Private School Admissions - 2019 (Dallas, Plano: moving, richest, Ivy League)

[palciparum]

Originally Posted by Waterdragon8212

My guess is that your friends are hiding their stress . As someone who doesn't typically experience much anxiety in my regular life, the last week before decisions were made was awful. I may not have logged into the portal earlier in the week, but I did log in the day decisions were posted multiple times. Even though they said 4pm was when they were sent out, we actually got ours about 20 minutes before that. That wasn't true for all of my friends, so it may have been a fluke, but it was a grace, considering I had an important meeting that day at 4pm and there is no way I could have sat through it knowing the decision was posted and I hadn't read it, lol.

Half tuition is amazing - given the alternative of paying full fee, I'd be stressed about that too!!

Hang in there everyone! This last bit is the worst, but your kids all have super invested parents who will make it work no matter what happens!

Did you get result 10 minutes earlier by logging in or in email? And for which school?

[TexGuy1]

TT3 - It sounds like you have a great boy! I like the happy surprises. The fact that you are a teacher allows you put this all in perspective and also allows for you to make sure he is getting any enrichment needed. I think St. Mark's can be worth the move (and especially for you), and you will be great in every case.

Numbers - There is really a lot of anxiety (I believe more than in the past) about these decisions. I completely understand it and have been there before, during, and after. I think ignorant bliss of not knowing how difficult it is and how much people want certain things has shielded my wife and me in the past.

There are great things about every situation and focusing on those and the everyday joy of the kids has been more helpful than planning to be joyful in the future. Thanks for the contributors for the information and also giving us all a window on your thoughts. I know for parents in the same boat, it is an anxious time.

I just hope that when I talk to my kids and help them make decisions (or I decide when they are too young), that I understand why we are choosing this neighborhood, or this school, or this type of job (or why a student is choosing this type high school curriculum track etc.). Many helpful contributors have said through the years is that there is no right decision in a vacuum.

The private schools: GSES, St. Mark's, Lamplighter, Parish, Greenhill, ESD, Hockaday, Jesuit, Ursuline, and many, many more (Alcuin, TCA, JP2, CTK, BL, BD, PCA, etc.) and the excellent public schools (HPISD, Richardson schools, Plano schools, and many more -- let along magnets) are extremely able. I am not going to get into the "elite" label, but I think it is not helpful. I can assure you that there is no one in Dallas I have met in decades (who is worth knowing or hanging around with) who has graduated from an excellent school in Dallas and refers to it or a cluster of schools as "elite". That is a scarcity-minded mentality that will work as nothing but a net detriment to a graduate. You can be proud of your school, the faculty, the education, your friends, etc. I understand that it may be code for "difficult to get into" or "high testing" (Cistercian, TAMS, etc.), but I would prefer someone just list the schools they are referring to.

For our family and what we value, there are clear favorites. However, those can change with the schools and with life circumstances. I considered JJ Pearce in the 1990s to be perhaps the ideal in affordability, down-to-earth, close to work, high academics, etc. I have not kept up with those public options because we have been happy in private schools for the academics, the gentleness factor, and the parents.

And as many of us know, the most amazing schools are usually not spoken about in terms of status (or if they are, those are usually people missing the point of those schools' missions). IMHO, the most valuable schools are usually cherished and enjoyed the most for non-status reasons (and usually reasons that cannot be explained to people who are focused on status). There is no signaling needed when the value and confidence is real.

Thanks again for the updates all!

[stan4]

Elite is just shorthand for tbe particular group - only to differentiate from the PCAs, PoPs, etc.

Admittedly, it's shorthand I picked up from others without really think about the deeper meaning.

[TexGuy1]

Stan4-

Thank you for all your posts through the years. You are one of the most reliable sources on how things work. I know you are totally on top of things. With regard to elites - it is fine if people clump in 3 schools (or 2 or 4 or 5) as most difficult to gain admissions. New families from out of state should take it as that and not that they are on a different (real) level than all the others. I know people who have gone back and forth between all sorts of schools and also those who moved to schools not listed all because of individual circumstances beyond finances.

