<p>Our S had TWO GC’s–one was retiring and mentoring the younger one. The older one was VERY discouraging and pessimistic, saying he didn’t know if S would get into ANY good Us (even tho S was a NMF with great test scores and OK GPA). The other said that S was a very interesting candidate because he had a very legit reason for his slightly lower GPA and class rank (chronic illness,being treated by MD). He told S to cast a wide net and see what he ended up with. </p>
<p>S applied to his “safety” school (that he fully expected to be accepted at with significant merit), as well as two others that he was pretty likely to also be accepted with merit. He submitted parts of his app that didn’t require essays to four other Us. Not surprisingly, he was rejected from the Us where he was late and incomplete on his essays. He did get one full-ride offer from an OOS U. The three he saw as safeties all admitted him; two with significant merit and one with NO merit. It worked out OK for S.</p>
<p>We were glad S ignored the older GC who saw S’s record as being so poor.</p>
<p>Just saying GCs vary as to quality and how well they actually guide kids and families. They have their biases and their workloads, and sometimes these do not lend themselves to the type of personalization that works best for US and OUR kids. No one can care and know as much about your kid as you and your kid (with sometimes a bit of honest, objective feedback from others).</p>