2020 Prep School Stats/EC's Thread

[ezpeaohgee]

Accepted: Peddie
Rejected: Lawrenceville
Wait listed: N/A
Likely Attending: Peddie (if I am able to collect remaining financial aid)

Stats:
• SSAT/ISEE/TOEFL/PSAT: 87th Percentile (V92 Q82 Q76)
• GPA UW: 4.0 Unweighted
• Rank: 1 or 2/200
• Other stats:
-received many character awards
-have many hours of community service
-cross country medals
-certificates for environmental clubs
-attended private school’s summer program
-in highest honors classes available at school, taking Spanish 1

Subjective:
• Interviews:
Lawrenceville: 4.5/10, being my first one, I was very nervous and uneasy, and that definitely showed in my interview; I didn’t end up asking any questions to my interviewer at the end, which I found out to be really bad
Peddie: 9/10; I really connected with the interviewer; I made her laugh a couple of times and we talked for a pretty decent amount of time
• Essays: 8/10; Although I’m not the best writer by any means, I’d consider the stories I told in my essays really strong. I had lots of them showing my improvement and how committed I am to things, like my sports and extracurriculars.
• Math Rec: 10/10; she really helped me throughout the whole application process and was really rooting for me, I’m also a really good and active student in class
• English Rec: 8/10; blind, although, I am a really good student in her class and do get good grades and pay attention
• Personal/Extracurricular Rec: 10/10; my cross country coach and I are really close and he’s seen my evolution as a runner and how dedicated I am
• Principal/Counselor Rec: 9/10; he’s known me since elementary school and sees me as a star student, knows about my activity in town and in school
• Sports (if any): cross country, track (800 and 1600)
• Instruments (if any): N/A
• Other ECs (if any):
-student council, rep in 7th and president in 8th
-environmental club
-newspaper club
-cancer awareness club
-peer leader
-district’s planning committee
-gifted and talented program
-NJHS, member in 7th, president in 8th
-Odyssey of the Mind Member
• Hook: I’d say leadership skills, environmental club ardor and awards and running?

Location/Person:
• State or Country: New Jersey, USA
• Current School Type: Public MS
• Ethnicity: Asian
• Gender: Male
• Grade Applying For: 9th Boarder
• Age: 14
• Financial Aid/Full Pay: FA (90-95%)

Strengths: leadership skills as presidents, Peddie needing xc runners (that’s what my tour guide told me), strong love for my environmental club and all the awards I’ve won, well-roundedness?

Weaknesses: having no instrument, having a sucky interview for Lawrenceville, my SSAT percentile, definitely needing close to full aid

Why do you think you were accepted/rejected/waitlisted?

Accepted: I think the fact that Peddie didn’t have many cross country runners really helped me, as they’re trying to fill up classes. Also, I established a very positive relationship with my AO throughout the whole process and regularly talked to her after the interview.

Rejected: One of the primary contributors to my rejection at L’ville was definitely my interview. I could’ve done wayyyy better if I had practiced more and asked more questions at the end. My SSAT percentile also sucked, and I didn’t really have any hook here, as the school didn’t seem like they needed runners.

General Comments:
To any future applicants, I wish you the best of luck. I was once like you, scrolling through old threads and comparing my stats and seeing what I need it to accomplish. My advice: start studying for the SSAT and essays as soon as possible. Study everyday for shorts amount of time and use lots of quizlet’s to help out with that. Also, try to earn awards for your EC’s and sports, which really help out in the long run. Goodluck!

[whatiamdoinghere]

Accepted: Exeter, Deerfield, Groton, Hotchkiss
Rejected: none
Wait listed: St. Paul’s
Likely Attending: Exeter or Deerfield

Stats:
• SSAT/ISEE/TOEFL/PSAT: SSAT 94 percentile
• GPA Unweighted/Weighted: my school doesn’t put gpas
• Rank: no rank
• Other stats:

Subjective:
• Interviews:
DA: interviewer was very genuine and basically said I was in. The interviewer was also familiar with international applicants and basically “said I was in”.
Hotchkiss: went to my interview right after a cross country meet and I was Super sweaty and honestly didn’t try that hard because it was my last one. Interviewer also flew to Asia two days prior and seemed pretty tired. The interviewer was nice though.
Exeter: not the best- I rambled a lot and the interviewer didn’t seem all that interested.
Groton: interviewer and I had a shared passion so the conversation was good and, again, the interviewer seemed generally interested.

