<p>Son Accepted at Choate & Peddie. Likes both, ready to flip a coin. Anyone who is very familiar with both schools able to provide objective feedback?</p>
<p>PM Saer. that’s all i have to tell you :)</p>
<p>something to take into consideration is that choate is considerably larger than peddie… if that appeals to you, then voila. or vice versa! both are incredible schools, congrats !</p>
<p>AH DiveAlive! I can’t believe people still remember me on this site!</p>
<p>If you want the chance to be one in the crowd, and really make your niche, then come to Choate. Half the time, I hate Choate. I want to be home and go to my public school with easy A’s and be a varsity athlete and do amazing things just because they are easy. But I don’t regret coming to Choate, even during the tough times.
If you think your son can keep perspective, and remember that just because the grades are HARD and being a varsity athlete is HARD and doing everything he used to do well is nearly impossible, and yet know that Choate opens doors as long as he works as hard as he can, then Choate is the place for him.</p>
<p>Great advice Saer. I have read some of your other bits of advice as well. I need to make certain that he understands that those straight A’s in his public school will either be a rarity, especially freshman year, or will take much more work to attain. I want and he wants a bigger challenge, however, I dont want to see him become so overwhelmed that he wants to pack it all in after a semester. How would you rate the support of the faculty when a student is struggling, especially the first year?</p>
<p>CMM731, PM me. My D had the same 2 choices and I have a relatively unbiased viewpt.</p>
<p>VERY GOOD. Excellent.
But only if you know where to look.
I was having a lot of personal and academic stresses at the beginning of winter term. Nothing too serious, but seasonal depression was also bringing me down.
All I had to do was make an appt with the counselor’s office at the health center, and within two weeks, I was meeting with a therapist weekly. And my God, has that helped.</p>
<p>I can’t claim to be an objective commenter because I currently attend Choate and love it, still I can provide some information.</p>
<p>At Choate, getting A’s freshman year is definitely not a rarity, simply harder to achieve. New freshmen are really eased into the system so that they quickly get used to a more demanding workload and intellectual challenge. While this doesn’t mean that freshman year is a breeze, Choate definitely prepares you for the struggles you will face and there are many teachers available for extra help and support, or like Saer said, seeing a counselor is another option. Don’t feel, however, that the only way to survive Choate is with a therapist; they are just a part of a great support system created by the faculty.</p>
<p>I don’t know very much about Peddie but I am sure it also offers some form of support, so wherever your son goes, I am sure he will feel comfortable and stable with his work.</p>
<p>Still, convince your son to choose CHOATE! It is an amazing school with so many opportunities and resources at your fingertips. In the past two years I have developed so much as a person and student in ways I didn’t know were possible. There is so much to get involved with and so many opportunities to show what you can do.</p>
<p>If it is an option for you, consider visiting both schools to get a true sense of the campuses and students since spring visits provide a great opportunity for that.</p>