<p>Hi, I am a junior in high school, I am currently at a small Waldorf school. Next year my parents plan to relocate to Zurich for a few years. I have an option of (1) finishing school here (2) going with them and attending an international school in Zurich, very good school. I am doing very well in school, but because the programs are very different, and it will be my senior year, they may want to keep me for an extra year, don't know yet.</p>
<p>Any suggestions? I am pretty lost...</p>
<p>This is a personal decision with a lot of factors other than college admissions at stake. Probably the most important concerns here are where you want to live and with whom, not which school to attend. Personally, if the school decision isn’t clear cut for you, I wouldn’t focus on that aspect. Instead think about the other pros and cons of making the move. You’d be leaving friends but staying with your parents, changing cities, leaving clubs or activities and opening up new opportunities. Those are all probably more important than the school, assuming the school in the new location would give you a good rigorous education and opportunities for engagement outside the classroom. An extra year, however, is a factor; you need to find out more about that.</p>
<p>The college admissions process evaluates the rigor of your courses and your grades (taking into account rank if your school provides it), looks at what you’ve done outside the class and where you’ve been a leader, and asks for recommendations from teachers who have taught you in the prior year or so, and a counselor. If you change schools, think about the impact the change might have on those particular factors for you.</p>
<p>Niceday, tu. I am thinking of all of these hence I am lost… I wonder if anyone would comment on the one particular aspect, the impact on the college. It is a very big deal for me as you could imagine…</p>
<p>This happened with my D’s friend. At the end of junior year his family relocated to Geneva, Switzerland. He enrolled in an international school for senior year in Geneva but made many trips back to connect with high school friends. He came to prom and graduation. He stayed overnight with friends when he visited. Some HS friends visited him in Europe. He didn’t mind traveling and his family was generous with travel funds. I think he enjoyed some of the international components of the move but was a bit lonely for his lifelong friends. He did very well with college admissions & is settled into college life happily & is a junior now. He does not see his high school friends very often any more.</p>
<p>You can do very well with either choice and may always wonder what might have been if you chose the other way. Grown up decisions are often that way, and this is probably one of your first such decisions. They key is to reflect on what is important to you and where you envision yourself doing best.</p>
<p>Colleges will treat you as a domestic applicant, but time abroad may help your app, especially at smaller schools. If you develop language fluency, that can help your app. But ultimately, getting great grades in the toughest classes is the primary key to college admissions and to doing well in college, so estimating how well you’d do academically in the new environment is important.</p>
<p>I’ll provide a personal story to give a sense of how individual mileage varies in this decision. Friends of ours moved to Switzerland with children early in HS - switching from a great school here to a not-quite-great school there. Both kids had been (and still are) bright, high achieving types. After a couple years they returned to their US HS for their final year. Both graduated on time as national merit scholars and are currently at great colleges in the states. Their experiences were very different, though. One struggled with language (Swiss coursework was in English but friendships required language skills), missed friends in the US (despite frequent visits), and lost academic motivation because of easy As there leading to low grades upon return to the states and making college apps a big challenge. That student had stellar tests, great recs, and bottom 50% rank, but was accepted to an elite selective public uni where the student struggled academically, at first, and will graduate with about a 3.0. In hindsight the parents regret the change for that child in some ways. The other child had none of those issues, made lifetime friends overseas, thrived academically throughout the transitions and wound up at a selective private uni with nearly straight As so far. One positive from all the changes together is that the family relationships grew very close.</p>
<p>So if you were my kid I might think about a “hybrid” option. I might have you stay in the states with friends or family to finish at your old high school and apply to colleges. Then take a gap year and spend it with your family in Zurich. Would need some thought on how to make the full year interesting and productive (maybe add some other component to it), but that would also give you the experience of a year in Zurich with your family, which I think would be great.</p>
<p>Thanks for everyone’s replies, I have some time to make my decision, which is good. One thing that worries me is an extra year at HS. These international schools follow the IB curriculum and generally do not accept transfers to the 12th grade from non-IB schools, so I have to go again to the 11th grade. I am not thrilled about an extra year, but more importantly I am not sure if colleges are going to look at it as a disadvantage (e.g. I got hold back at HS…)</p>
<p>no, colleges understand that educational systems are different, and most typical European systems are considered to have a “13th year” (whether the year really is the 13th or not). That allows you to apply as a freshman but with a considerably stronger background and application.
On the other hand, Waldorf schools are very different from “typical” schools, so would you be comfortable in a “regular” environment?</p>
<p>would you be comfortable in a “regular” environment?</p>
<p>very much :)</p>
<p>Well then, it seems it’s Zurich for you. Congratulations :)</p>