<p>Sorry to be joining part of the conversation late, but I agree with blinctonk’s post #413, about honors groups at strong state flagships, except that I would add that however it winds up being accomplished, a lot of the “top” students in different fields wind up knowing each other as well.</p>
<p>I disagree with PG’s remark
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<p>The reason I disagree is numerical: My high school, with about 350 students per class, had an “intellectual” subgroup of 20 students per class (at a stretch). The honors college at a large state flagship may have 25 times that number per class. The sheer numbers make a difference. The group is only “small” relative to the denominator, the total number of students. But really, it’s not small at all.</p>