<p>My daughter received invitation letters from several 2nd tier, 3rd tier schools. They offer full scholarships purely based on merit with no consideration of family income. (I don't think we can quality for FA at any BS.) My daughter is very tempted to apply since she feels she can earn her own BS study without depending to the parents. She also thinks she will be the crown jewels at these schools. My wife and I have debated on this. We want her have a good learning experience in her four years of high school and have fun. She is a self driven type of kid and we worried that she will work too hard and stressed out or burn out in a top tier school. However, we also worried that a lower tier school may not offer her enough challenge. There is also a consideration of the different characteristics of her peers at top tier vs 2nd/3rd tier schools. Also, I am not sure if it will have a positive or negative impact on her psychological development for being always the best at a school (especially at a school that is not a top tier). I wonder if any of you faced such dilemma before.</p>
<p>Remember…“top tier” often equates to the popularity and prestige of a school, not just the quality of the education. That being said, I have never heard of bs offfering merit scholarships. What schools are these?</p>
<p>Your assumption is that she would easily be the top student at the merit scholarship schools. It is possible that there will be other top students who would give your daughter some competition. This is what you should probe.</p>
<p>What are the outcomes of top students at the schools recruiting your daughter? My suggestion is that she apply for the merit scholarships. Once accepted with a merit scholarship, you can find out what the outcomes are for top students. It would be best to do this after acceptance. Admissions might not appreciate too much probing before acceptance. Of course, if you know any current parents or current students, you can ask. Admissions can put you in touch with current parents now, but Admissions usually asks for a follow-up discussion with that parent afterwards.</p>
<p>Merit scholarships are difficult to get. If your daughter is getting solicitations, you can be sure that she is not the only one getting these letters. </p>
<p>You should also take a look at the academics offered by these schools. How many honors and AP courses? All the independent schools I know of offer independent study in which a student who wants to study something not offered by the schools find a faculty member qualified and willing to teach the subject. What I am suggesting is that she can probably take some independent studies to go beyond the curriculum.</p>
<p>If a school has an average SSAT score of 60%, it doesn’t necessarily mean that most students there have an SSAT score of 60%. What it often means is that the school has a broad range of SSAT scores. If the school also offers a range of classes, then your daughter will probably be challenged. </p>
<p>A student who can be at the top 10-20% of a class can often have good outcomes. If she is happy there, it is likely that her college applications will stand out with good recommendations, toughest courses, top grades, leadership, awards, etc. I don’t remember if they were fa or merit students, but I’ve read on this board about one student who went to Mercersburg and then went to Princeton, another who went to a small girls school in Virginia (I don’t remember the school but I think her name was naoka) – I think went to Duke. Recently I read somewhere (I think it was this board), about a top student from Darrow going to a top 10 university (I forget which). </p>
<p>Whatever her outcomes on March 10th, compare acceptances to her current school.</p>
<p>Good luck to you and your daughter!</p>
<p>@keylyme: Choate is one example that comes to mind:</p>
<p>[Choate</a> Rosemary Hall: Admission » Financial Aid » Scholarships](<a href=“http://www.choate.edu/admission/fa_scholarships.aspx]Choate”>http://www.choate.edu/admission/fa_scholarships.aspx)</p>
<p>Some of those seem to be merit-based (after some threshold of need is met).</p>
<p>Also, I think that SPS has some geography-based scholarships…which one could argue would also be merit: The top applicant from Kalamazoo, etc.</p>
<p>I seem to remember that St. Andrew’s explicitly states that they DO NOT offer any merit scholarships…I think it’s part of the philosophy that all students are equals or something.</p>
<p>There are a number of schools with merit scholarships. Here is a list from boardingschoolreview [Search</a> Boarding Schools](<a href=“http://www.boardingschoolreview.com/search-boarding-schools/0000/000010000/1000123/2000/020#List]Search”>Boarding School Search Results)</p>
<p>Burb Parent: Thank you very much. It is the best advice I ever get on this issue. I will do more home work.</p>
<p>I don’t often post under the prep schools, but as a parent who researched boarding schools a few years back, I wanted to chime in my opinion.</p>
<p>I believe that you should also take geographic location into consideration. The “solid” NE and Mid Atlantic schools are often dwarfed by their “fantastic” neighbors. These “solid” schools often offer various tracks, the highest of which strong students would still find challenging. Some of these schools, I believe, would be viewed as strong institutions if it were not for the fact the surrounding schools are top notch. For example George School in Newtown, PA has an amazing IB program and also offers a non-IB tract. The school is challenging and produces great students, however it is dwarfed by the fact it is in close proximity to Lawrenceville and Peddie. </p>
