<p>First, you have to make a personal assessment: how well have you done so far in your public school and how well do you think you will do junior year? Are you currently taking the hardest classes offered (honors/AP/per-AP/IB)? What do you predict your UNWEIGHTED gpa will be? Any idea of test scores? Activities and leadership? Awards?</p>
<p>If your gpa is 3.8+ unweighted now and you predict it will remain that high, you are (or will be) taking a tough course load with lots of honors/AP classes and you are involved in solid activities and either currently in leadership positions or will be in leadership positions in junior year, I don't see that attending a boarding school will help you with admittance to JHU, Brown and/or Georgetown.</p>
<p>Colleges look at each application based on how well the applicant took advantage of the opportunities available -- that is why they aren't all that impressed when rich kids go on volunteering trips to Thailand. They are impressed with kids who work part-time to help support the family, attend a crappy public school and still get great test scores, high gpas taking really tough courses, hold leadership positions and involve themselves in their community.</p>
<p>Let me clear up a few misconceptions -- musicallylatin is correct, schools generally don't have a specific limit to the number of students they will take from a certain school. However, they are going to look at the applicants and compare them to other applicants from their own school (and the regional pool in general). They aren't looking for the "top 3" kids from public school USA or the "top 10" kids from East Coast Boarding School. They will look at each applicant and decide how well they fit into the class they are creating at their school. </p>
<p>You need to understand the matriculation data you are getting from the boarding schools compared to the matriculation data you are getting from your public school. Boarding schools admit students after a rigorous application process -- they don't take every kid who walks through the door. So from the very start, every kid in the top boarding schools probably compares to the top 10 - 15% of your public school. Out of those top kids, there will be a number of recruited athletes, legacies (and double and triple legacies), some really outstanding minority students and some kids that are developmental cases (kids whose parents have big money that will help boost a colleges endowment -- think millions of possible donations).</p>
<p>So -- considering that every student at the BS is pretty solid academically when they started and that a good chunk of those will have some hooks -- , I would be shocked if the matriculation data wasn't as good as it is. If you could get the data on how many unhooked kids were admitted from the BS, you might find that it didn't do any better in admission than your public school did.</p>
<p>Entering Junior year may hurt you in your bid to enter the colleges you list -- leadership positions at your BS will be difficult to get. Some require an election -- so being an unknown will hurt. Some will require a certain class or past activity, some leadership positions will have been selected the previous year. Top schools look for students to demonstrate leadership -- so having none Junior year (compared to having some at your public school) may really hurt you.</p>
<p>Activities and top classes may be hard to get into at your BS -- depending on the graduation requirements and the requirements to participate in certain activities/classes, you may find that you are taking Health 101 or Intro to World Literature instead of AP European History. Some activities may be very popular (like Model UN or Debate) and may have a waiting list, with you at the bottom.</p>
<p>Then lets think about grades -- which are very important on a college application. You apply to colleges in fall, and if you apply ED the school doesn't even see your first semester senior year grades -- so the only grades they will see is your junior year grades at BS. Junior year is considered to be the most difficult year, and the most important one. You may not do as well as you think when you change schools -- you will be adjusting to living away from home, making new friends, having a roommate, new time constraints and rules, new teachers, new school, etc. I am sure if you are a good student, you will do ok -- but that first semester may have a few B's or even a C -- compared to a 4.0 at your public school, that may really hurt.</p>
<p>Finally -- if you enter boarding school with a 3.9 or 4.0, don't expect them to calculate that gpa into your junior grades. While the BS will take your current credits, most will not calculate the gpa with grades from another school. So -- your class rank (if the school ranks) and your gpa will be based solely on that junior year. </p>
<p>There are a number of excellent reasons to attend boarding school -- both my sons attend -- however, increasing your chances of acceptance into a top school is not one of them. </p>
<p>From what you have posted about your public school, I think your chances would be much better if you invested your time and energy into your current school -- make sure the courses your take are the hardest available and you get top grades. Prepare for the SAT and/or ACT. involve yourself in both your school and your community and look for leadership positions. </p>
<p>In order to distinguish yourself from all the other kids applying to JHU, Georgetown and/Brown, try and do something different. Look into a semester boarding school program like The Rocky Mountain Semester at the High Mountain Institute, consider a study abroad program, look at a summer internship -- or think about what you do that is your passion or that distinguishes you. That will give you the boost you are looking for.</p>