I’m a student who is applying to Phillips Exeter Academy, and I’d like you to “mini chance” me. I recently took a practice SSAT and got a 2330. I don’t know if that’s good enough, so if you could tell that would be great. Also, the school I go to is super low budget because of it’s location and the residents in the nearby area. The results are not many clubs and little resources. So, I’m worried that not having many extracurriculars could seriously damage my chance. If you could weigh in, I thank you from the bottom of my heart.
2330 is near perfect-- I had the same score as you and my interviewer was shocked! I don’t think not having clubs or resources near you will be a big deal, as long as you can show you’re actively looking for opportunities to enrich your studies and learn more about yourself. My middle school had terrible extracurriculars and wasn’t very challenging, but I took it upon myself to study things I was interested in via the internet, etc. I also looked for free opportunities I could take advantage of, stuff like that! More than smart kids or kids with perfect extracurriculars, I think Exeter wants driven kids who are interesting. I’m going to be at PEA for the first time in a few weeks, but the kids I currently know there have pretty interesting stories to tell.
Also, I don’t know you, but it sounds as if you may come from a geographically underrepresented region, which is indeed a plus.
I believe you need to show emphasis on “your thing” and whatever that might be. Whether its music, love of science, a certain sport, etc. They are looking to build a class of interesting students. Congrats on a phenomenal score on the SSAT but realize that’s just one dimension of what schools are looking at when creating an incoming class. Using your scores as a great foundation, build your “portfolio” from there highlighting your additional interests and talents. Good luck!
IMHO a 2330 is pretty impressive (definitely ‘good enough’!!!) and is a great start to your application, but you can’t really be chanced on that. Contrary to post #1, several of my classmates and I got similar scores, but never received a similar reaction? Many applicants, especially to Exeter, have earned scores in the 99th percentile. Not to say that isn’t great - I just mean to say that the SSAT is one of the smaller parts of your application and really isn’t one of the deciding factors.
Like the above, I would recommend finding a few of your interests and building around them. You could take college courses online, form your own club at (or outside of) school, etc. Schools will be excited to hear that your intellectual curiosity transcends whatever boundaries you have at school and that you are able to take the initiative.
@scareddwarf is absolutely correct. The SSAT score is just one part of the picture. Given the insane level of prepping and number of retakes, high SSAT scores are fairly common and so are all A’s Each component is assessed individually. Then your application is evaluated as a whole by a committee. My son had a score like this. No one said a word about it. These schools want passionate and curious students who are open to the world around them and are driven. Now that doesn’t mean straight A’s, 20 clubs, 4 sports and a bunch of resume padding…My son’s application was pretty basic. He had no clubs (ZERO), no awards ,nothing. Further there are so many academic overachievers that this applicant pool has somewhat of an ORM status. Meaning–what else do you have that makes you unique or special?