<p>Hi I thought I would start this discussion as a way for any one applying to boarding schools this year to talk. So for your first post make a list of the schools you are applying/ visiting and you status with these schools also when you are taking the ssats, if you are a domestic or international applicant, current favorite school, what grade you are in and what grade you are applying for. I will start:
Groton (Interviewed and toured working on candidate profile)
Andover (Interviewed and toured have not decided whether or not I will apply)
Hotchkiss (Interviewed and toured working on candidate profile)
Middlesex (interview and tour scheduled for this month)
Deerfield (interview and tour scheduled for next month)
Choate (interview and tour scheduled for next month)</p>
<p>SSAT: scheduled for October and November
Domestic
Current favorite: Groton
Current grade: 8th
Applying for: 9th</p>
<p>Exeter (will interview soon, will definitely apply)
Andover (will interview soon, will definitely apply)
Lawrenceville (will interview soon, will definitely apply)
Deerfield (will interview soon, will definitely apply)
Hotchkiss (will interview soon, will definitely apply)
Groton (will interview soon, will definitely apply)
Choate (will interview soon, will definitely apply)
Milton (will probably apply)
St. Paul’s (have not decided if I am applying here)
Taft (have not decided if I am applying here)
Kent (have not decided if I am applying here)</p>
<p>SSAT: scheduled for October, November, and December
Domestic
Current favorite: Exeter
Current grade: 8th
Applying for: 9th</p>
<p>What kind of counselor? Your school needs to send forms, transcripts and a letter, so you need some kind of guidance counselor or placement counselor. But you don’t need a private educational counselor to successfully navigate the process. Some people find one useful in making a list of possible/likely schools or sprucing up your application, but they’re very expensive and you don’t NEED to have one (we did not use one and my son got in everywhere he applied). I would guess the majority if applicants don’t use one, although I don’t know the actual numbers. Probably more applicants in major urban areas–like NYC-- use them that those from other areas. In my experience, many international kids, especially from S. Korea or China, seem to have used them–but that’s just my impression from international kids I’ve talked to at my son’s school.</p>
<p>My school has a High school counselor who is a teacher, who parents and students can meet with to answer questions etc. It is also very normal at my school for kids to have tutors for the SSATs I even know of a girl who has 2 separate tutors one for the verbal, and reading comp. and another for math. I have a friend who had a boarding school consultant, but it really isn’t necessary.</p>
<p>Do most people schedule the SSAT twice just in case they don’t do as well as they hoped? And what if you do get and outstanding score, do you cancel the other test?</p>
<p>at least from my experience lots of people schedule to take the SSATs twice because it doesn’t hurt your score to take twice so unless you get a perfect score the first time you have the opportunity to do better the second time also the slots fill up quickly so if you probably wont be able to retake it if you don’t schedule early. If you get an outstanding score you cancel I guess.</p>
<p>If you live in an area where the test seats fill up early, then it makes sense to schedule two tests in a row to avoid having to wait two months for another test even if you may lose the test fee by deciding not to take the second test. In our area, the seats don’t fill up so we can register after the results come out in about 10 days after the test (late registration fee applies though.) </p>