<p>Hi!
I am a current 7th grader, and I am very interested in going to a boarding school for ninth grade. (Beginning application process next year.)
Can you give me some information on some boarding schools? (admissions, acceptances, interview questions, what they like in applications/essays, campus life, academics, social life, how difficult it is, hw load, amount of sleep, dorm life, teachers, amount of fun, etc. are examples.)
If it helps, I am a boy, I love math (currently taking Geometry Honors, and I will take Algebra 2 with Trigonometry Honors in eighth grade). I have multiple math awards. (AMCs, MathCounts, Purple Comet, the list goes on and on.) I play violin and I am extremely good at it. (Not to be cocky, but I am playing at the United Nations next week for the general assembly. I'm serious..) I am also a great swimmer. (Will start USA Swimming next year, and I hope to qualify for Junior Olympics.)</p>
<p>So to sum it all up, I want a school that is fun, academically challenging but not overkill, a school with a great atmosphere, an especially stellar math department, a good swim team with good facilities, and a good music program.</p>
<p>In addition to what I have above, I will appreciate any additional input.</p>
<p>From what I know of, Choate has a pretty good swim team. They have a great arts department and I’ve heard their math curriculum is rigorous and moves pretty quickly. </p>
<p>Double check on all that though - I’m into the arts but not as much the swimming and the math; I’m going off of what I’ve seen and heard from others in regards to those two things.</p>
<p>If you really want to go to a boarding school, I would suggest applying to 3 or 4 of your top 9 and then adding 3 schools that have higher admit rates. </p>
<p>Your 1-9 list is all over the board. Large/small, formal/less formal, etc. I’m not understanding your thought process, unless it’s simply top-ranked schools.</p>
<p>You really need to focus your list and add some schools with a higher acceptance rate. You also need to do research on your own and not expect us to do it for you. It’s four years of your life, not ours, after all. If you want a good swim team, why is St. Paul’s on your list? Although they have a nice pool, they have no team.</p>
<p>All of your questions have been asked and answered before, so a search through the forum would benefit you.</p>
<p>Swimming wise Deerfield has a really nice pool!!! I don’t know if you are familiar with Deerfield but it has this really classical preppy vibe to it and everyone is really nice there! Academically, their science building is top-notch and they are building (it may already be done) a new arts center. I’m guessing their math program is just as good as any other school. They have videos on just about ANYTHING at their website if you want to check that out as well. </p>
<p>Oh and academically Deerfield is not too overkill. If you want a very academically rigorous school then you would want to consider Andover or Exeter. You may also like St. Paul’s school where it is academically a little more relaxed then the Phillips schools, but don’t get my wrong, you will still have a lot of homework and will be challenged there. They have a very high Ivy matriculation percentage as well.</p>
<p>I am attending PEA this fall and… My credentials are similar to yours, math olympiads, violin and sport… Since Exeter is the school i know most about, let me tell you about it. </p>
<p>I’ve won many math olympiads and math competitions, and also self studied Calculus last summer with my sister’s college books. So, one of the reasons I chose Exeter,is its wonderful math program. Exeter has one of the strongest math programs, and also math olympiad groups, and they have won many competitions and stuff… One of the math teachers, who is also in charge of the math club, Zuming Feng has been the coach of the USA team for the International Math Olympiad. If you’re into math competitions, you must have heard his name(work on his books if you havent yet). So, I am sure there are good math programs at other schools, but Exeter’s is definitely one of the strongest.</p>
<p>Also,you will surely find room for growth in each of the extracurricular activities you are interested in. I dont know much about swimming, but there are great facilities. And a lot of opportunities to rock that violin up on stages and orchestra or music lessons…
Anyways good luck! ;)</p>
<p>You PM’d me, and I’m guessing several others, a copy and paste of virtually the same question yesterday asking for information on, in my case, Thacher, a school that does not appear on your list above.</p>
<p>You are just beginning your journey and may be new to this site as well, so no worries. But as you continue, please be mindful that people on this board and elsewhere are usually very generous in sharing their experience, (especially when it’s evident the queries are sincere and thoughtful), but do remember you are asking of their time.</p>
<p>Sorry I didn’t mean to make it sound like Deerfield has horrible academics because they most definitely don’t. I was more trying to say that although Andover and Exeter do focus a lot on sports and arts, academics is highly stressed there, where at Deerfield there is more of an equal balance of sports, arts, and academics. A Deerfield graduate is just as smart as an Andover or Exeter graduate, it is just about feel of each school. If you want a school that focuses more on arts and sports then maybe Deerfield is a better fit, that is all that I was trying to get across. </p>
<p>I think Deerfield, Peddie and Andover have great swim teams. Many of these schools definitely have amazing math programs as well. As for arts and music, I think Hotchkiss is a good choice. The most important thing you should look into for your experience is which school you like best. When you visit (if you do), consider this: which school can you see yourself at? Which school do you like the most? At the moment, I am making decisions as to which school to attend and I really pay attention to which school I had liked and which school I could see myself at. </p>
<p>Hey some advice would be to really emphasize your interests and maybe even pick one area to highlight as a passion (only if it actually is of course). This will help you because you are verbally committing to improving whichever school you go to in that area. If you choose swimming, you might be able to suggest that you can help them win a championship. Of course this is just an example, and I only know as much as you’ve shard with us, but this will help you lots! Also, ** be comfortable talking about your strengths and elaborating on them, WITHOUT just listing facts **. You sound very smart and well balanced with your ECs, but selling yourself in person or over skype is the key. Schools want to see your personality and know how you’d fit in at their school. Have fun with your interviews! Also send a handwritten thank you note! </p>
<p>It’s obvious you have put very little thought in putting together this list of schools. I suggest you do your homework. St. Pauls & Groton don’t even have a swim team.</p>
<p>@mathman1201 SPS doesn’t have a swim team, as many have stated before me. Evidently, there isn’t much emphasis on swimming there. I recommend you reevaluate the position SPS has on your “priority list”. Choate, however, does have a pretty good swim team, as well as Hotchkiss. Milton has a great arts program-- their concert and jazz bands travel a lot and they hold numerous concerts around the world.</p>
<p>@GMTplus7: I chose these schools becuase I took into account how much I felt “fit” in the school. I get a buzz in my gut when I see a school that I like…
I didn’t really look into schools with/without swim teams…
I’m sad that St Pauls doesnt have a swim team
I love that place…</p>
<p>@mathman1201 I’ve chosen to attend SPS this fall, so I understand why you love St. Paul’s I personally feel like you’d make a great addition to the school; however, it might not be the best choice for you (since we don’t have a swim team…)</p>
<p>@mathman: Starting many open ended/general question threads in a short amount of time is usually not a good strategy for getting helpful information out of the forum.</p>
I personally feel like you’d make a great addition to the school; however, it might not be the best choice for you (since we don’t have a swim team…)</p>