<p>Hi, I thought I would come to the college board to ask a question that I know has been asked before but I can't comb thru and find comments...</p>
<p>For college admissions, is it better to be 1st or 2nd in your class at a mediocore, public high school or in the middle of the pack at a northest, boarding, prep school?</p>
<p>My son is a gifted 8th grader and we have applied prep but know that when he applies to an Ivy later on he will do so with half of his class...at the public school he's likely to finish in the top ten and could be the only student applying to an Ivy....</p>
<p>Class schedules would be about the same with an equal number of AP's. My wallet would be much happier and he would have more time on his hands for a job, community service, eagle scout project etc. </p>
<p>Prep schools have superior matriculation. If he's not top ten or really 5 at his public school than he's pretty much toast. However, he could still have a good matriculation if he wasn't top ten at his prep school. Also, his education would be far superior at a prep school, I don't care what people say. Applying with half of the class is irrelevant, there are thousands of applicants to top schools and there aren't quotas for each school. It just comes down to if you can/ are willing to foot the bill.</p>
<p>You can assume you'll see more legacy competition from the elite boarding schools competing with your son. I think your best option is to find a good day private school in your area if one is available.</p>
<p>Go where he'll get the best education and is happiest and that'll translate into good grades and a high class rank. </p>
<p>Nevertheless in today's USWNR rankings the college on avg will prefer the top 10%. Top 50%ile he's not going to any highly ranked school. But there are 100s of good and very good schools out there that'll accept the student who graduated outside the top qrt.</p>
<p>Basically, go private if you have the $$$, unless you're in a Stamford or Madison CT kinda public school district...</p>
<p>Do what's worthwhile today. For what it's worth, my family's decision after much discussion with my son was to enroll him in a highly selective high school with tough grading standards, rather than in a reasonably decent public school. We'll know in just more than two years what that did to his admission chances [sick grin], but anyway that was the right thing to do for his better education last year and this year.</p>
<p>It's such a tough decision, especially if the cost is a stretch financially. The bottom line is that a kid will have a much more engaged intellectual experience at a private school. Our son will graduate Val at a public school but doesn't really think he's recieved the best education. He's happy with the math and chemistry but really disappointed with most of his other AP classes.</p>
<p>From an admissions to college point of view, he seems to be doing just fine. From a preparation to excel in college point of view, he could be better off.</p>
<p>Keep in mind that at many of the elite schools, greater than 50% of the students apply without a rank because their schools do not rank. your son will need to be a top student wherever he goes to high school if he wants to get into an elite college. I don't agree if he's not top 5 or ten at his public school that he's toast (not sure if the poster who said that meant absolute number or percent). I've heard people who go to elite private schools say that a B at their school would be an A anywhere else. Could be true, but a straight B student will probably have a hard time getting into an elite college, no matter where they attended high school. Also consider if you and your son are ready for him to live away from home. Any private day schools in your area that may have a more challenging curriculum? Is there any other way your son could be challenged closer to home? I'm not sure what your finances are, but I think Andover recently announced that tuition would be free below a certain income level (60K, I think, but not sure).</p>
<p>If your public school really is mediocre, I would go with the private school. We have very strong public schools in our area and the education you would receive at most of the the private schools around here (even the ones with name recognition-prestige) really do pale in comparison in terms of college admissions and quality of education. It really is a regional thing. (You might try comparing a list of college acceptances/matriculation between the private school and public school or ask the guidance offices for scattograms. You might be surprised- I know I was.)</p>
<p>you know, you're assuming that you're son is applying to an ivy in FOUR YEARS. you have no idea what will happen over this time period, and nothing screams "overreactive mother" more than one who is scared her son won't get into harvard when he is thirteen. please don't worry THIS much about him, because if you make him obsess about college when he's in middle school, there's no way he'll make in high school (nowadays, you absolutely cannot function with that much stress)
back to your point: DON'T PRESSURE HIM NOW let him go where he'll be happiest. believe me, it will all work out. personally, i believe boarding school is one of the most interesting ways to live out your education, but at the same time it is EXTREMELY overrated. if you can succeed at boarding school, you can do just as well at public school, and spend the $100+ grand where it matters: at college
if your son is someone who works well with heavy, cutthroat competition, then boarding school may be a place where he thrives. or if he needs special, individualized attention, that is also the best place. otherwise, i'd say save your money and go to public- he'll do great there!
