<p>Here’s a similar thread from way back…with a link to a similar thread from even wayer back:</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/prep-school-admissions/339537-benefits-repeating.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/prep-school-admissions/339537-benefits-repeating.html</a></p>
<p>Check out the NY Times Magazine article on this topic, covered in both threads.</p>
<p>bump again…</p>
<p>colleges know who repeats, and do not look favorably on it. They know that one year at this age makes a huge difference in academics, sports, etc., and colleges will discount a repeating student’s accomplishments because of it. Now, there are many students repeating two grades, which is getting ridiculous, just to try to hold on to some advantage. Colleges will definitely penalize this. If you can envision playing sports or being in class with kids one or two years younger than you, and see how much you are ahead, then you will understand what colleges see. They will discount your grades because you are likely repeating most of the courses, and discount your other activities because you bring one or two years more maturity. If you end up in the middle of the class after repeating one or two years, then you will really be penalized. You may start off well because you are much older, but the advantages will disappear dramatically. These maneuvers clearly disadvantage non-repeaters, and colleges will give great credit to non-repeaters in a private school setting. There is a boys private school in the Boston area notoriously known for repeaters, which does very poorly in college admissions.</p>
<p>Well, really have to disagree here. The repeaters we know have done very well with college admissions, as the colleges know that they have an extra year of maturity under their belt. Private school kids seem to run about a year older than public school kids anyway, due to different cutoff dates for entrance into kindergarten. You can’t be too old for the grade after a certain point in high school though, as you lose sports eligibility.</p>
<p>It’s fairly common around here for prep school athletes to repeat.</p>
<p>I was a repeat 10th grader in BS and fared well in college admissions. </p>
<p>I am today the father of a son who repeated the 10th grade in BS. I have not once thought twice about the decision to repeat; he is stronger for it academically and in terms of his personal maturity. For his sister, also in BS, repeating a grade was not necessary (though it might not have done her any harm).</p>
<p>Cheers</p>
<p>Well, in some parts of the U.S., such as in the southeast (as I know this board is greatly made up of North easterners) it wouldn’t be beneficial to repeat because there is a cutoff for sports that many repeaters would surpass. </p>
<p>Also, I think you guys should know that it’s mainly in the northeast that people repeat, (I have no idea why) so it’s not such an issue in the south and that’s probably the reason for the low cutoff age in sports.</p>
<p>If you’re repeating at a boarding school, then they know:</p>
<p>A. You didn’t fail anything, so you didn’t repeat due to academic hardships.
B. If you didn’t have academic hardships, then you must have chosen it.
C. If you chose it, you must have a reason.
D. So they ask you what your reason was. [And are impressed by your witty answer.]</p>
<p>I chose not to enter as a repeat because I want to do a gap year abroad so I will graduate with the class below me anyway [probably].</p>