2014 Clean Official Boarding Decisions and Applicant Stats/Extracurriculars

Prep School Admissions
101

<p>** Accepted: Deerfield, Thacher, Cate, NMH, Kent, Berkshire, Lawrenceville **
** Rejected: Hotchkiss **
**Wait listed: Choate, Groton, St. Paul’s, Taft, St. George’s **
**Likely Attending: Deerfield **</p>

<p>Stats:[ul]
[<em>] SSAT/ISEE/TOEFL/PSAT: 94th Percentile
[</em>] GPA Unweighted/Weighted: 6th and 7th grade all A’s, 5 A’s and 2 B’s first semester(or 3.71 GPA).
[<em>] Rank: School doesn’t rank (I wouldn’t be ranked very high anyways)
[</em>] Other stats: </p>

<p>[/ul]Subjective:[ul]
[<em>] Interviews: I thought all my interviews were great except Hotchkiss. I just feel like my interviewer didn’t like me, and our interview was around 15 minutes long. My Choate interview was by far the longest, around 90 minutes long. Deerfield’s interview was also very long, and my interviewer invited me to lunch afterwards (a good sign I think). I think my best interviews were definitely Thacher, Cate, Groton, and SPS. For anyone who’s applying next year; it’s a really good idea to have a couple of practice interviews. Don’t practice too much though, otherwise it won’t sound as natural. Don’t be afraid to talk about yourself. Brag a bit, but don’t make the interviewer feel like you’re cocky.
[</em>] Essays: I feel like I really poured my heart out on my Deerfield and Thacher essays, definitely some of the best writing I’ve ever written. I reread some of my essays recently and I don’t think I wrote very well for St. Paul’s.
[<em>] Math Rec: I don’t think this rec was good or bad. Decent. I do pretty well in math so couldn’t have been bad.
[</em>] English Rec: I think my English teacher likes me, and I’ve had her for two years in a row now (she moved from 7th to 8th grade). This rec definitely better than the math one.
[<em>] Personal/Extracurricular Rec: I thought this teacher liked me but then I read my report card comments (which weren’t very good) from her. Should have chose my cello teacher for this rec. I don’t think this rec was very good at all.
[</em>] Principal/Counselor Rec: Since I’m student counsel, I have a decent relationship with the counselor and principal. Never been in serious trouble before so I usually see them around school or for Student Counsel issues. Decent I think.
[<em>] Sports (if any): Tennis, Swimming, Track/Cross Country
[</em>] Instruments (if any): Cello
[<em>] Other ECs (if any): Also an 8th Grade Representative in the Student Counsel. I do a lot of community service work on weekends, and I’ve been a part of many service trips and clubs.
[</em>] Hook: I have 3 passports and have lived in many different places.</p>

<p>[/ul]Location/Person:[ul]
[<em>] State or Country: Somewhere in South East Asia
[</em>] Current School Type: Private
[<em>] Ethnicity: Asian
[</em>] Gender: Male
[<em>] Grade Applying For: 9th
[</em>] Age: 14
[li]Financial Aid/Full Pay: FP[/li][/ul]Strengths: Interviews, no doubt.
Weaknesses: ORM (i think). I feel like my grades definitely could have been better. I got a bit lazy for my essays and I definitely could have written some better ones with a little more time. I procrastinated a lot actually :P. I’m also very well rounded, which is either a bad thing or a good thing. I don’t think I’m really good at one thing.
Why do you think you were accepted/rejected/waitlisted?: For some schools the weak point in my profile was my essays.
General Comments: I applied to too many schools! I got worried because just in my grade alone 20+ people were applying. I’m also an international applicant.</p>

102

<p>^ AGACHIAGACHAAGACHICHICHACHACHA!!! :smiley: DEERFIELD DEERFIELD RAH,RAH! Congrats on Deerfield,one of my dream schools. I ca’t wait to apply!!!(I’m entering the 7th grade in the fall ,so it’ll be a while xD.)</p>

