<p>How hard is it to get into Phillips Exeter? I know they have a 21% acceptance rate, but what especially do the admissions officers look at for this school specifically? GPA, SSAT, et cetera? What would be the average GPA of students admitted?</p>
<p>You might find this link useful:</p>
<p>Phillips</a> Exeter Academy | New Crop of Students Experience a Day on Exeters Campus</p>
<p>There is no ONE thing that any school wants. They don't want 200 math whizzes in one class, nor do they want 200 clarinetists. They are looking for a diverse group of students. Grades, SSAT, application, interviews, recommendations all play a part. Why one student is accepted and another is not can be hard to determine. I imagine that most Exeter students have A averages and SSAT scores in the 80s and 90s (couldn't find statistics, but they are probably comparable to Andover, which did note the averages for the latest group of accepted students).</p>
<p>Exeter (and Andover) are among the largest of the boarding schools. Advantages: big endowments, many classes and sports offered. Disadvantages: may not be comforting and nurturing (even though, as a parent of an incoming Andover student, our family has found all of the staff extremely warm and friendly so far.)</p>
<p>Choosing a list of schools to apply to can be difficult, but try to focus on what characteristics (size; location; clubs, sports, classes offered; etc.) you would like in a school. Don't only apply to schools that have low acceptance rates if your heart is set on a boarding school.</p>
<p>Good luck with your search!</p>
<p>Thank you. I'm completely new to the process of applying to boarding school. I originally started looking at Exeter because of their financial aid, and because of it I can actually afford boarding school. </p>
<p>I'm actually really concerned with the low acceptance rate, because I'm not sure if I'm up to par with their academic standards due to issues I've had to face that have made my grades drop a lot lower than they should be.</p>
<p>there acceptance rate for 2008 was 18%</p>
<p>Oh, yeah, I forgot to put this in my PM to you tubechick, I needed FA as well.</p>
<p>Exeter isn't the only place with financial aid. If you do a search on this forum, you'll find many stories from parents who got aid from unlikely places - sometimes more from schools with smaller endowments. </p>
<p>Don't limit yourself to Exeter because of cost! Make a list of schools you seem to have a good fit with and/or interest in. It seems to me, the better the fit (How well you can answer the question "Why you, why here?") the more likely the school is to offer the money.</p>
<p>Oh don't worry, I'm looking around. Exeter just seemed like my perfect fit. It has most of what I'm looking for, although I am looking around still!</p>
<p>OH, and Sullivan, I just read that! :) I didn't post it yet though.</p>
<p>When I applied to Exeter last year, I found it to be a school that looks for very unique, lighthearted and mature personalities that can also handle the work load and take it seriously while contributing to the school in many areas. Just because your SSAT scores are lower, don't be discouraged--just try even harder at the interview and while writing your essays. Remember that you want to stand out and offer a little something extra that nobody else can.</p>
<p>Every school is hard to get into, you just have to make it your business to let you in.
Know what Im saying? lol Everyone has something that seperates them from the rest.</p>
<p>I liked how Aussie and Scigirl14 phrased your posts. THANKS!</p>