Congrats on your son getting in to Pingry and MBS!! Both wonderful schools. We ended up applying to multiple schools. My son was accepted to Pingry, MBS, Newark Academy, Peddie and Blair. We have since opted against boarding school so it came down to Pingry, MBS, and Newark Academy. Neither my son nor I were fans of Pingry but it has such a good reputation so it cannot be discounted. Good school but after visiting and meeting kids and families, it just is not aligned with what we want for our son. Our son loves MBS. Incredibly welcoming. Newark Academy is good too. We have not yet signed a contract. My son had a great student for a day at MBS. The campus and facilities are very impressive. Has you son done a student for a day at each school? Which did he prefer? It is amazing how different each school is when comparing one another. We have to send back contracts soon. Decision to come. Good luck to you too!
I tutor in NJ students at all these schools. Pingry, Blair, and Newark Academy are excellent. Newark is not so much the preppy crowd. I would not recommend Delbarton. I don't think MBS is at quite the level of the first three I mentioned.
Why do you think MBS is not at same level? It appears that MBS is very focused on becoming a predominant private day school. They have been putting literally millions of dollars of investment in to the facilities and they have been hiring teachers with higher degrees from top universities. In speaking with the school administration, they have very signifcant educational goals. Can you share some insight? I am still trying to wrap around Pingry. On aesthetics, MBS has such a beautiful campus. It is like a mini college campus. Newark is nice too. Pingry seems very sterile. I have been hearing good things about NA. It seems like people either love or hate Pingry. There is not a middle road and that concerns me. From my interaction, people have a very positive view of both MBS and of NA.
MBS is not that academically competitive. Their average SAT scores are 1250. Under matriculation, they don't list the numbers sent to each school, but no one in the last 4 years went to Harvard, Princeton, Cornell, Dartmouth, or Williams for example.I can't find their list of courses on their website.
I don't work with many students in the Princeton area, but yes Peddie and Princeton Day are obviously good schools. Of course Lawrenceville has a great seminar approach, is close to the level of top prep schools nationally, and is not easy to get into.
I think some of your information may be old. I know of two kids that were accepted in to University of Pennsylvania this year and I know of a student accepted in to Duke last year. Many others in to top schools. I do not know of the entire class breakdown but I am aware that matriculation has excelled over the last 3 years.
This is their list for 4 years. They don't give numbers for each school, but it doesn't seem good that a school in NJ doesn't get anyone into Princeton. By comparison, Pingry sent 11 to HYP in the class of 2017.
Thanks for the info! To be honest, Pingry is not really a consideration. We just really did not like the school at all compared to the others. It is a personal choice. We are down to NA and MBS. I appreciate the insight and we have been speaking with parents, kids, met with admin and teachers. I am pretty comfortable with his choices and in the end, it will be his decision as we just want him to be happy and successful over the next 4 years. Countdown mode!
It does not seem like many students are taking AP classes. You mentioned that your son was academically oriented– this may be a disadvantage for him.
MBS's college matriculation list gives a list of all colleges that students have matriculated to over the past 4 years. They do not specify exactly how many students attend these colleges, this may be a red flag. Also, depending on your son's college goals, MBS may not be the best for top schools. Big names such as Harvard, Princeton, MIT, Stanford, and Dartmouth are colleges that are missing from that list. Especially since this list encompasses 4 years of college matriculations, this may be an important factor when considering schools.
Delbarton remains as described. The best of the best at everything they set out to do. 20+ ivy admissions plus Duke, MIT, Williams, Amherst, etc...
The school produces young men incredibly committed to one another as brothers, academic excellence, serving their communities, and being the best athletic program in the state. I am a proud father of a senior who works tirelessly to live to the amazing standard this school sets.
Anyone who suggests otherwise is regrettably uninformed or wishful in their criticism.
Lawrenceville is home to many Princeton faculty children and not truly a peer of MBS as it is a boarding school that attracts kids from around the world and accepts just 18% vs MBS 59%. This is truly apples and oranges. That said, although MBS may be less academically competitive than some of it’s peers, that doesn't mean it lacks the rigor required for its best students to gain admission to Ivy schools. Many families will choose a smaller cozier school over an academic powerhouse and end up with equally good college options. Sometimes big fish in a small pond is a good strategy. A top middle schooler can find themselves outranked by even brighter classmates and graduate in the bottom 1/3 at a powerhouse school.
Many top private schools like Andover and Exeter have moved away from AP classes as they don’t want to dilute their classes to teach to the test and colleges are aware of this. Classes are generally discussion based and dynamic as they are at MBS. A lack of APs may just indicate a different approach to learning, not a lack of rigor. MBS is also more inclusive than Pingry etc. in that they (in the past anyway. It’s been a few years since we toured) accept a portion of kids with learning differences which will impact their overall scores. This also creates a richer learning environment according to many experts. Believe it or not, not every student chooses their college based on prestige and you would be foolish to choose a high school based on college aspirations at schools with acceptance rates in the single digits - those schools are crap shoots for every student today.
