<p>@Ehphant: I think the cavalier way the OP kicked off this thread has a lot to do with the reaction from some of us who have been through the process before. Compare the first post here with say, the the first post on the linked thread (and the response):</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/prep-school-admissions/1266207-other-ideas-schools-like.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/prep-school-admissions/1266207-other-ideas-schools-like.html</a></p>
<p>OP, for safety, the most important consideration is acceptance rate. However, you also need to find out if a particular school, even though it has an “acceptable” admit rate, is particularly popular in the pool in which you may find yourself competing. e.g. would you be a day student, or a local boarder for a school many of your peers are trying to get in? Is your geographic region over-represented in a particular school? (Again, do some basic math) Once you have a list of schools that meet the admit rate criterion, take a closer look at them and identify the one(s) that meet or are closer to your other requirements, e.g. acdemic/extracurricular offerings, student body composition, college matriculation stats, etc. There, you got one or more safety schools.</p>
<p>Of course, safety is not a safety until you get in. Evaluate how “desperate” you want to go to a boarding school, and adjust the number and selectivity of your safety schools accordingly. Suppose you have a very strong day school option, you may not even need a safety, but if your local option is unacceptable, then be sure to include more safety schools with higher admit rate. Good luck!</p>
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<p>But that’s the point . . . don’t you see? It is up to you to figure out what you’re looking for before you come to us and ask for help finding it! It is not up to us to figure out for you, or Rose, or any other student, what each of you should be looking for. That is something you have to figure out for yourself.</p>
<p>I have, over the years, used Boarding School review to look at every school in the Northeast . . . and then I expanded my search to the mid-Atlantic . . . and the southeast . . . and then beyond. Perhaps you want to start by screening for schools that offer German language, or lacrosse, or whatever it is that you’re interested in. But that’s something that each of you has to decide on your own.</p>
<p>And believe me, there are parents (and students, bless them!) who have spent hours trying to help new applicants navigate this process. We do it because we genuinely want to help.</p>
<p>But remember, in this as in any endeavor . . . the best way to get a good answer is to ask a good question.</p>
<p>And, I’m sorry to have to say it, but “What school should I apply to on just in case I don’t get accepted to the hardest schools in the country to get into?” is not, in my opinion, a good question.</p>
<p>Alright my intention was never to start any fights but obviously one has started. Yes I do know that I am very super last minute late however none of you know why so don’t assume anything. As for the “OP obviously hasn’t done any research” , I have and this is part of it. All I wanted was an honest opinion of which school were easier to get into yet still offered good academics and was a good college prep school. I go to school websites but they all just try to make themselves sound better and all they’re really good for is cold hard facts such as how many students per grade, how big campus is, etc. When you look at how good the academics are, they just try to make themselves sound like the best there is in the country. Yes it’s true this is my first time doing anything like this however I’m trying, no need to yell at me when I do something wrong or make a bad impression.</p>
<p>@ARose: Honestly, I think any of schools more commonly mentioned here will give 95% of the student population as rigorous an academic challenge as a student can handle. And they all send plenty of kids to “good” colleges.</p>
<p>Oh, I love your reasoning, SevenDad. Thanks for being an awesome, helpful poster! You’ve helped me so much, too.</p>
<p>Ditto that @98beebee</p>
<p>“All I wanted was an honest opinion of which school were easier to get into yet still offered good academics and was a good college prep school.”</p>
<p>Terms like “good academics” and “good prep school” are so subjective, abstract, and even a little arbitrary. Instead of looking for a “good prep school”, I would look for a school that best fits who you are as a student and a person. Apply to schools in which you think you will fit well with their community. If you are a “theatre geek”, I would look at schools that offer a rigorous academic program as well as an extensive performing arts program. If you are a minority (which I am), I would look at schools that have a high diversity rate. If you play lacrosse, you may want to find a school that has a great lacrosse team. If your not into sports or any type of performing arts, I would look at schools with a high academic focus. I think you need to know exactly what your looking for, before you start researching… Just my opinion, good luck with your search!</p>
<p>Rose - Sorry if you felt that I was yelling at you. I wasn’t aware that I was yelling, and I apologize if it came across that way. Your question came across as if it had had very little thought put into it . . . and that bothered me, because you all should be able to at least attempt to find information for yourselves before you come here with questions. Apparently I was mistaken, and I apologize. But I stand by what I said: if you want a good answer, you have to ask a good question. And simply asking for recommendations of good schools, without giving us any more detail than that, doesn’t give us much to go on. If you did your own research, share that with us, and then tell us what questions you still need answers to.</p>
<p>ok sorry about this everyone. I think that the tensions of the application season have hit and we’re all a little stressed about essays, final interviews, the final ssat, and of course M!0</p>
