<p>Hi everyone,
I am a high school student in Canada. For those of you who don't know, high school ends after 11th grade here, so I was thinking of applying to a prep school after 11th and redoing that grade. Is that even a possibility? I've been told it is. But, would there be another, superior option. Such as applying after 10th and redoing 10th, as I am going into 10th grade this year? Thanks for your help!</p>
<p>Your best option is to apply for 10th and redo it. This is fairly typical among US prep schools and no one thinks it strange and the colleges are fine with it.</p>
<p>Thanks a lot makennacompton, I heard the same, but was just making sure there wasn’t a better option.</p>
<p>Would the acceptance rates drop though?</p>
<p>11th grade is virtually impossible to get into.</p>
<p>How impossible are we talking about? 10%?</p>
<p>As an example, the new students at Andover will be comprised of approximately 220 9th graders, 75 10 graders, 25 11th graders, and 30 seniors/post-grads. Divide the numbers in 2 to separate by gender. I don’t know if any school releases acceptance rate by grade, but I imagine they are fairly similar. The raw numbers though don’t work in your favor.</p>
<p>Alright, thanks for the stats. But would you know how many people apply to each grade? Therefore we can determine the acceptance percentage.</p>
<p>It is only known how many people apply to the school, I do not believe the information for applicants to each grade is released publicly, at least not at Andover.</p>
<p>Ok, thanks for the help. If anyone else has further information, it would be greatly appreciated.</p>
<p>Some of this info was published in the school newspaper at Concord last year (but not this year). Last year they had 49 applicants for 2 spots in the junior class. Entry into the sophomore class was much easier but still harder than as a freshman. They probably had even more junior applications this year because overall applications were significantly higher. The typical number of new students is 80-90 freshmen, 10-20 sophomores, and 1-3 juniors.</p>
<p>Are you talking about a postgraduate year? Or are you talking about just jumping into the American education system after finishing in Canada? Sorry, I’m a little confused. </p>
<p>Jumping into the American system. I know it sounds weird, but America has a superior level of education, and has all the “brand name” schools, which my parents are crazy for.</p>
<p>I was thinking of finishing high school in Canada, which is one year less than the states, and redoing grade 11. But is that extremely hard to do in terms of the limited acceptances for grade 11?</p>
<p>Well, first, it is difficult by the limited acceptances, but it’s not impossible. Second, don’t go to a school just for the name, because that can end really badly. Third, it sounds as if Canada has an entirely different way of going through the school system than we do- I’m not sure how it lines up. You will have to check with individual schools and possibly take placement tests to see which grade you are eligible to go into based on academic preparedness. You might be asked to be placed in tenth grade, or you might be told that you can go straight into senior year. That’s the first thing to worry about before acceptances, because you may not even be ready for eleventh grade in the States, depending on how the systems line up. </p>
Your best option is to apply for 10th and redo it. This is fairly typical among US prep schools and no one thinks it strange and the colleges are fine with it.
I applied to top tier prep schools for my junior year (Andover, Exeter) and was waitlisted. Getting in junior year is the hardest year, so I would recommend applying repeat sophomore year, if you can. If I could do it all over again, that’s what I would do.
@ProudCanadian, I wholeheartedly agree with @makennacompton. Repeat the 10th grade.
As stated, it is almost an order of magnitude (aka 10 times easier) to garner acceptance as a 10th grader repeating. It is very common. It is also great for you because it will give you a year to acclimate to American schools before the 11th grade. 11th grade is the most difficult year and is commonly considered very stressful. And, best of all, if you find and are accepted by a school that you truly love, you will have the chance to spend three years there. It makes a world of difference. You will have had a full experience of the school, not just “get in, get out”. Best of luck!