My daughter got into Emma Willard and Ethel Walker. Both are fantastic schools, and now we have trouble deciding. Does anyone know which school is truly better? We created amazing relationships in both, and its going to be very difficult to say NO to one of them. :(((
IMHO, if you have not figured that out by now then you didn’t do your homework. The time to ask is earlier in the game-- check the stats & financials. If you have a horse, then send your DD & the horse to Ethel Walker. The stables are nicer than the dorms at some of your top tier co-Ed schools. If you don’t have a horse, please check out how many girls do have their horses with them, how many are there on the weekend, how many leave school for shows, and the overall FA situations. Emma has amazing facilities. Don’t take it for granted. You may want a different setting. We like being near Albany. Compare endowments. Compare locations. Both are great & we know people at both. The decision ultimately should come down to where your DD would thrive and be happy. If you have a horse, where would the horse be happy? Without a horse, will she be happy @ Ethel? Good then, it’s easy!
You created amazing relationships at both schools? During the interview process? I think you are overthinking this.
Something is wrong with that?
No, but the “amazing relationships” made with the admissions staff are not a priority once your kid is enrolled. The interaction she will have with the AO will be minimal, unless that person is also her faculty, advisor or coach. Please do not choose a school based on how lovely the admissions staff has been to your family during the process. It’s their job to be nice and make you and your kid feel wanted and connected to the school. They want you to enroll! Take a good thorough look at each school as a whole, and go with the best fit for your daughter. Good luck!
I agree with @cameo43. Full disclosure, I’m also the mom of an Emma alum, and am slightly biased toward Emma. You and your dd will have virtually no interaction with admissions from the moment she sets foot on campus as a matriculated student, unless she gets involved as a tour guide or other admissions volunteer. The horse question is important; if your dd is a big rider, then Ethel Walker might be a great fit. If not, well… it depends on how much the school culture revolves around horses. Emma is a diverse, cosmopolitan community of motivated learners and genuinely nice girls. Status isn’t interesting to most (though not all) of them. I can’t imagine there isn’t at least some interest in social status among the horsey set, no matter how friendly they may be. As for the academics, I trust your dd has visited classes in both schools by now, or will be doing so before April 10, and has gotten at least a basic impression. Stats for test scores and matriculation are easy enough to find.
Both schools have new heads of school and both sound like amazing women and educators!