<p>Hi everyone. Well, recently, I have been browsing about, searching prep schools and I really cant imagine that boarding school is what they make it out to be. In the admission videos, the show these happy kids, laughing and giggling in the classroom, and others having these intense conversations with their teachers. Is this all real (excuse my lack of a better word)? I mean, is it really like this? Are all students really enjoying school as much as the videos are making them out to be? I cant believe that they are so happy, when they do 2-3 hours of homework on top of intense classroom discussions (if this is real).</p>
<p>So, I want to know if boarding school is as perfect as the videos make it out to be.</p>
<p>yeah, it seems like those pictures of random kids in your math textbooks. You know what I mean? Like in elementary school I’d look at pictures of kids in my math book smiling and looking like they’re having the time of their lives solving math problems and using those counter thingies. And I was like “are you serious how can you enjoy this” lol
but I mean like if you go to a boarding school, it seems like despite the hard work and all that you’re in your own little world, made up of students and teachers. It looks like you build these close, strong bonds with people that are so important to you, it doesn’t matter how much work you do…/
idk, just a random thought lol</p>
<p>well aren’t those viewbooks essentially just like…advertisements? I mean really, they’re meant to encourage kids to apply, so they wouldn’t be pointing out any of the negative aspects of the school, because that would discourage you to apply. I guess?</p>
<p>That’s what I was thinking, orange. They wouldn’t put negative things about their school in the viewbooks. And I feel like reputations speak for themselves… the top schools wouldn’t have such successful students (proved by powerful alumni and top college maltriculation) if all the students hated their school, now would they? Obviously there will be parts of high school you don’t like, but it’s what you make of it.</p>
<p>Well having had pictures in my high schools viewbook, they of course take the happy moments. However, they are accurate and aren’t really staged. My school would send around a professional photographer to take the pictures and sometimes you had no idea your picture was being taken.</p>
<p>There will absolutely be unhappy moments, stressful moments, pull your hair out moments. Not every teacher will be your best buddy. Not every roommate will make you happy. Not every decision will go your way. The viewbooks are certainly advertisements.</p>
<p>HOWEVER, assuming that you are smart enough for the School and that you have chosen a place that FEELS BEST TO YOU and not a place that people on this site, or Mommy and Daddy, or anyone else told you was more prestigious, or had a better name, or any other rot like that, then you will find that most of your life is, in fact, like the viewbooks. </p>
<p>You will find that your teachers care more about you than you’re used to, that your friends are almost all bright, engaging and challenging, that the number and quality of academic and extracurricular opportunities are a magnitude better than any typical day or public school (and better than many colleges), that the depth of your friendships is greater and more satisfying, that you’re 10x more mature and independent when you graduate than your day school friends, that you manage time like an adult, and that you are exceptionally well prepared for the challenges of college.</p>
<p>Boarding schools are not utopias, and mismatches are no fun for anyone, but 95% of the time, it is the greatest educational experience of anyone’s life, more so than college or graduate school.</p>
<p>I would agree with the previous comments about boarding school life. I am a senior at a boarding school in Rhode Island and chose a private school over my local public school in hopes of escaping typical “high schoolers”. I thought that going to a prep school would mean that everyone around me would be an intellectual who was just as interested in attending school as I was. However, you soon realize that private schools have just as many people who don’t want to be there as public schools. There are plenty of kids at my school and other schools like it where their parents are simply paying to have their children “babysat” and kept out of their hair. </p>
<p>If you choose a boarding school based on ranking or on it’s “name” you are bound to be unhappy. You should really visit each school and make a decision based on where you feel that you “fit” in the most. I believe that a boarding school education opens many doors to those who are willing to take the opportunities offered to them. I feel that I will be well prepared for college next year and look back on my high school experience as a positive one. Just keep in mind that it is just that… a high school experience. Boarding school is not a magical realm where typical high school drama does not exist.</p>
<p>In boarding school, back in the Age of Legends, I remember feeling very much as if we students were all in the same boat. Didn’t get that feeling in public school, but then maybe it was just me.</p>
<p>Ummm… not at all. More money = more access to drugs. We’ve had four or five seniors kicked out this year for drug related incidents. Not to mention that another boarding school in Rhode Island nearly lost 20 students due to a pretty massive drug dealing ring. Don’t let the viewbooks deceive you… boarding schools have just as many problems as public schools do.</p>
<p>I don’t mean to make it sound like a negative experience. I’m just warning people not to be naive about it as I was in eighth grade. I believed private school was the solution to all of the problems that I faced in public school. But in reality, especially when it comes to the admissions process… money talks. And it talks A LOT. Boarding school can truly be a great experience if you go in with this understanding and you’re ready to take advantage of all of the opportunities given to you.</p>
<p>The drugs aspect is SO dependent on the School. Many Schools have almost no drugs whatsoever, while for others, it’s a small, but real issue. The honor code is something to pay attention to. Does the school have one? Does your tour guide know what it is? Do you get the feeling that it’s just fluff or something that lives and breathes at the School. Ask about it. Decide for yourself whether it’s something taken seriously, or not. I find that Schools with genuinely strong honor codes, that are woven into campus life, are the Schools with the smallest (or no) drug and cheating problems. </p>
<p>I don’t think that physical violence exists at good schools, except in the rarest of circumstances.</p>
<p>Ehhh… I would really have to disagree with that. Maybe you don’t realize it, but I can nearly guarantee you that at whatever school you look at there are drugs. And yes, I’m talking about the prestigious HADES schools as well. Trust me, it happens there too. Whether or not it is brought to public attention depends on the ability of the administration to realize the problem and put an end to it.</p>