Exeter? Ask a teacher

Prep School Admissions
61

<p>PEATeacher--I am averaging an A- in Pre-Calc this year as an 8th grader, in classes with seniors at my school. During my Exeter visit, I was told that I would probably be in the in the 3X Transition math class my prep year. Approximately how many preps take this course each year? If I took this course prep year, what would be that standard course to take when I'm a lower?</p>

<p>Also-I have decided that there are upwards of 10 clubs I am interested in joining at Exeter. I realize this is not realistic, but how often do clubs typically meet?</p>

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<p>T3X...the class starts off pretty big, and then a few people drop into the T2X course instead. There are both preps and lowers in the class... so there are 5-6 preps, I think.</p>

<p>You would take BC Calc (431/441/451) in your lower year, but everything kind of depends on how smart your T3X class is.</p>

63

<p>Thanks for the info tuesdayair.</p>

64

<p>
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1.do the students have to say "yes sir" and "yes mam"?

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<p>:) No. You call your teachers "Mr. This" and "Ms. That." Other than that, there are no rules. In spite of the dress code, I'd say that Exeter is a fairly informal place. The dress code itself is really a nod to old times more than a strict set of rules (e.g., a boy wearing an orange shirt, purple tie with knot sitting far below his neck, denim shorts, and flip-flops is following the dress code; I remember researching a boarding school where the dress code stated the number of inches that were allowed between your hair and the top of the collar of your shirt; Exeter is NOT that kind of school).</p>

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2.Is there an atheist population in the school, if so how big is it (roughly)?

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<p>Yes, there are certainly kids and teachers who are atheist or agnostic. But I couldn't give you a number. Unlike other boarding schools, Exeter was never a school with a religious affiliation and never had required chapel or anything like that.</p>

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3. How does the advising system work? In my current school my advisor is just my first period teacher and he reads the announcements, nothing more. At exeter, is advisory like a therapy session or is it more purposeful where you discuss certain things on certain set days?

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<p>Your adviser is a faculty member. S/he should be the first adult you go to when you have questions of any kind. S/he is also responsible for interacting with your family (first person the family should contact with questions of any kind). If you're a boarder, your adviser usually lives in your dorm. I'd say that the function of the adviser at Exeter is more personal than academic. S/he will, of course, help you with course selection and all that, but, more importantly, s/he's someone who keeps an eye on you, talks to you regularly, helps you out with all sorts of things (e.g., driving you to a doctor's appointment), and generally provides support. In short, the adviser does for you many (but not all!) of the things that your parents do for you and with you when you're at home.</p>

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4. For a prep, do you think a double would be better? Or do you think it just depends on the kid?

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<p>It depends on the kid. Sharing a room can make for a wonderful learning experience, but it can also be challenging. It tends to be great for some kids and hard for others.</p>

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5. How prevalent are drugs? (I know this is more of a student question, but maybe you know about it from a disciplinary perspective?)

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<p>My guess would be no more and no less than at any other private school. Discipline cases involving drugs are rare.</p>

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6.How's the food (sorry if this has been asked)

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<p>Compared to what? :) It really improved this year as the dining halls introduced a lot of new dishes, including things that you don't typically eat in a dining hall (e.g., spicy food or food that actually has a FLAVOR). There's enough choice that you should always be able to find something you like.</p>

65

<p>Thanks tuesdayair. pinkheart23, math placement is complicated enough that there was a skit about it this year at Faculty Follies (an assembly in which faculty do funny things to entertain students). Keep in mind that your placement can be changed as you go along, depending on how you do.</p>

<p>Regarding clubs, it really varies. Most clubs meet at least once a week. Some clubs (like the Math club) will meet more than once a week and for hours on end. Others will meet once a week but for just a half-hour or so. Yet other clubs may not meet more than a couple of times in a whole term. It's often a good idea to sample a bunch of clubs and then narrow your list down.</p>

66

<p>Can an entering prep request a single?</p>

<p>When do new students choose courses for their first year? We have received the course catalog but no other guidance. Do we have contact with an advisor this spring or do they send us a suggested schedule?</p>

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<p>Yes, I believe you can (but faculty are not involved in this). Course selection happens shortly after April 10, once students have confirmed their enrollment. The Deans help you with course selection. Advisers are not assigned until sometime in August (after you already have a schedule; of course, the schedule can be adjusted if need be).</p>

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<p>PA-C, a single is probably NOT a good idea for a kid on the shy side. Living with somene else will assure you at least one good friend. As a freshman it's important to really branch out and stuff.</p>

<p>And I think that Exeter is only lik 1/3 singles. Correct me if I am wrong? I would think that the singles go to all upper classmen.</p>

69

<p>PEAteacher - My son is newly admitted to PEA this fall as a 10th grader. I'm just confusing regarding the AP courses as recently I have read some information in 2009 profile for colleges from the web, it said " Last year, the Exeter faculty declined participation in the College Board's Advanced Placement audit, recognizing limitations in the AP curriculum and believing that Exeter's coursework frequently goes beyond the College Board's mandated curriculum. While the Academy no longer offers AP courses, students will still be able to register for AP examinations, as they choose." Since we are new to the US education system, so would like to know more about the AP courses and why there's such changes for no longer offering to students, are they going to cut the budgets and will there be any effects on them which means that students have to study and learn by themselves in order to take the exam ?</p>

