You should just start a new list with relevant categories. For example, Arabic can likely be taken at any school which offers independent study and has an instructor or the ability to study online ( this goes for any subject really). We didn’t fund a single BS that didn’t have at least 3-5 international trips ( and many had dozens of options). Internships were available at many schools, though the scope and number varied a lot. I also think your boarding numbers need to be updated at least one school on your list is off by a large factor. Things change iver the years. Kids and parents need to know what is important to them and investigate further. This is one reason online rating systems for schools are not that accurate.
@JustWinginIt, thanks for volunteering!
Not sure what “Masters” is under Weekly Saturday Classes, but it’s not The Masters School - which should be added under Saturday Classes - Never
The Masters School uses Harkness for all classes
Has a Dance Company for credit
Has not one but several robotics teams (see Zetetics below)
Has video production courses (under Filmmaking)
Has Senior Speeches
Has an Ethical Leadership program, including Seminars in Ethical Leadership
Has a four-year Engineering Program (The curriculum is aligned with Common Core State Standards, Next Generation Science Standards and International Society for Technology in Education Standards.
Through the partnership with the Rochester Institute of Technology, students earn college credits.)
Has a robust Zetetics program, with cybersecurity, computer science, and robotics teams.
@JustWinginIt please also add The Masters School to 5 Day Boarding.
Updated. Deleted a lot of explanatory info; I figure this is a jumping off point to help everyone find schools to look into further. Also deleted computer science listing; most, if not all, schools offer computer science classes now.
Tag me with a note about what to add/change, and I’ll update it every few days.
100% BOARDING (for current info, search by % boarding at boardingschoolreview.com):
- Advanced Academy of Georgia * Blue Ridge School * Camden Military Academy * Carlbrook School * Carson Long Military Academy * Episcopal HS * The Gow School * Grand River Academy * Hampshire Country School * Hyde School - Woodstock, CT * Leysin American School in Switzerland (LAS) * Marine Military Academy * Midland School * New Mexico Military Institute * Oak Creek Ranch School * Oliverian School * Robert Land Academy * St. Andrew’s School, DE * St. John’s Military School * St. Paul’s School * St. Thomas More School * Scattergood Friends School * Squaw Valley Academy * THINK Global School * Wolfeboro: The Summer Boarding School * Woodberry Forest School
80%+ BOARDING (see note above):
- Berkshire * Blair * Cate * Culver (90%) * Deerfield * Exeter * Forman * Groton (85%) * Hotchkiss * Kent * New Hampton School * Salisbury * Thacher (90% - most day students are faculty kids on campus) * St Mark’s
5 DAY BOARDING
- Masters * Winchendon * Worcester Academy
CHAPEL/RELIGIOUS SERVICES REQUIRED:
- George (Quaker mtg)* Kent * Peddie (2x/wk, not religious) * St. Andrew’s * St. Mark’s * St. Paul’s (4x/wk) * Salisbury (2x/wk)
CONVOCATION HANDSHAKES:
- Choate
EVENING ARTS
- Putney
FARM
- George (organic garden) * Hillside (Jr. BS) * Hotchkiss * NMH * Putney
GROUP HUG BEFORE VACATIONS AFTER CHAPEL:
- St. Paul’s
HEALTH & WELLNESS PROGRAM:
- Emma Willard (w/ residential option - ‘The Wellies’)
HORSE PROGRAM
- George * Kent * Orme * Thacher (mandatory, core to school’s approach to building character, self-awareness, & leadership)
HUG LINE BEFORE CHAPEL:
- Concord
INDOOR ROWING TANKS:
- Brewster * Brooks * Deerfield * Kent * St. Paul’s
JOBS ON CAMPUS ( Req.)
