<p>Hey everyone!
To be honest, I'm feeling kind of down in the dumps right now. The school I'm absolutely infatuated with seems to become more and more out of my league with everything I read, and that's terrifying. I have friends who go there, and they say the admissions team isn't as harsh or scary and getting in isn't even <em>that</em> hard, but I still have a nauseating feeling of inferiority. It's honestly become almost like a "love at first sight" situation, and I'm getting more and more anxious every day.
Is there anything I can do to make this unbearable feeling go away...?
Thanks in advance, you guys :-S </p>
<p>I agree that it can be a bit overwhelming to see all the posts, particularly in the chance me threads. It can feel like everyone has so much better stats than you and can lead to intimidation. I remember last year someone put up a ridiculous chance me thread that was obviously a fake. The person practically reported curing cancer as a child. I think that helped give everyone some perspective as well as some comic relief. I think this is why many of the adults here get frustrated by the chancing threads. They just aren’t helpful. There are so many factors that go into the BS admission process, not just the rattling off of your accomplishments on CC.<br>
Use this site as a resource, but not as a bible. There are plenty of kids admitted to top boarding schools without flawless school transcripts, 99% SSAT or curing poverty while in middle school, my son was one of them. As has been mentioned time and time again, these schools are looking to build a diverse class of students every year. We just don’t know what that will be like each year. We all know of a person or two who was admitted to a particular school with significantly lower SSAT scores than the average and wonder. This is because they are all looking for diverse and interesting people.<br>
So, to make a long story short, try not to get overwhelmed by what you read here. Apply to all the schools on your list, but keep in mind that they are very difficult to get into. Always make sure that you have other options, because in the end you just never know
Take care of yourself during this application cycle!</p>
<p>In addition to the good advice that Momto4kids provides above, I would underscore the importance (which is one of the “seen on College Confidential” things you should not take with a grain of salt) of NOT falling in love/becoming infatuated with any one school until you are admitted to that school.</p>
<p>On a more positive note, I think the very fact that you are aware of A) your feelings and B) not overly confident about the likelihood of your admission are both good predictors of everything turning out fine — REGARDLESS of what news you get on M10.</p>
<p>I agree with what’s been said. It’s so hard not to fall in love with a school, I’ve done it many times before and it just makes the blow hit you harder. This year I’m trying to stay focused on my current school and what I’ll do next year if I’m still here. (Although I do spend some time fantasizing. I think we all do.)</p>
<pre><code>A lot of the competitive nature I see on this site, especially the urge to focus on statistics and scores is pretty unhealthy. In the case of our family, that competitive culture is not something our kid would thrive in, but more importantly even if she could handle that pressure, philosophically we don’t see how that makes for success. There is more attention these days spotlighting that learning is experiential through problem solving and failures, NOT scrutinizing performance for perfection. What kind of life is that? Kids are setting themselves up to chase an endless series of expectations that sends them out to be adults who try to maintain that obsessive pursuit, that’s not what I’d call a good life. We chose a boarding school that has a very hard work ethic but pretty much ignores stats.
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<p>I suspect a lot of students (and parents) hang around this sight and convince themselves that they need to organize their priorities around the competitive discussions happening on these boards. There is so much more to a good school than that, and there are tons of them out there. </p>
<p>@jdewey…wait, there are more than 5-7 schools worth going to? You don’t say… ;-P</p>
<p>I had the opposite problem last year. I thought I was for sure going to get into the school I fell in love with, and then when I didn’t, I felt awful. I cried for an entire day. I was so low I almost didn’t try applying to the school I am at now (which I love!). It’s really hard and stressful, applying for boarding schools. It’s almost like college. Just remember, be confident in what you have to offer, because you do offer something great! If the AO’s fail in seeing that, it’s their fault. Keep your head held high and try to make the best of the experience. </p>
<p>Mom and Seven are giving you great counsel. But CCNAF just gave you the best nugget of all: that 99% of the time you love the school that you actually end up attending and “can’t believe that you ever wanted to go to that other place.” This is the reason not to fall in love now with any one place. Do your best to step back, be objective, imagine yourself at ALL the schools you visit. The time to get jazzed up is when you have an offer (or offers) of admission in hand.</p>