<p>Honestly, I don’t see the problem with a public high school! Plenty of people who go to public high schools end up at Ivy League schools! Why not apply to the more selective private schools and if you are unfortunately not accepted you just go to public school! It’s radical, but dream with me…</p>
<p>lexi, that’s actually what many people do. They take their local option be it a day school or their public school as their safety, but not all have a good enough local option.</p>
<p>To Lexie AM - Many students need or want the community that a boarding school offers, or have individual talents and needs that the local public school can’t fulfill. I felt that my kids needed a change of scenery badly, and they were not competitive for the most selective schools. They are very different people, and very different students, but I’m confident that neither would have thrived at the local public school (which is very highly rated). Your strategy might be appropriate for the super-achievers who will excel anywhere, but it isn’t applicable for the kid who might love sports, but won’t have a prayer of making the cut for a big high school’s varsity teams; the kid who’s been branded a social misfit since kindergarten, and will remain an outcast if he doesn’t re-locate (my situation); the kid who won’t ever speak up in a large class, and would benefit from smaller classes; the kid with an artistic or intellectual passion (theater, for my firstborn) that is routinely short-changed at cash-strapped public schools; the boy or girl who might benefit from a single-sex school; etc., etc.</p>
<p>ARoseamongWeeds: Though I don’t really like the term “safety schools” for boarding school, because honestly you should apply to schools that you would absolutely love to go to, I understand what you are asking. I don’t know why you have gotten the responses you have, I’m sorry. CC is research, and it is a great tool, so don’t stop using it because of this thread! I don’t think you can link your ability to be independent at boarding school with the fact you just need a little help with finding schools. Yes, searching through CC to find a similar thread is probably better than creating one, but it really shouldn’t upset that many people. Back to the subject, go to boardingschoolreview and there is an option to sort schools by SAT score. Find ones that have a pretty good range, look them up and see if there is anything about them that stands out to you. Keep doing this until you compile a pretty good list. Then choose the option that allows you to compare them by admissions rate, and see where all the schools fall into place. I’m not sure how competitive an applicant you are, but just check out the admissions rates to see which ones seem “safety” to you. Hope this helps, and don’t get discouraged. I in fact picked up a new school to apply to, just a couple days ago, because someone put in a good word about it and I went researching. Turns out they accepted a common app that I had already done, and it was no problem just to add it to my list! And I’m glad I did!</p>
<p>I’m baaa…ack. 
My take on this, and I have to admit I just scanned the thread, is that your “safety” or back up school, should be the same choice list, but an application made next year. I’m telling my candidate that if she doesn’t get in this time around…all is not lost. It may be better in fact to wait an additional year. Living independently may be easier for most at age 15 vs. 14. Reapplying shows your commitment and interest in a particular school. Rather than go to a “safety” less desired school, why not take a hard look at your application, seek some feedback and go at it again next year with renewed determination to find that best fit, and or get into the school you really want to attend? Good Luck to all. The last few months have been REALLY stressful for kids AND parents…so many parent statements and so little time :)</p>
<p>@redbluegoldgreen,
If the local school options are unattractive for whatever reason, so that attending BS is a priority, then the candidate needs to be PRAGMATIC about where he/she applies. Reapplying next year only to the same small group of uber-selective schools is not a wise strategy. The reality is that some candidates, no matter how many times they apply, just do not have the resume to get into these schools.</p>
<p>I agree with GMPplus7. Re-applying doesn’t always improve chances. You will compete in a different and likely more competitive pool the next year. Whether to have safeties still comes down to one’s local options. If when you are presented a lower tier boarding school and a day school/public school, all things considered (including cost, travel and the discomfort and risks related to being away from home for a good part of the year at a young age), you’d rather choose your local option, then why bother including the safety school in the first place?</p>
<p>Well, as my Dad would say, this is why Baskin and Robbins has 32 flavors. Everyone has a different opinion, and mine is that the back up plan should be to do something to improve one’s application and reapply to the schools you want again, rather than “settle.” Others disagree, but I’m just exercising my opinion.</p>
<p>I see RBGG’s point. There are many good reasons to wait a year and start bs in 10th grade, rather than 9th. My current bs kid, who loves school, says that it would have been easier to go away a year later. The point is simply that nothing much is lost by waiting a year unless the child is truly miserable and desperately needs to get out. </p>
<p>The next year, though, our family would be looking at a wider range of schools–maybe more willing to settle having tried the dream school twice?</p>
<p>Going to an upper-middle tier BS is not “settling”. Truth is that many kids who go to the top tier schools end up struggling to distinguish themselves among a collection of ultra-super achiever kids, whereas they might have been stars and/or happier in a slightly less high-pressured environment. </p>
<p>Be careful of what you wish for…</p>