<p>In terms of college admissions/ jobs long-term (if i get in) which would be the best choice?
i mean i live overseas, so my "public school" aka the american school is $25,000 per year. vs 44,000 and up for boarding school.</p>
<p>is boarding school worth it? is it worth going to, especially if your the best person in your class at public school vs being in the average percentiles at a boarding school</p>
<p>Boarding school is very much worth it for the right kid, at the right school, for the right reasons. One size does not fit all. Only you and your family can determine what’s best for you. Many kids choose boarding school not for the impact on college admission, but for the impact on personal development. It is this latter objective which I think is the most important: the setting of good habits, the love of learning, exceptional self-reliance, maturity. These critical life characteristics are often the best outcomes of a good boarding school. If you’re all about college admission, then boarding school is just one of several equally valid options.</p>
<p>As far as Exeter and Thacher are concerned, aside from the size difference, either is a top choice.</p>
<p>As far as statistics go, Exeter’s college matriculation is stronger. It also tends to have more name-recongition, especially on the east coast.</p>
<p>A high performing child graduated from either school will have their pick of colleges. However, their boarding experiences, apart from academic similarities, will be wildly different. If these were your only two choices, I’d recommend visiting both. They’re each extraordinary places in their own ways.</p>
<p>Parlabane, what do you mean by "However, their boarding experiences, apart from academic similarities, will be wildly different. "
I’ve been to the Exeter Summer School, and i am [legit] in love with the Harkness Table.
however, i love the look of Thacher- im a very nature loving person, so i like the wilderness programs at Thacher.</p>
<p>also, thacher is smaller, which i love :)</p>
<p>I really like both of these schools, but for totally different reasons. I know current faculty, students and parents at both.</p>
<p>Other than Exeter which, commensurate with its size, offers far more courses than Thacher, the students and grads seem equally well educated and successful to me. Definitely more HYP outcomes at Exeter. But that makes sense when you think about the school’s goals.</p>
<p>The rest of the school experiences couldn’t be more different however. Exeter has five times the number of kids and feels like a small college (actually it’s better than most colleges IMO) Many wonderful relationships are developed at Exeter and the kids are quite extraordinary frequently possessing impressive, specialized skill sets. Exeter does a world class job of collecting star achievers in different disciplines from around the world and pushing them hard to become even better in their areas of love and expertise. This has the advantage of creating an atmosphere of academic, sporting and extracurricular glitterati for all students with the sometime disadvantage of making it difficult to participate meaningfully in areas outside a student’s core expertise. That’s not to say there aren’t good club opportunities or that you’re denied exposure to anything that interests you (it’s like a gigantic buffet), it’s just to say that in almost every area of school life there are dozens of specialists/experts/uber achievers who occupy/own a particular niche. It really is a lot like college. If your goal at boarding school is to be pushed to be your very best AND to be rubbing shoulders with kids in other scholastic and extracurricular areas who are arguably the best in the United States than Exeter is the perfect choice (if you can get in :).</p>
<p>Thacher is way too small to accommodate a lot of specialization. Certainly there are better math students, or English students, or musicians, or athletes etc, but it’s far more likely (according to several teachers) to find a kid who arrives with no background in a particular area becoming fully involved and expert by their senior year in that new area than it would be at a school like Exeter or Andover. Well “roundedness” is the principal characteristic of Thacher students and the admissions office goes out of its way to identify and attract this type of personality and background.</p>
<p>The emphasis on the outdoors at Thacher is a dominating feature of the school. Where Exeter has Harkness, Thacher has the mountains, the horse program, the wilderness trips, the advanced camping, the warmer climate etc. You would be miserable at Thacher if you were the shy, retiring indoors type. But if the natural world is equally important to you as the academic one, then Thacher is the best place possible. If you found yourself in a spot of trouble in the great outdoors, believe me, you’d want a Thacher kid alongside. It’s a very close knit community of highly self-reliant, resourceful people. The Thacher faculty and kids I know are also modest, which makes being with them enjoyable.</p>
<p>Anyway, that’s why I recommend visiting both schools if you haven’t already. It’s an apple and an orange sort of decision.</p>
<p>@Leppy: Exeter vs. Thacher vs. Good Public School! I don’t know Exeter very well other than one visit so I can’t say whether Parlabane is accurate. But his Thacher commentary is correct. Leppy, you have three very good options, each with its own pros and cons. If you’d like to learn more about Thacher, PM me. While you’re in SoCal, you should also check out Cate, another excellent school, although somewhat less outdoorsy in my opinion. CateParent might feel differently, though!</p>
<p>Anyway, good luck with your search!</p>