Finally some info, would I be even considered for these schools? (Im asian so...)

Prep School Admissions Prep School Chances
1

Schools (First preference to last): Groton, Exeter, Andover, SPS, Cate, Deerfield, Choate

(applied to Groton for 8th grade but got waitlisted, hopefully playing 2 yrs later and strengthening resume helps?)

Grades: UW prob around 3.7-3.8, W = 4.0 or 4.1

AP world history - A
Honors Advanced Geo - B+
Physics (only non Honors core class) - A or A+
Honors English - A
Honors Mandarin - B+ or A-
Mechanical Engineering - A- or A
PE - A- or A
Orchestra - B+

SSAT: 88 first try (99 Math, 74 V (yikes) 80 R), hoping for low to mid 90s second try

Ecs: badminton (international player, won a lot in a lot of countries) going to lead my school team to travel and compete in Indonesia and Thailand to play other international schools & formerly ranked 1 in USA for 22 consecutive weeks, hopefully, it shows I can be successful in squash too??? IDK (similar type of badminton player went to Groton, became captain of Groton’s varsity and top 10 in the US in high school in college (Stanford) for squash)

Cross country 2 years, 50 min 10k

violin 8 yrs first chair in 6-7th grade in a middle/high school orchestra, viola 2 years

Robotics: (FRC) school team that travels around the world competing with other schools from different countries, & currently working on designing and building my own bike with a partner (on my own time)

teaching blind and local public school children English (really enjoy this)

• State or Country: Massachusetts until 7th grade, moved to Taiwan in 8th
• Current School Type: International School
• Ethnicity: Asian American
• Gender: Male
• Grade Applying For: 10th
• Age: 14
• Financial Aid/Full Pay: Partial FA

Hoping multicultural experience makes me stand out from most Asians? My dads from Africa and I have visited there so maybe that helps being multicutural? I want to emphasize this. Hopefully being an ORM doesn’t hurt too much.

If you have any questions, suggestions etc pls comment

THANKS

2

May I ask why you selected those particular schools? They are all so different in both size, culture, and vibe. What are you looking for?

3

@CaliMex I believe I have stated earlier that I like STEM schools, and in general like smaller schools like Groton, Choate and Cate. I chose the other schools merely based on their strong academic systems (Deerfield for STEM) and PA/PE because why not and SPS as it is very similar to Groton which I really liked and applied for in the past

4

Just FYI…Choate is 3-4X the size of the other 2. Its considered a large school. Also, Lawrenceville is supposed to be much like Choate, so consider looking there too.

I personally think your list is fine and you should view questions posted here as helpful to consider as you go through this process. You don’t need to know exactly what you want now and immediately exclude other schools from your list. However, thinking about the questions being asked of you here will help you consider less prestigious schools (whatever that means) that may be a better fit for you and more worthy of being on your list of schools to apply to.

5

I agree with @Altras … It will also help you prepare for your interviews and essays. AOs want to know that you have solid criteria for choosing to apply to their school. They certainly don’t think their school is interchangeable with others and don’t want candidates who do. They want to admit students who will absolutely enroll in their school if offered a spot, not candidates who would rather be elsewhere or who aren’t quite sure what they are looking for in terms of school offerings and culture.

6

Hello: I know quite a bit about squash recruiting as my son went through this. Looks like you are a star badminton player. This is good, but note that none of the schools to my knowledge have varsity badminton programs.

However, as you point out, badminton and squash share several of the same skills. But racket preparation and motion are completely different for squash. The athleticism and fitness however will help. The varsity squads on these schools are filled with kids who have been playing USSquash tournaments for 4-5 years. So it will be difficult to compete with those kids IMHO.

The coaches at these schools can influence admissions. But in order for this to happen, you’ll have to convince the coach that you’re an impact player. This means that you’ll start at Varsity on day 1, and that you’ll play high on the ladder. Get some videotape of yourself on the squash court with a pro, and send it to the coaches and see what they say. Some of the coaches may be willing to take a risk on you.

7

Looking through the rest of your profile, a few other questions:

  1. Is your dad a black-african, or of another race? Being of black-african ancestry can definitely help your case

  2. Why not apply as a repeat freshman? This will increase your chances. These schools don’t take too many 10th graders

  3. Not having a need for financial aid will considerably help your chances

8

@sgopal2 my dad was a chinese who escaped the communist party so he moved to Africa when he was 4. My parents wont let reapply for 9 as it wastes time and money, and FA is smth i definitely need or else my parents wont let me go. I haven’t even played squash ever in my life lol, but I do know a person who used to be top of US in badminton then became captain of Groton squash team eventually senior year and excels at Stanford in squash right now.

9

Regarding your chances, don’t trust the chance threads at all. I was given a 5-10% chance of acceptance but ended up being accepted to my top choice (Andover). This is kind of random but aspects of your profile are really similar to mine (badminton, violin, teaching as community service, viola) and also I think I might know what school you attend (if I’m not mistaken) but idk. Good luck on your applications!

10

@AndoverKid257 PM me