<p>So I'm eagerly awaiting responses from a few schools, and I'm sure most of you are as well. Though for me, it's not really where I'm going to get in as much as whether I truly want to go to boarding school at all. I'm a current freshman, and have been placed in all honors (though I can't take APs until junior year). I'm not number one in my grade but I'm safely top 10 percent, maybe top 5. I'm volunteering locally and have decent ground under my feet.
Going to boarding school is a wild card. Of course, it's wonderful and an amazing opportunity. However, coming in as a sophomore means I have less time to form connections with volunteer groups in the local areas of the schools (as you can tell, I'm big into volunteering). In addition, instead of being a big fish in a small pond like I am at my high school currently, I'm concerned I'd be a smaller fish in a bigger pond. I'm worried that colleges won't see me as an exemplary student anymore because I'm blended into the insanely smart crowd of top tier boarding schools. While at my public high school, I have limited opportunity but at the same time I can do other things (like, I'm trying to get a spot writing for a newspaper, and I'm trying to finish my novel, etc). At boarding school, there is a much wider range of things I can do, but because the course load will be much more rigorous I'm afraid I won't be able to do the things I love doing.
Sorry for sounding so frazzled. It's been a long day pondering over all of this. I'd sincerely love it if anyone had any insight on this, whether it be a parent or a student facing similar circumstances.
Thanks.</p>
<p>As to the small fish in big pond analogy, it’s better to be a Great Lake trout than the only fish in a random pond no one can name. Crude analogy but oh well.</p>
<p>You will be able to handle the coursework as long as yo try hard. The schools have a designated study hall, most of them, anyway, and I hear the social integration isn’t that difficult.</p>
<p>I am quite worried about that as well, since I’m not even the best of the best at my current school (we feed to U of M and at least one person gets into an Ivy/Stanford/MIT every year, AND it’s public!) But I think that if you work hard and strive to be your best, you’ll be fine. Also, you don’t have to ride off of academics to be noticed at your school. You can be a big time athlete, humanitarian, activist, artist, or really anything, while still having awesome grades. 
get noticed for YOU. </p>
<p>Btw I’m applying as an incoming 10th grader too :)</p>
<p>mrnephew- I hope so. Thank you!</p>
<p>boardingjunkie- I’m in literally the exact same situation. I mean, it’s usually about three or four people who go to a top top university. My problem is is that I’m certainly not going to be recruited for being an athlete. I mean, it’s my goal/dream to be a published author by the time I graduate high school, but that’s so far fetched.
Oh, and where did you apply? I applied to Lawrenceville, Taft, and Peddie (to which I was accepted <em>screams</em>)</p>
<p>I couldn’t disagree more with mrnephew. Colleges look at SAT scores, ECs, recommendations, and grades. If you are an average student at a top tier prep school you are less likely to gain admission to a top tier college than if you are a high flyer in a less known or even public school. Being a high flyer means higher class rank and more leadership opportunities. This is why colleges rely on the SAT. High SAT scores, high grades, solid ECs, and great recommendations trump prep school name. Where you go to gain those assets isn’t just a matter of choosing the most prestigious name. </p>
<p>As for the 10th grade admission decision, you will be more mature entering as a 10th grader, but you will be entering an already established class. That matters much more at some schools than others. At one of my kids’ schools it mattered too much, while at the other there were a larger number of entering sophomores. Check it out. </p>
<p>And yes, almost all boarding schools do offer a wider range of opportunities. As for course load, the transition from public to prep often does mean that straight A students have to get used to lesser grades but, depending on the public school you attend, the classes may just be far better at prep school. In our case, the public schools just weren’t going to offer the opportunities or rigor we sought, but we are in a rural state. There are plenty of places with public schools that will get you where you want to go.</p>
<p>wcmom1958- Those were my thoughts exactly. However, considering that my public high school simply doesn’t have the same options/opportunities that boarding schools do, would you maintain the same thought? Certainly my resume would be much more impressive coming from a boarding school due to all the opportunities they offer students.
Thank you so much for your input, though. I appreciate it.</p>
<p>Some people go to boarding school for the experience of having been to boarding school.</p>
<p>If your public can’t offer you what you want and you have found a BS you like, then try it. You can always go back to your public. Sometimes risks work out 
Feel free to PM me and I can tell you more about our experience. I did have one kid go as a sophomore. Since you sound ambivalent, your revisits will be paramount. Make sure you get a sense of where you will rank and if sophomores are integrated well into the community, among other things. </p>
<p>One thing I should add though. College prep is just that. You will have an easier time adjusting to a top college from prep school than from public.</p>
<p>And besides, a school like L’ville sends like 20 percent of its kids to Ivies. That’s estimated by the way, don’t quote me.</p>