Counselor talks to Admission Officer

Aniger
Thu, 07 Oct 2010 16:28:42 +0000

Agree it is not at all fair. I was helping a kid in a high school that was sort of transitional. It was in Silicon Alley a few years ago. Historically noone ever went to top schools, but engineers had moved in and their kids started applying to elite schools. It took about 5 years or so for the top schools to catch on that this school was now sending them good candidates. Certainly some kids who applied to the Ivies at the beginning of the process were rejected who would have been accepted later on after the high school got “on the radar” of the top colleges. My kids go to a very new private school that most top colleges have never heard of, but it is trying very hard. Having said that: hers is the advice of our overpriced private counselor on how to break through from a school not known to the colleges - standardized tests really count for a lot for kid from a school top colleges don’t know. Take APs, extra SATIIs, send all the high scores. Small schools and LACs will often take more time to figure out an individual candidate than the big Ivies. (This will help your daughter as her focus seems on smaller schools and LACs). And try to visit and meet in person with a prof or similar.