<p>You forgot to add the following to the 1350+ list:</p>
<p>Hackley School (NY)
Ramaz School (NY)
Dalton School (NY)
Winsor School (Boston)
Trinity School (NY)
Chapin School (NY)
Regis High School (NY)
Fieldston (NY)
Bryn Mawr School (Maryland)
Gilman School (Maryland)
Riverdale Country School (NY)
Pine Crest School (FL)</p>
<p>Oh. And you spelled Brearley wrong. (NY)</p>
<p>Momofwildchild.......It seems all schools get over looked unless it's exter, or andover. Where are all the other students who go to the many other great schools.</p>
<p>Prepparent- the problem is that most of the student posters (with the exception of Hazmat and a few others) are APPLICANTS and not attendees or graduates. The APPLICANTS on this forum seem to have an extremely narrow focus. It's a shame for them, but the schools you and I know are out there are certainly not hurting for applicants. It seems the applicants would be well served to consider a few schools out of the Mass/CT/NH area since the competition is so fierce for the spots.</p>
<p>My D will be starting boarding school in the fall and is not going to any of the schools that have been mentioned. Now granted she doesn't have the 90+ percentile SSAT scores that so many of our applicant members have, but that doesn't mean that she won't get a good education there. </p>
<p>This school has a rather low average SAT score, but it also takes on a significant percentage of both boarding and LD students (I'm talking dyslexic, etc.). These students, while very bright, don't generally help average SAT scores.</p>
<p>By and large, these higher scoring applicant members will have an excellent chance of getting into a top school when they graduate regardless of where they attend HS. </p>
<p>However, many do tend to focus on the small marginal benefit of having a "brand name" diploma. I think all of the publicity about the competition of life have made their high school years a time of anxiety where they constantly look for another perceived point to add onto their resumes.</p>
<p>Getting back to my daughter, from my membername, it is obvious what my daughter's hook into boarding school is. And it was successful. I don't think that she would have been accepted at a couple of the schools she applied to without it and definitely would not have gotten financial aid without it.</p>
<p>Her reasons for going are a few. First of all, public schools in our area(where we have lived for the past 3 years) definitely lack the resources and are not nearly as good as where we have lived previously (Michigan and Wisconsin). My daughter has had a rather easy time in class where there are few demands made of students in even the top classes which all to often are full of busywork. She is rather bored and disillusioned with the high school where she would otherwise attend next year (although it is the top school in the county).</p>
<p>Secondly, it is about her goals. She does want to attend a good university (not that it would be impossible from where we are currently located), but playing high level hockey (or any other sport) can give you an advantage in admissions just about anywhere.</p>
<p>And unfortunately, good hockey (boys or girls) is not to be found where we live, so we have had to travel extensively (20,000 miles in the car last season) so she could find adequate competition (boys or girls).</p>
<p>And in the end, she would rather play high quality hockey with girls (hey, it is more fun) than boys, the choice of playing prep wasn't that difficult.</p>
<p>We were not hung up on the stats of the various schools. We wanted a place where she could do well and not be overwhelmed, get the human interaction necessary to develop intellectually (missing from the large public schools at home) and where she could start immediately in goal (no easy task for a freshman). I believe we have got it all with financial aid that makes it so we don't have to short our Asbergers son.</p>
<p>Is it the "highest ranked" school she could have been admitted to? Not by any means. We turned down higher academic schools. Will she be happy and productive. I think so. That is the bottom line.</p>
<p>Well spoken and sage advice goaliedad. There are many, many schools each serving a niche really. Look far and wide....deep also. To dwell on only the few schools mentioned over and over again is to sell the boarding experience and student way short. Very helpful post.</p>
<p>Yes; I checked the web site and Bridgton is now a post HS prep school. When I attended in 1971 it had a small fraction of HS seniors.
Their web site then didn't address this issue.</p>
<p>I wouldn't send my kids to a post HS prep school unless there were extenuating circumstances that caused a disruption, i.e. medical or family problems, etc. </p>
<p>Say your child missed most of their HS senior year, but managed to get their HS diploma.
