and I had a a nearly full ride. I was very grateful and thrilled, but it was a terrible fit. I was depressed, far from home, still poor until I figured out how to make money, and really didn’t know what I wanted to do. After several failed but quick rounds attempting at different jobs, I had a great 20 year career that my university actually DID prepare me for. So, I just think it’s hard to see how things will work out. It really depends on the person and thier work ethic.

Re my college counselor, that’s how it used to be. The admissions counselors really had very strong power to sort of pick and choose the class.

Now, it’s actually a real competition. Plus, kids and their parents do care about fit and cost.

I went to an in-state, good but not prestigious college. No family money and I was a good, not great HS student
I got a little fixated on my DS not attending a similar school until I realized I can't live through him and pressuring him just hurts our relationship.
I also know from experience that working hard in college can turn into better grad school opportunities. It's marathon, not sprint.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:bunch of MIT, Yale, T10 folks have nothing to do but to post here. At least i'm outside of T25!

They need a new bunch of people to brag to. Everybody they already know is sick of hearing about how fab New Haven was in the late '80s.

LOL Cambridge was similar in the mid '00s and I also had the experience of Baltimore. Wild! I think crime-wise only Detroit and South Chicago were worse.

My kid is definitely smarter than me but is ND and struggles with EF. He wouldn’t even consider my alma mater (public ivy) and instead chose a full ride to a T100 where he loved the vibe (nerdy and quirky). We are both happy with his choice!

No