Anonymous
Post 01/14/2026 15:16     Subject: Lessons learned: 2025-2026
Anonymous wrote:Ignore critics who tell you that college matriculations don’t matter. They are generally speaking from a place of wealth or social status (that will open doors with minimal effort), and otherwise clueless to the obstacles facing new graduates.


Or live in places where college matriculations don’t matter in the same way.

Take a small-mid sized city in the Midwest, south, southwest or southeast. You’ll find that the vast majority of “successful” people did not graduate from T25 or even T50 schools.

Fact is, outside of a very narrow group of professions and locations, there are relatively easy paths to success that don’t require graduating from a “prestigious” college.
Anonymous
Post 01/14/2026 15:16     Subject: Lessons learned: 2025-2026
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:This was the question from the '24-'25 thread:

For those going through the application process w/DC this school year, what lessons have you learned?
What do you wish you’d done differently? What’s worked out well?


Competitions are more important for scholarships and top Ivy admissions. Else it will all be very subjective.


Not sure. Multi time AIME qualifier girl at our school got rejected from Harvard. Amazing everything else.
Wait to see how RD goes.
Anonymous
Post 01/14/2026 15:11     Subject: Lessons learned: 2025-2026
Anonymous wrote:This was the question from the '24-'25 thread:

For those going through the application process w/DC this school year, what lessons have you learned?
What do you wish you’d done differently? What’s worked out well?


Competitions are more important for scholarships and top Ivy admissions. Else it will all be very subjective.
Anonymous
Post 01/14/2026 15:03     Subject: Lessons learned: 2025-2026
Anonymous wrote:Test score becomes critical this year.

Counselor is very surprised by DC's EA results. He told DC schools treat anything over 1500 the same, no difference. A super high score would not help him much. And his college list are nearly all reaches.

Couldn't be more wrong.



I find this hard to believe unless it's one of the Tech schools. Ivies are much more interested in course rigor, narratives, and ECs than fine gradations about 1500.
Anonymous
Post 01/14/2026 15:00     Subject: Lessons learned: 2025-2026
Anonymous wrote:Test score becomes critical this year.

Counselor is very surprised by DC's EA results. He told DC schools treat anything over 1500 the same, no difference. A super high score would not help him much. And his college list are nearly all reaches.

Couldn't be more wrong.


Congrats! What EA schools has your child gotten into so far?
Anonymous
Post 01/14/2026 14:56     Subject: Lessons learned: 2025-2026
Anonymous wrote:New year, new thread, same old (or maybe you have new) shit to add to this thread.


Learned that connections, vip status, and board members with connections are back at work more than ever this year!
Anonymous
Post 01/14/2026 14:54     Subject: Lessons learned: 2025-2026
Test score becomes critical this year.

Counselor is very surprised by DC's EA results. He told DC schools treat anything over 1500 the same, no difference. A super high score would not help him much. And his college list are nearly all reaches.

Couldn't be more wrong.
Anonymous
Post 01/14/2026 13:27     Subject: Lessons learned: 2025-2026
Ignore critics who tell you that college matriculations don’t matter. They are generally speaking from a place of wealth or social status (that will open doors with minimal effort), and otherwise clueless to the obstacles facing new graduates.
Anonymous
Post 01/14/2026 13:12     Subject: Lessons learned: 2025-2026
Anonymous wrote:Don't stress too much about college matriculations. It's not a verdict on your parenting or your student. It's just a scarcity problem for the most well-publicized colleges, but your child will get an equal education elsewhere.

More importantly, your stress and anxiety can have a more lasting and deleterious affect on your child's mental health, and your marriage or relationship with other kids. Making sure your own baggage and anxiety doesn't impact their self-worth is more important than where they go away to college for just 4 years. It's just 4 years.


This. This. This.

Too many comments are about parents still obsessed with college entry. Their life and growth happens before and after college entry. Focus on that too. I know too many HS seniors who are burnt out and broken at far too young an age. There seems to be no real joy in teen years in those cases.
Anonymous
Post 01/14/2026 12:26     Subject: Lessons learned: 2025-2026
Anonymous wrote:DS who is well rounded and has absolutely no hook got into Duke. His best friend got into an Ivy and he is a well rounded kid as well.

Reading many college counseling websites and this forum, it seemed pointless to apply without a spike to a top rated college. I am not sure what to make of it, but think plenty of well rounded kids are ending up at these colleges.


Wow. That's amazing. What do you think made them stand out in a crowded pool? They got in last year for RD?
Major for both?
Type of HS?
National or interesting ECs?
Anonymous
Post 01/14/2026 12:09     Subject: Lessons learned: 2025-2026
DS who is well rounded and has absolutely no hook got into Duke. His best friend got into an Ivy and he is a well rounded kid as well.

Reading many college counseling websites and this forum, it seemed pointless to apply without a spike to a top rated college. I am not sure what to make of it, but think plenty of well rounded kids are ending up at these colleges.
Anonymous
Post 01/14/2026 12:00     Subject: Lessons learned: 2025-2026
Spend way more time on "strategy" in junior year. And make sure summer after junior year is loaded with activities that support your major (internship, high-profile EC, etc.).

Critically look at your kid's application the way a stranger would and compare it to other successful apps out there to see what you need to work on. too late to do that in August.
Anonymous
Post 01/14/2026 11:59     Subject: Lessons learned: 2025-2026
Anonymous wrote:depends on your knowledge of colleges. and what you want. I def knew of St Olaf's before - and also knew kid had zero interest.

agree for some people getting help with list is helpful. Just saying dont spend 18 months on it. if you dont know, get help. if you know, narrow it down and move to the app process


There are sites to assist in narrowing it down
Anonymous
Post 01/14/2026 11:57     Subject: Lessons learned: 2025-2026
depends on your knowledge of colleges. and what you want. I def knew of St Olaf's before - and also knew kid had zero interest.

agree for some people getting help with list is helpful. Just saying dont spend 18 months on it. if you dont know, get help. if you know, narrow it down and move to the app process
Anonymous
Post 01/14/2026 11:37     Subject: Lessons learned: 2025-2026
Anonymous wrote:1. people spend too much time "building the list". there are no secret schools. you know the list. or 90% of the list. move it along

2. people spend too little time on the apps. each app takes weeks. each apps needs the right mixture of intellectual heft with humor/humility/nice guy touches.

3. your soundbite is the most important thing. how are you described in a committee room, the applicant from Brooklyn whose love in physics started with bowling

4. ED to your favorite. dont game it. that leads to regrets, even if your kid doesn't express it to you


I disagree.

This is the one area where I felt my paid counselor provided value. Just an hour with them reviewing the common app and giving us a list of schools we never thought of.

This might be more important if you are not likely to get into Ivy+.

Schools like St. Olaf would never have been considered without that advice.