High School Guide: Admissions, reviews, and advice

Michelle Nelson4 said:If you have a, b, c, d, e, and then a 50% chance of passing, you definitely aren't clearing the bar if all your answers are c.
On another note, I still remember that pure shot of dopamine back in college when they finally implemented instant grading. There was nothing quite like grinding through those problems, bubbling in your Scantron, and actually getting your results that same afternoon—instead of playing that agonizing waiting game for two weeks or more, which is how some professors used to handle grading tests 👍

Yeah, totally agree. It's faster, way easier... and you still have to know the material either way.

Peter Rogers said:Hey guys, quick question—does anyone know where I can go in Cleveland to get an occupational medicine checkup done? Is it just a bunch of private clinics around there, or is there actually a public option?

Down in Washington, D.C., you can head to an Occupational Medicine Clinic—but, well, you're looking at paying out of pocket for that.
I suppose there might be a workaround, though... if your employer sends you specifically for it, they usually pick up the tab.
Looking at that PDF, I'm assuming this is for getting a kid enrolled in High School. If that's the case, I suspect you'll have to pay for it yourself too.

I heard on the news yesterday that school principals are coordinating to have kids take just one entrance exam for all the science-focused high schools, supposedly so they don't have to run themselves ragged jumping from one test to the next.
It sounds like a great solution to me.

Peter Rogers said:Hey guys, quick question—does anyone know where I can go in Cleveland to get an occupational medicine checkup done? Is it just a bunch of private clinics around there, or is there actually a public option?

Occupational health services should really be part of local community clinics🤷 but you end up paying out of pocket for everything, including sports physicals too.

Yeah, exactly, it’s for high school enrollment.
Thanks, but honestly, I haven't been able to get anyone at the school to pick up the phone all week, so I'm just stuck wondering if any random Occupational Medicine Clinic will do or if I need to find some specific one.
I really want to just knock this out while we're on break so I don't end up wasting another day of school dealing with it later, plus I really don't wanna drop 300 bucks on something only to find out the school won't even accept the paperwork from that clinic.😬

https://www.collegeboard.org/students/apply-to-colleges/preparing-for-college/health-and-wellness/

Have you tried reaching out to the school nurse's office yet?

Scott Booth said:https://www.collegeboard.org/students/apply-to-colleges/preparing-for-college/health-and-wellness/

Have you tried reaching out to the school nurse's office yet?

Thanks for the info—though I guess I don't see how that actually impacts the care team's responsibilities?

School doctors handle these checkups... totally free of charge.

I mean, I honestly have no clue why, because when you look at the school's list of requirements, it clearly says medical diploma medicine work blah blah blah... but it’ll probably turn out everyone at the school is just on vacation anyway, so we can check it then.

Peter Rogers said:I mean, I honestly have no clue why, because when you look at the school's list of requirements, it clearly says medical diploma medicine work blah blah blah... but it’ll probably turn out everyone at the school is just on vacation anyway, so we can check it then.

That link you shared includes a table covering all the different professions and their potential contraindications. I actually took some time to look through it quite thoroughly.
It seems like some jobs require clearance from the school doctor, while others specifically need it from occupational medicine. It really just depends on the career path.

rowdypanther12 said:I heard on the news yesterday that school principals are coordinating to have kids take just one entrance exam for all the science-focused high schools, supposedly so they don't have to run themselves ragged jumping from one test to the next.
It sounds like a great solution to me.

Well, having one exam for STEM high schools makes some sense, even if the STEM track at West High doesn't cover the exact same subjects as the STEM track at Lincoln High. 🤔They have biology, physics, and chemistry, whereas these guys just have math?
The only entrance exam in the general track—which is at Jefferson High (though I wonder why it even exists since what made that school popular isn't really relevant anymore and fewer kids are applying)—covers English and math. Plus, the math there is easier than the math at Lincoln, so I'm not sure how much that fits into this "unified" exam idea.

If I understood my friend correctly, who was looking at the local news, the principal at Luciana is pushing for this unified exam. It doesn't make much sense to me because most kids attending that school live right in the neighborhood or come from the West Side. It’s unlikely that kids who didn't get into Luciana would choose to go to Ninth Street or Thirteenth (which doesn't even have an exam), and certainly not Lincoln or Third unless they happen to be on the way. Maybe Fifth or Tenth, if we're talking about STEM tracks.🤔

It would actually make more sense for Luciana, being essentially the only high school in that part of town (give or take the suburbs like Arlington or Springfield), to introduce an entrance exam for all its programs. (Personally, if I were running things and wanted to ensure top-tier student selection, I’d make the test harder 🤷. They honestly have nothing to lose since the neighborhood is huge and there's plenty of interest in the school.) It also surprised me during a chat with a friend last night that the school cut the foreign language track to beef up the STEM program. That’s not necessarily a bad thing if they have the staff and the demand, but realistically, where are the kids from the West Side going to go for languages now? 🤔
Especially when parents are looking at the quality and age of the buildings (like the 16th and 18th 😲), compared to, say, the 4th grade building in NZ?
Right now, there are only three language-focused schools in the whole city? And I'm not even counting private ones.

I totally get the push toward STEM and trying to build that reputation, but the move away from languages really caught me off guard. (Though it wouldn't surprise me if there aren't enough teachers on the market willing to teach a first language four hours a week and a second for three, even though language schools usually have more second-language classrooms than other high schools, so you'd really need a solid group of instructors for the kids 🤔).

