I’m in a really advanced program called the Horizons program. I did really bad on one assignment, and now I have a B in science. Can I still go to the high school that I dream of going to…Phillip Exeter?
Please reply!
Do they look at sixth grade grades?
You should probably post this in the prep school admissions forum…
Will a B mean an automatic rejection? No.
For Exeter, no. Other schools will differ.
It’s only one class. They will pay most attention to your record in Grade 8
At a HADES open house, an AO said, “we expect kids to get As”. However, 7th grade and 8th grade are what they ar really interested in. Even then, I doubt anyone would agree that a single B would be the death knell. But I would consider that the top 5-10 schools would, for starters, presume A’s, and would want to know why someone did not get an A. There could be sound reasons for a B, of course.
Many kids have Bs that get into these schools. Some schools are more rigorous than others, some kids have much heavier schedules…these schools are not looking for straight As. They are looking for “special,” and special may or may not have straight A’s.
There’s no such thing as a HADES open house.
May 16, 2015
Hotchkiss
I believe we received other invites as well, but that was the one to which I refer.
Center, the PO was asking specifically re Exeter, I answered in re a HADES Comment.
I’m not sure I’d say “some schools are more rigorous than others” just among the HADES… They are pretty darn close, and even the top 10 seem quite clustered.
But again, one B, in 6th grade… Not terribly meaningful.
The assumption that “straight a’s” are expected is ridiculous. With rampant grade inflation at some schools, and extreme grade deflation at others, GPA is a very misleading measure of merit. The only true standardized measure of academic performance (somewhat flawed I know) is the ssat.
To answer your question, @Mira12 admissions is much more than just grades and if a school rejects you because of 1 B, you would not want to attend that institution anyway, as they lack knowledge on what it means to be human. Humans make mistakes.
And a B is not necessarily a mistake for that matter. There is rampant grade inflation in academics at all levels, so as Laxprep says the SSAT is extremely meaningful despite those who insist it isn’t. It can validate grades, it can expIain grades and it can illuminate a candidate. 6teensearch: when I said some schools are more rigorous I meant the schools in which the candidates are currently enrolled.
Oh right, Center, yes, I totally agree. I thought you meant some of the Hades+ would want As and some would not.
@Center there is definitely no open house to Hades
I don’t know why it’s so important to these posters to keep saying there are no open houses, but, as I said, Hotchkiss had one May 16 last year and again in the fall. I know Andover had one Oct 4 2015 and Exeter has had one too. I don’t know about Deerfield and St Paul’s, we weren’t looking at those.
Don’t take my word for it … Google it. It’s on their websites.
In fact I think we got emails about open houses from nearly all the schools on DC’s preliminary list. I believe they go to anyone who has made an inquiry.
Apologies to the original poster for being off topic!
Agreed @6teenSearch, @center is just wrong in this case. In addition to open houses, they have pretty extensive on the road events. All this information can be easily found on their websites.
Back to the OP question, one grade of a B shouldn’t harm your chances. Your “package” is much more than just one grade in one class!
That was not what was said. The comment was that there is no HADES open house, as in group open houses. Hotchkiss has its own, Andover…, etc.
Thanks, Ski.
In my first post I was trying to avoid saying “so and so at such and such school” told a group “blah blah blah”. But, I wanted to clarify that the comment was made at one of the Hades, hence perhaps germane to the OP’s question in re Exeter. So I just wrote… “at a HADES open house”.
I understand the confusion.
So yes, several (but perhaps not all) HADES host open houses, at their respective schools. I am not sure how one could even have an “open house” across several schools given the meaning of the term “open house”!
I never mentioned any open houses. At all. However we have been invited to HADES school events at people’s homes. This is the second comment saying I was wrong about open houses. I NEVER made a comment about open houses.
I know you didn’t, Center!
There’s been lots of confusion on this thread! I think maybe we all have app-brain.
Hey @Mira12 !
Please don’t stress about it! My child received a “B” in 9th grad Math and was admitted to Exeter. Just keep learning and focusing on your passions. 