<p>I'm a new lower (sophomore) at Andover. I'm a boarder, but I live about an hour away. Ask me any questions you have!</p>
<p>I live pretty close too. How often do you get to go visit your home? And how’s the work load? Is it hard to adjust to?</p>
<p>I don’t visit often (haven’t gone home yet this year, but will next weekend), but my parents come every weekend for lunch. I could probably go home more often, but I like being at school with my friends. The workload’s tough, but not overwhelmingly so. I’m naturally pretty easy-going, but a lot of my friends are stressed. There’s definitely enough time to get everything done though, especially since all of my friends understand since they have just as much work to do.</p>
<p>Just wanted to know if there are segregations between international and national students?and if you would consider the school liberal. I hope these questions are not offensive in any way</p>
<p>There definitely isn’t segregation between international students and students from the US, which is actually one of my favorite things about going here. I live in a small dorm, and the majority of the other people in the dorm are international students. We all get along really well. I think international students have an easier time bonding at first- it’s easy to relate to someone when you’re both experiencing being completely new to a country- but after that initial advantage, everyone’s pretty much equally close. I would probably consider the student body to have a pretty strong liberal leaning (especially socially), but the classes themselves don’t, and I still know several conservative students. We just did an election spotlight for all school meeting in which both Dee Dee Myers (Democrat) and Jeb Bush (Republican) spoke, so students do get to hear both viewpoints.
Nah, the questions are fine 
Glad to be helpful!</p>
<p>Do you have time (when your not studying) to really pursue other interests, such as sports?</p>
<p>Yeah, I do. I’m not really interested in sports, but I play guitar about an hour a day, and I like to write and read in my free time. I also have a friend who went to a dance school previously, and she spends a lot of time dancing. People are really involved in extracurriculars here.</p>
<p>Does your friend feel the dance program at Andover is strong?</p>
<p>She absolutely loves it. She has a big part in The Nutcracker, and she’s made a lot of really close friends through dance. The arts programs here are really great overall.</p>
<p>What did you get on your SSAT and what did you write your essay on?</p>
<p>Hey! I’m also a new lower at Andover this year, so I’ll chime in.</p>
<p>I did pretty well on my SSATs, getting above a 90% overall. But honestly the SSAT shouldn’t be a huge priority. I know kids who got in with SSAT scores in the 70’s. Just aim to do your best on the SSAT.</p>
<p>The essay is more important. I kinda forget what I wrote my essay on because I wrote it last August, but I remember it was a really good essay. For the essay, I’d recommend getting them out of the way as early as possible. Also, I’d recommend spreading them out over a long period of time so you don’t wind up with a ton of work in December and January.</p>
<p>Sorry for the late reply! I did very well on the SSATSs, but I agree that it’s overall one of the least important aspects of your application. As long as you get a decent score, you’ll be able to get in if the rest of your application is strong.
I wrote my essay about a television show that caused me to get interested in politics Make sure you write about something you’re passionate about, and let that passion show. Definitely spend a while revising the essay.</p>
<p>Thanks for the great information. I am worried about keeping my grades up at Andover. I am an A student (8th grade) in a pretty tough school. I take accelerated math, spanish 3 and all the basic stuff. I haven’t taken the SSAT, but have taken the SAT and scored well. I am also in EC’s and sports… but something really worries me about not being able to maintain A’s at Andover. Help!</p>
<p>How about parents on campus? Does the school allow parents to visit and do things on campus or is it just on the weekends?</p>
<p>Regarding your worries about keeping good grades- try not to worry about it too much. Everyone who comes to Andover feels the same way, and the fact that you’re applying says a lot about your ambition and ability to work hard I think it’s possible to get straight A’s as long as you’re willing to work hard, and even if you don’t do as well as you’d like, you’ll still learn a ton. Also, if you’re worried about colleges- they definitely understand the Andover is a really hard school, so your grades don’t need to be perfect to get in somewhere good. </p>
<p>[Assuming you’d be a boarder.] Parents don’t visit much, but there’s no rule against it. A lot of my international student friends’ parents come during the week since it’s more convenient for them. I live nearby, so my parents just visit on the weekend.</p>
<p>Hi, and thanks for taking the time here! I have great respect for Andover, and am curious on a couple of points. Obviously, everyone is bright at Andover. I’ve heard that for some, it can be a real whack to their self-esteem (aka “whatever you think you’re good in, you’re not”…because someone else is even more brilliant). Is this true, and do some kids start to really doubt themselves because of it? Is it only the most gifted that don’t suffer some in their self image?</p>
<p>Also, I’ve heard that there is a saying to the effect that the only day worth it at Andover is graduation day… I take that to mean the rest is just a long slog of hard work. Again, your thoughts? </p>
<p>Some of this may be just how Andover is perceived from the outside, so the perspective of those that are there and living it is really helpful.</p>
<p>I don’t think your self image will suffer too much. In your classes, usually everyone in the class seems like they belong their. For example, I’m in a lower level math class. Everyone in this class is about at the same level in math. Even in my English class, there is no one who stands out as a “super genius” and no one who looks like they shouldn’t be there, and they don’t belong.</p>
<p>As for the graduation day thing, I don’t think that’s true, or widespread thinking. I’ve never heard that before.</p>
<p>I do think that at first, your self-esteem suffers a lot-mine certainly did. But everyone excels at something, and if you work hard, you’ll be able to succeed.
I’ve also never heard the graduation day thing. I think the vast majority of students here genuinely love it.</p>
<p>Wow, this is great - so helpful. </p>
<p>How do the kids without hooks do on college placement? Those that aren’t legacies, URMs, athletes, etc. I’d imagine they’d be at a huge relative disadvantage? </p>
<p>Besides college placement, what drew you to Andover?</p>
<p>And yeah - lots of questions here - what are your thoughts about potentially being a smaller fish in a big pond vs where you no doubt could have gone and been a big fish in a small pond?</p>
<ol>
<li>I’m only a sophomore, so I’m not sure about how college applications work here. I would agree that it probably is much harder to stand out at a school with so many talented people, but at the same time, colleges definitely admire students who attend such a rigorous school.</li>
<li>Andover was the first boarding school I got interested in, and it was always my dream school. It’s an extremely welcoming place, and it has strong programs in pretty much anything imaginable. Obviously, it’s a great school academically, but it’s also a great place to explore new interests. I also got the impression that the school was a bit less “hardcore” in terms of academic rigor than some other top schools. Kids at Andover work hard, but they’re still able to socialize.</li>
<li>I definitely see was you mean about turning into a small fish in big pond, but I think Andover also helps me realize my full potential. For example, I’ve always been good at writing, but I’ve improved by a huge amount just in the two months I’ve been here. I’ve been pushed to excel, which I think is ultimately more rewarding (and impressive) than just coasting in a mediocre public school.</li>
</ol>