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One can argue the pros and cons of every district (town) on LI forever. We all have our personal opinions about "our" town. I grew up in Huntington (Huntington and Whitman high schools). They scored in the middle, yet growing up those districts were considered the best. Times have not changed all that much. There is great wealth in Huntington and poverty. Obviously the more upscale towns have educated parents and emphasis is on doing well in school. That being said a star student in a poorer district applying to college will have an advantage over an equally star child in say Cold Spring Harbor. In Cold Spring Harbor you are a dime a dozen, not really a standout. A year or two ago parents in Jericho were up in arms because their children were not getting into ivy leagues. Sometimes there is too much competition from one area. Bottom line though, SAT scores do matter, it is the only thing colleges have to compare students from everywhere. Regent scores are irrelevant unless going to a NYS school. Having gone to many college nights, recruiters constantly encourage students to take AP courses. they would rather see a B in an AP course than an A in reg. courses. They are looking for you to challenge yourself. In addition a sport or club is equally important as well as volunteering. It's amazing kids can even complete their course load with everything else that is expected of them.
One can argue the pros and cons of every district (town) on LI forever. We all have our personal opinions about "our" town. I grew up in Huntington (Huntington and Whitman high schools). They scored in the middle, yet growing up those districts were considered the best. Times have not changed all that much. There is great wealth in Huntington and poverty. Obviously the more upscale towns have educated parents and emphasis is on doing well in school. That being said a star student in a poorer district applying to college will have an advantage over an equally star child in say Cold Spring Harbor. In Cold Spring Harbor you are a dime a dozen, not really a standout. A year or two ago parents in Jericho were up in arms because their children were not getting into ivy leagues. Sometimes there is too much competition from one area. Bottom line though, SAT scores do matter, it is the only thing colleges have to compare students from everywhere. Regent scores are irrelevant unless going to a NYS school. Having gone to many college nights, recruiters constantly encourage students to take AP courses. they would rather see a B in an AP course than an A in reg. courses. They are looking for you to challenge yourself. In addition a sport or club is equally important as well as volunteering. It's amazing kids can even complete their course load with everything else that is expected of them.
I have also wondered about whether or not this type of situation benefitted me. I went to a pretty mediocre high school but did well (was ranked in the top 20) and got pretty good sat scores (around 1200 or so, which (at the time) was good) and I went to an excellent college. I always thought that if I went to a more "high end" school, I would never have gotten in.
I have thought about this with the current school district where I live (Middle Country) and whether or not it could be an advantage to my son, assuming that we push him and he performs well, similar to how I did when I was in high school.
On the other hand, if my son were in a more competitive environment where excellence was the norm, would that push his grades up even more? Or, would it make him just part of the huge crowd of overachievers and nothing "special" when it comes to college admissions.
I actually view the top high schools on Long Island from the Newsweek list...
Quote:
Originally Posted by Newsweek
"Public schools are ranked according to a ratio devised by Jay Mathews: the number of Advanced Placement, Intl. Baccalaureate and/or Cambridge tests taken by all students at a school in 2008 divided by the number of graduating seniors."
Top 20 High Schools on Long Island:
1. Jericho High School 2. South Side High School (Rockville Centre) 3. Great Neck South High School 4. Cold Spring Harbor High School 5. Vandermeulen High School (Port Jefferson) 6. The Wheatley School (Old Westbury) 7. Great Neck North High School 8. Manhasset High School 9. Schreiber High School (Port Washington) 10. Roslyn High School 11. Garden City High School 12. Syosset High School 13. Locust Valley High School 14. Herricks High School (New Hyde Park) 15. Harborfields High School (Greenlawn) 16. Bethpage High School 17. Valley Stream South High School 18. North Shore High School (Glen Head) 19. George W. Hewlett High School (Hewlett) 20. Plainview-Old Bethpage JFK High School
I actually view the top high schools on Long Island from the Newsweek list...
