My son is applying to several ESA schools for their STEM offerings; however he won’t be applying to any Ivies like many of his potential peers. He is “on point”, just on a different path. He wants to work with NASA. He is 13 yo & in his 2nd year serving/training with the U.S. Civil Air Patrol (auxiliary Air Force). Schools love that, but to achieve his end goal he would like to go to Emery-Riddle. Just as students appreciate how their school looks good on collage apps, admissions officers utilize their students’ Ivy stats to appeal to prospective families & to boost their ratings. Could the anti-Ivy dream of a 13 year old hinder his prospects in any way? Frankly, it’s his unique journey & accomplishments that set him apart & gives him any shot, not his numbers… but I realize it’s a numbers game in several ways. In your opinion, would a school invest in a kid that’s not going to offer the typical returns…just maybe an alum on the 2030 Mars Mission
won’t negatively affect his application in the least . . . in fact, I’d offer that his interest (and having a plan, though it may well change) will be a positive
I think admissions officers would find your son’s plan a breath of fresh air after all the “I have to go to your school because my parents want me to go to Princeton/MIT/Harvard” kids.
Even at the top schools most kids don’t end up at Ivies. Your son sounds wonderfully directed and I would not hesitate for a moment to let him talk about his education and career dreams.
I agree with Sue22. It will be a welcome breath of fresh air. My DD also has a plan in mind and her top school is not an Ivy. She told the AO what her plan was and where she hoped to go. The AO seemed quite fine with it. I later checked and, although it is a great school, not a popular one for the students.
I don’t believe schools take the plans of 13-year-olds more seriously than they should.
Exactly, @ChoatieMom. Who would bring up their college plans (in that detail anyway) in their BS applications? These are prep schools so they assume everyone going there normally want to go to good colleges well prepared. That’s all they want to know and need to know. Any mention of a specific college won’t be taken seriously.
And, there’s this misconception that schools with high Ivy matriculation rates somehow identify 13/14 year olds who aspire to attend Ivies and egg them on to apply and matriculate. The only truth about this perception is that selective schools tend to have high achieving students and many high achieving students do end up in Ivies and other highly selective schools. I can truthfully tell you that based on my experience with two kids in one of the schools with highest Ivy matriculation rates, the college counselors are NOT in any way or form encouraging students to focus on a handful highly selective colleges - to make their own life just a little bit easier if nothing else.
If a school rejects your son based on his genuine interests, it would not have been a good fit anyway. Encourage your son to emphasize what he loves regardless of possible affects on admission.
Goodluck!
He is on his way to a fantastic career.
He is 13. Don’t worry about college! who knows what will happen in 5 years. Schools know that a 13 year old’s projection of future college choices isn’t to be taken that seriously.
“Anti-Ivy Dreams” would not be a handicap in any way. Trying to make him not talk about his dreams would make him less interesting to admissions officers.
So share the tid-bits.
Just wanted to say hello to another CAP cadet and fellow future astronaut… I was in CAP for 4 years and really enjoyed it, especially the flying! I don’t see why anyone would be looked down on because they didn’t want to apply to an Ivy. And if his experience in CAP is anything like mine, wanting to be an astronaut is cool in CAP, and probably there’s plenty among his fellow cadets that share the same or similar dreams (fighter pilot, test pilot, etc.)
The kid is fine and he should feel free to talk about his passions and goals as they are now with or without the mention of a specific college. The parent’s concern is invalid. What school would take “not having a goal of attending an Ivy League college at 14” as a reason to not admit a student? Common sense folks.