Hi, I am applying to all of these schools for 9th grade. On the ISEE I earned 7,9,7,7 my parents are not allowing me to retake because I was aiming for 8s and 9s. I go to a well-known middle school that has great relationships with these schools. My school has a peculiar grading system where the highest score you can get is an E. I have been getting all Es since 6th grade except for the first quarter where I got an E- (just behind an E). I have been doing cross country and track for 7 years, I garden (3 years), crochet(two years), sew(3-4 years), drama club (5 years), choir (2 years), and art club (3 years), tour guide for my school (occasionally for 1 year), tutor ELA, Math, Essays(3 years), Film Club (soon to be a year), Feminist and Folklore Club (1 year), etc (I do so many clubs it takes me a few minutes to remember them). (I do have safety schools: Dominican Academy, Notre Dame High School of Manhattan, Bronx Science, Stuyvesant, Beacon High).
My essay for Spence, Riverdale, Trinity was about how I was sent to live and study abroad when I was 1-6 years old because my parents needed time to fully settle in NYC and buy a house, etc... I spoke about how when I came back I was illiterate and the language/ cultural barriers empowered me to find ways to communicate with peers, work hard to achieve academic excellence, and how I told myself to surpass my own limits and that one never fails, they just give up. For Chapin's short responses, they asked what I am passionate about and I talked about the words and how much they can mean. They also asked about I time when I showed leadership and I spoke about how I split up a dispute between two younger children over who got to play with a toy. Then they asked me something from my culture that I value and I spoke about how my culture strongly values respect, especially for elders. For Brearley's short responses, they asked who I would invite to speak at Brearley as a guest and I said Thomas Sankara. I talked about my love for history how I found out about him through a documentary I watched and how he made a difference in a group of corrupt politicians and increased the literacy rate from about 3% to 71% within two years in power. He also decreased the homelessness rate by building affordable yet comfortable housing. He also supported women's right to an advanced education even though he grew up in a sexist society. I talked about how I and surely other students would love to be as influential as he was. They also asked about my family's truth and I connected it to a quote by Augustus, "hasten slowly". I explained that my family believed that advancing with caution was always our way of life. We worked hard but made sure not to underestimate any challenges. I talked about how I wake up at 3:50 a.m. and go to bed around 9:30, am valedictorian, run 60-65 miles a week, etc...
My interviews went fairly well. I regret having done my Spence interview first because it was my 3rd choice. (Here are my rankings for these schools: Riverdale, Trinity, Spence, Chapin, and Brearley). The woman interviewing me intimidated me a lot so I constantly stuttered I already have a stuttering problem and I cope with it by trying to speak even faster which I know is not a good solution (I did better in my following interviews). She asked why I would like to go to an all-girls school (was also asked this at Chapin). I answered that it would be a great way for me to be surrounded by empowered women and how like many other girls, my voice would not be shut down by gender norms. Asked what I did over the summer and I talked about how every summer I go over the curriculum I will be doing the following year and how I read a lot and watched documentaries with my family, trained for cross country with my running club. At Chapin, she asked essentially the same questions as Spence but she also asked about my short responses so I spoke about how grateful I am that my parents moved here from their home countries and how I know that there, girls often are not allowed to have extensive educations. I spoke about how all my grandmothers were illiterate and did not go to school, and how my mother was the first woman on both sides of my family to get a good education, and how she has her Master's. I spoke about how I would like to continue being a pioneer in education in my family and my goal to get a doctorate from a well-reknowned school. My interviewer at Chapin eventually started crying because I said all my answers in a speech kind of way and talked about how I was very wise for my age. At Brearley School she was just flabbergasted and constantly complimented me and like was constantly writing down notes on me and very amusing grimaces at my schedule. Riverdale was similar to Brearley except that she remained calmer with me and made sure she wrote down all the clubs I am a part of. I managed to remember ten to eleven clubs I am a part of. For Trinity School she said that I seemed like a great fit for the school and how she had worked with my current private schools and getting our students into schools she worked at so I am very glad about those connections. I know Riverdale likes well-rounded kids and Trinity likes smart kids with great connections.
I have very good teacher recommendations. I asked my ELA teacher what I could improve on and she said to keep doing what I am doing. My math teacher said that she noticed I preferred taking the efficient route in everything and that sometimes I should try other methods to get a deeper understanding of what I am doing and actually have fun. I understand what she was telling me but I also interpret it as her calling me too organized and efficient which I will take as a compliment.
I lived 10-25 minutes away from all of my schools so distance is not a problem. My parents make $270k to $290k a year but we're applying for financial aid. My parents try to stay under 20k a year but would be more lenient for Riverdale and Trinity. My student essay got a 93 and it is mostly just about me writing too much (I have improved a lot though, I am consistently writing essays under 5 pages).
If you have made it this far, thank you for taking the time to read this and share your opinion. If you believe I will not get into any of these schools, what other good private schools do you think I could try for sophomore year?
Oh yeah, I am fluent in French, can hold a conversation in Spanish, and fluent in English. I can understand 2 other lesser-known languages.
Hey, what’s good?
I’m actually an 8th grader at Trinity currently, so I’d be happy to chance you (I entered in 7th). My experience applying was definitely different because I went through a program for students of color, but I’ll try my best.
ECs: Yeah they’re great. You’ll probably get on the Trinity JV or Varsity XC/Track teams. There’s also a choir at Trinity.
Your ISEE Scores: Don’t worry too much about them. I’m not one to talk, with my score back then being all 9s, but my friends are proof that a high ISEE score isn’t necessary (they had to retake after getting like 5s and 6s, ended up with like 6699 or something iirc).
Essay: Definitely seems like a solid topic. I’m sure you wrote very artfully.
Interviews: Yeah, good game. You sound like a persuasive speaker. If you’ve managed to elicit a reaction from an interviewer, you’re definitely on their minds.
Your Background (family salary, etc.): Practically all private schools are need blind so it doesn’t matter too much though. I think you might not qualify for 20-30k out of 60k financial aid though, depends on the size of your family because ~290k a year translates to ~160k after tax in NYC.
Languages: Yeah, holy ■■■■. We’re required to take a modern language at Trinity in MS, and I’m in foundations Spanish. Knowing two “traditional” modern languages and two lesser known languages is definitely a huge plus.
Overall: Welcome to Trinity. I might be at Andover next year (fingers crossed), so I wouldn’t be there to applaud you.
Closing at OPs request