Hi! I am new here so please help! Anyway , please chance my daughter; she is currently in grade 7 and intends to apply for grade 9 when she will be in grade 8
Asian
Honored student of her primary school’s district
Honored student of the city
Has been playing the piano for 7 years
Knows how to play the keyboard and the ukulele
89% SSAT
GPA(grade 6): 9.4/10
Used to be in her primary school’s chorus and be one of the main singers ( there were six main singers) and her team got the first prize of the district.
Good at doodling
Good at in-line skating(patin)
Led the keyboard team of her primary school
Grade 6: honored student of her middle school
Has been doing community services since grade 1
Has been going to summer camps for 3 years
Thanks very much !
I do have some questions: What are her extracurriculars (any sports)? Does she have any awards, honors in piano, keyboard, or ukulele? I am also not sure how “Has been going to summer camps for 3 years” is relevant–further explanation would be appreciated. Also: for her doodling and in-line skating, how “good” is she? Has she been in any competitions? Do her teachers/coaches think she is good? In order for her to stand out, there has to be some kind of “certification” or “proof” rather than the parent’s personal opinion. In her application, I would also advise you to further elaborate on what makes a student an “honored student”. Is it good grades? Is she extremely gifted/talented academically? Is it her community service, or kindness towards others?
For now, I would advise for her to 1) Prepare for SSATs, 2) Keep those grades up, and 3) Discover her passions, or if she already knows her passion, to further develop and become more involved in that extracurricular.
I’d say raise the ssat % and hone the extracurriculars; they are important. The school wants someone who will contribute to the life of the community. For instance, as a musician in middle school, has she done collaborative work? any current choral groups?
Sports are important in boarding schools, as most have a 3-term sport requirement. Does your daughter play a sport? If not this may be a good time to introduce her to a boarding school popular sport.
Asian is a wide category in prep school admissions. If you are from mainland China, your daughter will be assessed within that pool, and conditions, especially in terms of SSAT scores will be very high cuz most take exam prep courses, more than Americans do. Chinese from Taiwan and Hong Kong and South Koreans also have fair competition. Applicants from other Asian countries are highly sought by schools who want diversity.
If she is from either Mainland China or South Korea, she should have the most severe competition as girls from those countries are generally expected to have the highest academic standard and compete against each other.
In addition, having many extra-curricular activities is not as good as people may think but can be viewed as decoration. They want to have an applicant who has a passion for a specific activity (or hobby), be it an art, music or sport. They may question her passion if she has too many ECs on her application.
This will not make or break an application. All schools, unless they provide ESL services, will expect admitted students to have a strong command of the English language.
