<p>im a rising eighth grader at a small all-girls school in VA. i have a semi-long list of schools im thinking about applying to. i was just wondering y'all's opinions on some of these schools:
exeter
andover
st. pauls
groton
choate
milton
hotchkiss</p>
<p>so far i think i like andover and hotchkiss the best but im not sure whether i will get into either of them although i do have some legacy @ andover. also, im from the south and i obviously talk kinda like a southerner, not a southern accent per se, but i say yall A LOT.....does that bug all the preps @ boarding school, or is it totally ok??
thx for your help</p>
<p>All of the schools you are considering are great. Being from the south will be helpful considering you are not the typical New England applicant, but during your interviews you might want to restrain from saying ya'll too much.</p>
<p>Sorry, I was video calling with a friend.
You should also add the Kent School to ur list. If u get in and choose to go Ill make sure u get a good sponsee, I cant be urs seeing as im a boy. lol
Accents show uniqueness.
I think they are very cool.
lol</p>
<p>sorry i forgot about kent, i am thinking about it...i drove around the campus over xmas break and it's a really pretty school....what year are you at kent? do you feel like it gets smaller the longer you go there? but it does look like a good school :)</p>
<p>What you have developed is a list of the most competitive schools in New England. If you do not like your local options for high school, my suggestion to you is that you search out a few more schools that appeal to you and are not as competitive as the schools you have selected. The schools you have selected have far more qualified applicants than they have places for them. This can lead to disappointment regardless of how talented and high achieving you are. </p>
<p>If you aren't already planning on doing it, you might take a look at schools closer to home such as Asheville, Baylor, Episcopal, and St. Andrews (Del). If you go a little further north look at Mercersburg, Hill, and Blair. Lawrenceville and Peddie are also worth a look but are also very competitive. Peddie is somewhat less competitive if you are applying as a boarder. If you want to stay in New England, there are many great schools there that are not as competitive as the schools on your list. If you liked Kent, it would be a good addition. </p>
<p>If you will consider an all girls school, there are several in Virginia. In New England look at Miss Porters School, Emma Willard (technically not in New England but right next door), Westover and more. </p>
<p>While you are adding on to your list, you also need to narrow it by thinking about the kind of school you want. Large or small? Rural with no stores in walking distance (Hotchkiss), suburban (Exeter, Andover, Choate), or somewhat urban (Milton). Dress code, religious requirements, certain academic subjects you want, faculty involvement, teaching style, specific sports, specific arts, specific ec's, etc. It will become your home away from home, so you want to be certain it is a good match.</p>
<p>I suspect that New Englanders will find your southern accent charming as long as you can be understood easily.</p>
<p>something else to throw in the mix (you have gotten excellent advice from Burb Parent) -- will you need financial aid? Is there a particular sport you will want to continue in? A language that you want to continue?</p>
<p>If you look at postings from last year's admission's cycle, you will find that many kids were disappointed with their admissions results -- either not getting into schools or not getting enough financial aid to attend. Please save yourself the grief by including some less competitive schools on your list and having a safety.</p>
<p>When you take the SSAT, you will be better able to construct a list of schools. You should follow the current thinking for college admissions, with three categories of schools, "reach," "match," and "safety." You should only put schools on your list which you would be happy to attend. All the schools on your current list are reach schools for everyone. On Boarding School Review, as a group, they have the lowest acceptance rates.</p>
<p>Hey! Well the only schools from your list that I applied to were Milton and Choate. I was accepted to both so I will tell u about their behaviours before and after March 10. </p>
<p>CHOATE:
Very nice campus, I loveedd visiting for my interview.. it was really pretty.
Everyone at Choate was extremely warm and inside the admissions office warm cookies, hot chocolate, coffee and mnms were waiting for us.
My interview was a questionnaire, but presented in a warm way, with no clipboards in sight.
My tour guide gave a seemingly honest and useful account of her time at the school.
After I was accepted, I got a really great letter, a poster and registration materials. Most stuff I could fill out online.
I decided to attend Choate because it seemed to embrace student spirit and creativity in a very structured and challenging academic program.</p>
<p>MILTON
Milton's campus was also quite nice, if perhaps more typical of a boarding school. It did however seem a little rough around the edges (e.g. I did spot a bit of graffiti here and there, and not the good kind).
The admissions office was more formal and there really wasn't anyone there to welcome us.
My interview was also in questionnaire format but this time, there was a clipboard, which made me feel a little uncomfortable.
My tour was alright, it was along with another applicant (a boy) and his guide was male, while mine was female (so we could split up to see the dorms). This I didn't like because I felt more self conscious about my questions. My Milton tour was also with my parents, which had both pros and cons.
I asked Milton if I was allowed to phone for my results and they said that I couldn't but that because I was international, they would email me at 12:00 on March 10th. Excited, I checked my email at 12:30 on the day to find... nothing. When we called the school to inquire, they said they didn't understand why anyone had told me that and that they had Fed-Exed it on Friday (this was a Monday). They were not very suggestive and even asked us if we had applied to other schools. When I finally discovered that I had been accepted I had sort of already made up my mind.
Milton seems like a nice school but I sensed to much student competition and a little bit of slackness.</p>
<p>I also applied to Loomis so PM me if you want to hear about that.</p>
<p>Remember to have one 'safety school' or at least one a little less competitive. Good options are NMH an excellent school with a high admissions rate, and depending on your qualifications, Loomis Chaffee which offers research opportunities at Harvard. Search the boards for any more.</p>
<p>I think you have received some good advice. Taking the SSaT will help you know what schools are realistic to apply to. You need to decide if you want a dress code or not. What sports and activities are important? Hotchkiss and andover are very different schools. Do you want to be in/near a city. How do you feel about being in the middle of nowhere?</p>
<p>Be careful what you consider a safety. Even if a school admits 50% of it's applicants then 50% did NOT get in.</p>
<p>Lastly, if you need fa then there really are no safeties.</p>
<p>thanks for all your help!!! i will try to look into safeties, would people consider kent a safety? thanks xoxcookie, one of my aunts went to choate, and the other went to milton and they both want me to go to their schools! :) they both loved their bs experience, but i was actually leaning more toward choate even before i read your post!!! thanks to the parents posting too!!! i don't think that miss porter's will be an option because my all-girls middle school experience has been enough! :)</p>
<p>Probably not a safety but more of a match. Their SSAT average is 74% and the acceptance rate is 50%, so it's not nearly as competitive as schools like Andover, SPS, Exeter, Deerfield, Hotchkiss, Groton, etc.</p>