soley for the purpose of getting them into an ivy league school what would you have them do? i ask this because in the crapshoot world off college admissions now it doesn’t seem as if plain hardwork and intelligence is always enough. in order to guarantee entry into the top schools one has to have something more. of course i’m always the person in college conversations who says if you’re a hardworking, intelligent person it doesn’t matter where you go, you’ll be fine. but i think it will be fun to theorize on this.
here are my thoughts.
I think is Athletics is the number 1 thing-I think if your kid is atheltic in any way this could possibly be the most helpful. If a student can be recruited for a sport to top schools, and many of these top schools don’t have top sports teams, that would guarentee them entry. All they would have to is stay within the average confines of that school’s admissions qualifications and they’re in.
<p>"Plain hardwork and intelligence" is enough to get you into the top colleges. Just cause a college isn't on the holy list's, US Newsweek Rankings,top ten doesn't make it an inferior school. Although "plain hardwork and intelligence" may not be enough for Harvard, you can still get a great education at a number of different schools.</p>
<p>If you are an elite athlete, you don't even have to meet the school's average numbers. AI didn't have the most prolific scores, but he still got a full ride to Gtown. There was also a kid that got a full scholarship at the U, even after he committed armed robbery-- it might have been something else, but I am pretty sure he committed armed robbery.</p>
<p>There are schools outside of the Ivy League.</p>
<p>hmm but if you're going to raise a kid to the athletic level of allen iverson these days, what's the point of sending him/her to ivy league college? he/she could be making millions more jumping from high school to pros as the next kobe or lebron james or kevin garnett or even amare stoudemire. not that millions of dollars defines success nor could it replace the prestige/value of an ivy league education, but it's enough to keep your kid (and possibly yourself) in a comfortable lifestyle... along with some fame too.</p>
<p>Well, I guess it doesn't matter because no one knows (or cares) where they went as long as they had dexterity in basketball...hey at least I didn't know! :)</p>
<p>I personally think being in the NBA is a lot more prestigeous than attending an ivy league school. I am pretty sure AI didn't have very good grade and, break 1000 on the SAT; he also had problems with the law. It just shows you that you that all you really have to do is be stellar in one thing.</p>
<p>*i'll use the female pronoun for convenience, not for gender bias. "him/her" is a hassle to repeat each time.</p>
<p>i'd encourage an interest in academics, not for the sake of grades (they would be a byproduct) but as a goal in themselves. i'd provide her with an unlimited amount of books that caught her interest. i'd encourage her to learn languages at an early age, and travel around the world--probably live in a different country for some time--to open her mind to new cultures. i'd teach her to seek out challenges and stand strong in her beliefs. finally, i'd let her find a 'passion' on her own--athletics, research, art--and make sure to give her opportunities in that area, while also leaving time to explore other topics. i'd try to never let her suffocate under my expectations, and make sure she understood that getting into an ivy league wouldn't change my opinion of her. instead of breeding a machine i'd focus on her character, because the world needs more of that.</p>
<p>Speaking as someone who did raise a child: I would recognize that everyone is different at birth, and that you can't make them turn out in any particular way. If they wanted to go an Ivy, then I would help them as much as I could by learning about the process, providing the information to them, and pointing them towards the right thing to do. If they didn't want to go an Ivy, then I wouldn't care less. I don't think that it is important or even affects future income. It certainly doesn't affect happiness. Who you marry affects your happiness a thousand times more.</p>
<p>If they did want to go to an Ivy, then I would do it by one of two ways:</p>
<p>Way 1: 1) rigorous curriculum in a strong private school, but not one of the very top ones where everyone applies 2) top gpa/rank by making learning fun and providing tutors if necessary 3) high standardized scores by making learning fun and test prep courses and encouraging a lot of reading 4) encouraging some aspect of the child (if possible) to win an Olympic medal or become a movie star or achieve something at a national level worthy of getting onto Leno and Letterman</p>
<p>Way 2: 1) donate a new building to the college and have my name put on it</p>