<p>I was looking for a "safety" (as close to a safety as you can get with the amount of FA I need, ha) and saw that the admission rate to Millbrook is 50%. I really liked that.
I can only apply to 4 schools. I know Wminster, EHS, and Mburg are definite, and Kent was for a while too. Then I saw Millbrook. I love that it's in New York, I love that it has a zoo (I've always had a hidden secret love for science), I love the small student body, I love the average aid ($30,000), I love that they offer tennis, and I love that community service is required 4 times a week. Kent doesn't offer any of these things, but from what I see it's a good school. Should I scratch Kent and apply to Millbrook? Are the academics bad or something because of the high acceptance rate and low-ish average SSAT?</p>
<p>Millbrook is a good school. You should visit.</p>
<p>We have friends with children at both Kent and Millbrook. Both are happy with their choices. We have visited Millbrook but not Kent. Academics seem average. Very rural location but very nice “homey” feeling to the school, very small.</p>
<p>Kent does offer tennis and is a small school compared to others. And being in NY shouldnt really make a difference since Millbrook and Kent are fairly close to one another and Kent is 2 minutes over NY border</p>
<p>By small school, I meant students. Millbrook has 200-something and Kent has 500-something.</p>
<p>yea. 500 is fairly small…only about 80 in the freshmen class and then it doubles in sophmore year.</p>
<p>I would describe Kent with around 560 as large or at least medium-sized. Any boarding school is small when compared to Exeter and Andover. Are you able to visit both schools? That would be best. They are fairly close to each other but different from each other. </p>
<p>I’ve known parents with students at both schools, and they were happy.</p>
<p>Well, my public school has over 600 students in the freshman class which is something I hate about it. I feel like just another face instead of someone contributing to the community, no matter how much I actually do. So I’d like to go to a school as small as possible (nothing with like 90 students but you get my point)</p>
<p>It is a solid school across the board and its students acquit themselves well academically, they’re interested in the schoolwork (a good peer group) and they enjoy loads of excellent college acceptances. Kids are admitted with a range of SSAT scores, from under 50 to the low 90’s. They don’t get too many, if any, of the hypercompetitive, 99% SSAT, compete-at-all-costs type of kid that you see at many of the Tier 1 schools.</p>
<p>Millbrook is a small school in the best possible way: kids are well observed (no falling through the cracks), they have no problem dealing with kids who might have extra challenges in certain areas. For example, I know a young lady who was graduated a couple of years ago and she had a pretty severe case of ADHD. They worked really well with her and she was admitted to an excellent college.</p>
<p>Many of the facilities have been rebuilt over the last ten years and the school is well cared for. I know the Chairman of the Trustees and he and his colleagues spend a ton of time keeping the School strong and focused. Drew Casertano is an excellent headmaster; I’ve met him a couple of times and heard him speak. He knows all the kids by name and is respected and liked by students and faculty. One of the things I love most about Millbrook is its Community Service program. Everybody formally participates in supporting a school function, store, bank, facilities…long list.</p>
<p>Maybe the only negative is that the school leans slightly preppy, but not more so than SPS or Groton. It’s worth a visit. The campus is stunning by the way. Dutchess County horse country.</p>