<p>I would love to hear about student life on campus and its level of academic rigor. Thank you!</p>
<p>Holderness is not typically discussed on these forums, but a search will lead you to any thread where it is discussed. Research through viewbooks, websites, forums, and revisits.</p>
<p>I know lovers of the hidden gem schools or some such will jump down my throat but it is not academically rigorous. Its actually exactly the opposite from what you are looking for (judging by your posts). The students are primarily extremely outdoorsy and sporty. I would also like to add that I just did a quick look at your posts and from that quick look I see that while you say you have a very academic kid, all the schools that I noticed you’re asking about are not as academically strong as I’m guessing youre looking for.</p>
<p>@mhmm: Thank you for your comments. My husband asked me to look into Holderness. Our list currently includes Milton, Middlesex, Exeter and Choate as reach schools; and Brooks and Governor’s as more comfortable acceptance possibilities. Concord Academy is also a strong contender for our list. And now I am trying to compile a list of schools he is almost certain to get into. We live in Madagascar and the American high school here, unfortunately, is simply not an option. We don’t have the luxury of not gaining admittance for his freshman year and then putting all our eggs into the sophomore admittance basket. That would be a lost year. Hence, my very wide net.</p>
<p>Holderness is a fine school. I know very sharp kids who chose it over their acceptances to the “HADES” group for some of the very reasons mhmm provides (outdoorsy, active). For your kid it might not be the best, but it does not overly sacrifice academics even though they weigh the balance a bit toward the physical. It is perhaps a bit above Proctor on the Acadmic Rigor Scale, but (granting mhmm’s point) I do not believe any motivated child will suffer academically at any of these schools. I do agree with the general idea that they will find themselves in classes that are not as full of similarly hard driving and academically top notch peers, but that does not mean academic rigor is under emphasized or the top students are not pushed hard or able to rise to their highest level. A lot of the metrics that are used in all these rankings measure the student averages, but the teachers, for the most part, are just as excellent at all these schools.</p>
<p>I have not gone back to read all your posts, but two excellent schools which you should consider are Blair and Loomis Chaffee. Both have very strong academic programs (Loomis is academically one of the best schools out there IMHO and Blair is simply stellar across the board with very strong academics, a beautiful campus, and a very supportive culture). Both have slightly higher admission rates (possibly because they are not on the “HADES” “GLADCHEMMS” circuit), but are by no means “safeties.” Both are “tier one” in my book. </p>
<p>The sports requirements at these two are not as onerous as some other school (for the non-jock) although as with most schools they do require physical activity/engagement. Also, Blair is not that far from Newark Airport, and Loomis is pretty much a hop, skip and a jump Bradly Field in Windsor Locks, so both are accessible for air travelers.</p>
<p>For those coming from abroad, I know many schools will do Skype interviews. While it is preferable for you to visit, be sure not to cross schools off the list simply because your travel limitations keep you from seeing a school in person. It is not ideal, but in your situation it might be best to apply more broadly even if out of your geographic focus. You will keep some very good options open this way. I do not want to downplay the importance of a campus visit, but given the amount of information available on the web it is possible to find a good fit even without a visit. A bit riskier, perhaps, but some of kids still do choose schools without an actual visit and end up with a great match…</p>
<p>Mercersburg is another school you could consider. I do not have a handle on their sports requirements, and academically it is not quite up to Blair or Loomis levels, but they are very well regarded and do have a higher acceptance rate so are a bit “safer” than the above, or Governor’s or Brooks or the like.</p>
<p>@nadk01: Thanks for your thoughtful response! We are currently casting a very wide net - Groton, St. Paul’s, Deerfield, Taft and Loomis Chaffee are all currently on the list of top tier school possibilities, as well as the ones I noted above (it is a scary list at the moment, lengthwise); but I want to be certain that we also include schools that are slightly “safer” for my son, for the reasons I noted above. In addition, he is not an uber competitive kid, so we need to find a school that offers strong academics in a nurturing environment - not one at which the students are all vying for the top 10%. My guy might be better off as a big fish in a small pond, as long as that small pond is not full of slackers.</p>
<p>Also, I need to clarify that I am not in any way against a physical activity requirement - quite the contrary. My original post in which I asked about overly jock-ish schools, which mhmm references above, was more a question about school cultures. Milton is high on our list due to its academics and proximity to the Boston area (where we have many relatives), but I had heard a few rumblings about jock attitudes at the school. Another poster pointed out that such attitudes can ebb and flow in a school from year to year, depending on the student makeup of a class, success in a sport, etc., but that a gripe someone posts on the internet lasts forever. So such comments should be taken with a grain of salt. Which is probably true.</p>
<p>Thank you for bringing up Loomis Chaffee. It is on the list, which I am currently making my way through, doing research and asking questions on this forum and elsewhere about each of the schools. I will investigate Loomis Chaffee further for sure.</p>
<p>You child sounds very much like my child. Strong academics, arts and a supportive, nurturing environment drove her preferences. Her top choices were Loomis, Middlesex, Blair, and St. Pauls. Although far from Boston, you would do well to look into Blair. We also thought highly of Milton, although did not apply mainly because of the more urban nature and high day student ratio. It is big enough though that the number of boarders is quite high enough to form a good boarding community. </p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I would suggest that you consider Andover as well; it’s more similar in culture, IMHO, to Milton, Middlesex, and Choate than Exeter. Also, if ease of travel to and from Boston comes into play, Amtrak has strict guidelines on unaccompanied minors.</p>
<p>In terms of Milton, yes they have jocks. They also have artists, musicians, theatre guys, and techno geeks, and they all blend in well together. Bullying is not tolerated. Things may have happened in the past, but that can probably be said at every school. Yes, it is 50% day students, but they integrate into life at Milton very well. A 50% boarding population translates into 300 boarders which is still higher than schools like Middlesex. Milton is close to Boston, and while not remote like Middlesex, I would by no means call it urban.</p>
<p>Obviously, you will learn much more once you visit, but I did want to put some misconceptions aside.</p>
<p>I did not really have any misconceptions. I did say the number of boarders is quite high enough to form a good boarding community. Also, I said it had a more urban nature compared to the other schools. While not in downtown Boston, it is in a very heavily developed town just about a mile from the Boston city limits. It is certainly perhaps more suburban than urban, but is nowhere near as rural as many of the other schools on the list. Milton is a lot more urban then Holderness. It all depends on your reference point, I guess.</p>
<p>“Misconceptions” was really directed at OP and “jock attitudes.” Since she is living in Madacascar, and although she knows much more about NE than I will ever know about Madagascar, I wanted to give a point of view from someone who has already gone through the experience. At the end of the day, one needs to visit the school and form opinions for oneself, IMHO, since today if you google any school and the word “scandal,” something is bound to pop up.</p>
<p>Milton is suburban, I will grant you that. The campus is in the center of the town, like Andover, Exeter, and Concord, and unlike Middlesex, which despite having a Concord mailing address, is 3 miles down a secluded road. The town of Milton itself, and certainly the vicinity around Milton Academy, is not heavily developed, although it’s proximity to Dorchester may give one a different impression. My reference point though is coming from a hometown of 750,000.</p>
<p>My cousin went to Holderness and loved it. While not as academically rigorous as some other schools, it has excellent outdoor activities (particularly X-Games type skiing) and a small and tight-knit student body. If you live in Madagascar Holderness may be a really unique experience because of the 180 degree difference in climate. Definitely give it a chance!</p>