<p>bump bump bump… this can apply now to last year. The people who were about to embark on their journeys on March 10th… you’ve been in BS for a few months now. What do you think?</p>
<p>I just realized what the bumps are. so BUMP. :D</p>
<p>I will be a lower at Phillips Exeter Academy this fall, and I am a boarder.</p>
<p>~What were your plans for your future after seeing your decisions? What did you expect? Did your predictions hold true?
After I received my decisions, I was sure that I was going to Exeter that fall, seeing as it was my top choice. In retrospect, I spent an incredible amount of time researching Exeter, looking at the viewbook and other publications, trying to get an idea of exactly what it was like being at Exeter. But I had this idea that Exeter was this wonderful place where everyone was happy and everything was perfect. That, I’ve found, is certainly not the truth, although Exeter isn’t some sort of teenage hell. You have a certain amount of control over how happy you are or aren’t at Exeter, and it took me two terms to realize that I was unhappy at least in part because I was making that choice. Also, like theindieprince, I’ve realized that despite everything I’ve heard about the brilliance of Exonians, by no means are they all absolute geniuses who will rip me apart. </p>
<p>~For those who were accepted and are attending:
- Everyone takes a time machine back to March 10th, 2007. You have all of the knowledge you have now. That is, you know everything you learned in the past year one year ago. You are in a room with three doors. Using your knowledge, you have to choose one of the three:
- (i) Door 1: Absolutely nothing will have changed. You resume doing whatever you were doing on 3/10/2008 and your memory of being on the time machine is erased.
- (ii) Door 2: You choose to attend a different school (if possible). Your knowledge from the future is erased, as is the memory of the time machine.
- (iii) Door 3: You don’t attend a boarding school at all. Your knowledge from the future and the memory of the time machine are erased.
Door 1 for me. Although there have been times over the past year when I’ve wondered why I’ve made the choice I made, overall, I’m glad that I’m at Exeter. Looking back, I see that I’ve grown in so many ways over the last year, and I doubt that would have happened to the same extent if I’d stayed at public school.</p>
<p>~What are the things students should really look for in a school?
If you have a particular interest in something, make sure you can pursue that at school. Talk to people who go to that school, and get to know the general attitude. Decide if you’d rather deal with stress and pain and in the end, be a stronger person for it, or whether you’d rather deal with something a little less stressful. </p>
<p>~So far, is boarding school what you thought it would be?
No, but in a way, I’m glad of that, because I’ve grown as a person because of what it really is.</p>
<p>~What do you predict for your future? What part has boarding school played in it?
All I’m sure of is college, and that’s something I’ve always been sure I would do. Boarding school is just preparing me better for it than public school ever could have.</p>
<p>~Think about your experiences. All of the tears, excitement, anticipation, depression, joy, insanity – what do you believe it has amounted to? What is your conclusion?
It’s amounted to so much, great friends, wonderful opportunities, a more open mind, and a better sense of who I am as a person. There are ups and downs, so enjoy the ride, because the end product will justify everything, I think.</p>
<p>how bout a bump</p>
<p>bump</p>
<p>tenchar</p>
<p>bump bump bump bump</p>
<p>Thanks for the latest bump!</p>
<p>This is one of the best threads I have seen here. I will definitely ask my son to contribute a year from now, well, if he can get in somewhere. :)</p>
<p>bump… this is really old but i am interested in people’s responses</p>
<p>yes even though I wasn’t around when this thread was posted I just read it and it’s really interesting. BUMP!</p>
<p>BUMP! Just read it too and found it incredibly interesting 
BUMP!</p>
<p>too many bumps and no input. duh</p>
<p>Hi everyone! I’m not a 2007 applicant but I’ve spent two years at BS and figured I might as well provide some input here.</p>
<p>In 2008, I was accepted into Exeter, Concord, and Pomfret, waitlisted at Deerfield, Choate, Governor’s, and rejected at Loomis. Exeter was my first choice from the very beginning. Once I received my acceptance letter, I didn’t even want to look at the other envelopes I got…I knew Exeter was where I was going!</p>
<p>Two years later, I still love Exeter endlessly. Part of me wishes I had been accepted to Choate or had applied and been accepted to Andover. Now that I’m at Exeter, I’m realizing that it is intensely rigorous academically. Life is stressful and I barely get a chance to take a breath between all my activities. Choate and Andover seem to be better fits from afar; after meeting and befriending students from both schools, the culture of both campuses match more with my interests and activities than Exeter’s does at times. Then again, the grass is always greener on the other side, and I know all this chaos will only help me prepare for a busy life in the future.</p>
<p>In short, no, I wouldn’t change my decision to attend Exeter. Would I have applied to Andover? Yes. I originally didn’t apply because I hated the campus - which I still do - and I thought for sure I’d be rejected to Exeter and didn’t want to handle another huge rejection. Now that I look back on it, it’s pretty horrible reasoning, but hey, I was in eighth grade and I didn’t get too much help from my parents!</p>
<p>Exeter truly is a second home to me, no matter how busy my life can get and how I’m sometimes jealous of my friends at home who finish school at 2 every day. I wouldn’t give up this opportunity for the world, even if I wish I was at Andover or Choate on particularly late nights when I’m swamped with work.</p>
<p>Not to mention, Harkness is absolutely the BEST way to learn. I’ve grown such much as a person through the Harkness method. I’ve learned to think for myself and present my ideas in a mature, confident manner. None of the other schools I applied to use Harkness, and now that I’ve experienced how amazing it is, I never want to give it up.</p>
<p>@ double-thank you so much for your insight. My d is a new 2nd yr at DA and selected it over Exeter. I am impressed with your honesty an openness. I only hope that in 2 yrs my d can be so self-reflective and thankful.</p>
<p>@double: Thank you very much for that reflection. It make me realize that maybe I did make the right choice…well I guess we’ll know in two years! Any tips you can offer to a new Exeter prep?</p>
<p>@Alexz, thank you!</p>
<p>@urbanflop, Welcome to Exeter…I’m sure you made the right choice When you get to campus, don’t be afraid to step outside your comfort zone and be outgoing. Everyone will be trying to make friends just like you, so try to jump into things as best as you can. Don’t spend all your time calling people at home, as tempting as it may seem; obviously, call your parents every night if you want, but don’t spend all your time on Skype with old friends. Exeter is a great place but it can be intimidating at first, don’t let that scare you! Let me know if you have any questions about dorms, classes, etc. and I’ll probably be able to give you some answers.</p>
<p>Bump 10 char</p>
<p>B u m p</p>
<p>bump again… These were interesting to read. Hopefully more people will post again.</p>
<p>bump I love this thread</p>
<p>yesyesyes tell us how things turned out! I hope one day I’ll make a nice long happy post on here! :)</p>