But, they needed honors or AP credits to gain admittance to your elite college of choice, then, yes, Bridgton is a good investment. </p>
<p>Otherwise, go to a community college or state college. Excel for 1 or 2 years and transfer.</p>
<p>I do speak highly of the Bridgton experience, and I'm sure the faculty today is of top quality. Bridgton provided a disciplined environment that allowed me to make honor roll for the first time in HS.</p>
<p>rb</p>
<p>Has anyone considered or tried a post grad year at a British
Boarding school? My son is considering this. There, he would probably study with with a 6th form class in 1st year of A level
subjects. He will send an application to the Leys School in
Cambridge.
Bob</p>
<p>I have a few friends who will do or have done a post-grad year at a boarding school in the UK through the English-Speaking Union (ESU). I don't know if this is exactly what you are talking about, but all of the people who go through this program seem to have enjoyed their study in the UK tremendously. One of my friends is going to do a post-grad year at the Loretto School right outside of Edinburgh, Scotland, and then he will attend William and Mary the following fall.</p>
<p>Is it better to go to a less competitive prep school and excel or go to a top one and not be at the absolute top..</p>
<p>I again must say that the CC site is one of support and information. I am conflicted to add comments to this particular forum, (just sad to see our anxiety start earlier and younger). But believe it is what it is and will very soon move to focus on the elementary, day schools as the percentage of prep - excellence grows more and more competitive.</p>
<p>Not to be hypocritical, I disclose being the mom of a country day to top NE boarding Prep, now bound to Princeton student.
But drnancies Q does resonate, and is one many of the parents I know have asked. There is no one right answer, and I will get back to this.</p>
<p>First I always understood that a college-prep program is one where the private schools diploma requirement equates with what the major national universities and LACs expects applicants to have completed after 4 years in high school.
Secondly, I agree there are numerous great private and private independent schools, boarding, day, catholic etc. and of course to goaliedad among others point, one for each students fit. While many of the college-prep program ranks differ, I feel their mission has much in common- preparing well rounded people, through academics, sports, leadership and community opportunities.
Because there are so many aspects to educating a child it is important our 12 and 13 y o children get to places where their strengths are highlighted sooner than later. The teenage years are the most complex and complicated and it is critical to make this a priority. </p>
<p>My child arrived in a place where it was clearly stated that they enroll the best and the brightest, but that the shuffle begins all over again, a formerly #1 student here could be later # xxxx, what was key is in understanding that every one has particular strengths to be developed. That may seem minimal to a reader, but I can attest to it being the life line when previously A performances fell to Cs.</p>
<p>To address the original question; I feel parents and children should look for things they like in the program, forget the rank.
These schools are experienced in recruitment, I would guess that about 95% of the accepted students satisfy the prep....ion criteria they are looking for and the majority of these students graduate the program, therefore the majority of accepted students are in the right place.<br>
Moving forward they are competing with their own peers, forget the other school up the street, and for a student in his right place
the experience is the education* and whether s/he finishes top or last will usually hold no regrets. Long answer to say
seek a fit! a good school will have opportunities to highlight and develop a students academic, athletic, social and creative strengths and validate any or all.</p>
<p>Here I add another measure, satisfaction often confirmed by the endowments and funds that such places boast, this is usually students in gratitude saying I loved what I got and want to preserve it for others into the future the bios on many big donors are often not from only at the top ones but the ones that valued the experience/education.</p>
<p>Now its on to college the same situation presents, many public school or international grads will outshine the all private school educated sweet children but s/he is well prepared knowing that everyone has strengths and must now find a passion to apply this to that is the source of Joy!</p>
<p>apply to the lawrenceville school, it is the best decision i can claim to have made in my short time on this planet</p>
<p>lville- Lawrenceville is an amazing school with incredible facilities. Congrats on your choice and, I assume, your graduation.</p>
<p>well, the reason that I am asking this is because I am trying to decide what to do for high school for my third child.</p>
<p>My first child went to northfield mt hermon for the music program and is currently a student in the classical vocal performance program at New England conservatory. </p>
<p>My second just graduated from exeter a few weeks ago. he was in the top fifth of the class,(highest honors almost all terms, high honors the others) made cum laude, and got the classics diploma (this entails taking a certain number of greek and latin classes). He had very high board scores including several 800s. he was a dorm proctor, ran the dorm snack bar, and was the dorm rep on the student council. </p>
