<p>Take a step back and look at this board. While it is important to be informed about the college process, it's important to keep in mind that most people get hyped up and crazed about such a tiny, minute gaggle of schools. </p>
<p>Yes, it's true that 80% of the college going population apply to the top 15% of schools but is there any reason to get stressed out about getting into college? Not really - it's important to realize, in my opinion, students make the school and schools don't make the student. A lot of parents and students tend to worry aobut the 'brand' of school that a student attends and the bragging rights that come with that. Try to think of it the other way around. Think of yourself, the student, as the brand and that the school is lucky to have. Not arrogant or egotistical but this might change the perspective in check. </p>
<p>In reality, most students with a 3.0 and a 1550 (3 sections) on the SAT can get into a top 100 school. Also, keep in mind that there are very tiny differences between a top 10, top 50 and top tier school and I can't encourage the "fit" enough. </p>
<p>I agree 1000% with you!! I see a lot of parents here have not changed since their kids have been in pre- school. Is just makes me laugh. If your wannabee kid needs mommy to help them to get into Snobby U. and EGADS they wind up going to a second choice school , life will go on. There are lots of kids who do not have all the advantages who will do just as well as their darlings in the end.</p>
<p>Apparently neither one of you have not looked at the list of acceptances of the list of schools that the students are choosing because it does indicate a large range of schools. </p>
<p>When you consider that there are over 3000 schools in the country and CC posters are only a tiny segment of the of the population (maybe not even 3%) in addition that fact there are almost 2 million students attending college this year, things need to be placed in perspective. Parent/ students posting on CC will nto evenr register as a blip to the classs of 2010 at large.</p>
<p>An overwhelming number of students in this country attend their state / local universities.</p>
<p>There's no point seeking for information about a wide range of schools if a decision has already been made to attend one's state school or community college. As Sybbie says, the overwhelming majority of students do exactly that. Which means that those who do not are the ones seeking information.</p>
<p>If there has been a recurring theme on the Parents Forum, it has been stressing fit.</p>
<p>I have 2 sons. One graduated HS last year and is now at MIT after a wide-ranging college exploration. During his investigations, we learned a lot about a lot of "top schools". My other son is now a HS junior. His search will be entirely different and will consist of some schools that, in his words, "no one ever heard of". But they're on his list because they seem like a decent "fit". I am sticking around here because of the desire to find this fit, and because good advice about finding it is good advice, regardless of which schools are on the list.</p>
<p>Obviously, there are 0ver 3000 schools in this country and 2 millon students attending them. I came here to find out information on how the college admission process works. I have one question though. Is it mentally and psychologically good for students and parents to be so obseessed with getting into their dream school? I have seem many students on this site feel who post " they have failed" if they do not get their reach" school. Or say "with my 2200 3.9 EC's up the wazoo , my esaay was great and I should have gotten in" Hey kiddies that's life there is always someone who is going to get left behind . They should have been exposed to failure by now. If not they are going to be not ready for the real world I have seen parents on many occasions complain that their kids are not preparing for his/her AP/SAT/ senior year and say " I NEED help to get them to" . .. I hope these parents are not to be going to live with them in their dorm rooms. Your kids are being judged subjectively for admission to a select club and for the first time you have no control over it. It must be tough.</p>
<p>What's wrong with CC only targeting a small number of schools? For the most part, this is a highly self-selected group. The kids who come here come here because they are HIGH achievers who want the best for themselves. And I disagree that there is little difference between a top 10 school and a generic top 50 school. Columbia surely provides a much better academic environment for a highly intelligent and intellectual student than, say, the University of Miami. Don't kid yourself.</p>
<p>cavalier -
"Columbia surely provides a much better academic environment for a highly intelligent and intellectual student than, say, the University of Miami."
I agree with you to a certain extent - but only if the student is prepared to be average once he or she hits Columbia. At MIT, for example, the pass/no record grading was instituted to take some to the (self imposed) pressure off freshman who had never seen a B - let alone a C - in high school.</p>
<p>Wait a minute; Is it the same okwjoe who posted on 4-14:</p>
<p>
[quote]
He is a quadriplegic unable to use his hands, wheelchair bound.. in 9th grade he broke his neck and missed 1/2 year anddespite that he caught up and finished with an 4.0. Now he is sophomore score 720 on bio sat 4.0 all honors courses unweighted, taking World AP now and planning to Chem., American History, Pych, and English AP's next year and Pre- Calc. Senior year planning to take Physics and Math Ap's Statistics, and maybe European history He still plays in the marching band plays the gong, now sings in the select chorus, on the last rank before Eagle scout in boy scouts, Science Olympiad, Key Club, model UN. until his injury played baseball and football. .. If he maintains his grades what do you think his chances to get into an IVY?</p>
<p>Thank you
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<p>To reply to the question in the excerpt quoted above, he has a good chance, like any other applicant with a similar profile.</p>
<p>Ohiomom yes I am the same person to whom you are referring to.. I am just as hopeful as the next parent...I am getting bombarded with stuff from colleges I just wanted to know what's his potential. My son has lots of obstacles to face. He asked me last month how would he be compared to others who are able -bodied and I do not know. So I came here to find out. All I am saying is that life is not fair and just be grateful for what you have. Maybe I am a little testy.</p>
<p>Big deal, ohio_mom! Sometimes it's nice for high achievers to be around each other. Hopefully they're not so insecure that they always need to be better relative to their peers! I know of a girl who turned down W&M (instate) to go to an obscure $30k LAC (with no merit/financial aid) because she wanted to be better relative to everyone else. Talk about insecurity!</p>
<p>I believe the movie about Brooke Ellison's life was made and shown on TV.</p>
<p>Okwjoe:</p>
<p>There are two separate issues with your son: the first is his qualifications for the schools he would like to apply to, including the so-called Ivies; the second involves accommodations for his handicap.</p>
