<p>Above all though vanilla, make SURE you portray yourself as someone who is mature and can cope well to different problems. Be it through your essays, interview, or a combination of both, it is essential that you cast that image somehow somewhere because that is the first thing the admissions committee looks for. Other than that, i agree with what everyone said that you look good on paper (i'm not insinuating anything but just in case, don't try to sound snotty in your essays about your past)</p>
<p>The main reason the people here at xeter are so amazing is the fact that everyone is so open, truthful, and genuine.No matter who you are, people won't exclude you from anything. </p>
<p>Yes, we all help each other out whether we realize it or not. Sometimes it's just by hanging out together, working on homework together, or just being there for moral support (there are student listeners who you can go to if you want if you have problems so that way its easier to admit things because for a lot of people it would be harder going to a adult). I personally haven't had a problem yet, thank God, and really haven't seen people have any problems with being left out. What I have seen though is people who are kind of homesick and are going through a really emotional stage... maybe they just don't feel like they can open up to other people and let their problems out? This tends to happen to girls more than boys for obvious reasons. But I mean if you are prepared and don't arrive with any preconcieved notions about what you are expecting, how you are expecting to fit in, and aren't necessarily trying to find someone to form a relationship with, you won't have that problem. Someone I know who is going through that right now actually applied to boarding school just to get away from the clicks of her old school so I'm not sure if she came here for the right reason and I think that may be the cause of her problems. But again, you'll only go through that problem if you don't come prepared emotionally and don't have any expectations about meeting people which the majority of people don't have a problem with.</p>
<p>Throughout my time on CC I've alwas wondered what the true atmosphere of boarding school would be like. some people called it cut-throat while others tagged the experience as more lax than anything. So far for me though, I haven't really experienced that cutthroat environment here at PEA yet. Maybe it might be because of a lot of people still adjusting to living away from home (although it seems like we've been here forevever in a good way) or even because winter still hasn't come (which restricts students to staying indoors and focusing more on work). My best guess as to why I haven't experienced too much competitiveness though is because I haven't tried to get involoved with that community. I believe that your experience at bs depends more upon the network of friends you create tahn the actualy school community. If you involve yourself with competitive top notch grade A students, you have to expect cometitiveness to a certain degree but you don't necessarily have to expect it as much if you involve yourself more with the type of person who goes to school to benefit from it.</p>
<p>From the little that I have seen and experienced of the HArkness table, I can say that it really makes things more interesting.for instance, when you sit down with a group of peers and discuss all the different facets of say a short story, one usually comes out of the discussion with a greater appreciation for it because no matter how well you think you understand something, someone else can interpret that same thing in a different way. It really gives you a broader understanding and makes you expand your horizons while opening up your mind to new ideas. The only problem that I have had with the table so far is actually in math class. In the class I'm in, we are using problems which apply knowledge that never was really taught at my old school. Because students here go and discoer the method of solving a problem on their own before they are guided toward a possibly easier way, I have had some trouble. But again, that's really something you can seek out help on.</p>
<p>Sorry it took me so long to respond. I've been busy with work, friends,sleep, and some other things so I haven't really had the time to sit down and post on this forum. Now everything is beginning to settle so hopefully I'll be here a bit more often.</p>
<p>Surprisingly enough, we really haven't been loaded with homework, yet. Even when you are though, it is possible to have free time if you stay on top of it and don't let it pile up.</p>
<p>Anyway, I hope that I answered some questions. Please tell me if anything I said was not clear so I can clarify. I'm just kind of in a hurry because I have to meet up with someone to go watch the varsity soccer team. GO BIG RED!!!</p>