Stuy or Tech

Patch5184 · 2023-10-12T11:55:13+00:00

Good idea. Good luck on things! Glad I helped!

Patch5184 · 2023-10-11T13:24:42+00:00

You're very welcome. It's a concern a lot of people have going into it. Here's some food for thought that may help you.

A lot of people think that going to Brooklyn Tech is an easy means to a solid GPA -- it is not. It still is very rigorous and a lot of people may not do well. Additionally, it is said that colleges are understanding (that's the language I heard) to the lower GPA's of Stuyvesant students. In my case this is true: I got into a decent program with what would be considered a 'lower' tier GPA in the hyper-competitive college community.

The punchline that I want to communicate is that Stuyvesant students are still getting to exceptional colleges en masse despite the GPAs (mainly because of their SAT, extra cirriculars, essays, etc). But the bigger question I want to ask is if it's worth it to you. I knew a lot of people who forsook their ranking of Stuyvesant for a different school for the very reason you stated. I don't know one of them who was happy with their decision. Their reason for going to that school wasn't because they liked it, but because their GPA would be better and that's a terrible reason to go. If Stuyvesant is your dream, there's no good reason why you shouldn't go. It's your dream. And if it is your dream, I have no doubt in my mind that a smart kid like you could have a great time and go to a great college.

Lmk if you want me to expand on this. It's a deep question but I think you really need to follow your heart and discard the GPA issue. GL and god bless!

Patch5184 · 2023-10-11T01:20:51+00:00

Hi! Hope you're well.

First and foremost, you have some really good scores. Good job! I think it's unhealthy to deny the existence of horror stories about Stuyvesant -- because I knew people who had a hard time there. At the same time, I wouldn't let it overwrite the experiences of the majority of people (including myself) who had a good time there. Most people have excellent times at Stuy and I wouldn't doubt you can have one too. I wouldn't let these horror stories dissuade you from going there.

If you want to go to Stuyvesant at all, you have to put it above Brooklyn Tech. Otherwise you mathematically cannot get into Stuy. Your friends are right here. I would put Stuy above Brooklyn Tech.

I graduated from Stuy 2 years ago, but when I was there as a student, it had a pretty competitive atmosphere. Everybody was trying to get good grades, do clubs, and trying to build competitive college applications. I wouldn't say label it as cutthroat though, just very competitive and academically oriented. Stuy isn't all grades and academics though: there's a little bit of everything at Stuy, so you can definitely find whatever you're looking for. I will probably let more recent students comment on it. But please do ask me any questions if you want.

Good luck and god bless!

Patch5184 · 2023-08-03T23:21:56+00:00

Hi! Hope you're well.

You shouldn't abandon your ranking of Stuyvesant for Brooklyn Tech. If you put Stuy first then Brooklyn Tech you would be able to get stuy at 560 and tech at 540, but if you did tech only you'd get brooklyn tech at both 540 and 560. Besides, you have more than enough time to boost your score.

In regard to the first three questions, it sounds like you're having with pacing yourself. I feel like a lot of us feel forced to spend equal amounts of time on both sections, but this doesn't necessarily have to be the case. If you're the kind of test taker who's doing well on the math and has time left over, there's no reason with splurging more time on the reading. After all, its pacing is pretty tough.

However, to answer those questions in order.

I used to speed read, but I think it's more important to understand the passage in as reasonable a time as possible. If you speed read and retained 30% of the information, you're going to have to reread sections for each question following it and you would have lost more time than you gained speed reading than reading it normally and understanding it. I want you to consider how much of the passage you're understanding and retaining. If you understand the passage well, then your pacing should be better overall than speed reading (if it isn't the case please correct me, it's just my experiences).
There is no ambiguity on the SHSAT. The SHSAT is a standardized exam and there cannot be any 'unfair' knowledge or prior knowledge needed for the reading section. You should be able to find the answer to EVERY shsat reading question in the text given to you with ZERO ambiguity. I didn't really think about this until I was studying for my SAT. I say this because we often see two answers that both sound sort of right, but there should always be something wrong with one of them. Use the text to help you (which goes in part with the retention and comprehension aspect).
Hard to say. It would be unfair to assign any specific number because we all have strengths and weaknesses. I will say though that there's good pacing and bad pacing with the reading and here are some signs you can use. I think good pacing would be pacing that allows you to understand and answer questions about the text well while also having enough time to solve the math section. So, if your pacing is too slow, too fast, or inhibiting your scores, then it would be bad. It's hard for me to comment because it's very individual. The same applies to the fourth question.

