<p>S is a top student and gifted athlete. He is currently at a Day school where about 25% kids go to Ivy or equivalents. Historically, kids in the top 5% at his school have good chance at Andover and Exeter (AE). S is applying to both and on paper he should get in.</p>
<p>S wants to go to AE for the experience, to be around kids who are cream of the crop from all over the world. He is a competitive kid and wants challege. Everything I hear or read about seem to suggest AE will give him an experience unlike any other.</p>
<p>I, however, have a big concern when I look at AE's college placements. If all the kids that AE admits are like S, then I assume at least 80% of them will be Ivy or equivalent bound when they graduate, if they stay where they are. However, if they choose to go to AE, only 40% end up going to Ivy or equivalent. In fact, a large percentage end up at schools like BU or equivalent.</p>
<p>What happened to these kids who otherwise should by Ivy bound if they had stayed at their old school? I understand that not everyone want to go to Ivy or equivalent. But BU? The shear number of kids who seem to "fail" at AE make me want to know the "other side" of the AE experience. I want to know the downside of sending S to AE. </p>
<p>Given the choice, would you send you kid to AE again?</p>
<p>I’m not an Andover or Exeter parent. I do want to question your assumptions.</p>
<p>Why is not attending an Ivy League “or equivalent” school “failing”? Having visited many colleges over the past year, I’m not a fan of ranking systems for colleges. </p>
<p>I would agree with the previous post in that you should not assume that 80% of AE students should end up at an Ivy or equivalent. Boarding School communities are quite diverse. Although the common perception is that the majority of those accepted to AE have stats similar to your sons, that is not always the case. There are many special interest groups that may get a boost in the admissions process depending on the year. For instance athletic recruits, children of faculty, legacy applicants or URM’s coming from special placement programs. That is not to say that these applicants never have high stats, but they can still be admitted if they don’t. So what I have found is that the diversity that is prevalent in the boarding school communities extends to academic performance as well. I actually think this is a good thing.</p>
<p>Wow. Lots of planning going on there. Based on your first two paragraphs, I’d say go for it! </p>
<p>“He is a competitive kid and wants challege.” If this means he’d like to Andover or Exeter, I’d say apply.</p>
<p>What comes after BS is pure speculcation. IMO, BS is not a means to an end (namely, getting into an Ivy). It is an incredibly valuable experence in itself.</p>
<p>There you have it. That’s what he’ll get at any good BS, an “experience”, perhaps like none other. If you’re concerned solely about college matriculation, sounds like his current school does just fine and you don’t need to spend any additional money. As has been said too many times to list, boarding schools, even A&E, are not tickets into the top <yournumberhere> (yawn) schools.</yournumberhere></p>
<p>Sounds like he’ll do just as well staying home.</p>
<p>BU equivalent would have to have-
13 Pulitzer Prize winners
7 Nobel Laureates
19 Guggenheim Fellows
32 Congressmen/women
7 Senators
11 Governors
and a handful of Emmy, Golden Globe and Academy Award winners.
I’m sure most ivy schools have that too but who’s counting…really.</p>
<p>I’ve been trying to decide whether to respond to this thread or not. I guess I decided to respond… I think there are some seriously flawed assumptions here, but let’s just accept that some kids at AE who might get into Ivies from other schools would not get into the same colleges from AE. I would hazard to say that those kids will be at schools that are a better fit for them than the Ivies or equivalents, and may well end up having richer and fuller lives. </p>
<p>I would also suggest looking at boarding schools beyond AE if your child is interested in a boarding school experience.</p>
<p>Let’s get this straight: BU is a great school. I was the 1st in my family to go to college and BU would be a dream for me. But AE is harder to get into than Ivy or equivalent. However you slice/dice it, it’s hard to view it positively if you go from AE to BU.</p>
<p>If you had known your kid would end up going to BU or equivalent, would you send your kid to AE in the first place?</p>
<p>Many parents send their kids to private school because they want what they perceive as the best education for them during their high school years, not as a means to get into college.</p>
<p>I think this question gets to the heart of a key difference between families on the forum:</p>
<ul>
<li>Those who see BS as a means to an end</li>
<li>Those who see BS as an end in itself</li>
</ul>
<p>As much as either side tries to convince the other of the merits of their particular POV, I think there will always be at least two camps on this issue.</p>
<p>SevenDad, you see to the heart of the matter.</p>
<p>On a practical level, you don’t need to worry about this now. Apps are in, you’ll find out in less than 2 months if you even have a choice to make. If you get into one, or both, schools, you will at that point be able to speak with PA and PEA parents in depth. You will be able to interrogate the college counseling offices at the school(s) you are considering, including your son’s current school. If it’s important to you, also ask about the transfer rate, i.e., did a certain number of students transfer to more prestigious colleges after freshman year?</p>
<p>If your son’s current school has strong college placement, and a challenging academic program, I would not vote to change schools. My children love their boarding schools (not A/E). The experience does transform students. Parents give up the last four years of their children’s time at home. I can’t answer for you whether you are willing to make that tradeoff. If your criterion for a worthwhile high school is placement into a handful of schools, you are likely to be disappointed.</p>
<p>yes, absolutely, we’d do it again. An in to better colleges was NOT a consideration for us. And with a kid in his third year at Exeter, I can tell you that Exeter counseling spends a LOT of time tamping down the Ivy flames and encouraging kids to pick schools that fit their interests rather than the name-brand schools their parents want. So you’ll be disappointed if you send your child there just to get him or her groomed for Ivies. That’s not how the school sees its mission at all.</p>
<p>Found what I was looking for, ostensibly posted by a PAA parent:</p>
<p>Just returned from an Andover weekend briefing on the college process. They brought in a number of admissions officers from colleges to speak about process, essays, and parental involvement. Inevitably, a question on many parent minds was asked to at least one of the college officers “Is it worth it to go from being a top student somewhere, to being middle of the pack at a great BS, such as Andover”? I liked the response “if you are looking at Andover as a down payment for prestigious college admission, you may be disappointed. However, if you are looking at PAA as a down payment for educational and life excellence, you will be greatly rewarded.”</p>