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<p>JC65, Exeter's policy about AP courses has nothing to do with "budget cuts." It was in place long before the financial crisis struck. As you may know, it used to be the case that high schools taught classes designed to prepare students for the AP exams. These classes were labeled AP classes in course catalogs. </p>

<p>Not long ago, the College Board, which runs AP exams, required schools to submit their syllabi and get a seal of approval if they wanted to call their class "AP." This is the AP audit that what you read refers to. Exeter decided that it didn't want an external organization unrelated to the school to essentially decide what Exeter should teach. The school, therefore, declined to participate and does not offer classes officially labeled "AP" anymore. This simply gives us, as teachers, more freedom to teach what WE think is best, as opposed to what someone else thinks is best. </p>

<p>HOWEVER, because many of our classes are indeed taught at the AP level or above, students can take these classes and enroll in the AP exams if they so desire. Many Exeter students do that and do very well on the tests. By and large, the fact that they took the class is sufficient to prepare them for the test. However, there may be specific topics that were not covered in the class because the teacher chose to cover something else instead. If so, it's up to the student to fill in the holes. Teachers will often offer guidance on what to read in order to do that. </p>

<p>Bottom line, if your son is interested in taking AP-type courses, he will find many of those offered at Exeter and he will be able to register and take as many AP exams as he likes. He may have to do a little bit of independent study on his own, but in most cases it won't be significant (and, in fact, often he will find that the material he's learned in class was more advanced than the AP material, so the test will feel very easy).</p>

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<p>Thanks PEAteacher, you're really helpful.</p>

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<p>Does Exeter do anything to help with incoming preps' time management skills? In case some find it hard to juggle and organize everything. Or does the school assume you have enough self-disclipline to handle it all, and things like tutoring are rare?</p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

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<p>There are peer tutors available every evening to help with academic subjects. Time management is also discussed specifically in the Health class that all preps are required to take. We also have a faculty member (Ms. Parris) who specializes in study skills and is available for consultation. If it's clear after your first term that your time management skills need substantial work, you may take a Study Skills class with Ms. Parris in your Winter term. In short, if it looks like you know what you're doing, you won't be forced or pushed into anything; but if you need help, there's plenty of help available to you.</p>

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<p>PEAteacher, what is the size of an adviser group, how often do you meet with that group, and what do you do during meetings?</p>

<p>Thanks.</p>

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<p>Ahh, thanks for the info!</p>

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<p>
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PA-C, a single is probably NOT a good idea for a kid on the shy side. Living with somene else will assure you at least one good friend. As a freshman it's important to really branch out and stuff.

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I don't think having a double will necessarily mean that you have one good friend. If you're shy, it doesn't mean you have to have a double. Also, keep in mind that adults and older students have an eye on new students and are ready to help out in any way.</p>

<p>I think PEAteacher can talk more about advisor groups because mine hasn't really been that active, and I'm not sure what the exact theory behind it is, but recently we've had required assigned times to meet with our advisor-advisee groups and we talked about...basically nothing. I think it's nice to have another adult you can go to, but I find that at least for me and my friends, we have other faculty who we feel more comfortable reaching out to. You can always switch your advisor to that faculty whom you feel closer to, but I never felt that it was too important. (Other students may have different experiences).</p>

77

<p>Most teachers have somewhere around... I want to say 8 advisees or so. I have colleagues with 1 or 2 and colleagues with 12. As tuesdayair said, the school has been introducing regular times when advisees meet with their adviser as a group. There's no set agenda for these meetings, and different advisers do different things. They help especially advisers with day student advisees (students who don't live in a dorm), since it tends to be harder for day students and advisers to get together. For students who live in dorms, meetings with advisers (who usually live in the same dorm) happen on a fairly regular and informal basis. I'd say most of these meetings are one on one rather than with the other advisees, but some advisers will take their advisees out to dinner as a group or have get-togethers in their house with all their advisees. It's certainly the case, as tuesdayair points out, that you can choose to reach out to other adults even though they're not your adviser (the school actually encourages such connections, recognizing that your official adviser may or may not be the adult that you connect with most easily).</p>

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<p>PEAteacher - what is your best estimate of kids who don't make it because they find the work too hard?</p>

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<p>I couldn't give you a number, but it's certainly a very, very small number. Admission is very selective. If you get in, it's because you can make it. It's also hard to figure out who doesn't make it because of the workload because often there are multiple reasons that conspire to make a student leave (e.g., health/personal/family issues in addition to workload). Even though when you apply it's natural to see a very low admission rate as an "obstacle," selective admission does have this very positive function of reassuring you that you can make it if you do get in. Another way to say this is that if you're admitted, take your work seriously, and are proactive about asking for help when you run into problems, the chances that you won't make it purely because of the workload are virtually zero.</p>

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<p>Thanks, that's very helpful and reassuring. I often hear that Exeter is so competitive. Is it true that they post kids grades publicly?</p>