Private School Admissions - 2020 (Dallas, Paris: vs, oil, retire)

[numbersguy100]

Originally Posted by Waterdragon8212

There is a general consensus, or some would say urban legend, that the kids who get admitted to the "elite" privates in later years tend to academically outperform the lifers. While I've never seen any actual data on this, if true, it would suggest a more competitive applicant pool as the grade level increases. As others have mentioned, with each subsequent grade advanced, there are more data points to consider in the admission process. So IF the applicant pool becomes increasingly more competitive as time goes on and there are more pieces of information to consider with each passing year, it stands to reason that applying young would maximize admission chances for most people - outside of the truly genius kids with flawless, lengthy resumes (and sometimes even they get turned down.)

My wife has read the studies on this and I haven’t, so it’s a little third hand. But apparently research tends to show that 7th or 8th grade is where you more or less stop getting false positives when testing kids to identify if they are advanced, gifted, etc (use whatever term you would like). Before that age, parental coaching can mask a kid who is not truly advanced. This is why magnets within DISD like Dealey that test at preK, and even Travis which tests at 3rd grade, are overwhelmingly well off compared to the district. Those are the parents making sure their kids do their homework, study for tests, practice for the entrance exam, etc (they are also the ones taking the time to investigate all the options within DISD and the ones who can make the across town commute work). Plenty of those kids truly are talented, but many are just being pushed along by parents. By the time you’re applying for high school, it’s harder to mask deficiencies. So it makes sense to me that kids admitted for high school to a school with highly competitive admissions will, in aggregate, be more uniformly talented than those admitted in early years. It isn’t a slight against any particular kid admitted younger, just talking averages here.

[Waterdragon8212]

Originally Posted by numbersguy100

My wife has read the studies on this and I haven’t, so it’s a little third hand. But apparently research tends to show that 7th or 8th grade is where you more or less stop getting false positives when testing kids to identify if they are advanced, gifted, etc (use whatever term you would like). Before that age, parental coaching can mask a kid who is not truly advanced. This is why magnets within DISD like Dealey that test at preK, and even Travis which tests at 3rd grade, are overwhelmingly well off compared to the district. Those are the parents making sure their kids do their homework, study for tests, practice for the entrance exam, etc (they are also the ones taking the time to investigate all the options within DISD and the ones who can make the across town commute work). Plenty of those kids truly are talented, but many are just being pushed along by parents. By the time you’re applying for high school, it’s harder to mask deficiencies. So it makes sense to me that kids admitted for high school to a school with highly competitive admissions will, in aggregate, be more uniformly talented than those admitted in early years. It isn’t a slight against any particular kid admitted younger, just talking averages here.

Makes sense to me. While I haven't seen any hard data, I can definitely point to more than a few case studies where it pans out (and this is coming from a parent of lifers, lol!) Realistically, it's pretty challenging to ascertain what a 4 year old is going to grow into by high school. It's also nearly impossible to predict which 3 and 4 year old kids will end up with learning differences in 4-5 years. Most professionals would agree that it is difficult to really test for things like ADHD and Dyslexia before 6 at a minimum and often prefer testing around 7-8. Obviously, that doesn't vibe with the Dallas privates wanting kids to read straight out of the womb, but (spoiler alert!) many preschool/Kinder aged kiddos at these privates don't read at all yet. Some will develop into perfectly capable readers, while other will get a diagnosis later on. There are just too many variables when kids are young to tell who is truly gifted and who is just an early developer.

[Member_1]

Hello friends , my son has applied to SM for 9 th grade . We got his ISEE which is 5( verbal reasoning ) 7 ( reading ) 9 ( quantitative reasoning ) and 9 ( in maths) . Does he have a chance ? His school records / grades have been in 90’s but we are worried with this 5 in verbal reasoning . Looking for your responses

[Member_1]

Originally Posted by JTC Mom

I have spoken to a few friends on the boards of the schools you mention and they have all suggested something like the “floor” model you describe. That is, your score needs to be high enough to be in the pile of applicants being considered and beyond that there is a LOT of subjectivity based on what they are looking for to round out a particular class. They like to see kids who a passionate and committed to something. No one has openly said to me that there is a score above which you are almost guaranteed to get in. They all say the opposite...high enough scores and then something else that impresses them.

I definitely know kids who have gotten in with one or two 6’s (along with 7’s or 8’s) I don’t personally know anyone who has gotten in with a 5 in anything, but then my sample size is pretty small.

St marks admission
Hello friends , my son has applied to SM for 9 th grade . We got his ISEE which is 5( verbal reasoning ) 7 ( reading ) 9 ( quantitative reasoning ) and 9 ( in maths) . Does he have a chance ? His school records / grades have been in 90’s but we are worried with this 5 in verbal reasoning . Looking for your responses

[DallasMom698]

I am not at all an expert, but from what I've read, it seems like that is a really good total score. I would think that the two 9s would make the score look good even with a 5, but again, I don't know that much about it. But the total seems a good bit higher than what people often say is sufficient to be in the pool that's getting close consideration.

[Dallasperson]

Anybody starting to get anxious?

[JTC Mom]

Originally Posted by Member_1

St marks admission
Hello friends , my son has applied to SM for 9 th grade . We got his ISEE which is 5( verbal reasoning ) 7 ( reading ) 9 ( quantitative reasoning ) and 9 ( in maths) . Does he have a chance ? His school records / grades have been in 90’s but we are worried with this 5 in verbal reasoning . Looking for your responses

His ISEE score is great! Based on that he has as good a shot as anyone else with a good score ). I would say it will depend on everything else - interview, recommendations, extracurriculars, and a little luck. Good luck!

[numbersguy100]

Originally Posted by Dallasperson

Anybody starting to get anxious?

That’s an understatement. I am fine with our backup option (they stay at their current school) but I am ready to just sort of start mentally settling what next year looks like logistically for our family.

[DallasMom698]

Originally Posted by Dallasperson

Anybody starting to get anxious?

Yes! But it still seems like a long time to wait. And I just really feel like I have no idea what the chances are it will work out. I guess it doesn't much matter what the chances are, it'll just be a yes or no in the end and we'll see when we get it.

[Txmom1]

Originally Posted by Dallasperson

Anybody starting to get anxious?

Yep. The waiting is driving me nuts.
Anyone hear any info on applications/admissions? I heard Ursuline had higher than the norm applications at 500+. Don’t know it there is any truth to that though.