I understand that both these school are highly ranked. I am not sure why is Groton considered to be so well regarded. Does the school score very high on academic achievements?
There is very little official info on their website.
Is it for you or your child - what are you or they interested in? What led your family to apply to those two schools (or are you asking because you’re applying next cycle?). What are the three most important things about a school to you or your parents/child (depending on which you are). It’s hard to just compare schools so some insight into what you’re looking for might help people give opinions on these.
@dogsmama1997 Thank you for the response. To answer your question;
This is for my Son. We are looking for a Prep school with day student option. Middlesex is 6 miles and Groton is 10 miles from home; this was one important reason to apply to these schools.
Three most important things for selection would be
Strong academic program. Especially Math and Writing.
Strong Athletic options in the curriculum, especially Soccer.
In my son’s words “I want to be in school where the kids study hard but also know how to have fun. They should interested and invested in structured and unstructured play time e.g. find time to have fun playing soccer, shooting basketball in a typical school day”
Also relevant for this discussion:
Also applied and accepted in Concord Academy and Lawrence Academy. Accepted in Middlesex. Waitlisted with Groton.
I would recommend going to the revisit day for concord academy and for middlesex. Both are strong academically but definitely have a different vibe. My kid chose not to apply to CA because it wasn’t athletically inclined enough but depending on how good at soccer your son is it might be enough for him. CA plays in the EIL which is not as competitive as the ISL which middlesex plays in. Middlesex has the writing program sophomore year which is supposed to be very intense. Concord academy has artists in residence as their art teachers, their arts program looked amazing to me.
If academic rigor is very important I’d probably drop Lawrence off the list. IMO it is a step down academically from the others or perhaps I should say it caters to a different kind of kid. Kids who need more help or are coming off an IEP at a public school.
Groton gets some of its prestige from the fact that it has the smallest admit rate in the country (tied usually with thatcher and smaller than both Andover and Exeter). To me what this means in practical terms is that they can admit exactly the students they want because they have so many applicants for each spot. I imagine their student body is very carefully crafted. Academically they are very rigorous. The thing is if your son is waitlisted here I’d put it out of mind for a bit and focus on the schools that have said “YES, we are excited to have your son be a student at our school.” Your son isn’t going to get a less good education at CA or middlesex even if slightly more people have heard of Groton.
I only know about girls sports but a quick look at all the websites will tell you how all the boys soccer teams finished off their seasons.
This is not “also” relevant; this is the most important sentence. Comparing Middlesex vs. Groton is moot in this case (and folly, otherwise) because Groton is not in the cards now, and likely won’t be.
Middlesex is a great school. So is CA. But each may be better for a particular student for different reasons. Revisit both and then decide pros/cons of each. Your son has some fine options. But he needs to love the school that loves him back. Good luck.
We were very impressed with the mindfulness program at Mx and the emotional intelligence and self awareness it encourages kids to develop. The writing program was also superb. It felt like a very welcoming place at the revisit…
I would suspect (but am not invested enough to do the analysis), that CA, by virtue of its self-selecting student body, has a higher concentration going to RISD/conservatories/art institutes/etc. Taking those out of the equation, I suspect there is no statistical difference.
Regardless, as I have stated many times before, do not go to boarding school if your only purpose is to use it as a stepping stone to a top college; that reasoning is just folly. A boarding school may give a student the tools with which to develop him/herself into a viable candidate, but others schools may as well. Colleges admit students, not boarding schools. While the professionals at the schools are ready and willing to assist in the process, they will not, and should not, do the work for you.
Also look very carefully at the curriculum. We found the curriculum at Groton to be one of the strongest. It’s very classically based so that might ve a plus or minus depending on your kid. Since Groton is waitlist for you, I would also suggest focusing solely on those schools which have given you the nod.
Have you checked the soccer team out thoroughly at Middlesex? Do you know how CA sports teams work? This could be an important factor if sports are important to your son. Lawrence might also offer some other things so consider that as well.
Don’t forget your gut. Once your son settles in things that matter will become his daily life. Go with the school that accepts you and that fits your kid. All the schools mentioned have students who find sucees in the wirld at large.
About CA - agree about Athletics and EIL. Impressive curriculum and faculty for Arts. Academically it seems to be doing almost as well as the other two highly regarded schools (Mx and Groton)
Agree with comments suggesting that since Groton has waitlisted my kid we should (almost) write it off.
My inquiry was more out of curiosity. I have not come across much hard data which would convince me that Groton has a very accomplished School Profile to boast for. I agree with @dogsmama1997 's comment that Groton has a very tight admit rate and that helps to create a higher rank. Also thread about revise impression is a great idea. I will make sure to share my/our views on CA and Mx
@bostonbloke Hours of discussion in my house about why one school has the name recognition/prestige and others don’t. Hours and hours. I maintain that there are too many excellent teachers in this area for any of these schools to be “less than” academically. I think it comes down to the mix of kids in the classroom with your kid. What are they like, what are their priorities?
I’d agree that CA is academically just as strong as the others, and any kid is going to get an amazing education at Groton, middlesex, or CA. As long as a kid likes the vibe I’d say there’s no going wrong here.