I am guessing @andover20___ is desperate for someone to brag to and doesn’t have any friends who want to listen or maybe he is a legacy who really shouldn’t have been accepted but was and is now giddy. No other explanation. FYI Andover is a fantastic institution always in the lists of best schools depending on which publication. They let in a huge number of legacies at a rate of 58% compared to 10%everyone else. Even Palfrey had to defend against the practice of big donor admits. No harm, they all do it. Exeters total percentage of legacy is 16.5%. Andover doesn’t disclose their number. Claiming a school is superior over and over using accusations of bigotry and intolerance and searching for rankings by venerable publications like NICHE isn’t quite doing it. Remember these lists are only looking at schools that people can pay for or get in on a subsidy. They also don’t compare to day schools. So you have Stuyvesant, Hunter, Trinity, Collegiate, and the list goes on and on. Best? What does that mean?
Please, @Center , can you try harder to find harsher words and more speculations to say to a student? And your case about the legacy has many holes if you don’t see them, but I’m done “arguing” with you now that your motive becomes pretty clear. Carry on
I don’t see the point about arguing about all of this…ultimately, whatever high school you go to, whether it be Andover,another boarding school, or a public school, you will need to carve a path for yourself. I’m sure that nearly every boarding school has the resources to aloow every student to thrive, and it really boils down to an individuals students will to take advantage of the vast resources.
And @Center no need to berate @andover20___ I agree that someone not going to Andover yet shouldn’t be posting all of this stuff, however it is also wrong to make such generalizations about big donor admits and legacies, as was pointed out above. Make your generalizations about these students after actually interacting with them at Andover. I happen to know plenty of intelligent ones…
@andover20___ Perhaps you should stop pasting all of these links for rankings. I can tell you for certain they they are not some sort of be all end all. When these rankings come out, we at Andover always have a good laugh about them, jokingly fire some shots at Exeter, then move on. We know the quality of our school by actually experiencing it, just as an Exeter student knows how special their school is.
MODERATOR’S NOTE:
While I find the initial question pointless, I am keeping the thread open…for now. However, as a reminder, from Terms of Service:
Also remember, College Confidential is not a debating society. Please feel free to express your point of view and your respectful disagreement of someone else’s. However, you are unlikely to convert anyone to your POV so once you’ve given your opinion, no need to restate it again and again, here or again on a different thread.
If you are wondering if I am referring to one of your posts, chances are that I am. Please dial it back.
I’m not going to let andover20___ cherry pick the lists he presents so I’ve posted the two first links below when you google “Best Boarding Schools”.
http://www.thebestschools.org/features/best-boarding-schools-in-us/
http://www.businessinsider.com/most-elite-boarding-schools-in-the-us-2014-12?op=1
Also, @Center keep up the good work.
I think any school in the top 20 is probably the best prep school. They’re all basically identical in terms of the education you’ll recieve.
@GryffinHunter Really? Good work? Now that you have posted “your rankings”, let @Center’s “good work” directed to you then - "desperate for someone to brag to and doesn’t have any friends who want to listen or maybe he is a legacy who really shouldn’t have been accepted but was and is now giddy. "
Ugh… Just ugh. I should have known better than to open given the thread title.
@skieurope Sure you don’t want to reconsider closing this thread? X_X
The best school is the one where my son will be happy and will have opportunities to thrive.
The best school is the one with self-less kids with an appetite for learning and a thirst to change the world.
The best school does not make you Harvard material. Only you can make you Harvard material.
The best school does not have be Andover or Exeter. It just has to provide you with 4 memorable years.
@panpacific I posted the rankings I googled to show that different lists say different schools are better instead of cherry-picking the lists to support my next statement that the top 20 schools are all the best schools and similar in terms of education.
I wasn’t going to repost any of his links because that would be repetitive and I posted those lists saying exactly where I got them from. It definitely wasn’t a post to say Exeter is better-and the statement I make directly after supports that idea.
Andover20__ asks for other links. I provided.
@GryffinHunter There are right ways and there are wrong ways to be engaged in discussions and debates. The bar should be higher for adults who choose to post on an Internet board that teenagers frequent. I called on Center not because I disagreed with her points of views but because of the way she criticized a student who I myself thought was somewhat misguided. That sort of harshness and meanness shouldn’t be encouraged regardless what and who the poster was defending. I hope you could get that. Of course, posters adults and kids, who choose to come here to exchange ideas and engage in civil discourse all should learn - through mistakes sometimes - what boundaries we shouldn’t cross. I am sure that’s part of what you learn at school as well. Cheers!
Where I come from, if you tell someone that your kid goes to a school in US or Canada or Europe, that’s the best school already. Regardless of ranking, prestige, status - the best school is a school that lay an equal path or opportunity for your next destination, wherever it is leading to.
As for a parent - the best is always the cheapest that meets your end destination.
I believe I made myself clear in my comment above. Since people are ignoring simple directions, combined with the fact that it seems the OP has left the building, this thread is closed.