<p>Dyer, my BS detector has also started beeping - although as a general rule I'd prefer to give people the benefit of the doubt. 6th generation legacy at one top boarding school? 4th generation at another? Is he saying that sucessive generations of his family have been going to the same boarding school in an unbroken line since the 1880's? I've known some pretty waspy families, but I've never heard of anyone being as connected as this kid. Unless he's John Jacob Astor VIII or Endicott Peabody Cabot V it's hard to believe he's not pulling our leg. However, since he seems sincere I guess he's entitled to the benefit of the doubt.</p>
<p>sorry if someone already mentioned this, i didn't read the entire thread</p>
<p>"One aspect I find appealing at SPS, is the foreign exchange program during spring break which offers free study at England's top "prep schools", study in Sweden, and other locations in Europe, including Finland and France among other choices."</p>
<p>these programs aren't free</p>
<p>cecils15: My understanding is that the SPS student is only responsible for airfare, but not for tuition, room & board as these are exchange programs. The religious retreat program in France requires only airfare and personal spending money, but it is not an exchange program.</p>
<p>D'yer & prpdd- Yes, my family has been here since the 1630s and it is an old family name. The family has never been big in politics, so it is not as well known as the ones you mentioned. There have been consecutive graduates at one school since I think 1888. My father is in private equity and he works closely with other private equity firms as well as universities and prep schools (but not St. Paul's).</p>
<p>The intent of the discussion with trustees is to let them know that I really want to go to SPS. After reading your advice, I got nervous and called my father. He has not yet spoken to anyone. Do you really think it's a bad move to contact them? I know that they are not in admissions, but I want to tell as many people as I can I want to go there.</p>
<p>Here's why I'm worried. Over Thanksgiving, I saw several of my cousins who are either in college or recently graduated and one who's at one of the legacy schools. Everyone asked me where I plan to go next year. When I told them St. Paul's was my first choice, several warned me that they were not accepted at other schools that they thought they should have been accepted to. This is why I panicked. You could say they are not qualified, but most are very smart and athletic. Im sure certain people are chosen or not every year for many reasons, but Im very worried I wont get a fair shot. Am I just worrying too much?</p>
<p>I first weighed in on this thread because you had claimed that you were not pulling strings by contacting directors/trustees. That meant that you were full of it if you were telling the truth and you were full of it if you were making this all up.</p>
<p>Here's why I didn't weigh in earlier and am opting out now:</p>
<p>If it's true that you're holding court with trustees and that you're the most wired legacy to venture onto this forum, then you hardly need our anonymous and inferior insights. If you're related to valuable resources who fully understand your situation and know all about the admissions process and which connections are at your disposal and how they can be "played," what value can we add to the discussion you're having at home? Surely you've got an educational consultant, guidance counselor or teacher who -- in addition to your connected relatives -- can help you 10x better than any of us can.</p>
<p>If, on the other hand, you're not telling the truth, then there's still nothing for us to add, right?</p>
<p>nexgen: You are doing all the right things for the right reasons, in my opinion. Everybody appreciates sincere interest in their alma mater school. And you are correct that admissions to schools such as St. Paul's, Andover, Deerfield Academy, Roxbury Latin & Groton, among many others, are intimidating.Good luck!</p>
<p>D'yer - The question I have been asking is "how can I make sure that St. Paul's knows not only do I think they should accept me (like everyone else hopes when they apply), but, more importantly, that I would be "allowed" to attend if accepted?" According to other family members, there appears to a pattern of higher than expected rejection rates at the top non-legacy schools. I have never asked to be considered more than another, but just don't reject me because you don't think I'll attend.</p>
<p>My parents do not think a consultant is necessary, but I did have an SSAT tutor over the Summer. I have spoken to my placement counselor and coaches, but even my counselor said, "they may not believe you." This is why I am still very concerned.</p>
<p>There does not seem to be much more I can do. My applications are complete and my interview is coming up. I'll let you know how it ends in March. Thank you.</p>
<p>Is your last name "Phillips" as in Andover and Exeter? It is unusual for a counselor to state that another school may not believe that you have genuine interest in attending that particular school, especially when it is such a highly regarded school worldwide.</p>
<p>The last quote may not be fair because they said a lot more with it. I think he was trying to say, like everyone else here, that admissions to top schools can be unpredictable. He said they may need certain weight wrestlers one year, but not the next, so you never know. He said he was actually surprised at how many athletes last year were accepted at schools he did not think they would get into. That's when he added that there's also the chance they may not believe you. I think he was just trying to be realistic.</p>
<p>I definitely can't say my name, but if you know the two legacy schools, you would recognize the names immediately.</p>
<p>To be blunt, I don't really think that it will matter unless your qualifications are well below the medians. What are your grades and SSATs? SPS has lots of students from very wealthy families, and, I suspect that with a 22% admit rate, rejects lots of well qualified applicants from wealthy families. I think SPS admissions will be a lot more interested in you and your talents, abilities and interests, than it will be concerned with the past generosity of your family. I, for one, would like to know more about you and less about your fears. This is similiar advice that I have appropriately, and successfully, shared with students concerned about unpleasant family circumstances. St. Paul's will accept you or reject you, not your family. P.S. I know that your stats are in your first post, I am just trying to get you to focus on you, your strengths, abilities, talents and interests, and not on your family's history and connections. Not trying to add to your anxiety, but SPS does reject several applicants each year with 99 SSATs. You can do the work, now show what you can add to the SPS community and why SPS ia a match for you and you should do quite well.</p>
<p>Icy- As I mentioned earlier, I was pretty confident before Thanksgiving and talking to my cousins. My information is in the first post.</p>
<p>I wasn't going to voice my opinion in this thread, but after reading all of Nexgen's posts, I find it hard to believe that he is an 8th grader. I am sorry Negen, but your posts do not sound as if they originated from a 13-year-old boy. In your original post you said
[quote]
"I hate to write."
[/quote]
Expressions such as “blazing my own trail”, “the intent of the discussion…” are not typically used by 13 year olds—especially 13 yr olds with a professed disdain of writing.</p>
<p>I have been thinking the same thing as Jenny. My other thought was
"Me thinks he does protest too much."</p>
<p>My mom calls me a mechanical writer. I don't like creative writing or trying to write about what an author in literature is saying. I'll be 14 in March. I've also had a writer tutor for four years.</p>
<p>I think the simplest solution for you might be to have your headmaster explain your interest and your family's decision to support you. This could be either in the school recommendation or, alternatively, in a phone call. If you are genuine, then the school you are attending probably is quite well known to St. Paul's.
You should really be sure that SPS really is the right school for you. It is an amazing place, but is not necessarily the right place for everyone. Are you a self-starter (where you will thrive on the freedom with responsibility thing) or are you better off with some structure (as most 9th grade boys are, unless they grew up in a big city)? How are you with stress-which is a big issue there. Also, you will probably not get a lot of sleep at St. Paul's. (They even have a policy that you can go to the infirmary and skip class without penalty when you are so burned out you need to crash.) if you are politically conservative, this may not be the right school for you. (There is a very interesting editorial by a conservative girl in a recent Pelican, the school newspaper, on this subject. You can hyperlink to it from the school's web site.) You will probably find that you are too busy at any good bs to worry about your family name recognition. However, you really need to decide if a college-like experience (which is what I think SPS is trying to offer) is what is best for you. Good luck!</p>
<p>My simple answer would be to write SPS and tell them that they are your first choice and that if they accept you, you will attend. That is what they want to know. </p>
<p>(P.S. I went there. My son goes there. But my brother went to Exeter and other family mambers to an assortment of other schools)</p>