AsiaKid

I am a SSAT tutor and my students are asking me for advice on where to apply. They are both international students from - you guessed it - Asia.

One is a boy in grade 9 equiv. Pretty strong grades overall. In the top 5% of his class. His SSAT's might not be that good (not enough prep time) but think he can interview well (and has interviewed pretty decently at two schools). He loves acting, which I think is great considering it is very rare for a student (especially male) in that kinda of education system to really like drama. He has starred in his school play and have won awards for speech and the such across the city. For me, I definitely think he is a fit for Middlesex and possibly Choate, and am steering him towards St. George's as well. Are there any others in that rough top 10 - 20 range of schools? Or should I be aiming lower.

The other is a girl in grade 9 equiv. She goes to one of the best girls school in the city and it is pretty well known to most of the top BS in the US. The prob is that her grades are really bad....really bad...she is in the stronger class at school, but she is - at best - average in her class. Her strong point is that she is good in music. Although she hasn't competed internationally, her peers that were in similar standing in various local competitions and certifications went on to Juliard and other top music academies. With that said, she doesn't want to commit her life to music, but i think that is the only way she can probably spin her way into an acceptance. Do you guys here on the boards have any school recommendations for her. Considering the investment, the school should obviously still be in pretty good standing (i do understand it is hard given her academic standing). Can you recommend some schools with strong music programs that still have strong reputations. Certainly, I am not disillusioned and don't think it is worth having her try at any of the top 10 schools.

Thank you.