<p>Yikes, I would hate to think that MY answers were what kept my son from being accepted somewhere...
Of the 8 or 10 requests for viewbooks we've sent out a week ago, only 3 have arrived (we are in the one day mail zone for all of them, so I'm quite surprised we haven't gotten more) and they include the application. Now, I'm nervous about our essays!! LOL
Seriously though, one has left two whole pages for the answer to "why do you want to send your child to an independant school?" Do they really expect me to fill both pages?</p>
<p>When you visit the schools, they interview the parents. Good luck!</p>
<p>I do know that, thank you though. I was talking about the written application and any feedback on that would be appreciated.</p>
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Of the 8 or 10 requests for viewbooks we've sent out a week ago, only 3 have arrived (we are in the one day mail zone for all of them, so I'm quite surprised we haven't gotten more)
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<p>A lot of schools don't send out viewbooks and applications until September or early October because they're updating them. It's nothing to be worried about.</p>
<p>Hi Linda,
Once you visit the schools with your son and see his reactions, get a feel for the place, etc., you'll know which ones are a good match for him. Then writing why is the same as if you were telling a friend why. I worried about those when my D was applying, but they just flowed once I imagined her living at that particular school (how her talents and interests would be stimulated, her skills and events in her past that would enable her to contribute to the school community. etc.)</p>
<p>Don't sweat this one! :)</p>
<p>This isn't meant to be insulting, but the bottom line for the parent statements is that you just have to be honest. Like the essays s/he will write, these answers should give an accurate view of the applicant and what s/he's like. If your child is rejected because of something that you wrote and you've truly captured on paper what your child is like, then you should feel blessed. It's the parents who write about some imaginary child who should stay awake at night fearing what they have done.</p>
<p>I disliked the Exeter application because it asked some detailed questions, provided limited space and required that the answer be completed on their pre-printed form. Now I'm sure I could have colored outside the lines (so to speak), but that would have been awkward. Yeah, limited space and D'yer Maker mix together like oil and vinegar....</p>
<p>The advice that I got from Admissions Counselors was that they appreciate long responses :>) They also understand when parents are being honest and when little warts and wrinkles are described, it only serves to allow them to rely more heavily on the observations in the parent's statement. When the parent writes only glowingly of the applicant, it tells the school that the parent is seriously interested and supportive of the application...but they take the reflections with a grain of salt. </p>
<p>A more detailed and forthcoming parent statement can help make up for -- and even iron out -- shortcomings that might be reflected in the teacher recommendations. (This was something that was probably important in our case because our son was coming out of a middle school that had little experience in assisting students make application to boarding schools.)</p>
<p>The typical parent fear, of course, is that the admission committee will "read between the lines" and extrapolate an honest assessment about Junior into a prediction that he will climb the Tower with his AK-47 sometime before graduation. I can offer no help to you to get past that phobia. It's one that haunted me as I prepared each parent statement. I just had to tell that irrational lobe of the cerebellum to stand down for a few minutes so I could do the best possible job of capturing my son in words for these schools.</p>
<p>For once, D'yer is right on the money. As I always say to myself, "fun is fun, what is the best policy? Honesty, that is the best policy, honesty".</p>
<p>A lot of schools don't send out viewbooks and applications until September or early October because they're updating them. It's nothing to be worried about.</p>
<p>Not worried, just surprised. I'm in a similiar field in that when someone requests information from us we jump and send it right away. I assumed it was the same with the schools. </p>
<p>Thanks for the input on the parents portion. When we applied to current school, there was a similar section and we did indeed point out our son's shortcomings. Since he needed teacher recommendations and we were pretty certain it would appear on them (same reason as you D'yer), we were upfront about it. I must say I was surprised that one application has 2 pages for the answer of "why do you wand to send your child to an independant school?" I just don't see how I can stretch out "our public school sucks and doesn't challenge him" to 2 pages...LOL </p>
<p>THANKS!!</p>
<p>I'm a writer by profession (see name). I <em>still</em> found it tough to answer the parent essay questions. I did a lot of drafts, had my mother and one friend who has known my D for 10 years read it to be sure it was an accurate picture, and gave myself lots of time. I would recommend you start drafting something now...maybe write a little biography of your kid. This will not only clarify your thoughts, giving you material to work from, but it's also great to have your memories of your kid down on paper (wedding speeches are in your future too!)</p>