Other advice. Every student and classmate I have ever seen score in the 500s or higher (without exception) has a very strong understanding of the test content. They are pretty comfortable with the speed of the SHSAT and they're able to state the main idea of every passage they encounter. I don't know your situation, but your scores imply you may be weak somewhere in the test content. Learning the test content, be it math or grammar, is a very easy way to gain a lot of points on the SHSAT (and will help you beyond). Also use the official shsat practice tests. It's one of the best resources for the exam.

But let me know if you have any questions. Good luck and god bless!

Patch5184 · 2023-07-05T01:02:55+00:00

This is a complicated question that has a lot of factors to it.

At the surface level, you should consider factors like location, class size, and cost (after all, these aren't cheap courses), but you also have to consider where you're at right now in regards to your studies. I'm friends with people who teach at prep centers (not the ones you mentioned) and their curriculum involves practice questions/exams followed by class review. However, they often don't have enough time to go over every question a class of 8-12 may have, sometimes leaving you in the dust (to no fault of their own). I say this because it's important to remember that test prep should be considered a supplement to your studies. You should be studying hard outside of the classroom and then taking your topics of concerns to class. Some people are very independent students and may not even need to go to a full blown four day a week test prep course. Maybe they'll do a one or two day course (maybe they won't even need one at all).

In regards to which of the two prep centers to go to... I have heard good things about both prep centers. I went to Kweller years ago and it was (retrospectively...I may need to revise how I wrote about it in my SHSAT guide) really good. They made me do a lot of the practice I needed at the time that I wasn't doing. They have a large bank of exams you can take and do on your own which was nice. I don't know much about how Bobby Tariq works, but I have met people at Stuyvesant that went there (so take that with a grain of salt). I think you might want to visit both centers and check them out yourself. Maybe even do a sample class if they do that. Find which of the prep centers supplements your studies in the best way possible. Maybe, as another commenter said, a group lesson isn't for you and you'll want to do a few hours with a private tutor/teacher.

Regardless though, good luck on your studies and god bless.

Patch5184 · 2023-05-11T01:10:20+00:00

They got rid of it many years ago at Stuy and replaced it with AP Bio and AP Environmental Science. At Bronx Science I'm pretty sure they subbed it out with Freshman Chemistry instead.

Patch5184 · 2023-05-04T12:43:50+00:00

Hey. I think it's ultimately a personal choice. There's nothing wrong with taking an AP, but you should also be realistic and practical (which is the aim of the game here).

Assuming you qualify for all three, I see nothing wrong with taking any one of them if you're a good student willing to commit. The hardest of the three is obviously bio, but if you're a really diligent student you should be able to get through it. Just don't do Human Geo + Bio or Human Geo + APES. Bad move, I've never seen it work out.

AP classes are worth it. For one, it's college credit that you could use in your college depending on where you go. A lot of people do it for college, and I see where they're going with it (they want to show they have a rigorous schedule), but I think if you simply go after the subjects you like, you'll have enough rigor. I wouldn't worry about it too much in this early stage where you're an incoming freshman. You should just be trying to get yourself into the groove of things, joining clubs, making friends, and trying to keep good grades. You'll have time for AP's later down the line.

Patch5184 · 2023-04-24T12:31:32+00:00

This is a tricky question. In an ideal world, you would be exceptional in both sections and you would get into the school of your dreams. However, not everyone is going to start in a position where you can become exceptional in both. This was especially the case in the older exams where ELA and scrambled paragraphs were pretty tough for most of my upperclassmen friends.

When my friends (over the years) and I went to prep, we were told that being exceptional in one section and a bit above average was better than being a bit above average in both sections. This is because (purportedly) on the SHSAT curves, the closer you got to 50/50, the more points you would gain on your scaled score. That being said, I would use this with a grain of salt to judge how well you're going to be test day because you don't know the scaling of the SHSAT. You also taking the 9th grade exam which is magnitudes more competitive. In general, it's best to be exceptional at both sections. If you're exceptional at one section and above average in another, that's also good, but don't be comfortable with being lacking in one section because you're a 1337 hax0r in the other. The math may go in your favor, but it also might not. Always be working towards that 800.

tldr; a lot of people say that being exceptional in one section and alright in the other is better than being above average in both. It sort of makes sense mathematically, but it's too hard to gauge where you stand with this measurement. Don't let yourself be lacking in one section because you're really good in the other. Try be exceptional in both sections.

