<p>watertester: I guess there’s no way to truly know</p>
<p>But I know I personally have a better chance at HYPSM now that I’m going to BS. May not be the same for your children, it truly depends on the person. Some people need that kick in the ass and the opportunities boarding school provides. Some people don’t.</p>
<p>Watertester,
I sense that your mind is opening. You are asking whether or not a bs enhances the likelihood of acceptance at HYPSMGWA. You are not accepting the assumptions that nine out of ten people here accept as dogma. You are questioning what the schools would have us believe as we look at their matriculation statistics. Those statistics are propaganda. They forget to tell you that your kid is your kid WHEREVER HE OR SHE GOES TO SCHOOL.</p>
<p>Pan - is your child currently and boarding school or going?</p>
<p>With it being nearly impossible to get into these school…you almost NEED a hook. I think that’s what BS is great at, help your child find that hook. And if you already have it, developing on it…making it something that will catch the eyes of the top colleges.</p>
<p>If you think your hook is that your a super genius mathematician…then ya go to public school and take advanced classes at a local community college and pray that Harvard doesn’t already have 3 other super mathematician geniuses there.</p>
<p>One past and one going. And I am savvy enough to recognize that his chances at our local IB program are just as good as at bs. But I am also savvy enough to send him not for matriculation, but for other, perhaps more important reasons.</p>
<p>Amen to that pan1956!</p>
<p>“other, perhaps more important reasons”</p>
<p>I am more interested in the process. How is the advising process help in shaping your profile? What does the college counseling do in these top boarding schools? Any thing different than in a public/local day school? Does it make a difference? One thing I know is that no matter how movivated and talented your student is, it takes a lot of planning and great amount of work from both the parents and the student to make to one of those schools if they are at home. Boarding schools take some of the burden off the parents shoulders. But does it really work?</p>
<p>mpicz, “With it being nearly impossible to get into these school…you almost NEED a hook. I think that’s what BS is great at, help your child find that hook. And if you already have it, developing on it…making it something that will catch the eyes of the top colleges.” well said.</p>
<p>Well unfortunately you’re not in the majority when it comes to parents. Not everyone has a local IB program…and if your children stayed at the local public school and didn’t get into HYPSM. You would most likely live the next 4 years wondering. Yea there may be “more important” reasons…but you talk like that’s no reason at all.</p>
<p>It has to really work. Think about it, the people giving recommendations have lived with you for 4 years. You have been in their houses…played with their children…had conversations with them in the common room. The college counselors have had years of experience dealing with many kids going to the top IVY’s…these are things teachers and counselors at the local public school don’t have.</p>
<p>The teachers know how to write a recommendation. the counselor knows specifics about the top colleges that the public school counselor may not have because he/she hasn’t dealt with that school. Or he/she doesn’t have the time to figure out more stuff when they have to work with 200 more kids. You can’t really compare counselors and public school to very experienced counselors at BS. They take lots of pressure off of the parents, you know your child is in the good hands.</p>
<p>if your intrinsically motivated, the schools won’t act as a catalyst to good colleges.</p>
<p>Yeah… But you are going to be with a bunch of other people just as or smarter than you. So you’re a lot more likely to get a bad class rank. Colleges are not the reason I am heading to BS. It is an added benefit.</p>
<p>Well ya…we live in America. If you work hard enough you can get in where ever you want. But sometimes it’s just not possible. Class rank doesn’t mean much…and I’m happy to see you can repeat what you read on here. No one on here is going to say college is the reason their going to boarding school. Name all the reasons your going to BS…every one of them will help you get into a good college. But people want to act like they don’t realize that.</p>
<p>“So you’re a lot more likely to get a bad class rank. Colleges are not the reason I am heading to BS. It is an added benefit.”</p>
<p>that’s contradictory, principal. you should say you’d be willing to sacrifice that “benefit” for a better education.</p>
<p>I agree with you that the fact that we live in America is a huge reason why that is so… In countries where there is little or no social mobility, bs is a great opening door.</p>
<p>I don’t believe bs rank.</p>
<p>@Watertester… Yes that is what I mean. I am willing to sacrifice beating the hell out of everyone and going to BS.</p>
<p>We are definitely not using bs to get into an Ivy. My son has not expressed this interest. I do believe that, for certain groups, bs does indeed make an Ivy admission much more likely. (Certain sports come to mind). Oh…and so you don’t think I am referring to my own son…no, bs actually makes it more difficult to excel in his sport. He’s probably hurting his chances of playing at the top.</p>
<p>if you are not one of the three mentioned by hmom (legacy, athlete, urm) and I will add a forth - either student body president or valedictorian, your chances of getting into ivy plus are less out of BS than out of an average HS. Im not saying poorest HS where everything is against such as lack of good advice by the gc, etc., but if you are a top student in an average HS with great ec’s and esp. athletics, you have a much better chance than if you are below the top 5% or are part of the above mentioned in a BS. If you are that top student in an underrepresented state, you’re golden.<br>
For someone who mentioned it being easier for full pays – not so. The ivy plus are all need blind. Up until this year, it has been much easier to get into ivy as someone who overcame obstacles, etc, rather than someone who had the “normal” stress of doing well in school and ecs and whose parents made sure the college fund was growing.<br>
What BS and top independent schools will do (besides giving a student a broader horizon, great education, ability to try new things) is to place everyone in a good school. BS will place B students into colleges (second half of the top 50 LACs or so)that will normally accept A students from public schools. Just dont expect a BS experience to be a ticket into ivy plus. Remember, none of BS inflate grades, offer five thousand AP’s etc, that get public school kids merit money. It will be extremely hard to be that top 5% of students, and, naturally the majority of the class have to be below. Expect great experience from BS just dont expect a BS experience to be a ticket into ivy plus.</p>
<p>^^I was referring to bs full pay.</p>
<p>^Exactly, I think that BS is worth that risk…</p>