103

<p>@grx567‌ I actually just saw this but thanks for your very kind words :heart:
Honestly that’s my biggest fear… getting there and realized I’m only there to add to a diversity initiative. I know it’s far fetched and schools are only going to go so far with all of that, but it’s still a legitimate concern of mine.
But also that’s a big pet peeve of mine. When people at my school (including my friends) tell me that I’m going to get great scholarships to college because I’m an URM and (actually) smart, I get pretty mad considering I work my behind off.
But overall thank you! It gives me a little bit of ease with every bit of encouragement (from someone who actually knows a bit about the processes and all, not knocking my peers and teachers). </p>

104

<p>@boardingjunkie You are welcome. I went through the process for college/graduate school many years ago. I got tired of people looking at me when I was asked what college/graduate school I attended and then they would look at me and make a statement about how it was only because of XYZ. I know things have changed but some things remain the same. I heard similar comments when my kid was applying to college. As far as the confidence and feeling you don’t belong I heard a good TED talk about a researcher who posited “Fake it till you make it”. This researcher described how standing like Wonder Woman for 2 minutes out of your day helped build confidence. This talk was profiled on NPR. She had done studies about how this simple act could improve study subjects’ confidence. It seems silly but you may want to try it this summer and you will be ready for anything come fall.</p>

105

<p>Oooh I’ve seen that one! I actually love Ted talks! They’re so inspiring and fun to watch! Then again I think reading TIME Magazine is fun so… (haha).
But again, thanks. Honestly stereotyping to me is horrible and destructive no matter how you label someone. It puts people with “good” stereotypes under unnecessary pressure, and it makes it so that people with “bad” stereotypes have to prove people wrong.
And for the millionth time, thanks, and I will definitely fake it 'till I make it! </p>

106

<p>@KimberlyLaila haha thanks. Deerfield was my top choice and I was lucky enough to be accepted. I know it’s early for you, but if you need any help, just message me. :)</p>

107

<p>^ Haha Will do.I hope you don’t mind staying on CC for like two more years though. :p</p>

108

<p>Here’s stats for DD</p>

<p>** Accepted:Rectory, Rumsey Hall, Indian Mountain**
** Rejected:None**
Wait listed:Fay, Stoneleigh Burnham
Likely Attending:Rectory</p>

<p>Stats:[ul]
[<em>] SSAT/ISEE/TOEFL/PSAT: 83%
[</em>] GPA Unweighted/Weighted:3.7
[<em>] Rank: 1 in class
[</em>] Other stats:
[/ul]Subjective:[ul]
[<em>] Interviews: Stoneleigh Burnham was her first visit. She was very nervous and I think that came through on interview. Fay, she was a bit overwhelmed. I was in love but knew it wasn’t the right fit for her though admissions loved her. Rectory she loved on site and the vibe was good with interview. Indian Mountain she interviewed well but we both weren’t sure about fit. Rumsey Hall was her best interview IMO. She was relaxed and comfortable. Best tour all around. Very welcoming campus.
[</em>] Essays: DD had help with essays and felt the teacher over edited her thoughts. Wasn’t really satisfied with them. They were solid but basic. The teacher didn’t allow her any creativity.
[<em>] Math Rec: Excellent. Math is one of her best subjects. She tutors other students.
[</em>] English Rec: Decent. DD just transferred to school so no real relationship established.
[<em>] Personal/Extracurricular Rec:
[</em>] Principal/Counselor Rec: Don’t know about principal’s recommendation. Again DD is new at school. Counselor gave great recommendation.
[<em>] Sports (if any): None
[</em>] Instruments (if any): None
[<em>] Other ECs (if any): Drawing and belly dancing club at school
[</em>] Hook: URM
[/ul]Location/Person:[ul]
[<em>] State or Country: NJ
[</em>] Current School Type: Public Middle School
[<em>] Ethnicity: Black
[</em>] Gender: Female
[<em>] Grade Applying For: 7
[</em>] Age: 12
[li]Financial Aid/Full Pay: FA[/li][/ul]**Strengths: ** Academics, strong desire to board at early age, a bit of a Marvel comic, sci-fi/fantasy geek
**Weaknesses: **DD is a bit of an introvert which can be misinterpreted as shy or antisocial.
**Why do you think you were accepted/rejected/waitlisted?: **She would say because she’s awesome! lol I think DD’s maturity came through in the interviews. Each interviewer remarked out how poised she was for a 12 year old. Also I think my willingness to let her go. Every interviewer mentioned how surprised they were by my support of her decision to board. Boarding school was her idea since she was 8 and I told her I would help her make it happen. That doesn’t mean I didn’t cry like a baby while I was signing the deposit check, lol.
**General Comments: **We worked with a local program during the application process which at times was frustrating because I don’t think they got her. As I mentioned, she’s a bit of an introvert and she was lectured about this constantly. This left her feeling a bit down. She didn’t want to “pep up” as she was told because she felt fake. I encouraged her to be herself and I think that’s what the interviewers saw in her. She’s a quirky, sci-fi, artsy, bookworm and she didn’t apologize for it.</p>