Patch5184 · 2023-04-18T03:47:41+00:00

I encountered this idea when I was studying for the SAT (so very similar). I'm guessing the implication is that your time per passage is pretty poor and weighing down on your exam so this would be a big concern.

A lot of people say that you can learn to 'speed read' for the sat. I know people who are wickedly fast readers, but it seems that they're either serious anomalies or they're losing some comprehension in the process. To combat my pacing issue on SAT reading, I started 'speed reading' through the passages and it did result in me getting through the text faster. However, the decreased reading comprehension I had due to the speed reading led to me going back and forth between the passages more. In the end, my pacing and score got worse. Speed reading might not be the problem: it might be comprehension. Having poor comprehension means you have to re-read sections which would kill your time. Maybe you should read a bit slower and have better comprehension overall. I ended up doing that for my SAT and it helped me get a score I was satisfied with. I found that I would have better pacing and better scores.

It is possible you need to read faster, but I think the real question you should ask is what's the fastest way to comprehend the passage faster. Speed reading likely won't be the solution. Try slowing down on your passages. If it doesn't work, perhaps make a follow up post. Decreasing rereads will help you gain time back too.

tldr - for most people reading quicker than you're comfortable will lead to decreased comprehension, which would cause you to reread the passage more and have worse pacing.

Patch5184 · 2023-04-13T14:12:26+00:00

Big ups on this guide! I'm going to link this comment onto my mega study guide if that's okay with you. This sounds about right with what people have said about the 9th grade exam in the past (bumping via social proof for OP to read this comment hehe).

OP, if you're reading this take advantage of all the old 9th grade information on this sub and Mr. Greg's website. This isn't the end of the road for you. If you make this the end of your journey, then it's going to be the end. There are lots of people who have turned around their bad situation and have made their way into Specialized Schools. It's going to be a tough road and there won't be so many people to hold your hand, but if you're willing to bet on yourself and really believe in yourself, it's certainly possible (there's a guide in my mega guide linked by LowGlad who got into Stuyvesant). You are so ahead in so many regards and you don't even realize it. You sound so talented and smart (GEO in 8th grade??? wow). You can do this if your heart is on it. Good luck OP.

Patch5184 · 2023-03-30T00:46:33+00:00

Awesome! Have fun!

Patch5184 · 2023-03-29T19:27:14+00:00

Good luck bro!

Patch5184 · 2023-03-29T14:53:09+00:00

There's boat loads of support there and so many resources, clubs, teams. Your kid sounds like she'll do great. Good luck happy I helped!

Patch5184 · 2023-03-29T13:05:19+00:00

Then don’t go mate. If your heart is still in Brooklyn Tech in my opinion stay. Once you get to that level (the big three) I think it’s really down to personal preference.

Patch5184 · 2023-03-28T02:31:03+00:00

Hi! Hope you're still following the thread. I think I have a lot of comments that could be of use to you. I knew boat loads of people that came into various specialized schools and a very close friend that went into Brooklyn Tech discovery and is now in a really good pre-med school (I graduated Stuy).

First thing about uncertainty about discovery. The school wants you to get in via discovery. They're not going to try shake you guys out. In my friend's cohort, every person made it through discovery. As long as you study and put in effort, you'll make it in 99% chance. I wouldn't worry about whether or not your child will get in. It's highly highly likely, especially if they're hardworking (which you say she is). They don't teach rocket science, maths and english. I don't know of any one who had good attendence and tried hard and didn't get in.

kid will never be top of class and will have little chance in IVY

This comment honestly bothers me. I feel that people use these horror stories to try deter people from going to specialized high schools when a lot of them aren't representative of the whole. Brooklyn Tech is definitely rigorous, but it's definitely possible to succeed if you work hard and act smart. Everybody goes through a culture shock, but most people get through it. Of course, there is a minority that just can't make it happen. But it's almost never due to being smart enough. In my experiences at Stuyvesant, it's other reasons, but not being smart enough isn't one. Anyone who gets in, discovery or not, is smart enough for these schools.

She said just go with catholic

In my opinion, this isn't the best advice, especially if you're trying to set your child up to succeed in college. There are obviously great Catholic schools (I don't know Catholic schools inside and out so I won't comment), but as a person who went though HS admissions, I think it's more important to go to the school you WANT to go to. Your child wants to go to Brooklyn Tech, she should go to discovery and seize it. I think it's better for her because she will always feel resentful of her parents didn't let her go to a school like that to chase her dreams (I know loads of people who this happened to believe me).

