I just saw the movie, Nursery University on Showtime and it brought back memories of the pre-k and elementary school process. Yes, it is that competitive and overwhelming. I envy those parents who just did not play into the hysteria.
I have to say that I never looked at nursery schools because my daughter attended a “day care”, in which I was more than happy with the school, the Director, the parents and most importantly, the curriculum. But trust me, even day care in Manhattan is pretty competitive, just because there are so few of them. If it weren’t for the fact that my daughter was adopted and I put her on a wait list (which ended up being a 2 year wait), I probably would have to deal with nursery school admission nightmare.
That said, I did look at pre-k because I was curious and I was told that if I was going to pursue private elementary schools, I had a better chance of ensuring a kindergarten spot if she was already in the pre-k program. That in itself is a little less aggravating because there isn’t that whole crazy calling after Labor day nonsense involved but the one thing you realize at the tours is there just isn’t enough spots for everyone. And yes, investment bankers/celebrities/hedge funders have a better shot at getting in over the middle class joe but there again, all of them can’t get in because there aren’t that many spots.
I went to tour 2 schools for pre-k and upfront they said that siblings get first preference and that there were only 2 pre-k spots. You do the math, 100 families on 1 tour for 2 spots. Not likely I had a chance to get even I wanted to.