109

<p>Accepted: Lawrenceville, Hotchkiss, Andover
Rejected: None
Wait listed: Choate Rosemary Hall, Deerfield, Loomis Chaffee
Likely Attending: Lawrenceville!</p>

<p>Stats:[ul]
[<em>] SSAT/ISEE/TOEFL/PSAT: 99th Percentile SSAT, 2375
[</em>] GPA Unweighted/Weighted: 3.8~/4.17
[<em>] Rank: 1
[</em>] Other stats: ? Not sure, but I have some trophies I won for MUN and debate, along with some math competitions
[/ul]Subjective:[ul]
[<em>] Interviews: Lawrenceville’s was really great, my interviewer and I connected very well. Hotchkiss was a little rushed, so was Andover, Choate’s was pretty good, Deerfield the AO seemed a little distant, and LC was really great.
[</em>] Essays: L’ville’s was the best, most time spent on it. The others were pretty good, too.
[<em>] Math Rec: My math teacher and I get along well. I think it was really good.
[</em>] English Rec: We’re not that close, but it shouldn’t have been bad.
[<em>] Personal/Extracurricular Rec: My swim coach raved, according to him.
[</em>] Principal/Counselor Rec: Don’t know them very well.
[<em>] Sports (if any): Swim
[</em>] Instruments (if any): Violin
[<em>] Other ECs (if any): MUN, Speech and Debate
[</em>] Hook: I speak a lot of languages
[/ul]Location/Person:[ul]
[<em>] State or Country: California
[</em>] Current School Type: Public High School
[<em>] Ethnicity: Asian
[</em>] Gender: Male
[<em>] Grade Applying For: 10th
[</em>] Age: 15
[li]Financial Aid/Full Pay: FP[/li][/ul]Strengths:
I do really well in interviews, I think that’s what helped me with Lawrenceville.
Weaknesses:
I’m not that much of an “independent” person, if you say, and I think that might have come off, a little, but I told the interviewers that I’m confident of making the transition.
Why do you think you were accepted/rejected/waitlisted?:
Honestly, I thought Andover would say no, and that LC would say yes. I don’t know how those two got flipped around.
General Comments:
I was really hoping for either an LC or Lawrenceville acceptance, and my life got a little easier without having to choose between them.<br>
I was waitlisted last year at some schools, and I just want to say, you can do it! It’s tough but there will be rewards at the other end.</p>

110

<p>I JUST REALIZED I HAD ALREADY RESPONDED TO THIS. AFTER I WROTE EVERYTHING OUT. </p>

<p>** Accepted: Saint James School (late applicant)**
** Rejected: Middlesex**
Wait listed:
Likely Attending: Attending Saint James</p>

