JBravinski

Hi my name is Jack and I'm applying to SAC (St.Andrews College) and UCC (Upper Canada College). All I can seem to find on this forum is questions about top American prep schools (Andover and the whole bunch) but I know there are Canadian kids reading this. Don't be lazy, sign up for CC and lets talk. The point of this thread is to share all the information we know about Canadian schools. Ask and answer questions. So ask away.

JBravinski

I know they're are people reading this. That means you. Yes you. You're the one that has been scavenging through sites looking for info. Ask questions about Canadian schools or Canadians considering American schools. Ask anything and I mean ANYTHING.

PrepSetter

What are some of the most elite prep schools in say Toronto or the states near the east Coast of Canada?

Are the schools in Vancouver considered as being in the same league, or does east coast itis affect Canada too?

What's the general layout and ethos of these schools? Uniform, segregated, boarding/day mix etc?

JBravinski

From your other post I'm going to guess your an Aussie guy and looking to board. Firstly it would help to know your age (you can pm me that).

A. Best East Coast prep schools(ranked & tiered in MY OPINION)
Upper Canada College
St.Andrews College

Ridley College
Trinity College

Ashbury College
Appleby College

*I'm sure there are other good boarding schools but in MY OPINION these are the best.

B. Firstly we are much more modest then Americans the closest thing we have to the East Coast itis is that Toronto is the center of the universe. The only school that can quite compare is St.George's school which I know would fall in that first tier(brothers school).

C. These links will help start you in the right path and answer those questions.
Ontario Boarding Schools
Canadian Boarding Schools & Residential Schools

Lastly I must stress something to you. Do not choose a school because it is "elite", choose the school that is the best fit. Hope this helps. If anybody has anymore questions please ask.

EnemyOfTheSun

How generous are Canadian boarding schools with financial aid for internationals?

JBravinski

Oh the dreaded question of being able to afford private school. Obviously Canadian schools can't quite match the aid of powerhouse American schools (HADES & the whole bunch) but some schools do a pretty darn good job. The biggest question is the amount. There are many factors and I cannot give you a simple answer. This is a long topic and would prefer if you private messaged me.

exsrch

I am an American but lived in both Toronto and Ottawa for about 17 years and sent two kids to both public and prep schools and can speak with some clarity about Ontario public schools and Ashbury College/Elmwood School in particular located in Ottawa. If you have further questions let me know (I will be slow to answer unfortunately).

Be very careful when considering Ontario prep schools as the curriculum is EXACTLY the same as public school. The only deviation is if your child enters the pre-IB and IB track; thereafter, some of 10th and all of 11th and 12th will be IB. But this makes the prep program no different than Ontario public schools with IB programs.

We ran into peculiarities such as my son not being accelerated in math because doing so would preclude the ability to take math in his senior year - by law you have to take math in each year; however, if he accelerated at Ashbury College no classes beyond Calc was available for his senior year so he was forced to stay in a lower math course. The teachers would not consider options such as local colleges etc. On the positive side the kids are required to take French by the Ontario requirements and my son eventually became reasonably fluent and knowledgeable about Canadian history (both French/English) while gaining a healthy respect for all things Canadian.

Notwithstanding the curriculum issues Ashbury was a reasonable community with good facilities. For boarders the facilities are nearly new as they have built new dorms but price is as expensive as top US schools.

Also, don't think about education in Canadian terms as each province is different and how those provinces apply their laws to prep/private schools vary greatly. Hope my two cents helps someone and if you have more questions, in particular about Ontario, please let me know.

Ultimately we enrolled my son at PEA because the education is much better in NE prep schools compared to Ontario - my son pretty much finished most of his calculus by end of lower year. If we stayed in Ontario he would be just finishing Geometry.

exsrch

One point of clarity: by law Ontario private/prep schools must have the exact same curriculum at MINIMUM; however, most private school do have expanded offerings a typical item would be IB which is optional and mandatory items in music, culture etc which varies from school to school. Also, private schools in Canada will have a robust extracurricular offering when compared to public schools.

kyungphil29

hi! i'm also applying for SAC, UCC and Appleby! do you think i stand a chance?

current grades:
orchestra - 99
pe - 98
spanish - 95
la - 95
math - 93
ss - 92
science - 91

ssat: 88th percentile (gonna retake)

do you think i stand a chance? the ironic thing is that i wanna be a physicist and i LOVE math and science (although 8th grade ones compared to 7th grade became pretty tough)...but my grades for those are the lowest....

please reply!!

UKgirl23

From the small amount of research I did into Canadian schools, they seemed INCREDIBLY limited with their FA to internationals, and many had higher fees for them as well. Is this true of many Canadian prep schools?

Aliceislost

My name is Chelsey and I am applying to Trinity College School for the 2013-2014 year. I will be switching from a public Catholic School into TCs. The reason I am on this forum is because the 2013-2014 year is my last year in high school (grade 12). I want to know if it is worth it to leave and go to this amazing school for just one year. I want to move because I have completely outgrown my school. The courses are so easy and non-challenging that I can never do any homework and still walk out of an exam with a 90%. Don’t worry about funds I can find them easily. I also want to be a Dermatologist in the future.

My stats right now:

90% average student
President of the Photography Club
Member of the Youth Volunteer Committee in my community
Founder of Arts for Hearts Foundation in my school and community
Over 50 hours of Community Service Hours
Skip for the Curling Team (If I move to this school I will be taking up Golf as a sport)

I don't know if this matter but must of the top graduates from school end up going to U of T for Science and I want to go to McGill where NO-ONE from my current school has gone but most of the kids from TCS have gone. I can adapt to new places really easily plus I am going for the education and not for the friends though I will be making friends while I am there! I also have a lot of things going for me outside of school. I do a lot of volunteering and I sew and I play guitar and Cello.

I just really know if I should stick it out or just leave like I have wanted to do since grade 9 when I found out TCS existed :P

Thanks!