- George * Kent * Loomis * Madeira (internships in DC) * NMH * Peddie * Putney
“NEW GIRL”/“OLD GIRL” PAIRING - CIRCLE OF LIGHT - SINGING IN THE GARDEN - RING CEREMONY
- Miss Porter’s
NIGHTLY HANDSHAKING:
- Groton * St Mark’s
ONE-SANCTION EXPULSION (1-strike you’re out)
- Concord (certain infractions) * Emma Willard (certain infractions) * Hotchkiss * Peddle * Pomfret * St Mark’s (certain infractions)
OUTDOOR PROGRAM
- Berkshire * Cate * Orme * Proctor * Thacher
THE PORTER PLAN
- Miss Porter’s - house (dorm) directors’ primary responsibilities on campus are within the dormitories, w/o additional responsibilities of teaching or coaching.
SATURDAY CLASSES - NEVER:
- Andover * Choate * Concord * Deerfield * Governor’s * Lawrence * Loomis * Masters * Middlesex * St. Andrew’s * Tabor * Thacher * Westtown
SATURDAY CLASSES - OCCASIONAL:
- Cate (every other week) * Exeter * Hill School
SATURDAY CLASSES - WEEKLY:
- Berkshire * Brewster * Brooks * Forman * Gould * Hotchkiss * Kent * Kimball Union * Lawrenceville * Loomis * New Hampton * Peddie * Pomfret * St. George’s * St. Paul’s * St. Mark’s (all pass/fail electives) * Salisbury * Vermont Academy
SENIOR SPEECHES (speeches given weekly by 1-2 senior students)
- Cate * Concord * Masters * St Mark’s * Thacher (Senior Exhibitions) * Westminster
SIT-DOWN FORMAL MEALS:
- Berkshire (1x in Fall & Spring) * Blair (generally 2x/wk) * Brooks (2x/wk, Fall & Spring) * Cate (1x/wk) * Deerfield * Episcopal * Groton (wkly, fall & spring) * Kent (1x/wk) * Loomis (wkly, fall & spring) * Mercersburg * Millbrook (1x/wk) * Miss Porter’s (2x/wk) * Peddie (1x/wk) * Portsmouth Abbey * St. Andrew’s (DE) * St. Mark’s * St. Paul’s (3-4x/term) * Salisbury (2x/wk) * Thacher (4x/wk)
SWIMMING REQUIREMENT:
- NMH * St. Mark’s (for crew only)
ZOO (ACCREDITED)
- Millbrook
A C A D E M I C S
ACADEMIC SUPPORT
*Berkshire * Brewster * Cheshire * Cushing Academy * Darrow * Dublin * Forman * Gould * Kents Hill * Kimball Union * Mercersburg * Millbrook * New Hampton * NMH * Pennington * Pomfret * Solebury * Suffield * Vermont Academy * Winchendon * Worcester Academy
ARABIC:
- Choate * Deerfield * Exeter (Seniors w/ another language only) * Loomis
ARTS CONCENTRATION PROGRAM:
- Choate
AVIATION SCIENCE (flight school)
Berkshire
BLOCK SCHEDULE:
- Forman * Pomfret * St. Mark’s
CAPSTONE REQUIRED:
- Mercersburg
CARIBBEAN STUDIES
- Lawrenceville (Island School) * Tabor (on a schooner 2 weeks)
COLLEGE MODEL ACADEMIC PROGRAM (fewer classes per semester; each semester covers entire year’s worth of material)
- NMH
CLASSICS DEGREE
- Exeter * St. Mark’s
DANCE COMPANY (for credit):
- Concord * Deerfield * Loomis * Masters * St. Paul’s * Westover
ENGINEERING (4 YR PROGRAM)
- Masters
ETHICS COURSE - REQUIRED:
- Brooks * Cate * Loomis (not req.) * Masters * Miss Porter’s School * St. Mark’s (req. Saturday class IV form) * Salisbury
FILMMAKING:
- Cate * Choate * Concord * Dunn * Exeter * George * Loomis * Masters * Peddie * Putney
HARKNESS TABLE:
- Blair * Cate (English/Humanities) * Concord (in language/humanities) * Exeter (all classes, including math & science) * Lawrenceville * Loomis * Masters * Mercersberg * St. Andrew’s * St Mark’s * St. Paul’s
