<p>Any thoughts about which of the HADES is least preppy, or, more to the point, the HADES school at which a kid on full FA is likely to be most socially comfortable?</p>
<p>I have only visited A, E and SPS but my opinion would be exeter is the least preppy.</p>
<p>exeter too. Ive been there to visit friends and there is a difference. of course you will find an example of ‘preppy’ in every hades.</p>
<p>I went to Andover, but I’d bet that a kid on full FA would feel comfortable at all of them. I wasn’t on full FA, but I was close enough to it. I never felt as though money were an issue. I still don’t know the financial aid status of most of my friends because it really didn’t matter.</p>
<p>lol exeter as least preppy? they have a dresscode you have to wear turtlenecks or a collared shirt with a tie. to me that is the epitome of preppy</p>
<p>Ummmmmm, no.</p>
<p>Absolutely no…that dress code is barely followed. It is really up to the individual how preppy/not they dress.</p>
<p>I saw a kid there (guy) with a pink afro and a ear ring … his jeans were ripped in like 3 places… no one cared since his shirt was a tie died button down… lawl</p>
<p>Are you serious because if thats what they are wearing my parents won’t let me go there.</p>
<p>Why not…there have to be a few people who are of the “arsty” persuasion. Diversity.</p>
<p>exeter is definitely the least preppy school, not that the dress code really affects the level of education, right?</p>
<p>I really don’t see what makes exeter the least preppy, it seemed preppy to me. I think SPS is the least preppy, or at least the least pretentious.</p>
<p>Preppy, pretentious and other adjectives are in the eye of the beholder. That’s why there will be no universal answer to this - shockingly students tend to favor the school the selected. If possible, each candidate should visit their favored schools and draw their own conclusions.</p>
<p>Padre13, everything you say makes perfect sense - except short visits to the schools really do not provide nearly enough exposure to the cultures there to satisfactorily address the questions I asked. I was hoping that more feedback from students of different backgrounds might provide a clearer picture of the different school cultures. It’s really not a question of what school they favor (of course, the one they’re at), but what they know about the culture at the school they attend.</p>
<p>Mainer95: If that’s what you want, you need to rephrase the question. You ask about the least preppy HADES school. Any given student on this forum is likely intimately familiar with only one or perhaps two of them. You’re asking them to evaluate not only their own schools, but others as well.</p>
<p>Also, people on this board are happy to give their impression even if their only exposure to a school was a 2 hour interview visit!</p>
<p>You’re absolutely right, Tapper7. My question was clumsily worded, at best. OK, I’ll try again.</p>
<p>From what you’ve observed, how socially comfortable or uncomfortable are students on full FA at the school you know best?</p>
<p>In terms of general preppiness (most to least):
1 - Deerfield
2 - Hotchkiss
3 - Exeter
4 - St. Paul’s
5 - Andover</p>
<p>In terms of acceptingness of FA students:
1 - Exeter
2 - Hotchkiss
3 - St. Paul’s
4 - Andover
5 - Deerfield</p>
<p>In terms of acceptance of students on financial aid: our daughter at Andover gets a very generous grant. She says she doesn’t even know the FA status of most people and that it is not really a big deal.</p>
<p>As for Hotchkiss: I am surprised that brewerfan ranks it more accepting of FA students than Andover. From what I have heard and read, a lot of Hotchkiss kids go home to the NYC area over the weekend, so it seems that income inequality might be more apparent there.</p>
<p>My daughter goes to SPS and has taken to wearing her father’s flannel shirts and bean boots. Since they have Saturday classes and games there are not a lot of kids who can go home on weekends. She says she has no idea who is FA.</p>