How exactly are private school admissions decided??

[nmosur]

We are applying to private school for DD (kindergarten starting in fall). I had heard about the stress that parents go through and have just started experiencing the panic/stress. We are applying to three schools - admission procedure consists of application (with parent essays), psychological assesment, pre-school teacher recommendation letters and finally an observation session. DD is smart, social, funny, speaks clearly but she is 4 years old (she turns 5 in May). The schools receive some 1000+ applications for 75 seats and half of those seats are for legacy applicats. I feel like there is nothing I/DD can do to really increase her chances of getting admitted into any of these schools. She can really do very well in the observation but competing with 1000 other students seems just too much for a 4 year old.

How exactly do these schools decide who to offer admission to?? Is there something that I need to work with DD on??? What exactly happens during these observations - I asked during the school tours and it seems like the teachers "observe" the kids playing and wil work with them "one-on-one" - whatever that means.

Any insights/inputs??

[niccig]

I wouldn't try to prep her, you could make her nervous and then she won't behave as her normal self.

You never know what they are looking for. When we had our tours, they said that the class balance would also be taken into account - so how many boys/girls, personalities of the children etc.

I just told DS the day before he was going to a school to play and meet the teachers etc, and then I mentioned a few toys that I knew the classroom had - a big truck for eg. I gave us plenty of time, so we weren't rushed, and once we got there, he saw the truck and ran off, and I left. That was it.

[ehf]

In many schools, practical issues are so important that admission is often one of luck or coincidence, more than anything else.

They might need a shy boy to balance a class, or an athletic one. Like you already mentioned, siblings/legacies/board member kids can often take most spots, so the remaining ones are filled by whatever kinds of kids they need to have an interesting, complementary bunch of students.

At that age, there's not too much "prep" to do. I'd definitely rehearse the day, make it clear that you are visiting the school, and entirely ignore the admission part.

For yourself, as terrible as this advice is to receive, you need to be yourself. They're generally looking for parents who are open, honest, and good-natured. They don't need high-maintenance, aggressive parents.

Either way, I'd realize that the odds are tough and in the long run there might not have been much either you or your child could do to sway the decision. Don't take it personally.

[smilequeen]

I think it depends on the school and the area. Your process sounds a bit tougher than ours is here.

Our school is most interested in children and families that are a good fit for the philosophy and school and by the time we'd visited a few times it was clear that there was a spot for us. Some of the other schools in the area are very focused on IQ testing and legacies. It really depends. I agree that you just need to be yourself and be as honest as you can and try not to stress too much.