Countdown to Move-in Day

Prep School Admissions
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<p>Rifling through the package right now. But keep in mind that I was a financial aid applicant, so it’ll be a little different for you-unless you applied for financial aid, too? ;)</p>

<p>So it comes as a folder that’s a deep, royal blue, with dark gold pockets. </p>

<p>On the left hand pocket, from top to bottom:

[ul][<em>]Revisit Sechdule
[</em>]Acceptance Checklist
[<em>]Letter from Headmaster (regarding tuition)
[</em>]Student and Parent Information Forms
[<em>]One-to-One iPad Program Overview
[</em>]2013-14 Academic Year Calendar
[li]TSAO Contact Agreement[/ul]</p>[/li]
<p>On the right hand pocket, from top to bottom:

[ul][<em>] Decision Letter
[</em>]Financial Aid Grant Letter
[<em>]Enrollment Contract
[</em>]Tuition, Fees, and Charges Overview
[<em>]Payment Plans
[</em>]Smart Tuition Plan
[<em>]The Tuition Refund Plan
[</em>] Envelope for Choate[/ul]</p>

<p>What is semi-disappointing is that there are no fun embellishments, like a T-Shirt, etc…oh well!</p>

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<p>Well my parents said I could go without it however 50k/year is a lot for anyone and I know the financial burden it would place on them. So j suggested that we apply and see if it was possible to get any.</p>

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<p>@confusedonhades: Oh! So you didn’t really need the financial aid after all…?</p>

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<p>@GoldenRatio: Do you live close to Choate? I haven’t gotten mine yet…</p>

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<p>GoldenRatio maybe not for this year however my dad is no longer working so the numbers this year are significantly higher than they will be next year. If we didn’t apply for FA this year the schools said it would be harder to get it next year.</p>

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<p>Hey @GoldenRation i thought i could answer a few of your questions…</p>

<p>1) Regarding Pitman and Nichols…hope that you get Nichols! i’m not a huge fan of pitman’s dorm quality. it smells a bit but the rooms are HUGE compared to those in Nicholas. Pitman has, i think maybe…hmm…12 girls this year and Nichols has about 50ish. But if you get pitman, its not too bad. you get to bond really well with the small number of girls. </p>

<p>2) For AP courses, i think you’re correct. B+ or A- in your honors classes AND the recommendation of the department. AKA make sure your teacher likes you</p>

<p>3) Ummm, I really can’t answer that one, but i think the chances are almost none. you REALLY want to use your 3rd form year to adjust to campus. boarding life is so different from going to middle school then coming home at the end of the day. i’ve never met someone in my life that took an AP as a freshman. if you’re looking for a rigorous course load, the most honors you can take freshman year are 3 (honors language, honors math, honors science) I think this is enough to keep your hands full, but just don’t even consider and AP freshman year :P</p>

<p>hope this helped! feel free to ask any more questions :)</p>

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<p>@weiqian I saw more questions so i thought i could help out :)</p>

<p>1) when i applied, i visited twice. No, you don’t have to revisit on revisit day but I highly recommend it! You get paired up with someone close to your age, visit classes, go to the dorms, eat dining hall food (bug plus!) and really understand what a day in our lives is like. So short answer is no, you can come any day, but revisit day is the best!! Plus, you get a T SHiRT!!!</p>

<p>2) Wow! You smartie :slight_smile: I know 2 freshman this year who are taking precalc but i don’t think it’s honors. This is what gonna happen: you are going to take a math placement test this summer to see what math class you get into. also, if you’re serious about taking honor precalc, then you could ask you current math teacher for an additional recommendation saying what course you should take at choate.</p>

<p>3) here’s the deal: Freshman can take 3 honors courses max. Honors math, honors physics, and/or, honors language. Personally, i would not go with all 3. When you’re adjusting to campus and getting used to the environment, you don’t want to have a bunch of work. i didn’t take a single honors course freshman year and it was the best decision i made. really helped give me extra time to adjust to boarding life. BUT if you’re and amazing student, you might be able to handle 3 honors course, but personally i would never do that. if you want my advice, stick with 1 or 2 honors freshman year MAX. And remember, you can always move UP to honors or drop down.</p>

