<p>Here we are 4/9 and still no definite decision.</p>
<p>It's between Exeter and charter school which will be open one more year but don't know about after that.... </p>
<p>Yesterday son decided on Exeter but seemed very torn and sort of on the fence. He is approaching it very rationally and analytically which may just be due to his personality but boy it would be easier to pay all that money (FP) if he were jumping up and down like some kids on CC do!</p>
<p>Does everyone who goes to BS and succeeds/likes it know for sure that it's going to be great/work out when they sign up? Or am I just seeing a skewed demographic with the kids who post on CC? </p>
<p>Any advice via PM or this thread is greatly appreciated! </p>
<p>Hi PA-C, We are still debating too, at this late hour - but about which school - so I feel for you.
We have many friends who have children who have gone to BS. Some eagerly, like our son, and others reluctantly. Some have come back but surprisingly, there appears to be no relation between willingness to go and unhappiness. Some children are really excited but do not really consider the challenges of BS, such as the rigourous and rigid schedule (main reason of return for a few). A few of the more reluctant participants are doing wonderful and in their 5 and 6th forms now. Also I have never heard of anyone coming back due to a lack of friends. What are his main concerns?
Not a clear answer to your question but just some insight.</p>
<p>PA-C: I just wrote my prediction for you on another thread. Just my impression and I’m just a kid but I’ve read your posts along the way and this is what I think.
I wish you were my mom ( i have a great one) because you have put a lot of work into this process and care so much. :)</p>
<p>Prediction for PA-C: Will stay at current school and reapply next year.</p>
<p>She cares so much for her son’s wellbeing and wants to do the right thing but the answer is not coming easily.
In the next year she will be able to gauge the economy better and I’m sure her son will get many offers and will financially be able to commit for the next three years. No sense trying a semester because the first semester will be the hardest. Just my two cents.
Good luck either way. At least the decision will be made!</p>
<p>Awww Thanks Kentschoolie! You sound like a great kid- I DO take kid’s opinions seriously here since my son is not the talkative type so I try to go by the kids on here a little bit!</p>
<p>thanks cdnhockeymom- it’s so good to know that some kids who aren’t quite sure have gone and done very well at bs! I think he would be ok with the heavy workload as his load is quite heavy now- 3 hrs a night - and he still does well. I know Es workload is probably heavier but at least he wouldn’t be coming from 1/2 hr a night school!</p>
<p>I think part of his thought process is immature- I can stay home, not work as hard and play more video games! He hasn’t said this but I think I can see it in his brain!</p>
<p>I posted on your thread about your son- cdnhockeymom!</p>
<p>Let him stay at his charter school.
It will be a big relief for the both of you. Academics will always be there with outside programs and self learning. He will know that he was accepted into an extremely competitive school therefore he could do it again, if he chose to, at another time.
You will be teaching him a great lesson in life: just because something looks good for you doesn’t mean it is:)</p>
<p>PA-C, I don’t know much, but I can tell you if I go to Exeter and see your son I’ll befriend him! If he is a millionth as nice/helpful as you are :)</p>
<p>PA-C:
There was a poster who decided to wait a year for the son to develop better organizational skills or more maturity or something and then reapplied to the same schools and was accepted again and attended. I think she wrote them or talked to them about this and I think they appreciated the insightfullness of the parent and happily include all of this in his file to be considered the next year. It was a good situation, as I remember. Do you recall this poster? It might be valuable information for you. </p>
<ol>
<li> Go with your gut.</li>
<li> Forget what anyone outside your family thinks about it.</li>
<li> Don’t let that that little voice in your head make you ambivalent.</li>
<li> Talk to the admission head with your decision to reapply.</li>
<li> Feel confident with your choice.</li>
<li> Enjoy the feeling of making the decision.</li>
<li> Make a plan for the next several months till Sept.</li>
<li> Take a small amount of money and buy an new computer or take an educational trip like to Boston or DC or sign up for a summer program.</li>
<li> Go out to dinner and have fun.</li>
<li>The weight of the world has been lifted off your shoulders.</li>