IB:
- Annie Wright * Carlisle * Cheshire (CT) * Dwight School * EF Intl Academy New York * George School * Mercyhurst Prep * Mid-Pacific Institute * Montessori HS (OH) * Mount Saint Mary Academy * New Hampton School * North Broward Prep * St. Andrew’s (FL) * St. John’s (MN) * St. Timothy’s (MD) * Stoneleigh-Burnham * UWC-USA * Verde Valley
INGENUITY LAB
- Forman
INTERNATIONAL PROGRAMS:
- Blair * Brooks School * Choate * Exeter * George (service learning) * Hotchkiss * Lawrenceville * Loomis * NMH * Peddie * Proctor *St Mark’s * St. Paul’s * Westover
ISLAND SCHOOL:
- Berkshire * Exeter * Lawrenceville (Semester in Bahamas)
LIVING IN COMMUNITY (req.\ class):
- George * St. Paul’s
MARINE SCIENCE - ADVANCED:
- Portsmouth Abbey * Cate * Santa Catalina * Tabor
MOD SYSTEM (Academic calendar = 3 courses at a time taken for 6 weeks):
*Cambridge School of Weston (CSW)
MOUNTAIN CLASSROOM:
- Proctor (full trimester camping/academic adventure)
NAUTICAL SCIENCE
- Portsmouth Abbey * Tabor
OBSERVATORY
- St. Paul’s * Thacher
OCEAN CLASSROOM:
- Proctor (10 wks in fall aboard 130’ schooner sailing to Caribbean; also offered in spring—16 wks & open to non-Proctor students for credit)
ON SNOW PROGRAM (competitive skiing/snowboarding, certifications in ski instruction, ski patrol or adaptive skiing and instruction for beginners)
- Gould
RAINFOREST PROGRAM
- Forman
ROBOTICS TEAM:
- Forman * George * Masters * Peddie * St. Mark’s * Winchendon
SACRED TEXTS:
- Groton
SCIENCE RESEARCH PROGRAM:
- Berkshire (Math Science / Environmental) * Brooks * Choate * Emma Willard * Concord * Exeter * St. Mark’s * St. Paul’s (Engineering) * Thacher (Astronomy)
SHAKESPEARE SEMESTER:
- Episcopal * Exeter (trimester in Stratford-Upon-Avon)
SIGNATURE EXPERIENCE:
- Peddie (in Advanced Research Science, Arts, Asian Studies, Creative Writing, Languages & Robotics) * St. George’s (Semester at Sea) * Winchendon (ColLABS - either do a “deep dive” into a new topic that interests you w/ other students & teachers, or design your own independent study or internship)
STAINED GLASS/ HOT GLASS:
- St. Paul’s
INDUSTRIAL ARTS
- Proctor
WINTER TERM (Period of time during a vacation where students return to campus for non-traditional classes of their choice)
- Berkshire * Brooks * Forman (many off campus/travel) * Lawrence * Millbrook * New Hampton School * Pomfret * St. Mark’s (NOT in Winter; last 3 weeks of school, mainly off campus)
WOMEN IN SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING
*St. Mark’s * Westover
I just got an email that Stuart Hall is starting an Esports program. That’s pretty unique!
Can someone please add to Dance Company (for credit) the following schools:
Emma Willard and Miss Porters?
Thanks!
You can add Noble and Greenough and Belmont Hill to 5 day boarding. Note: Neither school offers 7 day boarding.
@vwlizard - is esports extreme sports? Electronic sports? Help! 
Because teenagers needs to spend more time with video games? smh
@skieurope - so it is electronic sports?? I was joking! Good grief…
Yes. Electronic sports. Apparently, they are even dedicating a new building to it. I don’t get it either, but it is certainly unique.
