<p>I know this board is about BS but we stay in NJ and had applied to only Pingry and Newark Academy. My son got accepted at Newark Academy and is wait listed at Pingry for Grade 6. Which do you think is better? Also, are there any suggestions on the wait pool at Pingry? </p>
<p>They are two different schools, but I have a bias towards NA. If you want a tightly-knit community with a great balance of fun and academics, choose NA. Also, the chances of getting off the wait list are very slim and NA will provide the same level of academics. If your goal is to send your child to an Ivy League, then Newark Academy is better because the students are educated at such a high level but the school does not put any more pressure on the students to get into an Ivy League. Newark Academy provides a lot of independence for your child and he will have a lot of freedom (i.e hour long lunch lunch period) Newark Academy also has a, in my opinion, more favorable campus. Its like the campus is an island surrounded by grass and fields, which makes it beautiful year-round. Congratulations and I hope you choose NA!</p>
<p>Thanks, that is most useful. Do you know people who have been at NA? We have also been very impressed with the school. It is most welcoming and seems like a place where my son would easily fit in. But Pingry appears to have a slightly better reputation. </p>
<p>Pingry does have a slightly better reputation but many may argue that NA is better academically. Personally I think academically they are equal, but athletically, size-wise, and atmospherically they are different. I do know people that attend both schools.</p>
<p>What is the difference atmospherically between the 2 schools? Could you elaborate?</p>
<p>I would say that Newark Academy is definitely more laid-back. Students at NA have a lot of freedom and even more in the high school and Pingry has a little more ‘structure.’ Pingry also has a dark interior which gives the school a more dismal feel (but I’ve only been on cloudy and rainy days). I think Pingry puts more emphasis on college admissions whereas NA allows kids to follow their passions and with the education given to them, they are able to apply to top tier schools. Pingry also has more Ivy League emphasis. Many NA kids choose small liberal arts colleges over the big Ivys, which is why on paper Pingry’s college matriculation is more impressive. Newark Academy’s community is tighter due to the smaller school atmosphere and the school has amazing spirit, especially in the high school (spirit week, homecoming, etc.) </p>
<p>I’ve also felt at times that Pingry ends up being preppy and a little too elitist. Also, I’ve heard that one of the reasons for a larger Ivy league emphasis at Pingry comes from a strong legacy orientation which ends up being a self-fulfilling prophecy of sorts. What do you feel about the same?</p>
<p>Yeah I think Pingry does have that reputation. The whole self-fulfilling prophecy is probably true, but I’m not sure.</p>
<p>Hello njdayschool, I currently go to Newark Academy, however I am leaving next year. I was in the same exact situation as your son and I can give you a lot of insight about this. At NA, you have a really tight nit community and really small grades. The average amount of students per grade at NA is 104 compared to Pingry, which has a 130 average grade size. In 6 grade at NA, you would have around 45 kids, so it is a very small, but tight nit community. I would most likely know your son’s tour’s name, so please tell me this as well. At NA you are required to do sports each season unless you have a reason to be exempt, whether it be athletically or medically. When I visited NA for the first time, I felt like I was at home compared to when I went to Pingry, where I didn’t feel as comfortable. I hate to be blunt, but Pingry’s waitlist is huge. I know that more people get put onto the waitlist than more get accepted. I wouldn’t really count on Pingry happening but you never know. Even though I don’t go to Pingry, I do know everybody in their grade and I know what Pingry is like. What I also do know is that if you really have your heart set on Pingry, then what you could do is have your son attend NA until high school, and then apply to Pingry again for 9 grade. You would be guaranteed admission because these two schools are rivals and I know for a fact that Pingry would love to hear that someone wants to leave NA. Bottom line is that NA has better academics generally, but Pingry sports are stronger and this helps a lot in college admission. Not only this, but NA has an amazing math and english department, so it really all depends on the type of kid that your son is. I really hoped this helped and please tell me if you have anymore questions.</p>
<p>Thanks computer lover. I gave also heard that maths and English is very good. What about science? Also, any view on college acceptances at Pingry vs NA</p>
<p>NA has a very good and advanced science program. Their science teachers are challenging and especially in the middle school, they help students develop good academic skills as well as scientific skills.</p>
<p>njdayschool, college acceptances vary each year but as of the class of 2013, Newark Academy had a 15% acceptance rate into ivies mit and stanford. Pingry had a 24%. However, this may vary. In the classes of 2012, both were tied for around a 20%, so it depends on the class. Newark Academy is known for its placement into UPenn and NYU and Pingry is known for its placement into Princeton. Bottom line, your son is going into 6 grade. My parents worried about college as well for me in 6 grade but ultimately it’s not the school that’s getting you into the college, it’s your performance. It’s one’s performance that will determine which college they go to.</p>
<p>Great - thanks computerlover123. Are there any things that you would say are improvement areas at NA? </p>
<p>Well NA has a very strong tennis team and they are known for that. However, their sports program in general is mediocre compared to Pingry at least. There is nothing so special about its sports program like Pingry’s. That doesn’t mean that they don’t have a strong athletic program. It is very strong but Pingry just has a stronger one. If there are any sports teams in particular that you would like to know about, then just ask! I love NA so much and have so much to share about it.</p>
<p>Thanks computerlover. That is very useful. I like what I see at NA with its academic rigor, sports program, focus on learning, tight knit community etc etc. I am told that the writing skills of the students is way superior. Also, I like the fact that they offer an IB program though i am also told that finishing it in 2 years makes it really stressful. What is your take on the IB program?</p>
<p>Well, the IB program here is what NA is very well know for. It is really strong and when completing it, your chances of getting to a top college will increase already. Completing the IB program is as if you got a 5 on the AP tests. Newark Academy especially has a really strong IB program and it would be a shame not to do it if you decide to enroll your son. I apologize for not replying sooner. I was just getting back into my routine as this was the first week back from spring break.</p>
<p>^^Another great thing about NA, two week spring break!</p>
<p>needtoboard is correct. Private schools have 2 weeks of winter break and spring break and they get off two weeks before everybody else for summer.</p>
<p>I’m late to the party, but I have $0.02. I have two children at NA, so I might as well mention my bias up front. I also know, and have known, a good number of students at Pingry.</p>
<p>To me, the main difference between the student bodies is that I find that the Pingry students are more competitive, and the NA kids are more collaborative. Within each school there is considerable variance, of course. The variance in middle school is also greater, but by the time they’re in high school the predominant school culture will have been internalized by most kids.</p>
<p>I agree with the poster who suggested that Pingry’s greater Ivy acceptances might be because of legacy, but I also think that kids who value collaboration might be a better fit at LACs. I don’t know, but I would guess that Pingry had a greater percentage of recruited athletes than NA. In any case, our unofficial count of this year’s acceptances is that roughly 25% of the seniors have been admitted to an Ivy – whether they’ll attend there or a LAC like Williams remains to be seen. In any case, it’s not a bad percentage. Another unofficial stat is that roughly 75% of the kids were accepted at selective schools.</p>
<p>NA is imperfect, but it is possible to get a great education there, in IB or not. Most of the IB kids found a way to do their work, participate in a sport or two, and have a social life. That ties into the collaborative nature of the school – if you’re competing for class rank with someone, you might be disinclined to swap your history notes for his physics notes; you both lose time by this lack of trust but if you want desperately to outperform the fellow student, that’s what you’ll do. I found that many of the better students in a subject spent a fair amount of time “tutoring” classmates without a quid pro quo, just because it’s the right thing to do.</p>
<p>I know a lot of seniors at NA, and most of them are going to LACs, and the others are going to Ivys or top schools like NYU.</p>