<li>Celebrate that your son has won the golden ticket but put it in a safe deposit box for the moment.</li>
<li>Exeter will remember him. He has a leg up being from NH! And save the 10,000+ (?)shortcoming from Exeter.</li>
</ol>
<p>I predicted right about xoxoherseykisses choice maybe I’m right about yours:) You’ll be fine!</p>
<p>I’m going to take the other side of the argument than kentschoolie and tell you to send your son to Exeter:</p>
<ol>
<li>Everyone is nervous about a change. It is normal to feel that way but important to face fears.</li>
<li>Why spend your life wondering “what if?”.</li>
<li>There is no guarantee you’ll get FA next year either if you didn’t this year. It could be even more competitive next year.</li>
<li>It sounds like the charter school may not be viable past another year. What if the school starts losing good teachers who know that? What if the school can’t even make it through 1 academic year?</li>
<li>You’d have to start the process off again in September…ugh!<br></li>
<li>It’s always easier to transition to BS as a freshman when everyone else is doing so. The freshman year is set up to accomodate that transition. Yes, it can be done successfully as a 10th or 11th grader but its never as ewasy as the 9th grade year.</li>
</ol>
<p>Being from NH doesn’t give you a leg up in admissions. There are plenty of kids applying from NH.</p>
<p>I don’t think you can make a mistake. Either decision would work out well.</p>
<p>As I remember, you are a full-pay family, although it will be a strain on the family finances. If you wait a year to reapply, you could save some of the money which would have gone for tuition. If you go through the application process again, you could look at other schools as well, and maybe find a school you both love which would give you merit aid. (I seem to remember your son’s applying as a day student? If so, next year, he’ll be a year older, and he might want to board, which would extend the range of schools.)</p>
<p>However, there’s no guarantee that he’d be admitted next year, so turning down Exeter at this juncture is a gamble.</p>
<p>I think your son is both right and wrong on friendships. Yes, if he leaves for Exeter in the Fall, he will lose touch with his charter school friends. On the other hand, he will certainly make new friends at Exeter.</p>
<p>Thanks all- one thing husband, son and I agree on and are sure about- noone wants to do this again next year! If he doesn’t go now he won’t go- he’ll focus on making the best of his opportinities and just wait for college to make the big move.</p>
<p>Periwinkle: we are FP, boarding but wanted to keep him within 1 hr of home.
I did ask him that if the boarding was a factor we could consider moving to the town of Exeter but he said no, if he goes he wants to board. That surprised me!</p>
<p>PPV: on the trade studies/pros cons lists Exeter comes out ahead.</p>
<p>From your previous posts it sounds like your son may benefit from another year at home. I would call and then write Exeter and explain that. Plenty of kids apply, get in and choose to stay at home another year, and then get re-admitted again. Worse come to worse, he can repeat 9th grade again in BS. While the future is uncertain in your charter school, you are happy there now. I assume the contracts for next year have either been signed/or are in the process to be signed, so you have an idea which teachers will stay/leave for next year. Also, since you feel you should be getting FA, perhaps next year your form will look differently and you will get some.</p>
<p>Never say never? I know, at this time, it’s great to think of the whole process being over. If you decide that he should stay home, though, you may find yourselves changing your minds over the summer. You know so much more about the process now. From your earlier posts, it seemed the whole aid question was exhausting and disheartening for you. In September, you might have more mental energy.</p>
<p>In about a year and a half, I’ll have to start the process again for a younger child, and then a year and a half after that, my 8th grader will be a junior, and starting the college process. On the bright side, no knowledge is ever wasted, and I know where there’s a good website filled with posts by earnest students and worried parents. It’s called “College Confidential.” Maybe you’ve heard of it? :)</p>
<p>It is admittedly merely my own bias, but if I had a child whose choices were Exeter and our local charter, I would have a hard time tolerating the choice of the latter. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for your child. He or she is being given the option of answering “Exeter” to the question “Where did you go to school?” for the rest of his or her life. For better or for worse, that means a lot in this world.</p>