My boarding school applications: Chances

Prep School Admissions Prep School Chances
1

Hi guys. If someone could please tell me what my chances of getting accepted to BS are, I would greatly appreciate it.

I am applying to fifteen schools, and this is because there are some schools I wanted to apply to as well as schools my parents wanted me to apply to. (I am happy to attend the schools my parents chose).

Schools: Andover, Exeter, Choate, Deerfield, Groton, Thacher, Lawrenceville, St. Paul’s, Concord, Hotchkiss, Middlesex, Milton, Berkshire, Loomis Chaffee, Emma Willard. (A lot, trust me I know)

I have listed information about myself below:

I am a 12 year old eighth grade girl applying to ninth grade as a boarder. (I skipped a grade which is why I’m younger)

I am African American and grew up in Georgia. However, my family are U.S. Diplomats so we have been stationed overseas in two countries: Liberia and Cameroon for 2 years and 4 years respectively. Living in both countries has helped me gain a greater sense of cultural experience and awareness which I have mentioned in my essays and interviews.

I am a passionate athlete. I play soccer, volleyball, tennis, and do swimming. The main sports I play are soccer and volleyball, but most of the BS I’m applying to have volleyball and soccer take place during the same season. :frowning:

I’ve played soccer for 7 years and currently play on an all boys’ team here in Cameroon. I’ve mentioned in my interviews this has taught me to be more assertive when playing.

I’ve played volleyball for 3 years and have represented my middle school team in international tournaments to Nigeria.

At school I am a member of the National Honor Society which is a mixture of Student Council and Community Service. I’ve taken initiative organizing fundraisers and donation drives for local orphanages.

As a result of living in Cameroon, I have been immersed in the language, learning French.

I also have a strong love for science, specifically chemistry and I love exploring new areas. (My additional teacher recommendation was completed by my science teacher, so I believe it was very strong)

I currently go to an IB school, but I live in a resource limited setting, therefore, my school doesn’t offer advanced or AP classes. I am however, a member of the John Hopkins Center for Talented Youth and have taken high level chemistry courses.

As you can see, I have very little experience with the arts, mainly because my school doesn’t provide the students with many opportunities to expand their creativity.

I enjoy reading and was a member of MUN debate.

I scored an 83rd percentile on the SSAT (not as high as I would have liked) and have submitted my results.

As a result of applying to 15 schools, I had to write multiple essays. Luckily I was able to use the same essays across multiple schools while still personalizing it to each school. The essays were pretty good and I asked my parents to review them. They helped my with proper punctuation and grammar, but aside from that I wrote them without assistance.

I have already submitted my applications, so I am currently waiting for March 10th to come around the corner.

This is my first time applying to anything besides the John Hopkins CTY, so I am pretty nervous.

If any of you could give some feedback on my application from your point of view, I would greatly appreciate it. I take constructive criticism so don’t go easy on me :slight_smile:

2 Likes
2

You have a very interesting story; as long as AOs like your essays, you’re in a good position. How were your interviews?

1 Like
3

I also forgot to mention my grades, silly me.

As I mentioned I go to an IB school so we are graded from 0-7. I get 6 - 7 for all my classes which are, in essence, A+ to A-

1 Like
4

Ok, that’s a bit reassuring. The interviews went really well, especially for Concord Academy. For all of the interviews, I mentioned the listed points as well as why I wanted to attend x school.

One interview I wouldn’t rate too well was Andover’s. This is because one of the first questions he asked was why d I want to attend Andover. Since this is a school my mom wanted me to attend, I didn’t have a great answer and was scrambling to respond. This left a pretty bad impression for the rest of the call.

Aside from this, the interviewers seemed impressed with my interesting story, (like you noted) and I emailed thank you letters at the end of each call. (Since I live overseas it would’ve taken too long to send handwritten letters).

1 Like
5

I am just a boarding school parent, but I expect you to have many acceptances from which to choose. I think many schools will find your interests in athletics and science to be very compelling.

3 Likes
6

Thank you, I really appreciate it.

7

Ok – you are a phenomenal writer for someone who is 12 years old. Actually this is excellent writing for an adult as well! This bodes well for you, as do the several ways you bring diversity to the schools. Your engagement is what these schools value. Do you need a lot of financial aid? That’s the only slight potential negative, everything else is very positive.

I don’t know if I myself could take this advice, but since worrying won’t do anything but get you wound up – it won’t affect the outcome – consider not worrying. Whatever happens, happens. And it will be OK.

Keep us posted!

3 Likes
8

You are extremely impressive and I strongly suspect you will have several options to choose from!!

5 Likes
9

Hi, thank you for the compliment. A lot of people say the same thing, and I believe it’s because I spend a lot of my time reading and have gained a strong sense of writing.

Fortunately, I am not applying for FA. This was a concern at first, but as it turns out, the U.S. Embassy provides up to 66k a year for Diplomatic children going to school depending on their overseas post. In Cameroon, the maximum amount paid or reimbursed is 60k, so my parents don’t mind paying the rest out of pocket.