<p>hope this helped!</p>

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<p>Sorry I didn’t reply sooner!!</p>

<p>-So Nichols and Putnam’s rooms are similar-the only difference is the number of girls?
They are similar. Pitman doesn’t have singles, only Nichols does. The only real difference between Nichols rooms and Pitman rooms are the fact that Nichols (the dorm that houses the larger number of freshman girls) has bigger doubles. However I’m pretty sure you want a single, so you’re better off with Nichols. You can’t decide what dorm you’re going to be in Freshman year, but majority of the girls go in Nichols, and if you stress enough, they will put you in a single. </p>

<p>-So how do you get into AP classes?
You can take AP classes if you finish all the prerequisites for that class. You can take Honors classes if you maintain a B+ average.</p>

<p>-Is it possible to get into an AP class during third form?
Haha I see what you did there :stuck_out_tongue: The only people who actually use “third, fourth, fifth, and six form” to refer to grades are teachers and parents. When I talk about third formers I just call them freshman or freshies lol. And the answer is no. I’ve never seen it happen, or hear about that being the case. The earliest year you can take an AP course is your sophomore year, your fourth form year :D, in which I have some friends taking AP Music Theory. </p>

<p>-Can you visit only on the three scheduled revisit days?
No, you don’t have to. It’s just highly recommended, because other people will be there, and you can sit in on classes with your host, and basically live the life of a Choate student for a day. If you’re not able to do that, we have campus tours, I believe everyday. Whenever you are going to be on campus, you can let admission know and they will set you up with a tour guide, but I don’t think you will be able to sit in on classes or anything. (And if you want, you can PM me and tell me what day you might be here, and I can be your tour guide :smiley: )</p>

<p>-Is it difficult to get into the math course you would regularly go to?
As long as you’re getting good grades in your current math class, they will put you in the next math class we offer. Wow!! You’re taking Honors Algebra 2… as an 8th grader??? I have a friend here who’s like that. We’re sophomores and she’s in BC Calc. </p>

<p>-How many (if any) honors courses would you recommend for the first year? And if you take a non-honors course, can you switch to an honors/AP course the next year?
Hmm… well I didn’t take any honors classes my freshman year :stuck_out_tongue: But this year, I’m taking 3 honors classes. The number of honors classes you can take freshman year is only limited to your math, science, and history classes, you can’t take any honors electives your freshman year. Choate only gets more difficult as the years go on, and freshman year is a transition year, so I think it’s whatever you feel comfortable doing. Honors and AP classes here are HARD, but if you can learn to deal with that and have good time management, you can do whatever you want. And yes!! You can switch to an honors class if you took a regular one before that! That’s what I did. However, the only way you can do that is if you get no less than an A- average (which could be difficult), or if you talk to the department head. I just maintained an A- average in history, math, and language my freshman year, so now I’m in 3 honors classes.</p>

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<p>@weiqian: ~4 hours away should be close enough, would you say? :)</p>

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<p>I just can’t wait to move in. :D</p>

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<p>@Justagirl3847: Thanks! Haha, maybe I’m a bit too eager to go to Honors…</p>

<p>How do you sign up for a sport? Do you have to audition or showcase some basic skills? Or do you just show up and play? :)</p>

<p>What do you suggest we bring? I’m starting to pack right now, and I have no idea what to bring besides some clothes…what do you think would be practical, able to fit in the rooms, yet cute?</p>

<p>How harsh is the grading system? I’ve heard about Exeter, etc; they all seem to be composed of a highly competitive pool, exposed to highly advanced material, where a C on a test is considered good, and an A insane. Does this apply to Choate as well?</p>

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<p>-How do you sign up for a sport?
Before you get here you can decide what sports you want to take your freshman fall, winter, and spring. If you want to change them once you get to Choate, all you have to go is go to the athletics office and tell the people there that you want to change it.</p>

