Sociology

The success of students is usually closely associated with the colleges they attend after high school. The occupation one is likely to undertake in future and hisher financial success is related to the college heshe attended. Researchers Brint and Tinto (1980) both tied college attended to a persons professional occupational attainment while Pierson (1969) and Useem and Karabel (1984) associated this with attaining a high rank in business (Cookson and Persell, 1985, pp.393) Here in the US, the Ivy League colleges are the kind linked to success and because of this student advisors have always sought possible ways of landing their students here. Students in prep schools normally have an added advantage than those in the public high schools and so many reasons have been put forward for the trend.

Parents usually take their children to prep schools with a hope that they will be able to join the Ivy League colleges after graduating. On their side, students know the importance of joining these colleges and they will always work hard towards achieving this. The aspiration is common to both the parents and students together with their teachers and this means the pressure will always be there to attain the goal.

Another reason for this is that the number of students under a supervisor is smaller compared to those in public high schools. In prep schools, 65-140 students are handled by a single college supervisor whereas in a public high school, the number is between 400 and 500. This means students in prep schools get specialized attention and they can interact more with their supervisors. From this, their supervisors who act in turn as college advisors get to know their students well and they will always give the most important details necessary to get them to these prestigious institutions when drafting their recommendation letters. This increases the students chances of getting to college. The aim is to always get the attention of the college admission officers to improve their choice of the student.

Apart from providing timetables for tests, early admissions and application deadlines, college supervisors also write guide books for their students on the factors they should consider when applying for college.

These include the college size, location, programs, the quality of undergraduate life and the type of facilities available for studies in the said institutions (Cookson and Persell, 1985, pp. 396). The students are therefore directed in a way to certain colleges rather than making applications to all as their advisors knows which are right for them and are likely to take them. The advisors are able to share their experience and wisdom. This enables students make informed choices.

A close social relationship is also maintained between the college advisors in prep schools and the college admissions officers and this further increase the chances of students being admitted to these institutions. They meet in social places over lunch or beer as most of the college advisors are former students in these Ivy League colleges. There is also security of tenure for college supervisors so that the relationship is prolonged and they may serve in these positions for as long as fifteen years. In addition, college advisors from prep schools are usually allowed to attend admissions committee meetings and from these, they get to know what is expected from their students and this assists them when they are drafting the students recommendation letters. The close association also allows the advisors to lobby intensely for their students and at times they ask the admission officers to re-consider their stands or give their students the first priority on the waiting list. They are given the opportunity as their record shows they have consistently produced socially and academically prepared students.

The advisors from different schools sometimes hold meetings to share and this at times shape their decisions aimed at benefiting the student. The decision not to rank students in class individually but rather by groupings is an example of a decision reached from these meetings. The feeling of being in the bottom affects the students overall performance and behavior and this is the reason why this form of ranking was dropped.
Although the prep schools sometimes are only seemed to benefit the rich with high academic credential and SAT scores, it also fosters the upward mobility of those from low socioeconomic statuses with high SAT scores and maintains the socioeconomic status of those from high socioeconomic statuses with low SAT scores as they are highly accepted by the Ivy League colleges and have a higher bargaining power than the public high schools.