• Essays: overall pretty good. I’d say my best essay was the short one for DA and one of the essays for Exeter. My hotchkiss&DA Long essays both had mistakes in it when I submitted it so ig that means they don’t read too much into small mistakes.

• Math Rec: Very good bc my math teacher taught me last year& is my Soccer coach.
• English Rec: probably neutral because my English teacher is ? but English is one of my stronger subjects.
• Personal/Extracurricular Rec: Volleyball coach/PE who nominated me for a bunch of leadership positions in school-wide athletics so it was probably pretty good.
• Principal/Counselor Rec: Great! I’m a peer Counselor so I work with the school counselor or a lot.

• Sports (if any): Swimming (Competitively since 2nd grade, competed in national championships every year, did not submit records though) , Soccer (started in gr5, started playing club this year, played HS Soccer as an ms student, won award) , Cross Country (top 4 in team throughout MS, 3rd place in league championship throughout MS, won award)

• Instruments (if any): piano, clarinet, bass clarinet (first chair & Got into continent-wide honor band)

• Other ECs (if any):

• President of service club for 2 years
• Peer Counselor
• Academic Bowl (Team won first place in national round)

• Hook: Playing an uncommon instrument, moved around a lot because of parents jobs.

Location/Person:
• State or Country: South East Asia region
• Current School Type: Private Day
• Ethnicity: Asian
• Gender: F
• Grade Applying For: 9
• Age: 14
• Financial Aid/Full Pay: Full pay

Strengths: teacher recs, EC’s: received awards for sports, played a hs sport in ms.

Weaknesses: SSAT score (math was always 86>), Grades: mostly A’s but I got a c in math last semester,

Why do you think you were accepted/rejected/waitlisted?
Accepted into DA&Groton because of my interview. Not sure why or how I got into Exeter or hotchkiss but probably bc of teacher recs. Waitlisted at SPS because (I’m 90% sure) I put Swimming at the TOP of my list for EC’s and SPS doesn’t have a swim team.

[Exonian1]

Accepted: Exeter
Rejected: None
Waitlisted: Deerfield, Andover, Hotchkiss, Middlesex
Likely Attending: Exeter

Stats:
• SSAT: 96% (97% Q, 92% V, 90% R)
• GPA Unweighted: 3.8
• Rank: N/A
• Other stats: CTY SET — 1400 SAT (7th grade)

Subjective:
• Interviews: 9/10 Deerfield, 8/10 Hotchkiss, 7/10 Andover, 6/10 Middlesex, 6/10 Exeter

• Essays: All essays are good. One super-well-developed life-story essay. Went through many drafts with a lot of outside input, and I spent a ton of time on it.

• Math Rec: 7/10, Good relationship but not super close
• English Rec: 7/10, Good relationship but not super close
• Personal/Extracurricular Rec: 10/10, Personal Rec knew me as a person extraordinarily well, Extracurricular Rec ran Science Olympiad and, through that, knew my character traits incredibly well
• Principal/Counselor Rec: 6/10, Positive relationship but don’t know super well

• Sports (if any): Tennis, competing in Northshore Junior League, play 5 times a week

• Instruments (if any): Viola, but didn’t emphasize much in application

• Other ECs (if any):
Computer Science: CTY course, working on a lot of compsci in my free time
Science Olympiad: First place in two events at state competition
Yearbook: Leading school’s yearbook club
Chess: Started an after-school chess workshop
Community Service: PVSA Silver (75 hours of community service) and part of school’s club
Math Team: part of school’s math team for 3 years, perfect scores at most meets
Drawing: Honorable mention in art contest

• Hook: Essay

Location/Person:
• State or Country: MA
• Current School Type: Public
• Ethnicity: Asian-American
• Gender: Male
• Grade Applying For: 9
• Age: 13
• Financial Aid/Full Pay: FP

Strengths: Work ethic, selflessness, Great recommendations, Great essays

Weaknesses: No “physical” hook (currently mostly about personality and traits), music isn’t strong

Why do you think you were accepted? I worked super hard on my essays. Motivation, time management, and support from transformational people enabled me to get where I am, and I would advise any future applicants to really try if you’re determined to attend a great school. Hard work pays off.

[LeeLeeB]

Accepted: Williston, Milton, George, Westtown
Rejected: Loomis
Wait listed: Tabor
Likely Attending: Milton

Stats:
• SSAT: 92th percentile, submitted only 2nd test
• GPA: idk, fyi not 4.0
• Rank: one of 8 out of 820+ students taking h.s. math on h.s. campus in 8th gr.
• Prestigious Sch Award, usually only for 7th/8th, got 1st trim 6th gr.

