<p>I am the parent of a very motivated student. She attends an A rated public school in Florida. She will be entering her sophmore year this month. She has perfect grades in all honors/AP classes, lots of ECs and Leadership and plays sports at a varsity level. Her ultimate goal is to get into Princeton. We have already visited twice. Do you think it would be advantageous for her to finish her last 2 or 3 years at the public school she is currently attending or to transfer to a local prep school that is known for its academics and sports programs?</p>
<p>I’ll offer my two-cents. At the prep school, she will definitely be challenged and be with people like her. Does she think she can do as well in the prep school? I mean maintain top 10%, perfect grades, etc? At this point, you should probably be making the decision. Once she builds good relationships with upper-grade instructors, she will probably want to stay because their letters of rec will be better than those written by teachers who have not known her for long. </p>
<p>Otherwise, it really makes no difference if you’re applying to Princeton from a public or private high school. And assuming your high school is really good, the difference approaches zero. Might as well save your tuition money for Princeton. Just enroll her wherever she will be able to take advantage of her situation and rise to the top, so to speak.</p>