<p>I'll deal with the second first, but you may want to look up thread by Wolfpiper who also uses a wheelchair. Not all schools have the same accommodations and some campuses can be downright challenging for someone in a wheelchair. Brandeis, for example, has hills that can make going from one class to the other, especially in inclement weather, very difficult. Brooke Ellison had a van that took her from her dorm to Harvard Yard where her classes were located. I believe that some classes were scheduled in some buildings rather than others to accommodate her (some buildings do not have elevators).</p>
<p>On the first issue, qualifications, your son seems on the right track for the most selective schools. In fact, he is doing very well! Kudoes on getting 720 on the SAT-Bio. But like every applicant to top schools, he should apply to a range of reaches, matches and a couple of safeties.</p>
<p>For most kids, most colleges have what amounts to a stress-freen open admissions process. There are 3,000 or so colleges in the U.S. Maybe 5% of those have truly selective admissions standards. Of course, the folks who visit CC happen to be obsessed with the top one or two percent of colleges. There is nothing wrong with that. It reflects a love of learning, a respect for intellectual accomplishment and a recognition that many benefits flow from graduating from those schools.</p>
<p>Happily, for those people who have neither the inclination or the natural ability to make it into the most elite schools, their chances for successful careers and lives depend fairly little on their choice of undergraduate school. Don't get me wrong--those are four important years and my own children will follow a disciplined search and application process. All I'm saying is that there are many kids like the friend of mine who decided to forego Columbia for a Seton Hall scholarship and then went on to get an advanced degree in applied mathematics from Northwestern.</p>
<p>Similarly, for those of you in the workaday world: where'd your boss go to college? Do you have any idea what her grades were like? By the way, when's the last time you were on a job interview and anyone asked to see your transcripts or even evidence that you graduated?</p>
<p>Still, I find college admissions to be a fascinating experience and I really enjoy visiting this discussion board.</p>
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Of course, the folks who visit CC happen to be obsessed with the top one or two percent of colleges. There is nothing wrong with that.
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<p>Yes and no. I agree there's nothing wrong with some people here being obsessed with that top one or two. But....having spent too many years here, it's when the people or kids who are NOT obsessed come here to find information about admissions in general, how financial aid works, or just about their local school, that the trouble happens. (And it happens more than some folks think!) </p>
<p>They come here looking for basic information, and usual leave feeling like they or their kids are not good-enough because they have been bombarded with the prestige issue vs. the "fit" factor. Four to five years ago the most talked about schools here at CC were the ones that now are considered as not worthy of discussion. Shame really, because there are some very good schools out there who don't get enough "good rep" due to the fact that someone, somewhere, just HAD to put a numbering system on our schools.</p>
<p>I only meant that there is "nothing wrong" with wanting to go to an "elite" college. There imay be something wrong if this site has become off-putting to people because of the number of people talking about getting into colleges that most kids (including mine) can only dream about. </p>
<p>I still think this board is a great way for anybody to get information that is universally applicable to the college admissions process. </p>
<p>Why has the nature of the discussions changed over the last 5 years? Is it because the people most likely to visit are those who are most obsessed with the top schools? Certainly the top schools attract the greatest numbers of applicants--which most likely explains why CC indexes the Ivies and other top schools more prominently.</p>
<p>I am sure that the organization of this site along those lines is for the convenience of the many visitors looking for these top schools but this feature of the site is likely to turn off many folks who will assume this site is not intended or useful for people who want more information about, say, Ohio State or some other school buried in the alphabetical list of colleges.</p>
<p>I honestly believe if a student maxmizes all their resources at the university of miami for example (honors college, undergraduate research and thesis, athletics, etc and say becomes a rhodes scholar for example which is certainly possible) I believe that their educational experiences are comparable to that of Columbia. There are a chunk students who are 4.0's and 2100's at U of Miami or any top 50.</p>
<p>Not all students want to move away or have the resources to attend a highly selective school. Does this down play their opportunity? No - it's what you make of it. </p>
<p>Ken Jenning's went to BYU - and I'm sure he'd humiliate some Columbia alums...</p>
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Why has the nature of the discussions changed over the last 5 years?
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<p>Having been here 5 years *bopping self on head, thinking I need to get a better life :) * I think I can answer that to some degree. First and foremost, I think that when CC started and was relatively unknown of course we had a lot fewer parents and kids. The ones who were here, to be honest, were ones who were tired of the "elitism" of the at-that-time major competitor board. We came here as a sanctuary to get away from the constant bombardment there that if you didn't go to an ivy that you were not college material to begin with attitude. And as CC grew, with good moderation and helpful information, more and more people fled this way. And of course, a lot more ivy and elite talk happend naturally, and that too is good. So more people and more opinions caused some of the "elitism" that happens here today. </p>
<p>The problem is, when that "elite" only attitude comes over into any conversation. When someone goes into a diatribe about how to pick one school over another, based not on personal knowlege, but on perceived stereotype or USWNR rankings only, it just perpetuates the idea that one must pick the highest "ranked" school....fit be damned. If only those parents who quickly pop in here, get intimidated, and quickly leave get that "elitism" taste in their mouth, I worry bout what kind of decisions their kids/family are now dealing with. Are they applying only because of status now? Are they risking family financial adversity due to reading here how their kids MUST go to the highest rated school, even if it's not truly a good fit? It's all just food for thought.........</p>
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<p>Columbia surely provides a much better academic environment for a highly intelligent and intellectual student than, say, the University of Miami. Don't kid yourself.<<</p>
</blockquote>
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<p>Ask Nathan Herring and Devi Sridhar about that:</p>