<p>A p.s. to my above response…the essays have to be mailed in (handwritten and typed). I also did the optional parents statement but that was typed (no handwritten for me, thankfully) and mailed. The optional form for musicians can be submitted online (the new form is forthcoming) and YouTube or other similar venues can be submitted online.</p>
<p>As a parent who went through two cycles of this process, with two DCs admitted by both A and E, I thought the efforts for applying were comparable even Andover accepts “common app” while Exeter does not. The “common app” stuff is all informational such as your addresses, telephone numbers, etc. You still need to submit school-specific requirements in part II with essays and parents statement etc, which are most time-consuming and which are “actual meat” in your application.</p>
<p>Andover requires two short essays (150 words each), one long essay (500 words) and a teacher-graded writing assignment from the current term. Exeter requires two long essays (400 words each), handwritten and typed. We actually needed more effort for Andover’s because DCs’ English teachers had not originally planned to give a writing assignment in time for the application deadline.</p>
<p>My take: don’t argue which one is easier/harder/better. Find the one you like, give it a try, and hope for the best. If you are lucky to get in both and couldn’t decide, flip a coin and that’s it.</p>