Berkshire or Hotchkiss?

cinnamon1212
Thu, 09 Apr 2020 21:40:10 +0000

@sloth317 it really depends on the kid. That said, Hotchkiss is absolutely a happy place!! Both my sons had great experiences although they were completely different (see – it depends on the kid!). My first son was not good at time management, and he was a social butterfly. Academics, his sport, his social life and the one club he was really interested in were what he could manage. He tried debate and did not have the bandwidth to miss several days of school. So although he didn’t “do” a lot, now, at 25, he credits Hotchkiss with making him who he is today and he still adores the school.

My other son who currently attends, who excels at time management, squeezes in a tremendous amount. This past term he did a Hotchkiss sport, had a major role in the school play, played club soccer outside of school, was a dorm leader and had a very vibrant social life while maintaining excellent grades.

I would say that both boys are kind of at each end of the spectrum in terms of what they could manage at the school, but both had fantastic experiences and wouldn’t change a thing.

The other students at Hotchkiss are NICE and not cut throat! It is a supportive place. However it is also a place where if you need help you need to advocate for yourself – ask the teacher for extra help or to explain something, attend a peer tutoring session in the learning center etc.

If this helps, someone else on CC was asking about Hotchkiss and I asked son #2 how much homework there was. He said there was (on average) 2 hours a night in 9th grade, 2 1/2 hours in 10th grade and 2 hours 45 min. in 11th grade. Now, that is manageable isn’t it? And my son isn’t some phenom that can coast through classes. They build in a structure so as you must know there is required study hall in 9th and 10th grade from 8 - 10 pm and then – hopefully with good habits practiced for 2 years – they don’t have required study hall after that.

A third son of mine went to a different boarding school, not too different from Berkshire. While I can’t speak to Berkshire, compared to that other school, Hotchkiss is just a level above – the kids are sharper and more engaged, the teachers as a rule are better, the opportunities are more, more impressive speakers come to campus, more frequently, travel opportunities are more plentiful and there are grants for ALL students to travel, the college placement is better. (Having said all that, the second school was the best place for my son who needed a slower start) I guess I’m saying each school can be a great place, but it really just depends on the kid.

PS Publisher is right – the schools (ALL the schools) want to keep the kids busy – it does keep them out of trouble.