Subjective:
• Interviews: I wasn’t there (I’m mom), but got decent idea. Son is very easy to talk to, funny in a sweet way, polite. Accepteds: 9/10 - 10/10. WL: 11/10. Reject: 8/10.

• Essays: same set for every school (SAO app) so probably not a strength (not customized). Definitely the writing of an 8th grader, ranged probably from 7/10 to 8/10 (but idk “good writing” for this age). Essays showed lot of heart.

[RECS: son has strength in social skills/outlook, I told recommenders it is ok (desired!) to comment on his friendships observed in class, his talking to peers]
• Math Rec: blind likely 9/10, 10/10: from hs teacher because takes hs honors in 8th gr., older 9th/10th graders often want to be his partner, teacher really likes him
• Engl Rec: blind likely 9/10, 10/10, teacher’s 1st time ever writing a rec (LPS), son excels, teacher really loves him, think she got to know his personality/social skills.
• English Graded Writing Sample through SAO blind: paper not specially prepped, just assignment he had written in class: she said was great.
• EC Rec: blind likely 9/10, 10/10 from robotics instructor I think he’s retired NASA engineer, freq. works 1-on-1 w/ son, says son completed levels of program faster than any other student in 20 yrs; year-round projects plus summer internship, facility impressive. Huge family sacrifice for this EC (rec might’ve explained that).
• Counselor Rec: very blind, likely 8/10 to 9/10. New counselor, barely knows son.
• EC Rec [extra, mailed]: blind likely 10+/10, by former tchr now h.s. vp: in late elem, son started raising money for marines being sent to war zone (military base near LPS): she found out, he inspired her, they worked closely & it grew to a movement featured on tv. In class she nurtured his talents; she loves son.
• Rec, Math [extra, video in app award link]: 11/10, by prev. math teacher: remarkable moving speech at ceremony, not just on son’s math, but him as a person.

• Sports: sailing, recreational soccer, at younger age jiu jitsu
• Instrument: ukulele
• ECs: robotics, science, school orientation leader, bit of beach clean-up
• Hook: none

Location/Person:
• State: Calif (NOT Bay Area)
• Current School Type: large LPS (well rated but not famous)
• Ethnicity: white but dad not so white (dad immigrant; unusual ethnic minority)
• Gender: M
• Grade Applying For: 9th gr
• Age : 14
• Financial Aid/Full Pay: FA

Strengths: 2 hs classes in 8th gr; recs; interviews; robotics; STEM internship; geogr. diversity; personality & collab. work-style (laid-back/fun, outgoing, caring); school orientation leader (wants to be bs tour guide); a strong Engl rec balanced STEM-leaning app; slight ethnic/relig. diversity; 2 yrs of h.s. French on hs campus in 7th/8th; accelerated in math; SSAT (great score for LPS kid who couldn’t afford private prep). For Milton, Tabor: sailing was a strength.

Weaknesses: lack of varsity caliber athletics; lack of community service; no elected student govt; no statewide/nat’l awards; instrument not prestigious; essays might’ve been weak but maybe okay(?).

Why do you think you were ACCEPTED: I think schools liked he wasn’t a “groomed” applicant, just himself. Middle class (not UMC): might balance a school lacking a socio-economic middle. He made best of opportunities available (sailing is community outreach, soccer B&G Club). We sacrificed to support his ECs, education: zero doubt will take advantage of bs opportunities. Mid-yr C in 7th showed can handle setback, work hard to improve. Son can fill a year-6 adv. French course in future (Fr. becoming less popular, might need that). Weird possible plus: from famous town popular with internation’l tourists & teens (possibly look good on “day in life” bs video…?). Milton: sailing & being non-local boarder. Westtown/George: robotics. Williston: very good personality fit, he’d do Williston Scholars project (hope anyone reading this applies to Williston!!).

WAITLISTED: FA. Cliche, but Tabor school was perfect fit, he was strongly qualified.
REJECTED: Essay on sailing: Loomis does not have sailing. Might not need robotics kid this year or another was stronger. Weakness in athletics, in volunteering. Mom’s boring question forcing AO to explain for 1000th time pelican’s symbolism did not help.

COMMENTS: It is enough if you made the most of the resources that were available to your family, even if not as impressive as other people’s. It’s ok if your life hasn’t been master planned. Just being you might be what they need! Nice goes a long way. Work very hard, but at stuff for (your own joy/fulfillment, not to “get in”). Don’t procrastinate re: SSAT (make vocab flashcards! read NYTimes! Khan Acad!) Book a flight on a credit card, visit! AOs are super friendly, warm, supportive & put you at ease: interviews can be sort of fun!

