<p>Here is the official Andover thread! People who are at/have been to/are going to Phillips Academy, please post your questions and insight here. If you are unaffiliated with Andover, please do NOT post here! Thanks!</p>
<p>When you say “have been to” do you mean people who attended or does that include people who have been to Andover and just walked around, and maybe took some pictures?</p>
<p>I’ll be at Andover this September as a new Upper boarding student! I’m incredibly excited and have already bought myself lots of Andover merch.</p>
<p>No, I mean have attended or taught there.</p>
<p>I’ll be a new junior (9th grader)! I’ve also stocked up on PA gear- I almost never leave the house without “ANDOVER” stamped all over my clothes.</p>
<p>Isn’t a 9th grader a freshman not a junior</p>
<p>in phillips A/E boarding schools a 9th grader is called a junior, a 10th grader a lower, 11th grader an upper and 12th graders are called seniors</p>
<p>Missed the live webcast of the senior commencement. Did anyone watch it? It’s said to be archived after June 12.</p>
<p>I didn’t watch the video, but I was there. It’s a beautiful ceremony. The most touching moment for me was meeting a beautiful little old lady clapping for the graduates as the Class of '09 passed. She had a delightful smile and I assumed she was the grandmother of a student, but she wasn’t. She had 3 sons go through PA and had been attending ceremonies at the school since the 40s. She just enjoyed being out in the sun and saluting the newest graduates.</p>
<p>Thanks, Padre13 for sharing that wonderful moment. What is the actual size of this graduating class? As a Choate parent mentioned in another thread, many schools passed out college matriculation info. Did PA do that? I got some “second hand” data :), but feel like you should be the one to post some numbers for us PA fans to read?</p>
<p>I just found the “first hand” data from the school’s website. </p>
<p>“It’s the journey, not the destination. That was one of the key messages delivered to the 324 members of the graduating class of Phillips Academy by Head of School Barbara Landis Chase during the school’s 231st commencement ceremony held on Sunday, June 7.” </p>
<p>“The Phillips Academy Class of 2009 will matriculate at 91 four-year colleges and universities. Top choices, accounting for nearly 43 percent of the class, include Harvard, 18; Yale, 14; Princeton, 13; Stanford, 12; University of Pennsylvania and Columbia, 10 each; Brown, Cornell, Dartmouth, and Duke, 9 each; Johns Hopkins, Middlebury, and New York University, 8 each.”</p>
<p>As far as I know they didn’t pass out matriculation lists at the ceremony. However, those figures are consistent with the ones I’ve seen. FYI, since Ivy+SM seems to be a popular metric, the number going to MIT is 7 –> making the Ivy+SM matriculation 34.3% of the graduating class. </p>
<p>Even though that’s a pretty incredible percentage given the size of the school and the very competitive admissions environment, it doesn’t tell the whole story. Graduates are going to a wide variety of top quality universities and colleges. Besides MIT and those listed in the press release, other outstanding schools that will enroll 3 or more of this year’s class (in no particular order and it’s not an exhaustive list) include: Georgetown, Chicago, Carnegie Mellon, Amherst, Wesleyan, Tufts, BC, Cal Berkeley, WashU in StL, Northwestern and Michigan.</p>
<p>Of course. The Ivies and Stanford+MIT aren’t the only great universities out there. If Andover keeps its need blind policy beyond next year, I would expect the Ivy matriculations would actually drop - a more diverse student body means more diverse college selections and less obsession with ‘prestige.’</p>
<p>Actually Tom, I wouldn’t bet on that - and it’s not because of a quest for prestige. Because of their (still) large endowments, the Ivies, Stanford, and MIT offer financial aid packages far beyond most institutions. Paradoxically, a more financially diverse Andover may be a prime reason for increasing Ivy+SM matriculation.</p>
<p>Looking back I observed a number of additional high quality institutions that are enrolling 3 or more from PA '09. They include (alphabetically): Bates, BU, Colby, GW, Holy Cross, McGill, Northeastern, Reed, Trinity, Tulane and UVa. Spanning from coast to coast and the Gulf of Mexico to Canada, most schools would be thrilled with just this list even if they didn’t enroll anyone in the Ivy League.</p>
<p>Ah, the reason of FA is a very valid one! I stand corrected. I know that I’ll be applying to a few of those schools partially for the reason that I will need very significant aid, just as I need the aid that Andover is providing.</p>
<p>i graduated a few years back and everyone about to start there should consider themselves the luckiest people in the world! dont worry about college, as my dad said (an andover alum himself), after andover college is just the icing on the cake.</p>
<p>I am not sure I can agree with you 100% but oh hey I like your positive outlook! 
A few years is how many years if I may ask?</p>
<p>i was 05. i was recently talking about it with my dad so i think im just especially enthusiastic today.</p>
<p>My son will be attending Andover in September as a Junior. Any recommendations for what type of clothes he should buy for fall and winter?</p>
<p>SUmmer! tenchar</p>
<p>kali3000, there is a thread in the parent section regarding boys’ clothes. There are some good ideas there.</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/prep-school-parents/695361-exeter-clothing-tips-boys-please.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/prep-school-parents/695361-exeter-clothing-tips-boys-please.html</a></p>