My college counselor actually told me that excluding hooks, Lawrenceville students have a 7x higher chance of getting into Princeton than the average person. I don’t want to get into this debate, though.
My intent with that point was to note that even after excluding its unusually high Princeton matriculation, Lawrenceville still sends far more students to H/Y (reputed to be more humanities-oriented) than S/M (reputed to be more STEM-oriented).
I don’t mean to get into a debate but too many people think going to an elite prep school is an easy ticket to an Ivy and it’s not. Even at Lawrenceville you have to be at the top of your class to have any shot at it.
Completely agree with @TonyGrace. There are clear examples of close relationships (Lville-Princeton, Exeter-Harvard, Andover-Yale, Deerfield-Dartmouth, etc). The days of an unhooked kid getting acceptance via the “feeder” route is becoming less and less common.
I wouldn’t bank on the fact that attending Lawrenceville is an easy ticket to Ivy+ admissions. Its not, especially if you’re unhooked.
I have also been grappling with ethical questions- is this a way of paying your way into a good college? I realize that this may be misguided but I am certainly looking for a variety of opinions.
No. Everyone who gets into a top college from any prep school is incredibly hardworking, driven, and talented, and also at the top of their class. While attending such an institution does, to a degree, expand the amount of opportunities available to a student, they still need to take advantage of them and excel in the competitive environment—which can be far more difficult to do than in a typical school, since half (honestly, probably more) the student body here is jockeying for a T20 acceptance.
No
A couple of things to consider: The matriculation data at any school includes recruited athletes, legacies, donor’s kids, and at some schools, faculty brats. Those categories tend to be overrepresented at boarding schools.
For the rest, colleges admit applicants, not boarding schools. A BS may allow the student to develop into a stronger applicant, but so can other schools. Choosing a boarding school simply based on matriculation data is folly.
[quote=“SwimmingSat, post:24, topic:3607793”]
is this a way of paying your way into a good college[/quote]
There are other ways of doing this. Most commonly by giving a big donation. In the recent Harvard lawsuit, there was a special “Dean’s List” where big donor families were tracked.
You seem nice.
Thanks for the information. I am also curious if kids from Lawrenceville actually go to Publix state colleges. For example I didn’t see a single entry for Rutgers in the matriculation report. Are counselors encouraging kids to apply to state schools at all? I know many top state schools have programs equivalent to T20 schools.
I think plenty of kids apply/go to UVA, UNC, UMich, UCs etc. I am sure plenty of NJ kids apply to Rutgers, but that will almost always be the last option safety for the kids at top prep schools. Plenty apply each year from ours but it’s very rare that someone actually lands there, though plenty pay OOS tuition at the schools mentioned.
The typical student at top BS are unlikely to be very price sensitive IMO, and if they are (plenty of kids receive generous aid at BS) they are probably strong/desirable students who will be awarded high merit/have full-need met at schools perceived as more prestigious.