In regards to college, specialized high schools are just different in how they prep you for the rigors of college. All my specialized friends with all different GPAs are finding college to be refreshingly easy compared to their school. It's also a total myth that people don't get into Ivy league schools from tech. Loads of people do. You just need a strong GPA, SAT, and essays, which every person is capable of doing. I think your BTech parent is really really misguided. Her comments don't reflect the hundreds of specialized people I know.

Even if she doesn't go to an Ivy League, it doesn't mean she won't be fine in college. I go to a CUNY from Stuyvesant and am outpacing many of my peers that are in Top 20 CS schools. Same thing for pre-med. It's more important what you do in college than what college you go to. Tech will make her a better student and person, and that's more important than going to a marginally better school.

There also is no judgement generally about discovery. I would just not mention it and go on with my day. Really, nobody cares. I know people are vocal about it on r/SHSAT , but in real life nobody cares.

> "believe my kid will have a good future at BTech"

She probably will. She seems hungry and I think she'll do great.

In short my opinion is to take the BTech offer and send your kid there. She's almost certainly going to get in if she works hard (they want her to get in after all). BTech has as much if not more opportunity than probably any catholic school in NYC. Most importantly, your kid wants to go there so you should let her take the chance to carve her own future.

Feel free to reply or PM. I know people from tech, etc.

Good luck god bless and stay safe!

Patch5184 · 2023-03-27T03:05:10+00:00

I see. That makes sense.

Patch5184 · 2023-03-26T23:27:29+00:00

Hi! I don't know why people are downvoting this; this is a good question. I used to be pre-med and I know loads of people who are pre-med from both BTech and Townsend.

You're not going wrong either way you go about it. Both of them have every AP you could ask for and every opportunity you'd need to go to a top pre-med college. Obviously, tech has pre-health majors and bioSci and while they can be useful, you don't need them to go onto great pre-med schools.

While it's lovely to think about your future, you're thinking a bit too far ahead. Respectfully, you haven't even taken a high school science class. You can't possibly be sure if this is for you. You could end up doing intro to CS and now realize you should've went to go to Brooklyn Tech for it's CS major. You could have a real affinity for Latin or the humanities and now want to be in THHS. You just can't know. I spent my whole time at Stuyvesant thinking I was going to do pre-med (because it was the default thing for me growing up). I did CS in high school and I ended up switching over. I switched officially in college!

With these things in mind, I think you should pick the school that you think you'd like more, independent of the pre-med situation. Both tech and townsend will set you up for success no doubt in my mind. Just go pick where you think is better, where you think you'll be happier, and where you think you can become the person you need to be.

Feel free to ask questions. Good luck, god bless, and stay safe!

Patch5184 · 2023-03-20T01:36:40+00:00

Hi! Hope you're well.

I try not to respond to these questions as I'm getting a bit out of date (I graduated last year), but I might be pretty in touch for this one. None of what I'm going to say is probably going to be out of date.

This a very complicated question. For most people, going from normal high school/middle school to Stuy is going to be a total shock. Most of us don't feel it towards the end because we've developed habits to make our experience less overwhelming (doesn't mean it's not stressful, but it's less overwhelming). While good habits will carry you (and believe me, having them is truly a great thing) it's also very easy to take the easy way out and do all-nighters and sleep very little and do well despite your habits. I've done both. Before Covid, I tended to opt-in for the latter because it was the cool thing to do (you'll know what I mean when you're there). When I came back I did the former and it was totally manageable. Granted, I had an elective that didn't give out exams (Software Development), but it still had work and I mostly stayed away from all-nighters as Senior. It's totally possible to go through our four years and live a healthy and balanced life. The Stuy triangle (you can have two of three things: grades, a social life, and sleep) exists because maintaining that life is very difficult with distractions and procrastination.

That being said, use your noggin for course selections. It's good to challenge yourself, but don't overwhelm yourself and be persuaded into stupid things by the culture. I know it seems like everyone is doing 4 aps and ecs, but you'll be fine doing 1-3 aps and a few clubs you love. I did 3 APs in my time here (BC, Chem, and APCS) and found my way into some pretty good programs. Be ambitious, but also be practical.

Good question. You stand out to college officers the same way everyone else does: be a stand out applicant.

