<p>by the way, what is a "feeder" school?</p>
<p>It's an unofficial designation that implies that high school seems to have a disproportionate number of students that get accepted to a college. Some elite prep schools are said to be "feeders" to the ivy league. Why do so many more kids from these schools seem to get accepted? It may be due to a special relationship between the hs's administration/guidance dept and the college's admissions office (you can often find such universities making visits to the high school on their annual sweep of the country), or some feeder schools have a rep of academic rigor that ensures students are well prepared for college work, as proven with past performances. In many cases, these "feeder" schools represent an affluent student body who have the means to pay full tuition, and many private universities must have well-rounded, high achieving kids who are not on FinAid, too. This is the usual pool.</p>
<p>what you just described is EXACTLY punahou.. interesting. so do feeder schools get more chance than regular schools? like gpa increase or anything that a non-feeder school doesn't have?</p>
<p>Can you get the scattergram from your guidance counselor so that you can compare the stats from your high school with your own (SAT, GPA) and that should give you an idea of where you are in the running. Also, keep in mind, that there were so many applicants last year that I don't know how much any outside factors (feeder schools, legacy, etc. etc.) counts because it makes sense that USC would just pick the best of the applicant pool (SAT, GPA, essay, what you can contribute to the school, etc.)</p>
<p>With a school like Punahou, the USC admissions officers will likely have a good sense of the overall difficulty of the school and will be able to put your GPA in context with the other high-achievers there. They will know if it's harder to get a 4.0 at your school than at a less rigorous school. It will be a slight advantage to come from a school with an established record of sending students who are successful once they get to USC.</p>
<p>^^^I agree w/FauxNom about it helping to come from a high school known to have great academics. But top high schools contain many super-motivated, capable students from academically goal-oriented families. So a student who might be in the top 10% at a mid-level high school, might only make it into the top half of a gonzo competitive school where all the kids are gunning for the ivies. So is that really a help? It gets murky.</p>
<p>In addition, students from these highest achieving HSs often apply to top 30 universities as backup, get accepted, but never attend when they make it into their top choice schools. It can be hard to see so many kids at the top pass by your own first choice school. So I think it may even out some. </p>
<p>But the atmosphere at a feeder school is a clear benefit. The GCs are all in-the-know and can be a big help.</p>