Very sad.
Updated. Tag me with a note about what to add/change, and I’ll update it every few days.
100% BOARDING (for current info, search by % boarding at boardingschoolreview.com):
- Advanced Academy of Georgia * Blue Ridge School * Camden Military Academy * Carlbrook School * Carson Long Military Academy * Episcopal HS * The Gow School * Grand River Academy * Hampshire Country School * Hyde School - Woodstock, CT * Leysin American School in Switzerland (LAS) * Marine Military Academy * Midland School * New Mexico Military Institute * Oak Creek Ranch School * Oliverian School * Robert Land Academy * St. Andrew’s School, DE * St. John’s Military School * St. Paul’s School * St. Thomas More School * Scattergood Friends School * Squaw Valley Academy * THINK Global School * Wolfeboro: The Summer Boarding School * Woodberry Forest School
80%+ BOARDING (see note above):
- Berkshire * Blair * Cate * Culver (90%) * Deerfield * Exeter * Forman * Groton (85%) * Hotchkiss * Kent * New Hampton School * Salisbury * Thacher (90% - most day students are faculty kids on campus) * St Mark’s
5 DAY BOARDING
- Belmont Hill * Masters * Noble and Greenough * Winchendon * Worcester Academy
CHAPEL/RELIGIOUS SERVICES REQUIRED:
- George (Quaker mtg)* Kent * Peddie (2x/wk, not religious) * St. Andrew’s * St. Mark’s * St. Paul’s (4x/wk) * Salisbury (2x/wk)
CONVOCATION HANDSHAKES:
- Choate
EVENING ARTS
- Putney
FARM
- George (organic garden) * Hillside (Jr. BS) * Hotchkiss * NMH * Putney
GROUP HUG BEFORE VACATIONS AFTER CHAPEL:
- St. Paul’s
HEALTH & WELLNESS PROGRAM:
- Emma Willard (w/ residential option - ‘The Wellies’)
HORSE PROGRAM
- George * Kent * Orme * Thacher (mandatory, core to school’s approach to building character, self-awareness, & leadership)
HUG LINE BEFORE CHAPEL:
- Concord
INDOOR ROWING TANKS:
- Brewster * Brooks * Deerfield * Kent * St. Paul’s
JOBS ON CAMPUS ( Req.)
- George * Kent * Loomis * Madeira (internships in DC) * NMH * Peddie * Putney
“NEW GIRL”/“OLD GIRL” PAIRING - CIRCLE OF LIGHT - SINGING IN THE GARDEN - RING CEREMONY
- Miss Porter’s
NIGHTLY HANDSHAKING:
- Groton * St Mark’s
ONE-SANCTION EXPULSION (1-strike you’re out)
- Concord (certain infractions) * Emma Willard (certain infractions) * Hotchkiss * Peddle * Pomfret * St Mark’s (certain infractions)
OUTDOOR PROGRAM
- Berkshire * Cate * Orme * Proctor * Thacher
THE PORTER PLAN
- Miss Porter’s - house (dorm) directors’ primary responsibilities on campus are within the dormitories, w/o additional responsibilities of teaching or coaching.
