<p>The article goes on to say (what I beleive a LOT of us have been saying all along):</p>
<p>
[quote]
Please consider:</p>
<ol>
<li>School’s mission and philosophy statements</li>
<li>Boarding vs. day school</li>
<li>Urban vs. rural setting</li>
<li>Coed vs. single sex</li>
<li>Religious affiliation or not</li>
<li>Diversity of school community</li>
<li>Large, medium or small student body</li>
<li>Breadth and depth of curriculum</li>
<li>World languages taught</li>
<li>Strength of athletics program</li>
<li>Strength of arts program</li>
<li>Facilities</li>
<li>Secondary school academic and college advisory programs</li>
<li>Weekend activity schedules</li>
</ol>
<p>As you enter the process of seeking an independent school for your child, always feel free to ask questions. We, the independent schools of New England, welcome your partnership in finding the right school for your child.
<p>Just an anecdote, not data! However, in these months of gathering information about schools, I would say that if a parent tells me his child "loves" his school, the chances are pretty good that it isn't one of the Big Name schools. That isn't to say that there aren't kids who are thrilled to be at Andover, Exeter, et al. Many of those kids post here frequently. </p>
<p>I think that "fit" is a crucial factor in finding school which is right for you. I suspect that kids who are miserable at the Big Name schools found that they (or their parents) couldn't resist the lure of prestige. I don't blame them, and I think that many families are likely to choose Exeter over a school with a "small name," even if the fit is better. On the other hand, a student who choose a lesser-known boarding school over Andover, for example, has had to make a deliberate choice. Just taking the time to figure out which school you prefer can make your high school career more productive.</p>
<p>You can only take a certain number of courses over four years. A college prep curriculum limits the types of courses you can take, and trying to fit everything else into your life also imposes limits. Although the Big Name schools have an incredible variety of courses, extracurriculars, etc. on offer, try to figure out which courses you are most likely to take. You may find out that a smaller, lesser known school will offer you a better high school experience.</p>
<p>I'm from Texas and I DO have state pride, ;) so I'm not going to look down on Hockaday because it's in Texas. I probably shouldn't have said that Loomis was better, though, because for one student Hockaday might be better than Loomis and for another Loomis might be better than Hockaday, so I'm sorry about that. I personally liked Loomis better than Hockaday (yes, I did look into Hockaday) because I felt like it had more opportunites as in extracurriculars, sports, clubs and organizations, off campus programs and such.</p>
<p>By attending one of these top 5 schools on this highly out-of-date list, I agree with everything what Linda S said.
My parents made me apply to 12 boarding schools after visiting about 20, and my little sister is going through the exactly same process right now. Unlike colleges and universities, prep boarding schools have such different characters. From size to location, each school has something different to offer. Trying to rank these schools would be basically trying to put Williams and Amherst on the same list with Cornell ----> which is dumb. There's a reason why separate ranks exist for LACs vs. big universities. Groton and Middlesex could be similar, but they're NOT the same at all with Andover or Exeter. They all offer excellent academics, but the community is entirely different. Milton's size is in between those two kinds, but they have day students dominating most of the school scene, and it doesn't exactly have the same atmosphere as what traditional 100% boarding schools would do. </p>
<p>Of course, trying to put Middlesex on the same tier with NMH or Taft wouldn't exactly be the smartest thing. What I'm saying instead is, once you have the general picture of what are "the best" boarding schools(putting them roughly into the first tier), like for instance, once you understand Exeter, Andover, Middlesex, Hotchkiss, Milton, St. Paul etc. are more competitive, more famous, and "better" than the others....like Emma Willard which I have never heard of before, that's the farthest you can get in ranking. Trying to decide "is Milton higher than Middlesex?" is just stupid. </p>
<p>I always say this to every family when I give tours around my school. I know I'm supposed to PR for my own school and say my school is THE BEST and all, but really, the best school in the truest sense is what fits you the best.</p>
<p>On an additional note, ivy acceptance lists is the MOST RIDICULOUSLY FALSE-LEADING THING EVER. </p>
<p>Who in the world is still so backward in his life that he's still thinking about IVIES.... honestly, the era for ivies is gone. Good schools like WashU and Duke and Northwestern are pushing up higher and higher everyday, and ALSO. I might add this. Every prep boarding school has a different college admission process. Middlesex has special ties with Harvard and Brown. Lawrenceville is especially close to Princeton. Deerfield is pretty close to Dartmouth. Every school has different colleges that their general student body prefers. For example, (and I'm speaking entirely from my personal experience and my friends who go to these schools), I've noticed that if you liked Groton or Middlesex, then you'd prefer LACs. People wanna go to Williams, Middlebury, Trinity, etc. However, it's my the impression I get everyday that if you go to Amherst from Exeter, you're considered "O.K." All my friends from Exeter wanna go to big universities, which makes sense!</p>
<p>Back to "fit" My son LOVES Deerfield but did not even consider Andover, Exeter or the other larger top tier schools. He is outgoing, reasonably bright and very sporty. For college he already shows interest in Williams and Dartmouth --asking for Williams pjs for the holidays-----probably because he attended camps there and had a similar feel.</p>
<p>What about the Gilman School in Baltimore, MD? I remember 4 years ago we ranked 25th in the country for acceptances at Harvard, Yale and Princeton. Maybe Gilman didn't respond to the survey??</p>
<p>Well here's the thing. My rents are Chinese. To them, there are but five Universities in the entirety America: Harvard, Stanford, Yale, MIT and Princeton. So, its probably one of their biggest criteria, if not the biggest criteria that the schools have nice college matriculation numbers.</p>
<p>I actually got into an argument with my dad - he said that is doesn't matter that I school "fits" me, but that I "fit myself" into the school, which is a very (no offense, here) Chinese way of thinking. In fact, if I don't get into HADES + Milton, Groton, Choate, he won't even pay for me to go. My mom's more open - when it comes to schools, as long the schools I get accepted to are Top-Tier, I can choose for myself what school I will attend. </p>
<p>But still... they live by these rankings...</p>
<p>Hockaday is actually a really good school I was going to go there for like 1st grade but I didn't
I didn't apply there now though. Its an all girls school so I was like hell no.</p>
<p>Wait so the best Prep Schools are based on Ivy League, Stanford, and MIT acceptances...</p>
<p>Those are all good schools but I chuckled to myself... No liberal arts colleges (Grinnel, Amherst, etc.)... Just because a school has high matriculation to Ivy League means little; it means that the students who go there are:
A) Very Smart
B) Some of them will come from influential families
C) Legacy
D) Donation to school</p>
<p>The trend of most Prep Schools seem to follow this pattern. </p>
<p>Sixty bucks on fire right there, buying a list of top boarding schools is really stupid (not trying to be rude, but it is true) go to the school you want; not the one that seems to be the top.........</p>
<p>My parents both attended HYPSM schools and they told me it is not everything... </p>
<p>that is such a good point..faculty member's at Dartmouth send kids to St Paul's I bet (the NH thing), L'ville have Princeton faculty...etc. etc...that's a really good point.</p>