Chances of getting accepted to Exeter and Andover

Prep School Admissions Prep School Chances
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Hi! I’m applying to Phillips Exeter and Andover. I was wondering g what my chances are for getting into these school.

So far, I got accepted into another great school in Seattle called Lakeside High school.

Backround:
Female, 14(now), Asian(Filipino-Korean), Rural WA, FA

Grades:

  • Average 99%
  • Took Algebra and Geometry
  • Highschool level English

Teacher Recs:

  • I got REALLY good teacher recommendations I think. My home room teacher said that I was his best student in his entire 20 years of teachings, and my English teacher said that I could pass a college English class with ease.

Interview:

Exeter: Really good. Told him about books I read, how quarantine benefited me, my experience living in so many places, and also how much I would love to be apart of Exeter. My parents made it clear that they didn’t want to send me, and how they would wanted everything to be safe for me. if I did go. Dad mentioned soccer clubs in NH.

Andover: Really nice as well. We sorta just talked. He didn’t ask me any question regarding my education, other than the question of how I would feel if I didn’t have great grades. Also, together we worked together to find a definition for perfect. When he talked to my dad, my dad cried at the thought of me leaving home for bs. My interviewer tried to console him, but then my interviewer also started crying! My interviewer saw me carrying my little sister and baking cookies when he was talking to my dad, so I guess that sort of showed how much my parents rely on me at home.

Awards:

  • State cup finalists for premier soccer, D1
  • Writing contest in school district

Extra:

  • 96th percentile on SSAT
    -Part of HICAP and also Gifted and Talented in NYC
  • Tutoring (4 years) — math and reading 1st-6th
  • Soccer (8 years) — Club, premiere, D1
  • Piano (2 years) — submitted Valse Brilliante Op. 32 n. 2

Overall, I really didn’t have the best extracurriculars.

I don’t believe I even mentioned how much work I have put into being an athlete. Since grade 3, I have been conditioning my body by doing obstacle courses, dragging a tire to improve speed, waking up at 5 am to strengthen my body by doing weight and HIIT training. I wish I emphasized more on how much work it took for me to show improvement in soccer. I mean I went from the lowest division in recreational soccer losing every game, to the highest division in club premiere soccer practically winning all of my games and making it to state.

Instead, I wrote in my essays about overcoming doubt and a book that changed me.

I really want to attend a boarding school in New England since I lived there for 4 years and loved it!

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You will find out in 2.5 days. Literally.

Nobody here knows. but if you want to go through the exercise:

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3

Both those schools have between 10-15% admissions. Let’s call it 12.5% each, for two schools = 25%. You seem qualified, so maybe a little higher, but apps are up this year, so maybe back down to 25%.

The interviewer crying feels pretty inappropriate, side note.

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Thanks for the note!

I was probably a bit dramatic when I said my interviewer was crying, but he was definitely sympathetic with my father. My father was bawling his eyes. It was really shocking because it was the first time I saw my dad cry. My interviewer(whom is an alumni) might have felt extra sympathetic towards my father as he has experienced a lot of families (including his own) living away from each other to achieve their goals.

I made it clear in my interviews (and so did my parents unintentionally) that applying to BS was entirely my decision. In fact, my parents don’t really care how I do in school.

I also mentioned that at home my parents cannot provide me with the tutelage I need to become a better student. At least not as effectively as the faculty and students at Andover and Exeter could if I attended either school. I also live in an area where few to none care about expanding their education out of state. The public school here is also filled with students who lack enjoyment for learning, and teachers who don’t care about the quality of work presented to them from the students.

That is why I wouldn’t plan on attending PA or PEA to boost my chances of getting accepted into a high tier college. I plan on attending either of these schools to be part of a community that will motivate me to go out of my comfort zone, and provide me with the resources I need to become my a best self. I also mentioned in my interviews how my life experiences and skills will enable me to positively impact the school environment of PEA and PA.

I have experience living away from my family, and doing house chores and school work without reminder from another person. To be honest, I make food for both my little siblings, do my parent’s laundry, while also finding time to exercise and do my own personal duties. My parents rely on me a little too much.

I really hope I get accepted. I want to live my life (at least a small chunk of it) where I can focus solely on my own personal needs before worrying about completing a task for another person.

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Oh gosh. I’m sorry. I sort of just rambled in my reply above. I was writing it quickly because I was actually holding my sleeping baby sister while I writing my reply.

I’m also incredibly stressed right now due to M10, and the fact that my parents are praying that I don’t get accepted.

Anywho, thanks again for the message!

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Um… Not 25%. That’s not how statistics work.