SATURDAY CLASSES - NEVER:
- Andover * Choate * Concord * Deerfield * Governor’s * Lawrence * Loomis * Masters * Middlesex * St. Andrew’s * Tabor * Thacher * Westtown
SATURDAY CLASSES - OCCASIONAL:
- Cate (every other week) * Exeter * Hill School
SATURDAY CLASSES - WEEKLY:
- Berkshire * Brewster * Brooks * Forman * Gould * Hotchkiss * Kent * Kimball Union * Lawrenceville * Loomis * New Hampton * Peddie * Pomfret * St. George’s * St. Paul’s * St. Mark’s (all pass/fail electives) * Salisbury * Vermont Academy
SENIOR SPEECHES (speeches given weekly by 1-2 senior students)
- Cate * Concord * Masters * St Mark’s * Thacher (Senior Exhibitions) * Westminster
SIT-DOWN FORMAL MEALS:
- Berkshire (1x in Fall & Spring) * Blair (generally 2x/wk) * Brooks (2x/wk, Fall & Spring) * Cate (1x/wk) * Deerfield * Episcopal * Groton (wkly, fall & spring) * Kent (1x/wk) * Loomis (wkly, fall & spring) * Mercersburg * Millbrook (1x/wk) * Miss Porter’s (2x/wk) * Peddie (1x/wk) * Portsmouth Abbey * St. Andrew’s (DE) * St. Mark’s * St. Paul’s (3-4x/term) * Salisbury (2x/wk) * Thacher (4x/wk)
SWIMMING REQUIREMENT:
- NMH * St. Mark’s (for crew only)
ZOO (ACCREDITED)
- Millbrook
A C A D E M I C S
ACADEMIC SUPPORT
*Berkshire * Brewster * Cheshire * Cushing Academy * Darrow * Dublin * Forman * Gould * Kents Hill * Kimball Union * Mercersburg * Millbrook * New Hampton * NMH * Pennington * Pomfret * Solebury * Suffield * Vermont Academy * Winchendon * Worcester Academy
ARABIC:
- Choate * Deerfield * Exeter (Seniors w/ another language only) * Loomis
ARTS CONCENTRATION PROGRAM:
- Choate
AVIATION SCIENCE (flight school)
- Berkshire
BLOCK SCHEDULE:
- Forman * Pomfret * St. Mark’s
CAPSTONE REQUIRED:
- Mercersburg
CARIBBEAN STUDIES
- Lawrenceville (Island School) * Tabor (on a schooner 2 weeks)
COLLEGE MODEL ACADEMIC PROGRAM (fewer classes per semester; each semester covers entire year’s worth of material)
- NMH
CLASSICS DEGREE
- Exeter * St. Mark’s
DANCE COMPANY (for credit):
- Concord * Deerfield * Emma Willard * Loomis * Masters * Miss Porters * St. Paul’s * Westover
ENGINEERING (4 YR PROGRAM)
- Masters
ESPORTS (Electronic Sports)
- Stuart Hall
ETHICS COURSE - REQUIRED:
- Brooks * Cate * Loomis (not req.) * Masters * Miss Porter’s School * St. Mark’s (req. Saturday class IV form) * Salisbury
FILMMAKING:
- Cate * Choate * Concord * Dunn * Exeter * George * Loomis * Masters * Peddie * Putney
HARKNESS TABLE:
- Blair * Cate (English/Humanities) * Concord (in language/humanities) * Exeter (all classes, including math & science) * Lawrenceville * Loomis * Masters * Mercersberg * St. Andrew’s * St Mark’s * St. Paul’s
IB:
- Annie Wright * Carlisle * Cheshire (CT) * Dwight School * EF Intl Academy New York * George School * Mercyhurst Prep * Mid-Pacific Institute * Montessori HS (OH) * Mount Saint Mary Academy * New Hampton School * North Broward Prep * St. Andrew’s (FL) * St. John’s (MN) * St. Timothy’s (MD) * Stoneleigh-Burnham * UWC-USA * Verde Valley
INGENUITY LAB
- Forman
INTERNATIONAL PROGRAMS:
- Blair * Brooks School * Choate * Exeter * George (service learning) * Hotchkiss * Lawrenceville * Loomis * NMH * Peddie * Proctor *St Mark’s * St. Paul’s * Westover
ISLAND SCHOOL:
- Berkshire * Exeter * Lawrenceville (Semester in Bahamas)
LIVING IN COMMUNITY (req.\ class):
- George * St. Paul’s
MARINE SCIENCE - ADVANCED:
- Portsmouth Abbey * Cate * Santa Catalina * Tabor
MOD SYSTEM (Academic calendar = 3 courses at a time taken for 6 weeks):
- Cambridge School of Weston (CSW)
MOUNTAIN CLASSROOM:
- Proctor (full trimester camping/academic adventure)
NAUTICAL SCIENCE