<p>However, here is the reason for my question. He applied to four ivies. he was rejected at two, waitlisted at one, and accepted at one (brown) and that is where he will be going. I spoke to several of his friends who did not end up getting in to the college that they wanted and the unanimous opinion was that they wished that they had gone to the local public school and been at the absolute top of their class. they absolutely loved exeter but were unhappy about the college process. </p>
<p>so I am wondering what others think.</p>
<p>Well, drnancie, if your sole reason for putting your kids in prep school is to gain multiple Ivy admissions, then maybe you are right- the public school might be better. If you want your third child to have the incredible experience of going to a boarding school, meeting friends they will have for the rest of his/her life and having the opportunity to be intellectually and athletically challenged, then go for boarding school. You act like just getting into Brown is a disappointment!</p>
<p>no, you misunderstood me. I am thrilled that my son was accepted to Brown. </p>
<p>what I am saying though is that a number of kids were saying that it was much more difficult to gain acceptance to the college that they wanted coming from exeter, because they did not stand out at exeter as they would have had they gone to public school for example. many of the parents mistakenly believed that exeter would guarantee admission to the college that their child wanted as well. I did not send my son to exeter because of what college he would go to. I sent him there to have a unique educational experience, which he did have.</p>
<p>I am posing this as a general question to see what others think and how they made their decisions.</p>
<p>In addition, the athletics that you mention turned out to be an issue in that the level was so high at exeter that my son was not able to play team sports but did have a great time doing intramural sports. so that actually was a negative for him.</p>
<p>This issue is getting to be something of an urban legend among prep school parents - the high achieving prep school (boarding or elite day school) kid who did not get into his first choice college - but, they're convinced - almost as a matter of gospel - that if only he had gone to the local public school, Harvard would be begging for him. </p>
<p>I don't think it's quite that simple.</p>
<p>My two kids spent the last 10 years at an elite, big-city, private day school, which has SAT numbers and college results similar to or better than most of the top New England boarding schools. Kid #1, who just graduated, was an indifferent student with fairly high SAT scores (1400/2100), and was a recruited athlete. He will be going to a mid-range NESCAC college. Kid #2, who just finished 8th grade (started at this school in Pre-K), is a spectacular student, has already taken the SATs (for admission to a summer program) and done very well, and, unless something changes, she will probably end up at a very-top college somewhere. But, she won't be staying at her private school; she's moving (very happily) to the (excellent) local public high school in September.</p>
<p>Bottom line is, kid #1 needed the private school more than kid #2, who will do well anywhere. With kids like that (#2), I'm convinced that, assuming a decent school environment, it's much more about the kid than about the school. I also think that kid #1 would not have had such a good outcome at the public school, though his grades conceivably could have been better. I think there was a greater risk that, due to his distractability, he could have gotten lost in the crowd. So, every kid is different.</p>
<p>My advice is to look at the kid, look at the schools available (public v. private ) and don't make your decision based on college outcomes, because you just never can tell. It's an early life's lesson for kids (and a reminder to parents, who should already know this), that there is no one path to success, and outcome is more determined by the individual than by the institution they're affiliated with.</p>
<p>wtidad/drnancie, I wonder what it would be like without these prep threads. When my d begged us to attend bs, we were very much against it. Whe we decided as a family to let her pursue her dreams of bs, it was never about school matrics. It was about what we believed to be true to this day, and that's that high school is about education. We always felt that no matter where she attended college she would be prepared. These threads seem to be more about where our kids will attend college rather than getting a superior high school education. I mus admit with these threads I to have fallen into this trap. We all to often as parents equate what college one attends to the amount of success one achieves. I think we can all agree that this is not gospel. Wtidad, your last paragraph should be gospel. Thankyou for getting us all back on track.</p>
<p>i graduated from a phillips and was not admitted to my first choice school. a lot of my friends were in a similar position. at first, i was really disappointed. its hard if it doesnt go your way after working hard for this one goal for your whole (short) life. but then you actually go to college and its fun and exciting, no matter where you end up. most people have grown to love their college. and if you dont, you can transfer (i am). maybe i would have gotten into my dream school the first time around if i had gone to my local public school and been valedictorian, who knows. but i LOVED my high school and got an amazing education in the company of really exceptional and diverse students from all over the world. i wouldnt trade it for the world.</p>
<p>collegedropout, what school are you attending now and which one are you transferring to?</p>
<p>went to wellesley, going to harvard</p>
<p>Wow. Congratulations!</p>
<p>What's your major?</p>