My child attends a highly regarded public school in an affluent town that sends the top 5% of students to Ivies and Little Ivies, but most of the rest end up at either just-below-Ivy, second-tier or third-tier private colleges or--increasingly common--the local state flagships.
I took a look at the college matriculation list of one of the premier private prep schools in our area and saw a great difference between their list and ours. I understand that most of the parents of these students can afford to send them anywhere, so private colleges are heavily represented, but it was very noticeable to me that there were certain schools that were "hot" and certain colleges that seemed to be completely off these kids' radar. For instance, alongside the requisite Ivies were lots of Duke, Wililams, Boston College and the like. Lehigh seems exceptionally popular at this prep school, as does Colgate, Tufts, etc. I did not see schools like Brandeis (conspicuously absent), Franklin & Marshall, U of Rochester, etc.--in other words, schools with a terrific reputation that for some reason don't seem to have this "hot" factor. These schools are just as pricey as all the others and have excellent grad admit rates, but the prep schools turn their noses up.
I have the sense that guidance counselors at this prep school have their "approved list" of schools with which they're comfortable and that they mention year after year to their students without thinking outside the box. By contrast, I did a ton of my own research to help my older child find the right-fit school for her, a selective (37% admission rate) liberal-arts college that also does not seem to be on this prep school's radar.
Am I wrong? Or is this prep school just a direct feeder pipeline to the same 20 or so colleges?
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