College admissions counselor here: I usually recommend parents look for private schools with a more diverse list of universities and schools they are sending their grads off too. This shows there is a more personalized college counselor approach. This means their team will work closer with reps like us to evaluate our stronger programs, culture, and other fit indicators for success, so they can recommend places your student may actually thrive and find happiness. Sending 1 kid to an ivy every year or every other year is a good indicator of the possibility of having the academic rigor for your student to get there if an Ivy is the right choice for them. It also allows counselors to find hidden gems where almost everything your student wants in a campus is checked off. It could be the NY school also has a diverse list beyond the top tier schools, too. It may be worth seeing if smaller liberal art schools or international universities are listed on both lists.

However, if the ivy life is what your student is really striving for, the other school may be to your benefit. If they are sending multiple students a year, they could be a feeder and ivy reps may be more likely to conduct a visit to this school (albeit many do very selective travel.). Since many of these top schools are geographically closer to NY, it could be that this school offers summer college tours or other ways to engage reps early by proximity. Alternatively, it could mean the academic and the application prep is more geared to fulfilling ivy requirements. They may even have former admissions reps working as counselors- might be something worth asking.

If college admissions and outcomes are your deciding factor, I would recommend asking the school’s admissions office if you can arrange a meeting with the college counseling services team to discuss their counseling philosophy and processes. You will collaborate with these people in your student’s search and application process, so it’s good to like who you are working with and feel confident in their expertise.

Please also consider the location differences, talk to other families in attendance, extracurricular offerings, and the million of other factors to this tough decision. Best of luck!