<p>I am also thinking that some kids who go to college with a pre-med mindset and 'wash out" often find themselves in over their heads, not because of a lack of smarts, but a lack of preparation due to the strength of their high school educations.</p>
<p>For example, my sons’ high school has a reputation for academic excellence–my boys worked hard in high school, and got good grades; got to college, continued to work hard and got good grades–but did not at all feel overwhelmed, more like college difficulty was just the expected next step in difficulty as was experienced in moving on from algebra to calculus.</p>
<p>But one of my son’s friends attended a less rigorous high school. He had a higher GPA than my son in high school–but he really struggled in college. He–and his mom–were astounded by how far behind he felt in the college environment, in so many areas, from researching/writing papers, to math preparation, to study skills. He got a real knock to his confidence, and it took him a couple of semesters to catch up to his classmates and regain his confidence.</p>