My friend and I are both in our junior year of high school. He said that all these ivy leagues and top universities are contacting him; Yale, Duke, Stanford, Oxford and other top colleges. His g.p.a. has always been in the 2.5 range with couple F’s and he is a very average basketball player. The basketball coach at our school is known well to be very well connected. It’s just been bothering me because my parents had been pressuring me about him and about how he’s going to get into all these great schools. It’s just all stressing me out.
Well, it’s always best to not worry about other people. Everyone will end up somewhere.
That said, you can take some comfort in the fact that he’s not going to get into any of those schools.
hahaha. The Oxford basketball team! Yippppeee!
Who knows why people bluster like this. Perhaps to mask an insecurity. Perhaps he’s just narcissistic. Later, he’ll deny he ever said these things. What’re you going to do with a friend like that? Don’t let it bother you. In a year and a half, it’s 90% likely you’ll never talk to him for years or even think about him. That’s what happens with HS acquaintances and even friends.
First off, stop fretting about your friend. Secondly, you friend can not get into any of those schools unless his Academic Index is good enough. Take a look at the Common Data Sets for those schools. there are no students at those schools with 2.5 GPAs-not one. Coaches from schools may send material to a broad range of students-they don’t usually know a student’s GPA until they apply. So it is possible if your friend is good enough to be recruited, he is getting material from coaches but coaches don’t admit students. And even if the coach really wants a student, it is not possible with a 2.5 regardless of connections. (see http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/25/sports/before-athletic-recruiting-in-the-ivy-league-some-math.html?_r=0)
It may be that he has gotten marketing materials from those schools, but that does not mean that he will be admitted. They are just trying to encourage students to apply. They encourage everyone to apply.
Thank you guys. It’s hard when my parents keep comparing me to him. I’m already stressed enough.
How do your parents know which schools have (allegedly) been contacting him? If they’re getting the info from you, stop sharing.
He’s either lying through his teeth or is so ignorant as to believe that being one of the gazillions of kids who are getting marketing materials indicates actual interest on the part of the school.
LOL your parents are such bald-headed bashi-bazouks to be comparing you with a terrible student who gets mail just like anyone else who signs up for it.
I apologize not being clear in my original post. I know what marketing materials are…I get the pamphlets too. I live in a small town where we all know each other. Our moms are part of this book club, we been in the same car pool and all that stuff. His mom and my friend had been telling everyone how he’s been getting phone calls from the coaches at these schools. I know that I am being naive and dumb but even his mom is telling people too.
Just keep working hard. Coaches contact a lot of people and it doesn’t really mean a thing. If he’s nowhere to be seen on any HS baskeball recruiting databases or lists, his claim of Duke and Stanford trying to recruit him is really laughable.
“It’s just been bothering me because my parents had been pressuring me about him and about how he’s going to get into all these great schools. It’s just all stressing me out.”
Shame on your parents. Maybe you should start comparing your father’s salary to his father’s salary, or your mother’s homemaking ability to his mother’s homemaking ability and see how they like that. Really, shame on them. Ignore it.
To answer your question, your friend may not realize he is lying, but he is definitely very deluded.
Well said, @Pizzagirl.
Your issue, OP, isn’t with your friend. It’s with your mom and dad. If your friend gets into great schools, they should be happy for him. Your parents should be focusing on your goals and plans, not worrying about the neighbors.
When they bring him up, tell them that you hope he does get into great schools, but whether or not he actually does has zero to do with you. Your application will be judged on its own merits. What matters is where you’re a competitive applicant and how much they can pay. Ask them how much they can afford per year and get them to run some Net Price Calculators with you. That will let you know what types of colleges to look for (in state publics, colleges that offer guaranteed merit awards, etc.) and give you something to change the focus of the conversation. And I’d change the subject every time they bring him up because discussing his opportunities won’t help you at all.
^^This.
(and fyi, Oxford doesn’t recruit for basketball- or any sport- which is why @T26E4 was laughing so hard)
In short, YES.
The IVY league has an AI band they use so they are out IF his numbers are what you say. Do you know what he scored on his ACT or SAT? Duke did admit a student with a 3.0 UW gpa and 21 ACT score but that was the lowest…so not out of reach if he is capable of bringing up his gpa. Now that would also most likely mean he would have to be a highly recruited athlete.
That’s the wrong approach, moscott, because the focus shouldn’t be on vetting his friend. What will happen to his friend will happen (whether the friend is lying or full of it) and has nothing to do with the OP. The posters above are right - the OP’s problem is with his parents, not his friend. His parents playing the comparison game is wrong regardless of whether the friend gets into East Nowheresville State or sweeps the top schools.
@Pizzagirl
No I agree with you…simply stating as a fact for future reference about admission standards to elite schools.
MODERATOR’S NOTE:
As delightful as this thread may turn out to be, I am closing. There is nothing valid to add that has not already been said. The two things that the OP should take away from what has already been said:
• Worry about your own college admissions process, not anyone else’s.
• Your friend will not be going to those schools.