<p>Mercsburg is another really strong school that offers merit and has a tough top track.</p>
<p>Dig into the course offereings. Ask the admissions officers how the first year course schedule is determined. If the school “test” kids into the courses it is a good indication that the student will be placed at an approriate level.</p>
<p>Yup, there’s really a larger number of exceedingly good schools beyond what seems to be popularly discussed on CC. I wish kids and parents wouldn’t bring up the ‘help get into an Ivy’ subject; many of those kids would attend an Ivy no matter what high school they attend. Not always because of their academic/athletic/artistic/etc. quals, but many times of who they are. Many kids have their destiny laid out before them, kids who will not be turned down by the boarding school they apply to nor later the Ivy they apply to (if they choose to attend an Ivy).</p>
<p>We’ve always kind of viewed those merit solicitations just barely above the People to People solicitations.</p>
<p>alexwoo: I think more and more that the competitive colleges and BS’s are really becoming “meritocracies”. I have seen too many legacy applicants turned down - I think legacy counts when “all other things are equal”. In the BS realm, I have seen AO’s “working” with the children of alums and big donors - if a “not quite qualified” applicant of one of the those groups applies for 9th grade, they will say “let’s see what he does in 9th grade at his current school and we’ll review his app again next Fall”. Whereas he is given a chance to prove himself, another unconnected applicant might just get declined. I think that whole concept of “absolute legacy acceptance” and buying your way into an institution of higher learning is on the wane.</p>
<p>My daughter applied to 4 schools that offered merit scholarships. We were convinced she would receive one. We were terribly naive. She was a wonderful candidate with great grades, leadership roles, community service, athletics and school ecs. But her ssat scores, while good, were not in the 90’s. One school told us that while you don’t have to have a score in the 90th percentile to receive the merit scholarship, they couldn’t think of any recipient that didn’t have those scores. She did not receive any merit scholarships, but has gone on to thrive at her first choice school.</p>
<p>My suggestion is to apply for both the merit scholarships and FA, even if you don’t think you necessarily qualify. The current economic landscape has broadened that category.</p>
<p>zp</p>
<p>The “tiers” terminology is misleading. Some of the so-called “2nd/3rd tier schools” are well known and respected in their regions. We could think of them as very good schools with a regional, rather than a national (or international) reputation. </p>
<p>For the OP, if your daughter likes the idea, there’s no downside to applying for a merit scholarship–other than the increased paperwork. Asking serious questions would be a good idea, i.e., not off-putting for the schools offering the scholarships. After all, it would demonstrate your serious interest. If it were my child, I would ask particularly about course placement. If your daughter were to outstrip the language or math offerings, for example, what then? Independent study can be an answer to the problem, but it could be isolating if too many of her courses were independent study. </p>
<p>If the freshman courses were too easy for her, would the school be able and willing to place her in classes with sophomores? And, no matter how intelligent a student may be, transitioning to boarding school can be a difficult process. If her academic performance declined, would she be in danger of losing the scholarship?</p>
<p>I’m mostly worried more about her thinking she’ll be the crown jewel there. Maybe. Maybe not.</p>
<p>But if so - she may find she is not challenged by the curriculum or stimulated by her peers. There are schools that are very good and are just not as popular as top tiers. There are schools that are in it for the revenue and “entice” students with the promise of merit scholarships that don’t materialize - by then the parents are emotionally invested in the process and enroll anyway. I worry about any school that sends an unsolicited advertisements. That sends up red flags for me.</p>
<p>Pay careful attention to endowments, finances, etc. One parent on this board turned me on to Charity navigator which was an interesting way to see how well funded a school is:</p>
<p>[Charity</a> Navigator - America’s Largest Charity Evaluator | Home](<a href=“http://www.charitynavigator.org/]Charity”>http://www.charitynavigator.org/)</p>
<p>Some other suggestions - if not BS, then look at early college entrance programs:</p>
<p>[Early</a> Entrance Programs nationwide - recruitment](<a href=“http://www.earlyentrancefoundation.org/peep/PR/EEPs-recruitment/index.html]Early”>http://www.earlyentrancefoundation.org/peep/PR/EEPs-recruitment/index.html)</p>
<p>But regardless - go visit the schools and get a feel for the atmosphere and the fit. Doesn’t matter how much money they throw at her (if they do) if the school isn’t a match. Teenage years are too short to be at a place that isn’t a fit.</p>
<p>And don’t “short” schools on FA. You’d be surprised at how much things have changed in terms of aid. Many schools post their charts online. So it’s probably shocking to see scholarships going to people who make as much a a quarter million a year.</p>