<p>So here's the thing: i'm finishing up my IGCSEs this semester, and then will begin the IB, as my school customarily does. The thing is, I have been looking into a few abroad school (i'm from Brazil), especially Andover, for it's remarkable reputation for sending kids into Ivy Leagues. My current school isn't great: it sends about 1/5 kids to a top school. I'm fairly smart, and I could probably get into a top school at my current school, but it seems I would have a much better chance at Andover. I would apply at the end of 2011 to start in August 2012.</p>
<p>Question. Are those “prestigious high schools” like Andover really rigorous and produce graduates who legitimately deserve to go to those ivy leagues? Or does having a high school like that on your application just make you look better among other applicants and allow easier admission? This is an honest question, I don’t mean to sound arrogant.</p>
<p>I went to Exeter last year and the classes are very difficult and the students that get in deserve it.The admissions isn’t easier because the majority of the kids that go to the top prep schools want to go to the same schools. also admissions into the schools in the first place is fairly difficult.</p>
<p>If you want to go to Andover just so you can get into an Ivy League, its a bad idea. Andover and Exeter are fun to students looking for a challenge, but going there just so colleges pick you will not work. I guarantee it. They work will overwhelm someone who just wants to use it to help their college chances and not as a way to grow.</p>