[TexasTeacher3]

TexGuy.....a caveat on NYC schools. The boy’s dad is a New Yorker....educated in private, religious school. He applied to an elite public STEM HS, just to annoy his parents. In the mid-80’s this was the most selective public school in the city. He was accepted and his parents were absolutely horrified!

I don’t think it’s really possible to compare Dallas to NYC. Not that we don’t have power and money.....but, we don’t stand as the epicenter to finance in the eyes of the rest of the world. We also don’t have the same commitment and community found in a heavily Jewish population. I found, listening to him and spending a fair amount of time with my yankee friends, that there is a completely different view of selectivity and expectation there. Good in many ways, but lacking in many others.

[numbersguy100]

Originally Posted by stan4

Elite is just shorthand for tbe particular group - only to differentiate from the PCAs, PoPs, etc.

Admittedly, it's shorthand I picked up from others without really think about the deeper meaning.

I guess "elite" is a loaded term to some but I'm not sure why anyone is bothered by it. There are plenty of places to get your kid a good education, and there are plenty of smart kids in lots of different schools. But in the end there is a finite list of highly competitive private schools in Dallas (based on low acceptance rate and fairly high student achievement metrics), which also have an overwhelming amount of financial resources relative to most others. If someone has a different moniker they'd like the propose as a way to conveniently and accurately describe this cluster of schools, I'm all ears.

[TexGuy1]

I understand. I hate the loaded term elite. Any “elite” family, person, school who wants to be called that is super suspect. I doubt the admissions departments at the most selective schools ever call themselves elite. They are what they are - but elite seems to be an outsiders perspective or a status seeker who is an insider.

Highly competitive. I like that moniker. Most selective. Also good. If you check out endowments, you could also say “wealthiest”. There is nothing wrong with those three monikers as they are accurate.

I agree. I do not like to bestow royalty status on wealth or tradition. The most highly competitive schools are excellent and worth the cost in my opinion if a family can swing it.

Good luck all.

On a separate topic - I wonder how sophisticated the schools are at predicting yields (like airlines)? How many more offers than spots are given out on admission day? I know that many students apply to several schools, so there will be lots of offers not taken. At the most competitive schools, I would expect they tow the line closely and do not give more offers than spots initially, but wonder if anyone has insight on this. This relates to how real waitlists are.

Anecdotally only - I have heard Hockaday waitlist all but does not move and St. Mark’s does at times. Have not heard about the other schools.

[debtex]

Originally Posted by TexGuy1

Anecdotally only - I have heard Hockaday waitlist all but does not move and St. Mark’s does at times. Have not heard about the other schools.

That is consistent with our knowledge of both schools for the last couple of years.

[numbersguy100]

Originally Posted by debtex

That is consistent with our knowledge of both schools for the last couple of years.

I'm almost more curious how the less competitive schools handle it. If you know you are are the top choice of most applicants, you can accept the exact number you want, assume a high yield, and maintain a wait list knowing that someone on that waitlist will probably eat the cost of deposit at another school if a slot opens up at the top choice. That's not true beyond probably half a dozen schools (or fewer).

[TurtleCreek80]

Originally Posted by numbersguy100

I'm almost more curious how the less competitive schools handle it. If you know you are are the top choice of most applicants, you can accept the exact number you want, assume a high yield, and maintain a wait list knowing that someone on that waitlist will probably eat the cost of deposit at another school if a slot opens up at the top choice. That's not true beyond probably half a dozen schools (or fewer).

I don’t think it would be any different than Harvard and Baylor both knowing what percent they need to accept to yield a freshman class despite very different matriculation rates. Unless a school is brand new here they should have enough years’ admissions data to work their math formulas.