Ivy League Feeder Schools?

By Author: Stacey Nathan
Total Articles: 12
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The Harvard Crimson recently published an article that goes into the number of applicants of certain private schools in the United States that were admitted to Harvard this past year. They labeled these schools in particular as “Harvard feeder schools”.

These schools are as follows: Boston Latin School (actually older than Harvard), Phillips Exeter, Phillips Academy in Andover, Stuyvesant High School, Noble & Greenough School, Trinity School, & Lexington High School.

The article mentions the highly selective nature of these private schools and hints that their admissions process seemingly mimics that of Harvard and other highly selective schools in the college admissions process so those students matriculate at Harvard in greater numbers. I beg to differ on that point. Maybe they get into Harvard in greater numbers but that does not necessarily mean they matriculate in greater numbers.

Yes, those are highly selective schools in their own right and the their admissions process is tough but those are some of the top schools in the United States and their college counselors are top notch and manage ...
... student, and parent expectations with fine detail. Their college counselors are experts in their field and have decades of experience and the contacts at highly selective schools to yield those numbers.

These private schools are already selecting the best of the best from an early age. To put it in baseball terms, those schools are already selecting kids that are some of the brightest and smartest kids so they are getting fast tracked to the major leagues.

Also, Harvard University has a great handle on how and what these private schools teach, i.e. their curriculum and how rigorous it is. A cursory look at their Course of Studies in these schools shows you that their courses closely resemble rigorous college courses. Do you notice something? There is not one AP course in there so it shatters the myth that you need loads of AP courses to gain entry to a highly selective school. You need to work hard though.

And there is a lot more variety in their curriculum too, much like a college/university.

The article also mentions the strong connection that these private school students have with their college counselor. University admissions is dependent upon having a strong relationship with your college admissions counselor (also called school counselor)! They know the best college prep activities and how the college admissions process works.

More importantly, they know the students and what they might want in a college or university. They can say to the student, “I think you should take a look at XYZ University because they have an environment that is similar to the way you learn. You can also be a top student in this school.”

I know after reading this article that it might have crossed your mind that you can't get into Harvard unless you go to one of these schools. That is just fine, so don't think that all hope is lost. The successful people will be successful regardless of what school they go to.

Go see your school counselor/college counselor and start a conversation. You should get to know them as much as they should get to know you.

College counselors try to help students find the best fit and sometimes that school might not be Harvard or even in the Ivy Leagues. There are lots of schools out there that give students an excellent education and puts them in a great spot to be very successful in life.

Think of how many successful people did NOT go to Harvard.

There are advantages of attending these schools where they start college prep activities beforehand and give you a preview of how it will be. If you are looking for scholarships for studying abroad in USA visit collegeprepcentral.com now. You can also get a free brainstorming activity free just by signing up..