<p>What do you guys think?</p>
<p>I will be a second year sophmore at Andover this fall, and I am considering applying to Westminster for 11th and 12th grade because I hope to attend Oxford or Cambridge for college.</p>
<p>What are my chances of getting into Westminster from PA?
Is this a wise decision?</p>
<p>what are your other reasons for the switch?</p>
<p>i guess maybe if you were sure westminster would help you get into oxford/cambridge.... but even then....is it really worth leaving your current school and all your friends to start all over agian?</p>
<p>also, is it common for people at prep schools like andover to suddenly apply elsewhere???</p>
<p>No it's not common at all,</p>
<p>I love my school, it truly is the best in the States, but I'm just the type who's always aching for more.</p>
<p>I want to attend Oxbridge as well! :) I'll be attending Andover in autumn as a 9th grader. Oxbridge is very, very important to me, so I looked into it before applying, and I am pretty confident that Andover will prepare you well for Oxbridge.
It would be quite difficult to get into Westminster. I am sure you must an excellent student, attending Andover and all, but Westminster is very exclusive, very expensive, and it would be very difficult for you to come in as an American and eleventh grader. I believe that you can still get into Oxford or Cambridge from Andover. Unless you are very unhappy, I would advise you to remain at Andover.</p>
<p>I would suggest you approach this decision by looking at the reverse situation -- do you think that a student currently attending Westminster as a sophomore this year would need to transfer to Andover in order to increase their chances at getting into Harvard, Princeton or Yale? How hard do you think it would be to transfer into Andover from Westminster for 11th grade and what problems do you think that student would have at the new school?</p>
<p>I honestly think you would have an excellent chance at attending Oxbridge coming from Andover -- especially if you excel in the areas that Oxbridge is looking at: test scores (particularly AP test scores), grades and the interview (which is very different than a typical college interview). As long as you have what they want, you have an excellent chance of getting in.</p>
<p>There might be some wisdom to that. Out of 30 some Andover applicants to Oxford, Cambridge, and LSE only one person got into any of them--PMH to Oxford. </p>
<p>They don't like us across the pond.</p>
<p>Okay, whoa. I heart Oxford as well, but I'm staying at Andover. Message immediately, s'il vous plait, because I am a second year sophomore who urgently needs to know who you are and why leaving Upper Year seems like a good idea. </p>
<p>What I'm doing is getting involved in Oxbridge affiliated programs. Next summer I'm going to England to study journalism on one of their campuses. I really feel like Andover can prepare you for any of those top British schools, and besides, if that falls through, American colleges are still options. If you're off in Westminster and you realize that Oxford or Cambridge are no longer realistic, how have your chances at their American counterparts changed? </p>
<p>If you love Andover and the only reason for you to leave is for Oxford, you have to consider how much going abroad would help and how much leaving Andover would hurt.</p>
<p>That's my two cents. Two pence. Whatever.</p>
<p>Also, this year three kids applied to Oxford and one got in. Considering the low number of applicants, that's not any worse than Andover kids applying to Harvard or Yale.</p>
<p>I also think that there is a huge difference between what top/ivies in the US are looking for and what Oxford/Cambridge is looking for. They really want to see those AP test scores (the website I looked at said they are looking for a minimum of three tests -- 5,5,4 or 5,5,5). The interview is also completely different -- do some google searching. I could see a top student from Andover completely bombing it if they weren't prepared for the interview -- and my understanding is that your stats (GPA, class rigor, AP test scores, SAT test scores) just gets you into the consideration pile. The interview is what will get you into the school -- you really have to shine in it. That is very different from her in the US.</p>
<p>i dont think it's that hard, 2 years ago, 5 kids applied to Oxbridge and LSE, 3 kids got in ...but they are all b**chy about all these conditions, like you HAVE to take the AP test for the senior AP classes and have to get however many 5s in those...ended up only 1 decided to go to oxford ...the other kid turned down cambridge for emory becoz of all those stupid requirements, and the last kid who got into LSE ended up at UNC-CH.</p>
<p>Hmmm... so what about Westminster applications? Would they be accepting of a strong student from Andover? Are they big on the interview like Oxford and Cambridge, or if not.. what is their main criterion for admission? Is admission as competitive as prep school admission here in the States?</p>
<p>And, above all, is the education greater at a British top school than at an American top school?</p>
<p>I believe that Westminster does accept applications for the Sixth Form, but it is extremely competitive. You can check their website for more information on that.
Keep in mind that the British public schools are different than the American prep schools. British public schools are extremely traditional (just consider the fact that the boys of Eton wear tailsuits six days a week, and, what's more, the boys themselves voted to keep them), proud of their several century-long histories, and not ashamed of their exclusiveness. None of those are bad things, but they are differences. Whether they provide a greater education than American prep schools is a matter of opinion. They certainly offer a different education, but better depends on the pupil and on what you think is a better outcome. For an excellent account of an Eton experiance, read Stand Before Your God: An American Schoolboy in England by Paul Watkins.
In the end, though, I think that you would be better off staying at Andover. Andover will prepare you academically for Oxbridge coursework, and, with some effort on your part, you can make sure it will prepare you for the interview and admissions.</p>
<p>Seems silly to me.</p>
<p>Andover is superb, and keep in mind, if you don't get into Oxbridge/LSE, then you should stick with an American school. Also, if you go to boarding school in England, that makes you an international student; you'd have a more difficult application in the States.</p>
<p>sonar
oxford '10</p>
<p>sonar -- just a point of correction, US citizens attending school in the UK (or anywhere) are still considered US applicants when applying to colleges in the US (both public and private). they are not international students -- unless they don't have US citizenship or a green card.</p>
<p>What's the deal with these 'conditions'? Do they make you pass x number of AP tests?</p>
<p>How would one prep for the interview</p>
<p>they accept you with conditions.... like they conditionally accept you. But say you are taking 5 AP courses senior year...u know many kids dont really take the AP tests senior year...but they WILL make you take it, and you have to score 5s on a certain number of them..... say they might say, you have to score 5s on at least 3 out of the 5 APs you are taking..or else the acceptance is invalid</p>
<p>Oh, that's a bummer.</p>
<p>
[quote]
sonar -- just a point of correction, US citizens attending school in the UK (or anywhere) are still considered US applicants when applying to colleges in the US (both public and private). they are not international students -- unless they don't have US citizenship or a green card.
[/quote]
Really? That's good to know. I heard that many institutions put students in the "region" according to the current high school; hence, a kid going to Andover from N. Dakota gets shafted in the regional pool. I assumed/heard the same was true of those living abroad. Perhaps I was wrong.</p>
<p>There is a difference when you are talking about "geographic diversity" and the whether an applicant is considered an international/US applicant. </p>
<p>Colleges have limited visas available for international students, limited funding (International students do not qualify for federal funding) and the pool is significantly more competitive. Even schools that are need-blind for US applicants are not often need-blind for internationals students.</p>
<p>I say go for it...</p>
<p>My cousin fromHong kong goes to a British Boarding school. she went there after 1 year of prep school in HK. I dont talk to her often but the last time i did, she said it was kinda hard at first fitting in, but she found her friends after all. She likes it there.</p>