<p>of the interesting electives offered, how many can you actually take per semester (/trimester, i don't know the system)..given your still taking the required full year english, math (up to calc), full year language in sequence, full year science, and have done all required history/ss (world history, us history.. any others?).. how much room do you have for art, english electives and social science electives?</p>
<p>bear,you are smart.you asked because it is the easiest way to dig at SPS.believe me, that "scandal" still scares away parents in droves.They hear scandal and think something bad is happening to kids.The winners in that game are EA & PA.Hotchkiss is not even in the conversation.Why do you think hotchkiss and Choate are building music buildings and tracks at full tilt.Outside of greater NY and Boston it is all about AESD for the top of the top.When this latest flurry of boomer kids are filtered through H better have its money and facilities in order.Again,a great school but not a national name.</p>
<p>Most people don't take any electives the first 2 years. How many you eventually take largely depend on how advanced you are coming in and whether or not you want you carry 6 classes in later years.</p>
<p>Blair, are you applying for 3rd form or 4th?</p>
<p>i have a feeling that the increase in applicants is just a trend following the "preppy" fashion craze and that the students applying aren'ts all that qualified (normal kids with normal backgrounds and normal academics and EC's and somewhat average ssat's, etc).. like, kids who read "preppy" and "the official preppy handbook" and think pink and green and a place on the social register await them...just an inkling. i think that maybe it all has to do with the influence of pop culture.</p>
<p>"Why do you think hotchkiss and Choate are building music buildings and tracks at full tilt"
because we have the money to...lol</p>
<p>"a great school but not a national name" why the hell would schools all the way in california like USC or UC berkeley take our kids all the way down to a 2.5 gpa while in most cases u need at least a 3.7 to be in the running
how did I hear about hotchkiss from hong kong? why did i choose hotchkiss over PA, PE , SPS (didnt get into deerfield tho) if you think "hotchkiss isnt in the conversation"... people dont just go for the prestige, we go for quality. Yes, prestige wise, we are a bit lower. If AESD, were HYPS, choate and hotchkiss would be at least dartmouth or columbia, and how many kids would choose columbia or dartmouth over HYPS? i assure you, there are people like that</p>
<p>that is a fine answer. thankyou</p>
<p>I don't think you're right Blair. A huge part of the application surge are highly qualified international candidates, they are probably responsible for most of the growth. The other part is the decline of even the best public schools. Boarding school is still a hard concept for most American families. Applicants still come in larger part from schools that have long been their feeder schools, families they have sent kids for generations and organizations that feed inner city kids into the schools.</p>
<p>oh, well the trend was international.. so maybe kids overseas have been informed.</p>
<p>Anyone who came from a feeder school has seen how tough the competition is at the top 7 or so schools. I couldn't believe who didn't make it into one, people with perfect stats and many talents.</p>
<p>SPSstudent - in response to the statement about electives, could I list the courses I will have completed by Sept. 07 so that you could tell me what you were referring to as "required courses" at SPS? most schools aren't exactly clear because they like to attract students to the course catalogue, even though some of those courses may only be availabe to student X and student Y.. i just don't want to get too pumped about the courses if i wouldn't be able to take them.</p>
<p>"There was no scandal. Some alum felt the rector (headmaster) was over paid. The feud over this involved very wealthy alum who had a public arguement over it on Park Avenue. This attracted media attention!! Doubt if it would have made major newspapers if it were a lesser school. The rector, who was wonderful, left as a result. Great new rector, story over. "</p>
<p>I heard that SP struggled to meet parent fund target.</p>
<p>Welcome! SPS is my little brother;s first choice, applying this year. Which boys dorm do you like best?</p>
<p>Quoting one of the most consistently intelligent people on this board..."Groton: The most unhappy kids I saw anywhere. Needs renovation in classrooms. Dorms are weird, hard to describle cubicles. Beautiful gothic chapel. In the middle of nowhere. Brother knew he wouldn't apply after half hour. " </p>
<p>Everybody knows how I feel about St. Paul's but even so I would have encouraged my children to look at Groton and Exeter in a heartbeat. In the event, even with a 99% SSAT, straight A+ and great grades recommendations neither of my kids made it into either Exeter or Groton. All these schools are (in Suze's words) stretches, there are no guarantees. I think your little brother should rethink Groton. It is the Winchester of America, a great school.</p>
<p>groton is depressing...i withdrew my app couple years ago after i visited...i actually told the admission office when I was there right after the tour</p>
<p>Paleozoic, I have utmost respect for your opinions. Groton, however, is a mystery to me. I visited with both of my parents and my brother. We all came away with the same feeling that it was a depressing place. Others on this board seem to agree. We watched kids between classes looking glum, not greeting each other happily as you see at other schools. It was so strange I asked if it was midterms or something, but it was just an average day. </p>
<p>Anyone know what gives?</p>
<p>I have never even been to Groton, and it creeps me out from a distance. I don't know what it is.. they're sort of like a school that used to be prestigious and the only reason they still exist is because of the school's past.. I don't know what it is w/ that school. Glad I didn't apply.</p>
<p>SPSstudent - did you see my post above? Could I post, just for an estimate?</p>
<p>" they're sort of like a school that used to be prestigious and the only reason they still exist is because of the school's past."</p>
<p>Are you joking?</p>
<p>No, I'm not joking. I think the school reached its peak a long time ago and is only noted on this board and whatnot because the school USED to be prestigious, but due to God-knows-what, it's now less apt than the other schools who share a similiar history. It has been declining for a while and now qualified applicants are completely ignoring it.</p>
<p>Try not to evaluate Groton as though there was any reality in Curtis Sittenfeld's book, Prep.</p>