OK EVERYONE OUT THERE THAT HAS SOME IDEA/KNOWLEDGE ABOUT PREP SCHOOLS. I AM A MOM TRYING TO HELP MY SON DECIDE BETWEEN CHOATE AND PEDDIE. THERE ARE THINGS I LOVE ABOUT BOTH. HE LIKES BOTH TOO FOR DIFFERENT REASONS. JUST LOOKING FOR A GREAT PLACE- GREAT ACADEMICS (DON’T CARE ABOUT SPORTS) A LOT OF DIVERSITY IN THE CURRICULUM, A PLACE WHERE SOMEONE WILL FEEL COMFORTABLE BEING WHO THEY ARE- UNIQUE DIFFERENT- AND A SCHOOL THAT WOULD FOSTER THAT.
Both schools will meet the criteria you listed. Is there something more specific you’re looking for like a particular program or being closer/farther from home, etc.?
I can’t speak in detail about Peddie, but I may be able to answer specific questions about Choate.
I live in NJ and have always thought of Peddie as more of a sporty school than your average BS. So if you don’t care about sports, maybe err towards Choate?
And turn off your all-caps next time. 
Choate is pretty sporty as well and fields many highly competitive teams, but non-athletic students are able to find their right level of play and there is enough sport and interest diversity at the school that the sport culture should not be an issue.
My wife went to Peddie so I have some knowledge of the school. She absolutely loved her time there, it was transformational for her. I’ve had kids apply to both Choate and Peddie. They are different but both fantastic places. Are you asking because your son is already in and trying to chose between them? if not I’d recommend you step back and take a broader perspective there are a great number of wonderful schools.
already accepted and choosing between the two. my son is very strong academically more interested in theater and music does not play any sports. just an overall good kid looking to make life long friends have a great time and mom and dad want good academics!
is there really a school that isn’t partial to sports. lets be honest it brings in the money and diversity. some schools are strong in many sports others in just a few but i have to say its important to all schools.
Probably not the 2 schools you are considering, but yes,
Let’s be honest - this is not UT, Mich, Texas A&M, etc. or even, for that matter, any Texas HS on a Friday night. The money is a drop in the bucket.
From both the school perspective and the student perspective, it’s more important at some schools (and even then, it might just be some sports) than others.
We went to a revisit day at Peddie two years ago. What impressed me the most was the time we spent with members of the performing arts faculty. We were also told that the school takes advantage of their proximity to NYC to supplement their arts offerings. On a different visit I had the chance to talk with a faculty member at length (completely by accident), and based on that conversation I had a very good feeling about the sense of community at the school.
Hopefully your family can attend both revisit days?
@WICHWY2GO : Best to attend the revisit days before deciding.
@WICHWY2GO , my son attends Peddie. Feel free to pm me any specific questions. As far as arts - performing arts, set crew and pit band all fulfill a “sports” requirement (as does robotics.) My son has not been involved with any performances but has gone to see them all - they are amazing! He is involved in the music department and loves it. Students seem to like the visual arts too, though I haven’t had any direct exposure. Peddie also offers an Arts Signature Experience to pursue over Junior and Senior year. As @AppleNotFar mentioned, the school takes advantage of its proximity to NYC (and Philadelphia) through trips to supplement class work as well as through “culture bus” trips. So far this school year ds has seen a Broadway play, 2 Broadway musicals, a jazz performance, and the Cleveland symphony orchestra. And all transportation and tickets were provided by the school. Good luck with your decision!
Since March 10th, GolfKiddo has been following social media posts of students at various schools - this may be interesting timing because it’s Spring Break for many schools. It looks like there those of us on CC are living in a different universe than the BS kids! :-S What are these sequin outfits about? Is that a theme party? Is there one school out there that doesn’t have “Gossip Girl” characters or story lines? At what point do kids stop taking hundreds of selfies before even getting to the dance? Do they grow out of this by Senior year?
@golfgr8 Hundreds of selfies before getting to the dance? Welcome to high school - public, private, boarding, day!
@carpoolingma …keeping peddie on DDs list…thanks for that info!!!
thank you so much for your reply. I try to stay grounded and go with gut feelings but it is so hard. you visit these schools of course they put their best foot forward and of course all the “happy” kids are there giving you tours. i told my son to follow his gut feeling and go wherever he feels comfortable. but then it comes down to decision time and you can’t help but get influenced. its a big decision and a huge investment you know your kid is going to get a great education but you want more you want that “something special” you want him to love the school be forever loyal and make life long friends. you want it to be good fit. i really think peddie is a good fit then i am bombarded with labels that its a “sports” school. i dont even know what that means. as far as i am concerned all the big schools recruit for sports. choate has more teams and sports than peddie. so what exactly makes a school a sports school? i just get nervous bc my son is not into sports, peddie is not a huge school, will he find a decent number of kids with similar interests or will he be in the small minority?
can i ask you why you consider peddie “sporty” . it actually offers fewer sports/teams than most of the private schools in my area. i am also from new jersey. they rank highly in swimming but i don’t hear much about their other teams
As a boarding school student, I know that when I think of a “sporty” school, I think of a school where students are typically very involved in athletics. I would imagine that when somebody says Peddie is sporty they mean that most students play at least 1 sport and it is a big part of extracurricular and student life. For example, at many schools, an activity on a weekend or afternoon might be to go watch a game.
None of this is to say that a kid who isn’t athletic CAN’T be happy at a “sporty” school, many kids are, this is just what I think of when somebody thinks of a school as more athletically centered.
I think the OP may be concerned that “sporty” means a lot of high-powered student athletes and a sports culture where a non-athletic kid will feel left out, looked down on, or have trouble finding their herd. If that’s the case, I can say that Choate does have some high-powered student athletes and PGs and is very into its football and hockey teams but not to the exclusion of anyone. A non-athlete at Choate will not stick out, feel left out, or have trouble finding friends.
Don’t know about Peddie, but my daughter meets the description of the OP’s child. She is a non-athlete who was looking for great academics, diverse course offerings, and engaged intelligent classmates. She has found all of these at Choate. The academics and clubs etc. have been there from the start. It took some time to fully find her friend group(s), but she was able to do so. I know it can be a little different with boys and sports, but our daughter has found her place as non-athlete. Every day has not been perfect, but she is very happy with her choice and her parents are as well.
I do not think the OP’s son can go wrong at either place.
One thing I’ve observed about the athletes at schools like these is that they are as multi-dimensional as the non-athletes, it’s just that one of their dimensions happens to be athletics. My kid, an athlete, is involved in 3 non-athletic ECs and teammates are similarly engaged. One of my kid’s very best friends is a non-athlete. While not a student at Peddie or Choate, I think my kid’s experience is typical of students at these schools where kids are encouraged to try a variety of activities and get to know each other in a myriad of settings.
@WICHWY2GO you’ve got this! Take a deep breath and trust that there likely isn’t a bad choice to be made here (if there were, you probably would have sensed it already). As you said, “i told my son to follow his gut feeling and go wherever he feels comfortable.“ I think that’s the right answer. Go to the revisits and see for yourselves.