Susan James said:Well, having one exam for STEM high schools makes some sense, even if the STEM track at West High doesn't cover the exact same subjects as the STEM track at Lincoln High. 🤔They have biology, physics, and chemistry, whereas these guys just have math?
The only entrance exam in the general track—which is at Jefferson High (though I wonder why it even exists since what made that school popular isn't really relevant anymore and fewer kids are applying)—covers English and math. Plus, the math there is easier than the math at Lincoln, so I'm not sure how much that fits into this "unified" exam idea.

If I understood my friend correctly, who was looking at the local news, the principal at Luciana is pushing for this unified exam. It doesn't make much sense to me because most kids attending that school live right in the neighborhood or come from the West Side. It’s unlikely that kids who didn't get into Luciana would choose to go to Ninth Street or Thirteenth (which doesn't even have an exam), and certainly not Lincoln or Third unless they happen to be on the way. Maybe Fifth or Tenth, if we're talking about STEM tracks.🤔

It would actually make more sense for Luciana, being essentially the only high school in that part of town (give or take the suburbs like Arlington or Springfield), to introduce an entrance exam for all its programs. (Personally, if I were running things and wanted to ensure top-tier student selection, I’d make the test harder 🤷. They honestly have nothing to lose since the neighborhood is huge and there's plenty of interest in the school.) It also surprised me during a chat with a friend last night that the school cut the foreign language track to beef up the STEM program. That’s not necessarily a bad thing if they have the staff and the demand, but realistically, where are the kids from the West Side going to go for languages now? 🤔
Especially when parents are looking at the quality and age of the buildings (like the 16th and 18th 😲), compared to, say, the 4th grade building in NZ?
Right now, there are only three language-focused schools in the whole city? And I'm not even counting private ones.

I totally get the push toward STEM and trying to build that reputation, but the move away from languages really caught me off guard. (Though it wouldn't surprise me if there aren't enough teachers on the market willing to teach a first language four hours a week and a second for three, even though language schools usually have more second-language classrooms than other high schools, so you'd really need a solid group of instructors for the kids 🤔).

Well, the STEM track is specifically science and math focused, whereas the program in Akron is more of a general science academy; they really are different curricula.

Betty Wood54 said:Well, the STEM track is specifically science and math focused, whereas the program in Akron is more of a general science academy; they really are different curricula.

Yeah, true...
But if that's the case, does it mean those who don't make the cut in Toledo (or just don't want to take the gamble) have to retake the entrance exams if they try for another STEM-focused school? 🤷
I guess that's fine unless they're looking at options 3 or 13. They'd still be taking a risk, since everyone assumes the kids from schools with entrance exams will just end up flowing into the schools that don't require them.🤷

From what I understand, most public schools are going to start using entrance exams and combining the admissions processes.
I wasn't really paying close attention, and since we have plenty of time, I doubt she'll go that route—but honestly, it sounded like a decent solution.
If the principals could just get on the same page, the Department of Education said there wouldn't be any issues standing in the way.🤷

rowdypanther12 said:From what I understand, most public schools are going to start using entrance exams and combining the admissions processes.
I wasn't really paying close attention, and since we have plenty of time, I doubt she'll go that route—but honestly, it sounded like a decent solution.
If the principals could just get on the same page, the Department of Education said there wouldn't be any issues standing in the way.🤷

The principals also reached an agreement regarding that English proficiency test—where if English isn't your primary language, you take the exam at one school and transfer the results to another. However, they haven't settled on the requirements for Spanish (or German or French) which are necessary for the dual-language tracks.
Apparently, they might recognize international certifications for those dual-language programs, even if the kids didn't study those specific languages in their local school district—though I still need to double-check that. Personally, I think it’s a great idea; they don't have a massive amount of subjects taught in a foreign language, but it's enough to ensure the kids are getting daily exposure and regular practice.

The entrance exams for Titus seem to be at a completely different difficulty level compared to what Mio faced. Does this mean the admissions process will be standardized across all the magnet high schools in New York City this year?

placiddrifter said:The entrance exams for Titus seem to be at a completely different difficulty level compared to what Mio faced. Does this mean the admissions process will be standardized across all the magnet high schools in New York City this year?

Honestly, who knows? 🤣
They haven't even released all the STEM (3.i13.) exam details yet. 🤷

I honestly feel for those eighth graders. There’s nothing quite as brutal as being the first one to step up to the plate.

mellowskipper said:I honestly feel for those eighth graders. There’s nothing quite as brutal as being the first one to step up to the plate.

Actually, I don't think that's necessarily true.
I actually see this as a huge opportunity, especially since the entrance exams carry a bit more weight in the overall scoring than they used to.
Sure, it’s definitely stressful, but for a student who is genuinely talented in math, IT, or physics—even if they didn't pull a perfect score in English back in middle school—this could be their big chance to get into the specific school they want (and one where they can truly shine in the subjects they love).
It's even more important now, considering how limited the competition circuit has been over the last two years.

mellowskipper said:I honestly feel for those eighth graders. There’s nothing quite as brutal as being the first one to step up to the plate.

Actually, looking back, today's eighth graders were the kids who went through sixth grade with a mix of in-person classes and three months of remote learning. It was basically a total toss-up—you were only as successful as your parents or siblings could help you be with your schoolwork.
Then they hit seventh grade with that hybrid online-and-in-person setup, depending on how much the local school district was dealing with lockdown restrictions, and eighth grade followed a similar pattern.

In my opinion, it’s actually way more stressful for the students applying solely based on their GPA rather than taking an entrance exam. Especially if they had certain teachers back in middle school who were super strict about their specific subjects; it wasn't always easy to nudge those grades upward just by playing the sympathy card.

I'm really hoping they'll release the practice exam results by school district soon.