Waitlist for Westminster Schools (Atlanta, North Atlanta: dorms, private schools, university)

[AtlJan]

1Mom2Boys, There is also the question--and this may spark lively debate--of whether to accept at one school and stay on the waitlist at Westminster. There is not much chance (but a tiny chance, is a tiny chance!) of movement from the waitlist during the summer, but I have known people who have paid up the required amount at one school and been willing to forfeit that if they win a late spot at the other school.

[lastminutemom]

I hope no one took my post as a debate -- remember I am a parent who has used both public and private schools for her children. BTDT, wrote the book, and have lived to tell about it.

ATLJan, the contract you sign with private schools is binding for the upcoming school year, correct. The question is, do Atlanta private schools come after you for remaining amount if you walk from the contract. (You can get tuition replacement insurance to protect you from things like job transfers, but I don't think "changing your mind" is necessarily covered.) In the last few years, in NYc, some schools have collected the full amount, even though the spaces were filled. I am unclear of what happens here.

[AtlJan]

It totally depends on the wording of the contract. Historically they have not done that, but, depending on the contract, you may need to be ready to lose the full amount.

Personally, I would not stay on a waitlist once I've given a deposit somewhere else, because I like for our family to start bonding with the school and its community asap, not to mention it would seem in bad faith. Still, the schools (heads and admissions directors) are civil people and know the stakes are high. I don't think they would completely meltdown if someone got a last minute spot elsewhere.

[lastminutemom]

Originally Posted by AtlJan

It totally depends on the wording of the contract. Historically they have not done that, but, depending on the contract, you may need to be ready to lose the full amount.

Personally, I would not stay on a waitlist once I've given a deposit somewhere else, because I like for our family to start bonding with the school and its community asap, not to mention it would seem in bad faith. Still, the schools (heads and admissions directors) are civil people and know the stakes are high. I don't think they would completely meltdown if someone got a last minute spot elsewhere.

I don't think the admission folks take it personally because, for many schools, the spaces aren't hard to fill. I will warn here that if you sign a contract at a school that generally doesn't have a wait list, you should expect to be obligated for full tuition if that is what your contract says.

[LovelySummer]

As an atty, I'd recommend that parents be prepared to fulfill the obligations of any contract that is signed...whether there is generally a waiting list or not. You really don't want to be at the mercy of the school as to whether the school wants to enforce the contract. It's basically business like anything else (and any other type of contract that a person signs).

Originally Posted by lastminutemom

I don't think the admission folks take it personally because, for many schools, the spaces aren't hard to fill. I will warn here that if you sign a contract at a school that generally doesn't have a wait list, you should expect to be obligated for full tuition if that is what your contract says.

[intownmom]

Regarding LovelySummer's observation that college placement at the Ivies, etc., was not as strong as she had expected, I had the opposite reaction. According to LMM's data sheet, last year Westminster (with a graduating class of 205) apparently sent 29 kids to UGA and 8 to Ga Tech (which are very good state schools). It also sent:

20 kids to the Ivy League --

6 to Princeton
5 to Harvard
5 to Penn
3 to Yale
1 to Dartmouth

In the Southeast, it sent:

15 to UVa
8 to Vanderbilt
7 to Wake Forest
6 to UNC Chapel Hill
5 to Washington and Lee
4 to Duke
3 to Emory
2 to Davidson

Other notable placements:

6 to Wash U St Louis
5 to Georgetown
2 to UC Berkeley
2 to Univ of St Andrews (Scotland)
2 to Pomona
1 to Stanford
1 to Cal Tech
1 to Amherst
1 to Michigan
1 to Northwestern
1 to NYU

I won't list them all here, but there were many other great schools on the list as well, all in one year. I thought it was pretty impressive...

The six-year list of matriculations on Westminster's website is equally strong:

http://www.westminster.net/about_us/...res/index.aspx

[LovelySummer]

Yes, it is impressive and very good for the students. I intended to take nothing away from the students' accomplishments and hope that no one understood my comment to mean such.

My comment was primarily based on the thought that, for 200K, aren't the parents and students doing this for admission to a college/university that is really hard to get into with public school education. You see, I have undergraduate and advanced degrees from top schools (including Georgia Tech) ...but I was all public school educated K-12. So, my impression was that for the money, parents and students would be seeking more Ivy league. But I now can see that that is my assumption and what I would be seeking for that type of investment. Parents pay that much for many different reasons I imagine and students apply to and attend schools for many different reasons.

Again, best of luck to the students.

Originally Posted by intownmom

Regarding LovelySummer's observation that college placement at the Ivies, etc., was not as strong as she had expected, I had the opposite reaction. According to LMM's data sheet, last year Westminster (with a graduating class of 205) apparently sent 29 kids to UGA and 8 to Ga Tech (which are very good state schools). It also sent:

20 kids to the Ivy League --

6 to Princeton
5 to Harvard
5 to Penn
3 to Yale
1 to Dartmouth

In the Southeast, it sent:

15 to UVa
8 to Vanderbilt
7 to Wake Forest
6 to UNC Chapel Hill
5 to Washington and Lee
4 to Duke
3 to Emory
2 to Davidson

Other notable placements:

6 to Wash U St Louis
5 to Georgetown
2 to UC Berkeley
2 to Univ of St Andrews (Scotland)
2 to Pomona
1 to Stanford
1 to Cal Tech
1 to Amherst
1 to Michigan
1 to Northwestern
1 to NYU

I won't list them all here, but there were many other great schools on the list as well, all in one year. I thought it was pretty impressive...

The six-year list of matriculations on Westminster's website is equally strong:

Westminster: About Us » Facts & Figures

[arjay57]

Originally Posted by intownmom

I won't list them all here, but there were many other great schools on the list as well, all in one year. I thought it was pretty impressive...

The six-year list of matriculations on Westminster's website is equally strong:

It doesn't look like they've had much luck with MIT.

[intownmom]

Arjay -- maybe not, but because the list is of matriculations and not acceptances, perhaps it's just that no one chose to go and they're all at Harvard or Stanford instead...

[kferq]

Originally Posted by intownmom

Arjay -- maybe not, but because the list is of matriculations and not acceptances, perhaps it's just that no one chose to go and they're all at Harvard or Stanford instead...

I believe that is correct. My daughter's ex-boy friend at Westminster choose Yale when he got in MIT (he just got a job with SpaceX). I also know of a kid that chose GA Tech over MIT due to a scholarship.