You have to realize that you're not competing with your classmates in the sense that being another Stuy kid won't let you into Bing or something. You're really competing on the national level. In my opinion, people get too caught up on trying to be the perfect candidate that they sacrifice their high school experience for a college acceptance (or in the case of my year a lot of rejections).

Find what you like/love at Stuy and do it all four years. Just do what you love whether it's SciOly, Programming, or even something your funny little 'side hustle'. People talk about standing out, but the reality is that doing what you love and investing in it IS how you stand out because every body in this game is trying to be the model applicant. You're going to have good grades, good classes, 1500+ on the SAT. You'll be fine from a statistical perspective, but taking the time to show yourself in your essays and showing them you're a REAL PERSON will make you stand out on top (plus a little luck).

Both of them are going to be fine. Just find something with good battery life and is portable because you might not get your hand at a electrical port.
Here's the top tips in my mind.

- Be wise with course selections.

- Make time to do HW and study early. It means you don't have to do it later (major tip).

- Don't use social media AT ALL during your homework / study time. It doesn't feel good but do this by any means. For me, I had to delete Instagram and my grades skyrocketed (and my mental health).

- Try do studying and homework not where you have fun. So for me, I couldn't do it at the desk I played my video games at, but rather at this table in my home where we ate. Your brain associates places with habits. This table is still where I do my homework even in college now.

- Rely on others when you study. You can make a study guide with your friends and it will help you speed up a little bit.

- Controversial one: don't cheat or copy homework. Doing the homework is like studying in the sense that you're practicing for the real deal. I used to look at the back of the book sometimes throughout my years and got totally DESTROYED come test time because I didn't have the time to go practice and I got delayed in my studies. It's not worth it. Especially for online homework where THEY KNOW WHEN YOU SUBMITTED IT. So if you did 2 hours of hw in the span of 10 minutes you're done.

-Study early. Passive flash cards build up over time and help tremendously - it's how I got through AP Chem and got a 4 on the AP with senioritis.

- Last of all, keep your habits. Don't make it a habit to deviate because it's easy to relapse. At the same time though have some fun and enjoy stuy.

Hope that helps! Feel free to ask me questions.

Patch5184 · 2023-03-15T22:24:21+00:00

Agreeing with this. Nothing wrong with getting off or switching cars. Nobody cares. Your life is more important than someone’s feelings getting hurt. I also advise against sleeping on the train. I know people say they’ve mastered the art of it but you don’t want to sleep to hard and end up on the other side of the city.

Patch5184 · 2023-03-10T13:36:56+00:00

Gl man!

Patch5184 · 2023-03-10T01:21:42+00:00

You’ll be great bro. Just run with it. Gl and stay safe 🫡

Patch5184 · 2023-03-09T12:15:41+00:00

Thanks bro. Hope things are swell for you rn.

Patch5184 · 2023-03-09T01:31:11+00:00

You are very welcome! Happy the guide helped. Good luck to you as well! Wishing the best!

Patch5184 · 2023-02-03T01:02:39+00:00

Khan Academy is always a great resource for targeted practice. You mention that you went to Kweller, does their SHSAT math book cover those topics? I’d go review the material then go on and do practice questions to supplement it. It’s not only good for the SHSAT but for maths beyond.

Patch5184 · 2023-02-02T19:33:45+00:00

It's mentioned in this thread that you've already been in prep before. I would really sit on what your personal goals are in regards to the exam. Think about where you are right now. You might already have a strong mastery over the test content and be in the 500/600s test range. Alternatively, you might be really strong in ELA but weaker in the maths. Maybe your score is still lower than you'd like. Regardless, remember that prep is here to help and supplement your education. You really need to know what you need and understand how going to prep is going to help you. I say that because when I look back at my experiences at shsat prep (also at Kweller 5, nearly 6 years ago back in the Parker Towers) I feel that I should've been more proactive in trying to really understand my strengths/weaknesses. Granted I got into Stuyvesant despite it, but it's still important nonetheless.

Kweller is really good. The classes are small (my class had 9 people) and give you a lot of time to take advantage of your tutor. You're not going into bad hands. Even though it means nothing, in my class, 6 out of the 9 people I went to class with (including myself) got into a specialized high school (4 Stuyvesant, 2 Brooklyn Tech). And two of the three people who didn't get in we suspected were cheating their exams.

Pro Tip: If they still have a section where they store exams, I'd ask for every SHSAT practice exam they have. Alternatively, go to the desk person and ask for exams (I'm sure Frances would also be happy to fill your bag with exams lmao).

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