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@stalecookies Glad you are here to correct me if the math is wrong! Like truly as I sit here, I really do not see how the answer isn’t 12.5 plus 12.5 assuming events are independent and each event has a 12.5% chance of happening (random).

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Has to be mutually exclusive and random

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well I’m not @stalecookies but since each event would have an 87.5% chance of not happening, the two numbers are multiplied together and then subtracted from 1 to find the percentage of either event happening. 87.5% times 87.5% is 76.5625% meaning that your original estimate was correct just with the wrong reasoning. Although perhaps @stalecookies meant that was not how admissions work also my math might be completely wrong lol

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"assuming events are independent and each event has a 12.5% chance of happening. "

@G07b10 correct. I was assuming event independence and random.

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Thanks @randomapplicant2. You were finding probability of BOTH non-admission events happening (multiply); I’m finding probability of one OR the other happening (add). But then that makes sense that we would come up with the same answer. Same logic really.

So to ease my mind on the math front (because stale cookies scared me for a hot minute), I literally googled and am cutting and pasting what I found. (and the internet CANNOT BE WRONG.). (jk). Anyway, math is right, but the assumption that all candidates are equally qualified (randomness), of course, is the big problem (with all chance requests).

From the wise internet:
You would add probabilities if you want to find out if one event or another could happen. For example, if you roll a die, and you wanted to know the probability of rolling a 1 or a 6, then you would add the probabilities:
Probability of rolling a 1: 1/6
Probability of rolling a 6: 1/6
So the probability of rolling a 1 or a 6 is 1/6 + 1/6 = 2/6 = 1/3.

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That’s the problem. There is not 100% randomness in admissions decisions. You can accept that or not, but the explanation is waaaaayyyyy off-topic to the thread.

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I am a fellow applicant and have no way of chancing you, but you seem very well qualified. Your good ssat score, grades, and athletic abilities should make you a very competitive applicant, and you also seem to have the personality traits (hard working, resilient, compassionate, thoughtful), that these schools look for.
Nobody really knows what goes on in the admissions room, and at this point decisions are already made.

Either way, you come across as a very strong candidate, and overall the type of person they want at those schools. Best of luck on M10!

(Side note: we have an applicant CC group chat, so lmk if you’d like to be added)

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If M10 doesn’t work out in your favor, you should definitely consider re-applying next year. It sounds from you post like BS is where you want to be, and a lot of students apply to enter as 10th graders, or chose to repeat their 9th grade year. This is discussed at length in other chance me threads, but if you do re-apply consider adding a lot more schools to your list, because there are some really great options out there.

You seriously seem like a strong candidate, but PA and PEA reject many well qualified applicants year after year, and it sometimes has nothing to do with whether that applicant would have thrived on campus. All I’m saying is don’t be discouraged if it doesn’t work out, and if BS is where you think you’ll do best, know that this year isn’t the end of that possibility.

Regardless, I’m rooting for you! From what little I can see on here, you seem like a great person, and I truly hope you’re accepted!

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Thank you so much! Honestly, I don’t know what I’ll do if I do get accepted. I mean I’ll be super happy, but I actually already have an offer from Lakeside school. I fortunately was able to talk with an alumni from the school who was friends with Bill Gate’s children (who also attended lakeside), and they really loved it. But I really want to have the opportunity to try out BS.

In the end, even if I get accepted, it all comes down to whether or not I receive a large amount of financial aid. I luckily received a large chunk from Lakeside, so let’s see what will happen with these other school I guess.

Thanks again for the message! I’ll keep your thoughts in mind.

You also truly seem like a kind person, and I hope you get accepted to your top choice!

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@ImeldaR11

Lakeside science teacher…

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OMG JEFF BEZOS IS THE CEO OF AMAZON. Wow!

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I am sure you all know that Bill Gates went to Lakeside.

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@skieurope Totally agree. Admissions aren’t random, which is why chances posts are little more than a parlor game IMO. :slight_smile:

@ImeldaR11 The good news is you have a great option no matter what happens on Wednesday!

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Thanks! One of my cousins who also attended (with a full scholarship) was actually classmates with Bill Gates children. Pretty crazy. I was actually aware already that I would be with the same class as Jeff Bezos’s children as well if I attended.

It’s just weird I guess. Thinking about how I would be a part of a community where a large chunk of student body come from families who make over $1 million a year. When my family needs a ton of financial aid to even consider attending the school. But I guess that just means that there are more sponsors for the school, so resources are plentiful.

For the acceptance package, they gave custom made lollipops, crayolas and a coloring book, a lakeside stuffy and backpack, and a bunch of official papers. It was a pretty neat experience ngl.

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