<p>-What do you suggest we bring?
You’re already starting to pack?? Where do you live? lol… no that’s great, I’m happy for you. They answer this questions on Choate’s website, but I can give an answer anyway. I brought clothes, toiletries, extra toiletries, a mattress pad, two sets of sheets, a pillow, a comfoter, extra pillows (decorative ones), desk lamp, computer, electronics, extension cord, (some people bring extra drawers that they got from Walmart of something… but I was fine without that), posters (because your room will be pretty dull without them), towels, ALL kinds of shoes (flip flops, rainboots, snowboots, etc), school supplies… uhhh yeah that’s all I can think of at the top of my head. They want your personality to exude in your room, so they encourage kids to get posters and get bed stuff with their favorite color and stuff haha. </p>

<p>-How harsh is the grading system?
Actually, the grading system across Andover, Exeter, and Choate (along with other boarding schools), are similar believe it or not. However, here a C isn’t considered “good” haha. It’s a hard question to answer, so I’ll put it like this: Getting an A on something means that you put TIME and EFFORT into whatever it is, and you really put forth WORK. You honestly have to earn it. I’m not saying it doesn’t come often, I’m just saying that the work you would have to put in to get an A at Choate, and the work you might have to put in to get an A at your school now might be different. I was just talking to my mom, and the average range of GPA for juniors right now is a 3.25-3.5. Majority of the percentage of students who are not in this category are higher than these numbers, however there are also a small number of people below this. </p>

<p>hope this helps! :D</p>

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<p>To also put it in perspective… getting a 3.5 GPA at Choate is considered equal to, or better, than getting a 4.0 at a local high school (not said by me, I heard admissions talk about it several times).</p>

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<p>sorry for the slight randomness :), but did anyone accepted to St. Paul’s get their package yet?</p>

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<p>@Justagirl3847: Wow! :open_mouth: Thanks for all the answers. I’m at a blank right now, but I’ll definitely ask you when I have more!</p>

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<p>Tips of what to ask in the revisit days?! :slight_smile: I’ll be attending!</p>

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<p>Thanks Justagirl3847 and soccer167, this really helped! I’m excited about getting to see Choate! :slight_smile: Finally got my acceptance package today!</p>

<p>Few more questions…</p>

<p>How does the one-to-one iPad program at Choate work? I couldn’t tell if it was a new thing or if it’s been around for a while or how exactly teachers use it.</p>

<p>Do we get anything about courses and packing and whatnot if we accept? I’ve only seen a course booklet online, and I was hoping to be able to get an official one… :)</p>

<p>Which sports do you recommend? I play tennis, but other than that I’m lost as to what to choose! I do like how they do sports at Choate though.</p>

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<p>-How does the one-to-one iPad program at Choate work?
This is actually the first year that they put this program in act. Basically, most of the teachers use iPads to help teach. It is really really helpful, especially in my history class. With a ton of textbooks and papers, having my history teacher use Dropbox and put documents online is much more organized. It also decreases the weight if your bag on a daily bases, because of the decrease in papers, binders, etc.</p>

<p>-Do we get anything about courses and packing and whatnot if we accept?
I’m pretty sure Choate sends you a bunch of packets and booklets about that over the summer.</p>

<p>-Which sports do you recommend?
:open_mouth: YOU PLAY TENNIS!!! So do I!!! I’m on varsity :slight_smile: anyways, it really depends on what you’re interested in. I took intramural tennis my fall term, and I’m taking tennis in the spring, and during the winter I did basketball. We have a whole range of sports you can do. The only thing I would suggest is not to stress if you want to be on a varsity team, and your put on JV or thirds. Unless it’s hockey, football, boys basketball (sometimes), lacrosse, and soccer, there is room to move up during your time here. But yeah just explore!!! And even if you don’t wanna explore any of the other sports, but still want to exercise, you can do fitness up to three times a year (all terms… I only know one person that does that… But I think that can be super boring)
But you do tennis!!! THAT’S AWESOME</p>

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<p>Lets start a discussion on housing at different schools. It would be great if current students weighed in on the best dorms at each school. Fill in the table below.</p>

<p>Andover
Girls:
Boys:
Exeter
Girls:
Boys:
Choate
Girls:
Boys:
Deerfield
Girls:
Boys:
Hotchkiss
Girls:
Boys:
St. Paul’s
Girls:
Boys:
Hill
Girls:
Boys:
NMH
Girls:
Boys:</p>

<p>et cetera, please feel free to add your school</p>

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<p>What information sessions do you recommend for spring visits?</p>