Top 20 High Schools on Long Island:
1. Jericho High School 2. South Side High School (Rockville Centre) 3. Great Neck South High School 4. Cold Spring Harbor High School 5. Vandermeulen High School (Port Jefferson) 6. The Wheatley School (Old Westbury) 7. Great Neck North High School 8. Manhasset High School 9. Schreiber High School (Port Washington) 10. Roslyn High School 11. Garden City High School 12. Syosset High School 13. Locust Valley High School 14. Herricks High School (New Hyde Park) 15. Harborfields High School (Greenlawn) 16. Bethpage High School 17. Valley Stream South High School 18. North Shore High School (Glen Head) 19. George W. Hewlett High School (Hewlett) 20. Plainview-Old Bethpage JFK High School
That's about the worst possible methodology to judge schools. The percentage of students who TAKE AP tests? So if a bunch of pushy parents force the schools to let all of their kids take AP tests..even those who don't achieve on them..that means a school is performing better? This is exactly the methodology that has been dismissed for the last few pages of this thread by numerous people. You should at least take into account how the students performed on the tests, you think? Anyone can TAKE an AP test, but if they score a 1 or 2, it doesn't mean much.
In 2009, about 10% of the Syosset class ( around 55 out of 592) are going to Ivy League schools. About 20% of the Jericho Senior class ( around 65 out of 295) are going to Ivy league schools ( There are almost 25 students just going to Cornell from Jericho). Schools like Stanford and NYU are not ivy league, but I think should be included as par-ivy. Par-ivy admissions are probably more than 35% of the class in Jericho.
Quote:
Originally Posted by anotherNYer
One can argue the pros and cons of every district (town) on LI forever. We all have our personal opinions about "our" town. I grew up in Huntington (Huntington and Whitman high schools). They scored in the middle, yet growing up those districts were considered the best. Times have not changed all that much. There is great wealth in Huntington and poverty. Obviously the more upscale towns have educated parents and emphasis is on doing well in school. That being said a star student in a poorer district applying to college will have an advantage over an equally star child in say Cold Spring Harbor. In Cold Spring Harbor you are a dime a dozen, not really a standout. A year or two ago parents in Jericho were up in arms because their children were not getting into ivy leagues. Sometimes there is too much competition from one area. Bottom line though, SAT scores do matter, it is the only thing colleges have to compare students from everywhere. Regent scores are irrelevant unless going to a NYS school. Having gone to many college nights, recruiters constantly encourage students to take AP courses. they would rather see a B in an AP course than an A in reg. courses. They are looking for you to challenge yourself. In addition a sport or club is equally important as well as volunteering. It's amazing kids can even complete their course load with everything else that is expected of them.
Could it be that the students have more money to attend those schools? Or are these kids getting full ride scholarships?
Quote:
Originally Posted by WJFM
In 2009, about 10% of the Syosset class ( around 55 out of 592) are going to Ivy League schools. About 20% of the Jericho Senior class ( around 65 out of 295) are going to Ivy league schools ( There are almost 25 students just going to Cornell from Jericho). Schools like Stanford and NYU are not ivy league, but I think should be included as par-ivy. Par-ivy admissions are probably more than 35% of the class in Jericho.
I got the report from the high schools. It did not mention anything about scholarships. There are some in these school districts that will qualify for need-based, and maybe some get Merit. But most should be able to afford college, since their parents would have been diligent in saving for college since their kids were in kindergarten.
Ha ha funny. Saving for their 3 kids education while funding their own retirement account, $10,000 k in taxes, $300 LIPA bils, etc, etc. Now I know why I had to take out student loans.
Quote:
Originally Posted by WJFM
I got the report from the high schools. It did not mention anything about scholarships. There are some in these school districts that will qualify for need-based, and maybe some get Merit. But most should be able to afford college, since their parents would have been diligent in saving for college since their kids were in kindergarten.
Its hard for many but possible. I know people in Jericho who have still drive 10 year old corollas, but have 50k in a 529 for their kids college. They have put off buying flat screen tvs, hardly eat out, and are very careful with their money. It depends on your priorities.
Quote:
Originally Posted by rocafeller05
Ha ha funny. Saving for their 3 kids education while funding their own retirement account, $10,000 k in taxes, $300 LIPA bils, etc, etc. Now I know why I had to take out student loans.
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