How come the Bay Area (San Jose, Palo Alto, Palo Verde) has such good students?

Pre-College Topics High School Cafe
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<p>I’m surfing through the Intel ISEF and STS winners and results as well as Physics Bowl, Acadec, Team America Rocketry Challenge, etc. and it’s practically almost all students or schools from the Bay Area of the San Jose and especially Palo Alto, Palo Verde, and Saratoga regions. How do they do it? How come they are so smart and talented in comparison to other parts of California?</p>

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<p>Lots of Asians.</p>

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<p>Higher quality of education in that area possibly.</p>

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<p>Genetics. Guess what the Bay Area has lots of? High-tech companies that employ skilled scientists and engineers, who raise their kids in the area.</p>

<p>I would guess that some areas of SoCal near aerospace facilities are similar.</p>

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<p>Genetics. Guess what the Bay Area has lots of? High-tech companies that employ skilled scientists and engineers, who raise their kids in the area.</p>

<p>I would guess that some areas of SoCal near aerospace facilities are similar.</p>

<p>EDIT: I double-posted because my words are worth hearing twice.</p>

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<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/1063684051-post45.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/1063684051-post45.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>There were some criticisms of my methodology, but it sort of shows the same as one might otherwise expect. CA and TX dominate. CA and TX are wealthy states (high per capita incomes, high level of affluence). VA wasn’t because of the reason I stated above. Other states that I might expect to have strong school districts (MD, NJ, Mass.) probably have smaller schools, as there are fewer large cities in those states (Baltimore and Boston being the only two really big cities in those three states), but that’s just a guess.</p>

<p>Anyway, I’m guessing affluence will do a good job of indicating the quality of students in the local schools. Bay Area, very affluent, one of the most affluent areas in CA.</p>

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<p>“Lots of Asians” was the first thing that came to my mind.</p>

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<p>It’s da Asians…been here since 1848.</p>

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<p>Silicon Valley.
Also, there are many smart people there, but there aren’t that many really smart geniuses in Bay Area.</p>

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<p>Growing up 1 hour from there, it seems that there is a lot more focus on extracurricular activities.</p>

<p>The suburban schools have a lot less focus on academics (i.e. no advanced math programs in elementary school). This may be because they don’t have as much funding as the bay area schools, or more good teachers are attracted to the better urban schools.</p>

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<p>NorCal Silicon Valley = High tech industry
SoCal Silicone Valley = Porn Industry</p>

<p>It’s pretty obvious why there’s a difference…</p>

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<p>? </p>

<p>There are suburban schools in the Bay Area. Also, the urban schools aren’t that great. (San Francisco, Richmond, Berkeley, Oakland)</p>

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<p>You’re right I didn’t mean suburban, I meant relatively suburban. Actually I would say that the schools I was referring to would be almost rural in comparison (away from the Bay Area towards the Valley).</p>

<p>Vacaville is far more suburban/rural than any schools in the Bay Area (well most of them).</p>

<p>All I know is that the schools I went to were nowhere near as prepared academically and in terms of extracurriculars (Intel ISEF, Science Olympiad, AMC, all of the USA olympiads, etc…). We had a Science Olympiad team, but it was literally all of you pick ones you’re interested in, do them, and then we will formulate a team based on which people did events that other people couldn’t do (building) and people who did 5+ events.</p>

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<p>Palos Verdes is not in the Bay Area. It’s in SoCal.</p>

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<p>^^I see what you’re saying. There are some nice cities here, but I think that one should acknowledge that just because there are a few well-renowned schools, doesn’t mean that the Bay Area as a whole has nothing but them.</p>

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<p>Yeah, PV is in the southern tip of LA County.</p>

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<p>Palo Verde is actually what the OP said, and that’s in Imperial County actually. PV = Palos Verdes.</p>

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<p>You’re definitely right, but if you’re a student who is advanced in math in elementary school, you’re far more likely to be able to go to an elementary school that offers math past Algebra if you live in the bay area.</p>

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<p>Past Algebra in Elementary school? For all those 5th graders who want to take BC?</p>

<p>They didn’t even give names to the math when I was in elementary school.</p>

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<p>^Yeah, it was pretty much just “Math”</p>

<p>Of course some people (coughterrycoughtaocoughcough) know Calculus at elementary school ages. But they aren’t always from the Bay Area.</p>