<p>Stats:[ul]
[<em>]SSAT/ISEE/TOEFL/PSAT: SSAT 1998
[</em>]GPA Unweighted/Weighted: n/a
[<em>]Rank: n/a
[</em>]Other stats: n/a
[/ul]Subjective:[ul]
[<em>]Interviews: In this section describe each interview.
Middlesex: very long, but a nice conversation. I thought it went well.
Saint James: Incredibly laid back and enjoyable. We spent most of the time talking about the lifespan of rodents, however went very well.
[</em>]Essays: Middlesex essay was just okay, nothing making it stand out. Saint James essays were about average on the application, however the writing sample that was required (think SSAT type), was very risky but very well written.
[<em>]Math Rec: Probably good: my math teacher likes me and I get okay grades.
[</em>]English Rec: Amazing. My teacher adores me and ‘favorites’ me.
[<em>]Personal/Extracurricular Rec: 6th grade English teacher: I know was amazing. He is such an amazing man and has taught me so much, there’s no doubt that it was nothing short of perfect
[</em>]Principal/Counselor Rec: Probably good: I don’t know her that well.
[<em>]Sports (if any): Lacrosse, Crew (training), Volleyball
[</em>]Instruments (if any): Guitar
[<em>]Other ECs (if any): Community Service Club, Greek (modern), Chorus
[</em>]Hook: Not really sure. Middlesex had just created a volleyball team. Saint James was just that I had family that went there.
[/ul]Location/Person:[ul]
[<em>]State or Country: Maryland
[</em>]Current School Type: Private
[<em>]Ethnicity: White
[</em>]Gender: Female
[<em>]Grade Applying For: 9th
[</em>]Age: 14
[li]Financial Aid/Full Pay: Full Pay[/li][/ul]Strengths: English, History, Spanish
**Weaknesses: Math, Science (anything having to do with numbers), Testing[ /b]
Why do you think you were accepted/rejected/waitlisted?: Middlesex: rejected because of my average grades, and low SSAT score. Saint James: accepted because my aunt is close with the school, my SSAT score was about average and my extra curriculars seemed to impress them.</p>

111

<p>Accepted: Hotchkiss, Taft, Miss Porter’s
Rejected: none
Wait listed: none
Likely Attending: Hotchkiss</p>

<p>Stats:
SSAT/ISEE/TOEFL/PSAT: SSAT 99th percentile (98 math, 99 vocab, 93 reading comp)
GPA Unweighted/Weighted: no GPA but I had straight A’s first semester (can’t say the same about second)
Rank: no ranks
Other stats: nope</p>

<p>Subjective:
Interviews: All really great. I said things like, “I have a passion for learning, and I would like to be surrounded by people with the same passion.” I got thrown off when I was asked what I liked about my current school by Hotchkiss. The Miss Porter’s one was the best and they asked me if I wanted to apply for a scholarship before I left the school.
Essays: They were fairly good. I’m not the best writer, but I wrote about community service which I know schools respond to. I did the wrong application for Hotchkiss so I had to redo it the day before the deadline.
Math Rec: I have no idea. I don’t even think my math teacher knows who I am. It was probably fine as Miss Porter’s emailed me that I had great recommendations.
English Rec: I kissed up to my English teacher so much for this recommendation. She loved me the first semester but now she can’t stand me. In fact, last week I was failing her class. (Don’t worry I have an 88 now)
Personal/Extracurricular Rec: Super last minute. It was from a mom who is in charge of my National Charity League group and has a daughter in my dance company
Principal/Counselor Rec: My counselor was super nice. I had a practice interview with her so she can learn about me. I’m sure it was great.
Sports (if any): Lacrosse and a whole lot of dance
Instruments (if any): Voice
Other ECs (if any): Musical theatre, Talented and gifted art program at my school, member of a charity organization and MSYG, 15+ hours of ballet per week
Hook (if any): I’m a citizen of Switzerland and I take to languages. I tried to stress this as much as possible to seem more diverse.</p>

<p>Location/Person:
State or Country: Connecticut
Current School Type: Large Public (5-8 332 in my grade)
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Female
Grade Applying For: 9th
Age: 14
Financial Aid/Full Pay: Full Pay
Strengths: Well rounded, time management, SSAT
Weaknesses: I live in an area with so many boarding school applicants. Not a violin prodigy or a physics genius. Really had no idea what I was doing during the process
Why do you think you were accepted/rejected/waitlisted?: They probably think I’m smart and nice haha I tricked them (just kidding, or am I)
General Comments: Anyone else going to Hotchkiss?</p>

112

<p>** Accepted:** Lake Forest, Walnut Hill, Gunnery (no FA)
** Rejected:** Andover, Loomis
Wait listed: Taft, Choate, Berkshire, Millbrook, Suffield,
Likely Attending: Definitely Lake Forest</p>

