<p>My daughter is in her first year at a boarding school in Virginia and loves the boarding school experience. However, she doesn't feel that she shares much in common with the other students at the school. She has mentioned that she may want to transfer to another boarding school next year. </p>
<p>Any suggestions from anyone who has been there? We visited each school to which she applied and thought we had a good "fit." Thanks in advance for your input.</p>
<p>In what way does she not have anything in common? What are the kids like in contrast to your daughter? What type of environment is she seeking?</p>
<p>i would strongly urge her to continue at her school unless she can articulate some reasons for wanting to switch that are really important. general dissatisfaction can come from being a freshman at any school, especially living away from home. i, too, go to boarding school in VA, and had a terrible first year. i desperately tried to get my parents to let me come home, but they encouraged me to stay, and i cannot even tell you how glad i am.</p>
<p>She became interested in boarding school after attending Johns Hopkins summer programs and I think she expected a bit more of an intellectual curiosity in her fellow students. I'm told that the social scene revolves around the dating/"hooking up" status of the students and it may be more drama than she prefers. I know that the school draws a number of students from a part of the country that is different from where we live and she think that adds to her feelings of isolation. I guess that all high schools contain the dating drama and cliques...perhaps she just wasn't expecting to find that at boarding school.</p>
<p>Inspiration: Thanks for the input. I think her school has so much to offer and that she will find her niche, but I don't want her to think I'm forcing her to stay since the entire boarding school idea was her brainchild.</p>
<p>Perhaps she would also prefer to be a little closer to home. Would you please give a general geography in case people are aware of a school in your area? How large is her current school? A larger school should give her more social options. Also, I think some schools do a better job offering social and ec opportunities for everyone. Aside from a stronger intellectual focus, is she looking for anything else?</p>
<p>She loves her classes, her teachers, dorm life, and she is handling the academic aspect of school well. Although she misses her friends from home (especially since she's not feeling connected to her new classmates), she is not homesick in the traditional sense. However, I know that she won't be happy unless the social aspect also falls into place. We're from the mid-Atlantic region (where there are a plethora of choices), but I don't know if proximity is the real issue. Her school has around 600 students.</p>
<p>even at the schools considered the top academically you'll find dating/hookng up drama - bunch of good looking teens together 24/7! But all kids aren't that way - she needs to find her group.</p>
<p>I'm at a loss because it seems to me that within a school of 600, she should be able to find her social group. What do you think?</p>
<p>Have you considered a switch to a single sex school? That would provide a compelling reason to switch, and address her greatest complaint.</p>
<p>A girls' school won't be drama-free, however, removing the other gender may lead to a calmer environment. If this really bothers her, I would think it'd be worth investigating.</p>
<p>from the location and the size of the school, i can only assume your daughter goes to episcopal high school. now, im sure theres a big chance im wrong, but if she does go there (and you dont need to respond as to whether she does or doesnt, im not here to invade your privacy) i can offer another perspective. my school (madeira) is close-ish to epsicopal, and we have mixers there and play sports there, and i think you have to be a very specific type of person to like it there. periwinkle's idea to send her to a girls school, imo, is fantastic! send her to <em>my</em> all girls school! haha really though, the most important lesson here is not to run away from your problems. life is not easy, and when you dont have an easy time of something, it is not a good idea to try to evacuate from the situation instead of dealing with it. remember, it is only christmas of her first year there, and absolutely everything could change by march or april for her at her school. but changing schools as a sophomore is not a bad thing, people do it a lot. but wherever she is going into junior year, is, imo, where she has to stay, or it looks bad. also, she can really only switch once before colleges will question if it was the school or her that was the problem, so if she changes and still doesnt like it, she's really stuck. </p>
<p>just a lot of thoughts from a BS senior that might help you in your situation! good luck.</p>
<p>Everyone, thanks for the input. I'm going to try to persuade her to stick it out, but unfortunately, if she does want to switch, this is the time that she would need to apply somewhere else. She'll be home in a couple of weeks and we can discuss this and I'll have some of your advice to share with her.</p>