Choate, Milton or Deerfield

Prep School Admissions
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Hi everyone,
I got accepted to Milton, Choate, Deerfield, NMH, and Millbrook, I have already decided to not attend Millbrook and NMH, however I am stuck between Milton, Deerfield and Choate.

I personally like Milton a lot since it is in Boston, but from what I have researched so far, it is not quite on the same tier regarding sports and academics as Deerfield and Choate.
I do like Deerfield a lot too, because of their community and strong sports.
And lastly Choate, my parents want me to go to this school, but I also love their. signature programs and campus.

I am interested in science, music/singing, theatre and track and field and volleyball.

Could you guys please tell me a little more about these schools, as i am an international student and are not really familiar with these schools.

Thanks in advance!

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Will you have an opportunity to do re-visit days?

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yes I will revisit Choate and Deerfield but I unfortunately am unable to revisit Milton. (we will still go on a normal visit though)

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Then you can try to make your decision then. In the meantime, ask yourself questions. Deerfield is a little smaller than the other two. Does that matter to you? Milton is urban/suburban, Deerfield is rural, and Choate is suburban. Does that matter to you? Do you care more about Choate’s signature programs or Deerfield’s sports? Does Milton’s 50% day students matter to you? By the way, Milton’s academics are just as good as the other two. Sports I don’t know.

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Vimeo or YouTube will have some of Deerfield’s theater productions posted. They are always excellent and the entire school shows up to support all of the theater and dance performances. Deerfield has a lot of school spirit, and is a close knit community. It also has the most amazing athletic facilities. And there are lots of things to do, my kiddo loves the size and location.

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Milton is near Boston, not in Boston, and the academics and sports are comparable to the others. But as is the case with all schools, some sports are stronger than others

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Hi,

Try to get the perspective of current/past international students at these schools. We are international and had great outcomes (college/jobs/leadership development/network) with an urban school with majority day students. Kids made lifelong friends amongst the day/boarding population.

Being in/navigating an urban setting helped them settle faster in the US. Easier for us the parents to get to as well. May not seem like a big deal but could make the difference in choosing one high performing school over another.

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You mention sports as important. Were you recruited for a sport(s)? If so figuring out how you fit into the program now/future would be important. If not recruited and you have expectations that would also be important to figure out how you fit in, especially on smaller teams. These are questions you can ask coaches about prior to the revisit. If you do revisit as a recruited athlete most likely you’ll be spending time with the coach (es) that day and be matched with a team member for the day (depending on each school conducts revisits).

The best fit questions posed by others are helpful—size, location, school culture, student population (boarding vs day-can really impact your weekends if you’re a boarder and lots of kids are day or live close enough by and leave), specific area of studies, etc.

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Also, if you are international, you might want to consider how easy it is to get to the airport. We live in AZ and there were no direct flights to Bradley, and it was a long bus ride to the NY airports. Transpo was a hassle at times.

Milton wins for its proximity to Logan.

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hi! i’m a current milton student :slight_smile:

Milton is not in Boston, but it’s very near (we usually take 30-40m when we take the train, and when someone drives us, we take around 20-25m). Last year, when I was stuck between Milton and 2 GLADCHEMMS, one of the things that made me choose Milton was its proximity to Boston and big universities. We get so many opportunities due to the school’s location (for instance, last semester, Milton got invited to some Harvard events with influential people like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Deval Patrick, Chimamanda, Laverne Cox, and others). Also, weekly, the community gets to hear from influential speakers. It’s really cool.

Regarding academics and sports, Milton is just as prestigious as all of the GLADCHEMMS. Academics are rigorous, but Milton has great resources to help anyone that is struggling. Let me know if you have any specific questions. For sports, we have great programs. I don’t know A LOT, but on campus it’s common sense that our football, soccer, basketball (last season, the basketball teams got to play at TD Garden, and they brought +200 students to watch the game. Really fun!), hockey, and tennis teams are insanely outstanding. But again, I don’t know much about all of them! Also, if you have doubts about how students perform when it’s college apps time, take a look at the school’s college matriculation data. IMO, it’s as good as Andover’s, Exeter’s, and others!

For theater/performing arts, we have an amazing program. Yearly, we have over 10 major theater productions. Milton has a lot of resources for the productions, and the productions are big and good. I have more info on the performing arts programs if you have specific questions. You can also look some productions up. My favorite is the Winter Dance Concert. The Dance Concert goes crazy every year, and they sold out hundreds of tickets every time. This year, and I believe it’s like that every single year, there were waiting lists, and people that couldn’t get tickets in time were lining up in front of the entrance doors.

Since you are an international student, if you choose Milton, I’m sure you will enjoy the International Students Orientation and Transitions Program at the beginning of the year. It’s a really fun time to get to know incoming and returning international students, organize your stuff before classes begin, and start get used to living in the US. You’re also assigned mentors that will be in contact with you for the rest of the year.

I have a lot to say about Milton, so if you want to know more, hmu whenever you need.

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If you are a swimmer or diver, know that Milton does not have a practice pool on campus. They train at the Boys and Girls Club in Dorchester. They do not have access to a diving board, so there is no diving program.

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Just to add based on your questions and our child’s experience at Milton…

The Pritzker Science Center is actually one of the nicest buildings on campus in our opinion (https://www.architectmagazine.com/project-gallery/milton-academy-pritzker-science-center_o). Their science curriculum seems very hands on with a lot of time put towards learning how to perform, write up and present lab work. There is a Design Your Own experiment component at the culmination of each core science class I believe. They are in the process of renovating/building a new math building (Multimillion-Dollar Gift Supports Math Education - Milton Academy) which will be really nice when it’s complete.

The music/singing/dance program has been fantastic. To add to what @drsheep said, there are a lot of opportunities! We just saw pictures from the jazz band performing abroad over Spring Break. What has stood out to us the most is how many different styles are incorporated into all of their performances. Barber Shop Quartets, Step Teams, Tap, Classical, Broadway, Opera, Ballet, you name it, from all over the world and in many different languages. It’s a cultural and historical journey at each concert we’ve attended. And the students are so supportive of each other. There’s a pervasive warmth that is palpable at this school.

The one other thing I will add about the proximity to Boston that we weren’t anticipating is the opportunities for boarding students to go into the city on the weekend. It’s all paid for and often includes gift cards for food/drink. I know we pay for it in our tuition, but it’s nice that our child doesn’t have to deal with logistics and just needs to sign up and take the provided transportation.

Milton is also big on giving back to the communities around them. Our child has found this very rewarding with ample opportunities to make an impact. All the logistics are taken care of by the school and fits within your schedule.

And one final comment about the day vs. boarding setup as this was a concern of ours. It hasn’t been as big of a factor as we thought it would be. In fact, our child has become friends with many of the day students and visits their homes with our permission. Intellectually, there are superstars in both groups. The boarders probably have the advantage of the closeness of their “houses” (which is straight out of Harry Potter with crests and traditions) whereas the day students come in knowing the other day students. But again, the students here are so warm and welcoming that it isn’t as jarring as you would expect. I think if anything, it was a blessing being “new” as everyone wants to get to know you and recruit you for their many clubs.

I am sure you will be well served by any of the schools you listed, but just to give you some more first hand experiences from Milton. Good luck!

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thanks everyone for your responses! i just got my laptop back after it being broken and i am glad to see everyones input.

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