my son will be attending andover next year as a freshman. i am a little concerned by the size of the school but he is excited and more than enthusiastic to attend. just wondering if anyone can give advice on best way to get off to a good start.
This thread has some good advice (for any school).
Socially: Start small by working to get to know his roommate and others in his dorm. Adding in those who will be members of whatever athletic team or activity he will do in the fall as well as students in his fall term classes. Finally look to join a club or two when they hold their club rally in mid-September. Pretty soon he will have found a group where he fits best and feels most comfortable.
Academically: Learn to manage his time. Needs to find a good balance between priority number one of getting his work done, but also finding time to hangout with friends, go into town, etc. My son was so concerned about his grades the first few weeks that he didn’t think he could afford to take that hour to go to Mr. Gelato with friends. Over time he not only learned to balance everything, but found how best to use free periods and conference time to his benefit.
My son went from a very small catholic school with only 12 kids in his grade to Andover and never found the size overwhelming. He actually loved the diversity and size of the student population as well as the tremendous number of other opportunities that he had the chance to explore.