<p>Van Sant, it probably has to do with your W. Coast location. My friend at H-W says the same about HYPCBDD but not about S.</p>
<p>NE prep schools and NYC day schools are over run with HYP legacies. CA privates tend to be over run with S legacies. NE preps also produce the highest percentage of recruited HS athletes of any HS’s in the Country.</p>
<p>Shore, if you want to get an accurate picture, talk to recent Andover grads. That said, it’s common knowledge at such schools that you will have a harder time getting into the top handful of colleges if you enroll. This is due not only to the connection/athletic factors but simply because of the huge number of highly qualified kids you will compete with for those slots. People who are living to go ivy often decide to stay home and go to a local public school for this reason. Many leave the Andovers of the world after a year or 2 when it becomes clear they are not top of class. </p>
<p>You go to a great HS for the HS. Many will tell you their HS experience was much more important in their lives than their college experience. You will join a lifelong network similar to the ones people build at ivies. You will live among your teachers, something you won’t do in college. Most don’t care if that means Barnard instead of Harvard.</p>