<p>I hope you’re right, Parlabane. I’ll make deal with you. If she does get an offer, I WON’T sign her up for the laundry service. 
(I wasn’t planning on it anyway,)</p>
<p>We’re all sending good wishes your way Neato.</p>
<p>Neato, I am also sending extra good wishes your way. My D only applied to two schools, and has one waitlist, one decline. I believe everything works out in the end, so we’ll learn from this and move on. He’s already decided that if he doesn’t get off the waitlist, then he wants to reapply next year. </p>
<p>I have mentally made the switch from “planning for BS” to “Plan B.” We’re coming up with an interesting combination of options (some homeschooling, some online classes, a local mentor and tutor, and a few classes at the local high school) that didn’t seem possible even a few months ago. </p>
<p>Hoping that everything works out for you - and for all of us who didn’t get the news we hoped for on M10!</p>
<p>Neato, </p>
<p>Thanks. The good news for us is that we do have a good local prep school, where my older daughter is a current junior. My younger D is so much different than her sister, and really wanted the opportunity to be her own person in a completely different environment (not just "Oh you are Susie Qs sister!). So not getting in to boarding school was not a disaster, but it WAS a huge blow to her ego and self esteem. She is starting to bounce back, but as you know, after all of the work these kids put into their schoolwork and their applications, it’s hard to hear “we’re just not that in to you”</p>
<p>LOL Neato…I’ve been forever stained by my intemperate outbursts on the subject of laundry…! maybe I should put myself in the Ignore List - safer for the rest of you. :)</p>
<p>In the “FA Waitlist” thread I explain why I would feel upbeat about a WL decision this year. A lot of colleges realize that their yield algorithms are dicey in this economy and they are intentionally underadmitting and then cherry-picking, one-by-one, off the WL in order to precisely hit their target numbers.</p>
<p>For the most competitive schools this is a wise strategy because (1) even if some of the top prospects bleed off to other schools that give out admits, the applicant pool is deep enough in talent where it won’t hurt them to reach a little “deeper” and (2) the “need blind” schools are not need-blind when it comes to the wait-list, so it helps them work around that and maintain that commitment without it being overly burdensome.</p>
<p>Around this time of year, you can typically count on me to throw down a rant about WL practices at the boarding schools and another rant about the silliness and borderline cruelty of keeping kids strung out by agreeing to stay on them for the BS’s to toy with like a cat playing with a wingless insect. This year, I’d be inclined to play the WL game, especially as a full-pay applicant…but also for FA applicants because I think there will be action for them, too.</p>
<p>Good luck, neato!</p>
<p>Neato, your daughter’s idea of the horn growing out of her forehead to make her stand out made me laugh. She is a funny girl and I know she will get in somewhere this year. We’re all routing for her.</p>
<p>I’ll have to remember that one for my daughter warming up in the bull pen for her app. But seriously, I don’t even think the “part unicorn” would make a difference unless they have a need for unicorns. Smart kids, nice kids and stand-outs even don’t rate unless for some reason they need that type of stand out, regardless of FP or FA.</p>
<p>“…but it WAS a huge blow to her ego and self esteem. She is starting to bounce back,”</p>
<p>Hard to appreciate it now, but that just may be one of the biggest lessons she will learn —that in the real world, stroking our egos and self-esteem is not everyone else’s top priority (to put it ever so mildly). Will she come out of it stronger? – Indubitably!</p>
<p>Neato - Hoping for a happy outcome.</p>
<p>This has more to do with the SSAT score topic, but all the students in my grade who applied to private schools got 99 percentile (I go to a normal public school), and we were all accepted to at least one school.
