<p>List Pros and Cons as far as getting into college.</p>
<p>Those who will be Val/Sal in a small non-competitive may end up having a less than 3.5 GPA in a really competitive HS.
In a really competitive HS you will filling you college apps while taking 6 AP courses (and your classmates will be on top of it; you?). A small non-competitive may not offer these classes, handling apps with 1 or 2 APs will be a breese.
In a really competitive HS more than a 100 classmates apply to Harvard. Harvard will take no more than 10. But they will 7-8 slots reserved for your school. In a small non-competitive you may be the only one applying to Harvard, but Harvard will not care to take someone from your school.</p>
<p>Wow that sucks for me, I go to a large, but unknown school. Probably 2 people at the most per year APPLY to an ivy. My school opened 4 years ago, so it's new and nobody knows it.</p>
<p>what about a Large uncompetitive public school in GA? LOL
I believe last year was the first year we had one girl apply to Ivy.
I'm the only one this year (only cornell lol)</p>
<p>everyone here is obsessed with going to UGA, mostly bc of the party and football.</p>
<p>shingge im in the exact same situation. but in florida.</p>
<p>I'm in the same situation. My high school has over 2300 students.</p>
<p>How about your schools?</p>
<p>I'm one of two people in my school, who are applying to ivy league schools.</p>
<p>I got 688 in my grade. So I guess thats about 2700? And nobody in my school has ever gone to any ivy. Sad. Best was the val last year, went to MIT.</p>
<p>I only have 459 in my Senior class.</p>
<p>Only 2 people, who graduated 2 years ago, were accepted into an ivy league school.</p>
<p>A pro to a competitive/well-known hs is that often times, the teachers and counselors actually know how to write recommendations, give advice on where to go to college, etc. They are most likely more personal with the college admissions process.</p>
<p>A con to an uncompetitive hs (big or small) is that the counselors/teachers aren't often well informed about college admissions. And especially, counselors are rather impersonal in medium to big-sized high schools (when they have 250+ students, this happens quite frequently).</p>
<p>I have about 400 students in my graduating class. For last year's class, no one in my high school attended an ivy league. 2 years before, 2 people got accepted to/now currently attend yale.</p>
<p>Ya, it's gonna be so hard to get to know my guidance counselor. There are about 700 other kids who she has to write recs for, so why is she gonna put an extra effort forth for one single kid?</p>
<p>1000 in my hs class biatch</p>
<p>Interesting question.</p>
<p>The adcom is faced with risk. Has your high school experience tested your battle readiness? Have you fought for four years, morning, day, and late night, to perform at a high level? It's not exactly something you can turn on the minute you arrive at Super Selective College. You would have a high probablility of being creamed by much, much better prepared students.</p>
<p>I'm not saying your native intelligence is not on even par. Yet, how diligently have you trained your mind, your emotions, your body to perform at a high level all day and half the night for weeks on end?</p>
<p>It is not dissimilar to a professional athlete who shows up at training camp after failing to keep in shape during the off season. All training camp he's gasping, struggling, passing out, feeling like a loser. Consider freshman quarter or semester at Super Selective College to be like that training camp. Can you suddenly turn it on? Or will you pass out physically or break down emotionally?</p>
<p>That's the risk for the Adcom, even if you are a very bright student genetically.</p>
<p>"Have you fought for four year, morning, day and late night.</p>
<p>Absolutely not, I have something called a life. </p>
<p>Thank you Dunnin, but that had nothing to do with a small uncompetitive high school envirnment, only trying my hardest in high school.</p>
<p>ye thats a good question. And I think it should be asked on the premise that both students are EXACTLY IDENTICAL (ECs, AP courses/scores, SATs, recs/essays). If these 2 students are exactly equal, will college prefer to take from a reliable school (large competitive public) or one that doesnt provide many quality students every year (small noncompetitive)?</p>
<p>I ask this because I'm from a small uncompetitive school, 150 in my senior class, but I'd say my credentials are about the same as top students from top HS's.</p>
<p>I think Dunnin's post has a lot to do with the question you're asking.</p>
<p>Competitive high schools (especially ivy feeders like Andover, Exeter, Choate, SPS, etc.,) aren't the risk for adcoms. Colleges pretty much know where the cut-off is for students from these schools (of course they'll still adjust this for character/e.c./other issues), but a B student at Exeter is a student "top" colleges know how to assess accurately. </p>
<p>The fantastic student from uncompetitive high school is the risk Dunnin is talking about. Schools don't really know what these top grades and extracurriculars mean--you might be leading the foxes. </p>
<p>My opinion: top 5% in small uncompetitive high school and the bottom 50% of the competitive school are the big losers. They're kids who don't really know where they could have gotten had their situation reversed. The top student at uncompetitive school A might have increased his or her chances had he/she gone to competitive school B (adcoms could trust their stats). The bottom 50% at a competitive school might have ended up with stellar marks in a public school and at least had a legitimate CHANCE at a top school.</p>
<p>The big winners are the top 10-25% of the competitive school. And the bottom 75% of the uncompetitive school typically weren't expecting to go anywhere where admissions is too stressful.</p>