Even if you know no one who has EVER done this, even if you never considered it until few months ago, go for it! An accept can happen for a kid who is not rich, who isn’t connected, isn’t a star, doesn’t go to private school. And if you don’t get in…at the end of this year, you will be a more complex, empathetic, talented & stronger person than if you had never tried.

[Calliemomofgirls]

Accepted: Andover, Deerfield, Hotchkiss, Loomis (LC Scholar), Mercersburg, Kent, NMH, George

Rejected: Taft

Wait listed: Groton, Middlesex, SPS

Likely Attending: Andover

Stats:
• SSAT/ISEE/TOEFL/PSAT: 80%
• GPA Unweighted/Weighted: 3.9
• Rank:
• Other stats:

Subjective:
• Interviews: Excellent interviewer. DD is very extroverted and well-spoken. Adults always love her.

• Essays: Very strategic in making sure that her top 5-6 main points appeared somewhere in every school’s suite of essays. We made a list of what we felt were the must-know things about her, and no matter what the essay questions were, we made sure to do a check that each of the key points was somewhere in each school’s application. Her writing was fine, but what was more important was making sure that she got across what made her special. I think she did an amazing job with that.

General comments about Recs:
Excellent recs all around. She submitted a few pages to all of her recommenders highlighting her strengths and weaknesses, listing activities, leadership roles, and accomplishments, and sharing her future dreams. Making sure that the recommenders are pointing their arrow at the same target as the applicant is I think a great way to paint a clear picture for the admissions committee. Everyone will have a different experience of my DD – math teacher will talk about her math skills, while English teacher will talk about her writing. But both will speak to their own experiences of the same person. Giving them all some background and a list of activities and accomplishments helps the recommenders remember details, which helps them write a better recommendation. If DK wants to become an astronaut, it’s nice that the math teacher can talk about quantitative skills to get there, while an English teacher can frame up communication skills as being a help on the kid’s way to NASA. (just an example; not my kid specifically)

• Sports (if any): Volleyball (strong but not recruited), Lax, Basketball, soccer (good all-around athlete, but nothing spectacular)
• Instruments (if any): None.

• Other ECs (if any): Student Government, public speaking, Broadcast journalism (writing, editing, filming, directing, TV anchor), philanthropic entrepreneur, baker, works with a large consumer products company in recipe development and as a spokesperson.
• Hook: None.

Location/Person:
• State or Country: California
• Current School Type: public
• Ethnicity: Caucasian
• Gender: F
• Grade Applying For: 9th
• Age: 14
• Financial Aid/Full Pay: Partial FA

Strengths:
Strong people skills, leadership, 2 years ahead in math (so, probably average for BS crowd!), philanthropic background, business experience, organized thinker and big future dreams that she has shown progress on over past ten years.

Weaknesses:
Soft test scores. No performing arts at all. A medium athlete. Did not submit the character assessment.

Why do you think you were accepted/rejected/waitlisted?
Accepted: DD applied where she really saw a fit and could make a clear case for how she would fit in at the school. She truly wanted to attend the schools where she applied, and it showed. After visiting/interviewing at schools in the fall, we removed several schools from her application list entirely, as they were not good fits. The WL schools – Mx and SPS – they were actually both on our “consider cutting” list. We liked them, but didn’t feel complete love for them. In the end, we decided to keep them because we liked them enough to apply and get more info at revisits if she got in (ha on both accounts!). Groton (WL) – she loved. We both did. But, it’s a small school and it’s simple math that they can’t accept everyone. I also wonder if they wisely saw her as being someone who might not thrive there at the age of 18. DD has a big personality and is very extroverted. I did secretly worry a bit that Groton could feel small to her after a couple of years. The rejection: Taft – not sure. But for whatever reason, we were not surprised. They were the least “friendly” school during the application process, and by the time mid-February came around, we were mentally crossing them off our list I think. So M10 wasn’t a surprise, nor really a disappointment.

I highly recommend the approach of not picking a first choice early on, but just deciding: do I like the school enough to apply? And then applying to a wide range of schools without getting too emotionally attached to any one school. That said, my DD had two top choices after interviews if we were honest about it. And it worked out for her. But, honestly, we would have been super thrilled with any of the options. And we attended virtual revisits for most of them, and kept an open mind. But after all the due diligence, DD confirmed that Andover is the place for her next fall.