Of course, there are many people who got high percentiles and got rejected. </p>
<p>Btw, we are not nerds or dweebs. :)</p>
<p>I know of two other students each with a 98 and 99 overall SSAT, both athletic, and musically inclined who were rejected across the board at HADES and some GLADCHEMMS. They were also Asian Americans. I mention this bkz they seemed to me to be excellent candidates and I have read on CC that race can be an issue although this is only speculation.</p>
<p>RE # 50 above, Yes, I worry that Asian-American girls are competing for the few spots allotted to them. The schools don’t appear to be increasing the quota alotted to Asian students based on census data. CBS news demonstrated in the 2010 census that Latino and Asian populations are the fasted growing groups. I think it is more difficult for both girls in general and Asian-American girls to secure a seat over other students at top BSs.</p>
<p>I wish we would stop using terminology like “spots” and “quotas” since it’s really not that simple and get’s too many people speculating on who got what.</p>
<p>As with everything, it’s a delicate balancing act to make sure the student body is not overweighted with any one specific attribute. The mix and acceptance rate changes depending on that year’s total applicant pool. So while there may be “brakes” in place to prevent a campus from being 100% of one ethnicity, gender, region, there are no quantitative “slots” allocated to a particular group.</p>
<p>The reality is still that there are too many bright kids with good stats for too few spots and regardless of ongoing statistics - they’re still relatively low as a total percentage of the overall population but high in comparison when looking at any specific campus.</p>
<p>Hence, when approached by parents who gush about the academic achievements (often a must for getting a good school in other countries) I sigh and say - but so does everyone else in the pile. So what else makes you stand out?</p>
<p>I, too, worry about how much the Asian-Americans have to compete for what appears to be a certain number of ‘spots’ (sorry Exie!) and what the perception is on their nationality. I was told at one school that the Asian student aps are read by a different committee. Does that mean Asian Nationals? What about Asian Americans who are US Citizens (or dual)? What about Asians who are expatriates here?</p>
<p>It becomes muddled to me and I wonder how the Admissions offices sort it all out.</p>
<p>I was WL at Exeter with a 97% and URM, but I turned my app in two months late lol</p>
<p>@mamakiwi… lol!</p>
<p>Getting back to neato and the rest in WL area. I am glad your kids are finding the humor and working on plan B. Neato, if I was an educational consultant (not!), and from what I gather from your posts, your daughter would thrive at Westover Girls Boarding School in CT (artsy small etc) for next year. RBGG, I like your term "warming up in the bullpen " for next application season. This whole thing reminds me of American Idol. Who in the WL will get the judges save?..Let’s face it, this whole thing is a bit of a game, sort of Waiting for Superman meets Racing to Nowhere meets American Idol meets The Amazing Race…OK, enough of my scattered thoughts for now.</p>
<p>Neato, I was referring to “next year’s application cycle”</p>
<p>Somebody very wise in post #73 in the “Is this a trend post” stated the following:</p>
<p><<i just=“” hope=“” -=“” as=“” a=“” community=“” we=“” can=“” support=“” each=“” other=“” (differences=“” aside)=“” because=“” lot=“” of=“” parents=“” are=“” in=“” pain=“” and=“” i=“” remember=“” what=“” that=“” felt=“” like.=“”>></i></p><i just=“” hope=“” -=“” as=“” a=“” community=“” we=“” can=“” support=“” each=“” other=“” (differences=“” aside)=“” because=“” lot=“” of=“” parents=“” are=“” in=“” pain=“” and=“” i=“” remember=“” what=“” that=“” felt=“” like.=“”>
<p>Why then do we have to have posts like #53 and #55 above? Just not called for. I guess you only worry about Asian girls if you have one. Yes for some of us this is a real issue, not a laughing matter. Girls who are adopted from China, who may have been born there, but who grew up in the US along with all the other minority and nonminority American students are often seen as “international students,” regardless. My husband, a Chinese American who was born in Hong Kong but immigrated to the US when he was two and who is now 53, is still asked a) does he speak English? (HK was a British territory), and b) is he a US citizen? and also…is he taking a job away from a US citizen?</p>
<p>Also, it is well known that colleges and now I worry BSs will try to enact quotas on Asian students. I understand the concept of needing to put together a diverse class, but still I worry that it has to be balanced with choosing the best students regardless of race. When any institution endorses a quota system in regard to race, we should all worry.</p>
<p>Please let’s not make fun of someone’s else’s worry.</p>
</i>
<p>I believed BS built their class by picking up best fit students from the pool. It is not always high scorers, A student got in this year did not mean he/she will get admission in different year particularly for a student needed FA. My D always told me she was lucky last year.</p>
<p>I also don’t think high scorer were rejected is something new this year. Certain colleges also rejected student who had SAT 2400. School never told you they will pick high scores nor high scorer will have a high priority.</p>
<p>Today Asia countries still have high school/college entrance exam that school admission only depends on two full day exams. Can you imagine if you kids live in that environment ? Parents probably are only care about kids academy report and test scores. nothing but study, study and study. Do you think if this is a fair selection for boarding school ?
I am not saying either admission process ( apply vs entrance exam ) are fair. But BS/college pick their class must have a reason. You never know how good those students who got admission and FA. Like my D said, All her peers are special and have certain strength and skill.</p>
<p>Worry about Asia American kids ? I just heard two stories recently.
- One boy applied FA but got waitlisted last year. His mom called school and said they will find the money and no need FA. He got in after all, then she sold her house,quit her job, moved near to school, rent an apartment, change from boarder to day student.
- One all A girl has a very high SSAT score got waitlisted/rejected from her top 3 choices, Her mother does not think local option is good enough for her D. She started to look for a good high school/community 60+ miles away. They will sell current house and move to there this summer. She is willing to drive an hour back/forth from new home to her work.
They are those traditional asia parent, They just want to give best education to their kids as they could. No matter it is a BS or local options.</p>
<p>Assembling a boarding school class is like winnowing through a pile of thousands of pieces to make a 200 piece puzzle. It is certainly not an easy task, and I believe that the AOs recognize that there may be more than a few kids who fit into a particular place. It is, to some extent, serendipity that causes a tuba playing lacrosse player with 87% SSAT to be chosen over an award winning poet and tuba player who has 89% SSAT.</p>