Reflecting on my prep school experiences

Prep School Admissions
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<p>Greetings - </p>

<p>For those of you who do not know me I am LLVILLE. I used to be fairly active on CC and still read posts occasionally. Having had some years to think about my prep school experience, I thought I would share some insight and wisdom I have since gained.</p>

<p>First, a little bit about myself (intentionally vague for the sake of identity, Lville students who care enough to look through my old posts could likely figure out who I am...)
- I am a Lawrenceville graduate
- I started off as a new sophomore
- I went to public school all my life before Lawrenceville
- I was mainly involved in varsity sports, dorm/campus leadership, and was a tour guide
- I am currently a sophomore at a top 25 US University</p>

<p>I would like to address two of the most common threads on this section of the site: "is boarding school worth it?" and "which school is the best?"</p>

<p>1) I love Lawrenceville. The school completely changed my life for the better and I would not be who and where I am today had I not attended. Part of the reason why I thought to make this post now is that it is exam time at most universities. Although this is normally a very stressful time, I must admit I have never felt worried ever since I came to college about any work at all. The key is time management and the fact that I learned how to balance a busy schedule and become independent in high school shows. I worked incredibly hard in high school, but honestly believe that college is... easy. </p>

<p>I don't want to ramble too long, but my conclusion is YES. If you are comfortable with leaving home and have the opportunity to go away, I highly recommend taking it. The reason to go to prep school is to be prepared for college. Being able to go to college ready versus figuring the game out around junior or senior year gives an amazing edge for internships and academic opportunities. I believe that it also leads to an overall more enjoyable lifestyle with less stress.</p>

<p>2) In college, I am always thrilled to meet other boarding school kids. To name a few, I have met peers from Andover, Exeter, Choate, Deerfield, Mercersburg, Blair, NMH, and so on. Naturally, we discuss our experiences and they are incredibly similar. Essentially, every school has its ups and downs. A handful of weak teachers, some overly rude or competitive students, some scandals here and there. But in the long run, all of these schools are amazing and they all delivered us to the same set of colleges.
As such, when choosing schools, I recommend looking into what makes the schools unique and not comparing them on tidbits where they stand as equals. All of these schools have amazing academics and athletics, but what about the dorms? How is the campus physically set up? Can you deal with the weather? Is it a comfortable distance from home?</p>

<p>I don't want to necessarily discourage 'chance me' threads, but to a degree I feel that they give lackluster information. I recommend focusing on the essays and interviews of your application. It is too late to change who you are by asking if your extra curriculars and grades are up to par - I believe AOs would rather see that you pursue your interests, not sign up for a bunch of clubs at the last minute just because a peer on CC told you to. And to be honest, there really is only so much one can do in 8th or 9th grade.</p>

<p>Anyways, that's the tip of the iceberg for my two cents. Best of luck in all your endeavors.</p>

<p>Feel free to comment or PM me, I miss giving back to the CC community!</p>

<p>LLVILLE</p>

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<p>Really nice post. It’s an amazing thing how when you emerge into college life from boarding school, there’s suddenly so MUCH time and you’ve been so well prepared to use it. Hope you are bringing it intellectually, too, for your college profs–they’ll appreciate it!</p>

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<p>As a fellow Lawrenceville alum and also a student at a top 10 university, this thread fills me with a wave of nostalgia. If anyone has questions, please feel free to ask. I’m sure between LLVILLE and myself, we can answer virtually any question. Have at it!</p>

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<p>For your fullpay classmates that didn’t end up at a top 15 university or a top 5 LAC, would you say it was worth them the 200k?</p>

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<p>@LLVILLE</p>

<p>One of the possible “dangers” of having completed an academically rigorous prep school is that college is indeed way too easy, leading to a cynical, bored, and possibly arrogant coast in college. Do you see this in any of your prep school fellow students (I did not sense it at all from you in your excellent post). How did you choose not to take that route, and do you think it is a real danger?</p>

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<p>@MBVLoveless Well, I suppose that depends upon your definition of “worth.” I’ll just say that attending prep school is an experience that is truly unique. If that experience is in and of itself “worth it” is for you to decide. Perhaps, you should focus more on the process rather than the end result. In my opinion, those that embraced and genuinely explored all the opportunities inherent at prep school almost invariably ended up at a top university or LAC. In other words, if you apply yourself, college will take care of itself. If you have a more specific question, I’ll be glad to answer it.</p>

<p>@2prepMom I don’t know about LLVILLE, but for me, that was never a concern, and I have not observed it in any of my college friends who also went to a prep school. First off, if you really do complete an academically rigorous courseload at prep school, you’ll probably end up at a college commensurate with your ability. Once in college, of course you can make it as easy or as hard as you want it. But, isn’t that true in high school also? So, those that are competitive and ambitious enough to go to top universities don’t really lose that type A personality once in college. That’s just my opinion.</p>

<p>Au contraire, instead of making college less enjoyable, I believe that prep school actually strengthens the college experience. Being at prep school primes you to hit the ground running so to speak. Whereas other students may be floundering or disoriented in the first few weeks, to a prep kid, college is just a small departure from high school. Also, once in college, being a prep school alum has its perks. At my college, many of the most competitive and prestigious organizations such as the newspaper are saturated with prep school kids. Being one makes breaking into those organizations much easier. In fact, it’s almost immediately apparent when meeting someone whether or not they went to prep school. After a week or so, I could even tell which school a kid was from before even talking to him or her. Hah! In any case, I think that prep school greatly enhances the college experience rather than detracting from it. If you would like me to elaborate further, I will gladly do so.</p>

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<p>@LvilleTourGuide: I’m sending you a pm.</p>

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<p>Apologies for a delayed response, I have been away but happy holidays/new years.</p>

<p>I essentially agree with LvilleTourGuide.</p>

<p>@MBVLoveless - Regardless of where one ends up, I believe that the unique experience provided at a boarding school environment is worth it. The transition to college from high school is new regardless of one’s past experience. At the very least, boarding school can make this transition easier.</p>

<p>@2prepMom - I personally have not had any issues occupying myself with numerous clubs and activities. I certainly understand where you are coming from though - college offers an enormous amount of free time simply since one is not in class as often as before and professors tend to not give daily homework assignments. I believe how one chooses to occupy his/her free time varies from person to person based on his/her personality. </p>

<p>For me, the prep school environment made me more interested in spending my time productively. At Lawrenceville, I was always occupied with something and Saturday classes were initially a burden. As a result, I really took advantage of my free time. It is hard to say if a majority would feel this way though.</p>