- Portsmouth Abbey * Tabor
OBSERVATORY
- St. Paul’s * Thacher
OCEAN CLASSROOM:
- Proctor (10 wks in fall aboard 130’ schooner sailing to Caribbean; also offered in spring—16 wks & open to non-Proctor students for credit)
ON SNOW PROGRAM (competitive skiing/snowboarding, certifications in ski instruction, ski patrol or adaptive skiing and instruction for beginners)
- Gould
RAINFOREST PROGRAM
- Forman
ROBOTICS TEAM:
- Forman * George * Masters * Peddie * St. Mark’s * Winchendon
SACRED TEXTS:
- Groton
SCIENCE RESEARCH PROGRAM:
- Berkshire (Math Science / Environmental) * Brooks * Choate * Emma Willard * Concord * Exeter * St. Mark’s * St. Paul’s (Engineering) * Thacher (Astronomy)
SHAKESPEARE SEMESTER:
- Episcopal * Exeter (trimester in Stratford-Upon-Avon)
SIGNATURE EXPERIENCE:
- Peddie (in Advanced Research Science, Arts, Asian Studies, Creative Writing, Languages & Robotics) * St. George’s (Semester at Sea) * Winchendon (ColLABS - either do a “deep dive” into a new topic that interests you w/ other students & teachers, or design your own independent study or internship)
STAINED GLASS/ HOT GLASS:
- St. Paul’s
INDUSTRIAL ARTS
- Proctor
WINTER TERM (Period of time during a vacation where students return to campus for non-traditional classes of their choice)
- Berkshire * Brooks * Forman (many off campus/travel) * Lawrence * Millbrook * New Hampton School * Pomfret * St. Mark’s (NOT in Winter; last 3 weeks of school, mainly off campus)
WOMEN IN SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING
*St. Mark’s * Westover
Might be worth differentiating within the horse program category.
Lots of boarding schools have equestrian programs with competitive teams that ride English style (Chatham Hall, Ethel Walker, Foxcroft, Kent, George, Thacher)… Some schools even allow or encourage kids to bring their own horse.
Fewer schools have Western Riding available (Thacher, Orme, Ojai Valley School)… but only one school has a Horse Program that is both mandatory and central to the school’s approach to building character, responsibility, and self-awareness (Thacher.).
Given limited space and the desire to keep it to one post, I’d let folks do their own research re: what each school’s horse program entails.
We could make room by deleting all the separate categories for hugs and handshakes, lol. Does anyone pick s school based on whether there are nightly handshakes vs group hugs before holidays?
And what is a mandatory “Capstone”?
(Only one school listed… is it a senior research paper? If so, other schools have equivalents.
“Winter Term”? The description sounds a lot like Thacher’s Mayhem, except that it is after finals in May, not winter.
@CaliMex - Next time I work on it, I’ll see what I can do. I agree; some of it can still be tightened up considerably.
@JustWinginIt here are a few for PEA:
Washington Intern program (seniors work on capital hill)
Offers 17 curricular study abroad opportunities on 5 continents. Highlights include: Ghana, St. Petersburg among others
Offers 23 different offsite opportunities outside the school year such as volunteering in New Orleans, visiting Cuba or exploring design thinking workshops and touring startups in Silicon Valley
Grainger observatory
Russian language (4 year program)
Exeter innovates: New courses that are Interdisciplinary. Such as Bioethics & green umbrella learning lab (sustainability)
Trimester system
I’m delighted to learn about the addition of an esports program. There are professional teams now with a huge fan base. I hoped some schools would build a community of their own and compete.