1 Like
10

Thank you! This means a lot.

11

You sound like a terrific kid. If you don’t get acceptances consider doing a repeat year and applying for ninth again. Many BS are older and the school may want you to be older as well for social reasons.

My daughter is similar and would not let her to apply at the boarding school. I would want her to repeat for sure.

1 Like
12

I think you’re a fantastic candidate and should have several acceptances if your essays and interviews went well. Schools look for candidates that have shown they’ll maximize the opportunities and resources they have, so things like not having a lot of advanced coursework or arts experience won’t reflect negatively in your situation.

This is long but I think it’s helpful having been there and done that:
The age issue can indeed be seen as a slight drawback for some schools, though I honestly think there’s more of a bias against younger boys than girls. But you’re not THAT young and would likely be just fine either way. I was originally 3 grades ahead with an August birthday so I repeated 9th when I started senior boarding school and that was a very good decision. I did 7th-9th at a junior boarding school and applied to secondary schools as a repeat; when I started 9th grade over again at a HADES school I had just turned 12. There were definitely some drawbacks to being young - students sometimes needed to get to know me to get over the age thing, dating wasn’t really workable, I was at a big disadvantage in sports where size & strength matter, and there were some leadership positions that faculty seemed to rule out for me because of it. It did shape my school selection some as well since I felt there were some places that I would have an easier time fully integrating. But in the end I thrived at a top school and don’t look back wishing I had been older.

All that said… repeating has some advantages you might consider. I went into my secondary school having had an additional year of high school school math, science, and language so I got to take more advanced classes and electives. For sports like volleyball another year of growth can make a big difference at the JV and varsity level. Narrowing the age gap between me and my class and dorm-mates (remember that many new 9th graders will already be 15 and seniors will be 18-19 by graduation) was nice from a social perspective. Unaccompanied travel became drastically easier once I turned 14 and I’d imagine that difference will be even bigger for international travel (seriously, even 20 years later I distinctly remember Thanksgiving break of my Junior year when I got to just walk through an airport and get on and off a plane like a normal passenger). And going off to college while still a minor definitely came with some hassles and drawbacks. So I do think it’s worth considering reapplying next year if you don’t get accepted to your perfect fit this year or you and your parents decide to wait a little longer. Schools won’t make you repeat math, science or language courses and the transition to boarding and rigorous academics at top schools is challenging enough that you won’t feel like you’re repeating in humanities classes. The reasons that I had originally skipped grades (being more mature than the average kid, need for more advanced academics) weren’t really a thing anymore at a top-tier boarding school because it’s an entire school made up of mature, smart, independent, driven kids and the advanced coursework options were pretty endless.

3 Likes
13

I think you will definitely have choices on M10 with 15 schools on your list.

Your profile reads like that of a classic George School student-- right down to IB! I’m sure that for all the reasons they would love you, others will too.

1 Like
14

I think you’re a very solid candidate and you sound really mature.

I’m still going to suggest that you consider repeating 8th at Groton or waiting a year to go to BS. There are many many kids at BS who were normal age and then repeated. Graduating at 19 is very normal these days. Just something to consider. Living away from family is a big change + the relaxed supervision and extreme permissive when it comes to sexual encounters is an important factor imo for super young students.

1 Like
15

Many children of foreign service employees don’t have an option to wait a year – local options are simply not available. I’m not familiar with their policy on paying for repeat years.
But it’s definitely a different exercise than it is for many applicants.

I agree with you on the challenges of being young, but I am going to guess that some schools will be less troubled than others. I also believe that several will balk for this reason. It’s something the OP should certainly consider. Some schools are a bit “faster” than others…

2 Likes
16

You’re clearly a smart, mature person with – already – a very compelling story and life experience (playing on a boy’s soccer team in Cameroon while perfecting your French!) and you are going to do very well when the admissions letters are sent out.

2 Likes
17

@itsdefnotme123 Hi! I think we were both on the Zoom call with SPS Volleyball Coaches last week. You sound amazing. I think you’ll do well anywhere!

18

Also - lmk where you end up getting in / going - I only applied to a couple, but if we happen to go to the same school (or compete against each other), let’s say hi :slight_smile: I’m 13 & ofc don’t mind that you’re 12 - you’ll probably meet some ppl who do, most who don’t. Godspeed!

19

You sound like an amazing candidate! BS however do NOT like young kids (even those who didnt skip a year)
A friend was touring (choate/Hotchkiss - one of those 2) with other families; one family was considering applying to 9th grade also as a 12 yr old skipped grade boy. In front of all the families in the Q&A - they point blank said do NOT apply your son here this year - you should consider applying after 9th grade as a repeat 9th grader.
Top BS have skewed their ages older and older ever year

20

I am sure you will have some nice choices. Do keep us posted. Good luck!