GUCC 2019

The Importance of ‘Fit’ in

Choosing Universities
Are Our Students Attending or Thriving at the College of
Their Choices?
 Meet Clara
(Not her real name)
One of the top achieving students
in school
One of the executive leaders in
the student government
Very positive, approachable, a
positive influence among her
peer
A quiet but active girl inside and
outside class
Accepted by one of the top
universities in California
While she attended her classes
well and no significant issue on
her grades, she did not show
enthusiasm over her study
Lost the interest to be active
outside class
Not many friends – spend quite a
lot of time in the library
She was confused what she
could do for summer and was not
sure where to get help/advices
What went wrong?
Could it have been avoided?
The Concept of “Fit”
According to Students and Parents
 A “Fit” Over Rankings – Why
Engagements Matters More than
Selectivity
A Research Study By Stanford University’s Graduate
School of Education – Challenge Success
 The study finds….
3 principal insights

Rankings are problematic

They measure a set of factors that
are weighted arbitrarily, drawn from data that are most
easily quantifiable and comparable, sometimes poorly
documented, and not always relevant to undergraduate
education

College selectivity does not Engagement is the key

define nor determine future
success How student spends his/her time in
college matters much more in the
The study finds no significant
relationship between student long run rather than the name of
the college itself
learning, future job-satisfaction or
well being
 Let’s take a closer look

The metrics used – how are the

data being measured?
 These
 3
 factors
 
total
 43%
 of
 the

 rankings.
long-term learning outcomes, student
happiness on campus, graduate
satisfaction, and civic engagement
are more relevant but not
easy to be quantified are missing
from these evaluations
 The study shows
Future job satisfaction,
learning and students’
general success are not
determined by the
selectivity of college
they choose to attend.
Students’
characteristics do.
When students are
engaged in classroom,
they increase their
curiosity, creativity and
initiative
When they are engaged
outside the classrooms
they improve their
cognitive and
psychological
development.
 Question
How then can we help our students as they move forward into their future

Educating our students

Understanding
Educating our parents
Knowledge

Options

Educating ourselves
Let’s discuss!
What are your challenges?
What do you do in your school to address this issue?
 However…
There are challenges we must aware

Culture norms and Marketing by

01 biases 02 universities

Limited school High school

03 resources to support 04 reputation to be
alumni research and maintained
support
 Additional Resources
“At What Cost?: Defending Adolescent Development in Fiercely Competitive
Schools” by David L. Gleason, Psy.D.

"Great Jobs Great Lives” by Gallup, Inc

“The Campus Cure: A Parent's Guide to Mental Health and Wellness for College
Students” by Marcia Morris MD

“The Self-Driven Child: The Science and Sense of Giving Your Kids More
Control Over Their Lives” by William Stixrud PhD & Ned Johnson
 Our Contacts
01 Angeline Ang
Sekolah Pelita Harapan
Indonesia
Angeline.ang@sph.ac.id

02 Heather Hendrickx
American International School,
Hong Kong
hhendrickx@ais.edu.hk

Frieda Marie Dietrich

03 American Embassy School,
New Delhi
fdietrich@aes.ac.in