We spent a lot of time at MBS and came away away super impressed with the academic flexibility and support afforded to the children. I would think we see a change in college matriculation going forward - but suspect a student that thrives at MBS may be looking for a smaller college environment than a national university represented by the ivies
Fyi - MBS Class of 2017 did not send a single student to an ivy league school. Top colleges want kids that know how to really grind hard on both ends - MBS is more relaxed. The school is under stiff competition for students from Pingry, Newark A, and Delbarton. Pingry and NA both have very sharp hardworking students and student athletes. Delbarton is primarily a highly polished Catholic school for athletes.
^ I would respectfully suggest you haven't interacted with enough Delbarton students. Your comment suggest a lack of academic rigor that is not factual. Take a quick look at Pingry and Delbarton's common data set and college placements and you will see that the test scores are near identical, and that both schools send approximately 25+ kids a year to Ivy schools with another 20-30 going to elite schools (class size 115-120).
Yes Delbarton does have the best athletic program in the state as the current #1 in soccer, hockey, lacrosse, baseball, etc, and yes the students are committed to community service but they are also committed students. Indisputably a small percentage of Delbarton students benefit from their athleticism in college selection but the vast majority are admitted based on the sum of their academic, athlecit, and commitment to service.
All great schools that you mention but please don't base your opinion of Delbarton on word of mouth that is dated or uninformed.
Both of my kids went to one of those day schools. The younger one finished her high school at an international school with IB program. We were not impressed with IB. IB courses were comparatively easier than her honors and regular classes at her private school in NJ. The school purposely not to have the IB program because they want to be flexible with their course offerings. For us we only considered one school. I am sure OP will make the right choice.
Replies to: Private High Schools in New Jersey
I don't work with many students in the Princeton area, but yes Peddie and Princeton Day are obviously good schools. Of course Lawrenceville has a great seminar approach, is close to the level of top prep schools nationally, and is not easy to get into.
This is their list for 4 years. They don't give numbers for each school, but it doesn't seem good that a school in NJ doesn't get anyone into Princeton. By comparison, Pingry sent 11 to HYP in the class of 2017.
https://www.pingry.org/hp/news-page/news-pop-up-page/~post/college-selections-for-the-class-of-2017-20170606
Here is MBS's class of 2018 profile: https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwjX_J_U8ZTaAhWD5YMKHbpQCRsQFggmMAA&url=https://www.mbs.net/uploaded/Documents/2017-2018/College_Counseling/2018_MBS_Class_Profile.pdf&usg=AOvVaw0dlmJlY76As05JdbFyb4e8
It does not seem like many students are taking AP classes. You mentioned that your son was academically oriented– this may be a disadvantage for him.
MBS's college matriculation list gives a list of all colleges that students have matriculated to over the past 4 years. They do not specify exactly how many students attend these colleges, this may be a red flag. Also, depending on your son's college goals, MBS may not be the best for top schools. Big names such as Harvard, Princeton, MIT, Stanford, and Dartmouth are colleges that are missing from that list. Especially since this list encompasses 4 years of college matriculations, this may be an important factor when considering schools.
Hope this helped!
The school produces young men incredibly committed to one another as brothers, academic excellence, serving their communities, and being the best athletic program in the state. I am a proud father of a senior who works tirelessly to live to the amazing standard this school sets.
Anyone who suggests otherwise is regrettably uninformed or wishful in their criticism.
Many top private schools like Andover and Exeter have moved away from AP classes as they don’t want to dilute their classes to teach to the test and colleges are aware of this. Classes are generally discussion based and dynamic as they are at MBS. A lack of APs may just indicate a different approach to learning, not a lack of rigor. MBS is also more inclusive than Pingry etc. in that they (in the past anyway. It’s been a few years since we toured) accept a portion of kids with learning differences which will impact their overall scores. This also creates a richer learning environment according to many experts. Believe it or not, not every student chooses their college based on prestige and you would be foolish to choose a high school based on college aspirations at schools with acceptance rates in the single digits - those schools are crap shoots for every student today.
Yes Delbarton does have the best athletic program in the state as the current #1 in soccer, hockey, lacrosse, baseball, etc, and yes the students are committed to community service but they are also committed students. Indisputably a small percentage of Delbarton students benefit from their athleticism in college selection but the vast majority are admitted based on the sum of their academic, athlecit, and commitment to service.
All great schools that you mention but please don't base your opinion of Delbarton on word of mouth that is dated or uninformed.