A few thoughts:
- The days of college ‘placement’ from these schools are long gone.
- The GLADCHEMMS continue to enroll a LOT of (very) hooked kids…recruit-level athletes, faculty brats, double legacies, donor$$$, and also lower SES kids owed to their FA budgets. So, enrollment stats still look positively gaudy (like 30-50% into Ivy+/T20 type schools at PA for example).
- There are insanely bright kids at these schools. I’m hyperbolizing but if you told me that 80% of the kids at PA would be their local HS valedictorian I’d believe you. But, “someone” will be in the bottom 50% of the class at PA. In fact, half the class! And 10% will be in the bottom decile
Colleges evaluate applicants in context, so for better or worse you’re going to be measured against other Andover or LV kids. A given HYPSM can only take so many kids from a given HS. After you back out the hooked kids, it may not leave that much room for too many otherwise unhooked excellent kids. A given applicant may indeed have better odds as a super big fish in a local HS pond vs being say in the 4th decile at PA.
Go to Andover or LV not for matriculation stats, but for the readiness they’ll instill in you when you do get to college, whatever the college.
You can’t go wrong with either choice here in the grand scheme of things. But, they are different…size, campus feel, other stuff. Go to revisit days at both if at all possible!
Congrats!