<p>Stats:[ul]
[<em>] SSAT/ISEE/TOEFL/PSAT: 85th percentile SSAT (I only took it once)
[</em>] GPA Unweighted/Weighted: 3.96 (we don’t have weighted grades)
[<em>] Rank: no rankings
[</em>] Other stats: skipped 5th grade, but other than that I don’t know
[/ul]Subjective:[ul]
[<em>] Interviews: They all went well. My Lake Forest interview was over the phone, so I don’t think it was my best. Andover felt kind of awkward–very question-and-answer kind of thing. Loomis went well, but I didn’t feel much of a connection with the interviewer. Walnut Hill, Taft, Choate, Berkshire, Gunnery, Millbrook, and Suffield all went AMAZING in my opinion, and I think Taft, Berkshire, and the Gunnery were my best interviews as far as the connection with the interviewers and the way I answered, and they were pretty much in the middle of my trip so I already was used to interviewing.
[</em>] Essays: I think they were all really good. Writing is definitely my forte, and I spent a lot of time on all of them, plus got them edited several times by my English teacher.
[<em>] Math Rec: I believe it was really good. I’d known my math teacher for two years since she’d been my advisor when I did independent study the previous year, so I got to know her really well. She seemed to really like me and also sent me an email asking if there was anything about myself I wanted her to include in the recommendation.
[</em>] English Rec: REALLY good. My teacher was oddly enough familiar with many of the boarding schools I was applying to (she was from the east coast) and was very impressed with my writing and that I chose to pursue boarding school by myself.
[<em>] Personal/Extracurricular Rec: I had my cheer coach do the personal rec for Andover. He knows me the best out of all of the coaches, and helps me a lot when I’m working on new skills. I know it was good, and he was also impressed that I was applying to boarding school.
[</em>] Principal/Counselor Rec: REALLY REALLY GOOD. I personally think this was probably my best one. I was lucky that I knew my counselor very well, since I skipped a grade, and had talked to her about an independent study program I chose to do last year. She even called me in one time just to tell me she was impressed with all of my accomplishments and to ask me how the applications were going.
[<em>] Sports (if any): All-star Cheer, badminton on school team
[</em>] Instruments (if any): none
[<em>] Other ECs (if any): Writer’s Club, and also lots of volunteering hours (I’m in Leadership for school)
[</em>] Hook: I skipped a grade (as stated above), I come from a family with financial difficulties but chose to pursue boarding school by myself.
[/ul]Location/Person:[ul]
[<em>] State or Country: California
[</em>] Current School Type: Large Public
[<em>] Ethnicity: White
[</em>] Gender: Female
[<em>] Grade Applying For: 9
[</em>] Age: 13
[li]Financial Aid/Full Pay: Full FA[/li][/ul]Strengths: various writing awards at the school, county, and west region level, I skipped a grade, I got a freelance writing job at age 12. Plus I feel very capable speaking in interviews so that was a strong point.
Weaknesses: FA, SSAT for Andover, highly represented state
Why do you think you were accepted/rejected/waitlisted?: Well, I sort of expected to get rejected from Loomis and Andover. I know that FA played a huge role in waitlists, because some schools told me directly that I would have been accepted but they couldn’t afford the level of financial aid I needed. I don’t know exactly why I got accepted at Walnut Hill and Lake Forest, but I’m just grateful I got in anywhere.
General Comments: I think everything went really well, but I know that needing full FA made getting accepted a lot more difficult.</p>

113

<p>I’m applying for Lville next year for 10th grade. My unweighted GPA is 3.6 and my weighted is 3.9, is this okay? I am a debater as well and the seventh best in the US. Do you think I have a chance? I also play basketball competivley. </p>

114

<p>This is the wrong thread for your question. You should re-post in the Chances forum though no one will be able to give you any useful replies. You will only know your chances after you’ve applied to a school and received their answer as the only source for accurate chancing is the school itself.</p>

115

<p>^^Not only is this the wrong thread, it is considered rude to hijack a thread.</p>

116

<p>Hey guys,
Can onr include coursera or edx course as acheivements?I know it sounds a little unusual, but what do you think?</p>

117

<p>Start a separate thread. </p>

118

<p>Since we are well into the school year and since the most recent new posters have been hijackers, I am closing this thread. Additionally, I am unpinning it as it is no longer topical.</p>