i would say at the end of the day, visit the schools and if he falls in love with it, go there. and please, dear lord, don't limit your son to only looking at ivies when he is a freshman. keep in mind when you are looking at schools down the road there are hundreds of amazing colleges and universities out there that he should appreciate!</p>
<p>Another thing that could make or break it: most students in eight grade have some idea of things they would like to do/try, languages they would like to pursue, etc. Many private schools are more limited in their offerings, especially when it come to music, languages, extra-curriculars, travel opportunities, etc.</p>
<p>Cencible, I don't think you're overreacting at all.
This is definitely a topic that, imo at least, you should discuss now. </p>
<p>I'm currently ranked #1 at a public school with a class size of 467 and I've been admitted to Penn (Wharton) ED. When I was a freshman, my parents talked about private school, but not seriously. At the end of sophomore year, when I understood the benefits of a private (boarding) school, I felt it was too late to transfer since I didn't want to leave my friends so late in my high school career. So, really, I wish my parents had looked into it right before my freshman year, as you are.</p>
<p>Though I'm happy with staying public because it is an easier, much less cutthroat environment, I'm disappointed with the quality of education and often, the attitudes of classmates who don't care.
I would say, if you/your son care more about learning, then go for the private school. Of course, self-motivated people can learn anywhere, even if they have to self-teach, but a private school would make it so much easier. (Though the quality of the private school also is a factor.) But if your only concern is whether or not he gets into an ivy league school, he'll be fine if he does well in a public school.</p>
<p>Fortunately, we live in NJ close to many good and great prep schools. We've decided on a few and are applying. I wasn't really screaming, crazy obsessed mother.....just wondered for the $125K if it was better to be at the top of your public school class or compete with others that are highly abled prep school classmates for "great" colleges. I'm not focused or pushing an Ivy on my thirteen year old, just figured those of you who are now in the midst of ED, was it REALLY worth the $$$ ? Ultimately, his choice, would just feel better knowing what those with the experience think...........</p>
<p>Another thing to add: If your son goes to a private school, he will be more likely to know the college counselor (and he/she would know him better too). Also, he would possibly have more approachable (and less busy) teachers. These factors would help with recommendations. Finally, think about this in the broader context. At a private school, he will likely be more prepared for college and would therefore have less of an adjustment to college life/academics. That said, it really is a make or break decision.</p>
<p>I've been to Andover and Loomis, and a top Massachusetts public school. I highly, HIGHLY disagree with that. </p>
<p>Although it may, in fact, be easier to rise to the top of a highly-regarded public school and gain admission to a top college, I can't say I've learned a thing there. Top private schools actually teach you a lot, and improve your academic skills tremendously. The AP public school classes I've taken have been a JOKE, yet they seem impressive because they train kids to get 5s on the APs.</p>
<p>As others have said, it really depends on which particular private vs. public schools you are considering.</p>
<p>For me, I attended a private school, which is among the top ranked in my province, for grade 10, but ultimately decided to transfer to my local public school (still highly ranked though) for the remainder of high school. While the private school was obviously smaller, and I would have been able to have more contact with the guidance counsellor/teachers, I felt that because the private was so small (~40 students in my grade), it wasn't able to offer the same range of opportunities that my public could. I am also finding that in terms of competitiveness/rankings, my public school is actually far more competitive and challenging than the private (Note: Public has IB, private had AP) The downside with the public school though is that I rarely see my guidance counsellor, and I had to do more of the university application research on my own (this was likely also because I'm in Canada, so the counsellors know more about Canadian universities than American)</p>
<p>I say go for a private school education. I was a public school kid all my life, when I decided I wanted to go private. So, thankfully for soccer, I was accepted at Middlesex and although I'm in the lower quarter of the grade, I learned so much more that will prepare me for college that I wouldn't have learned at my town's public school, and my SAT scores are much higher than they would have been. My school doesn't rank either, so the colleges I applied to don't know I'm in the lower part of my class.</p>