Hidden Gem Reminder now that J15 is over!

Prep School Admissions
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Hi to everyone who has just passed by January 15th with a huge sigh! hooray!

I’m here to offer our experience in case it is helpful for you to reduce stress during this process. I have 3 BS kids, and when BS kid 1 was applying to schools, she submitted applications at many of the usual suspects. We visited and interviewed and as she went through the process, she realized that she really loved the opportunities that boarding schools provided. She also realized that many different boarding schools could offer her the amazing opportunities and rigorous academics that she was now sure she wanted. She saw that her list was very rejective and it became a stressful thought that she might not have any options come March 10, not because she isn’t a great kid and student, but because the field is really competitive.

So, following the great advice of parents here, we rounded out her list of highly rejective schools with a few “hidden gems” that people talked about here on CC.

This turned out to be a VERY good idea, and it’s one I recommend to anyone who is really excited about the possibility of going to boarding school next year. Why? Because I promise you – as much as you might right now LOVE one particular school, or handful of schools, there are MANY schools out there that could be a great fit. The usual suspects do NOT have the monopoly on the fantastic education model offered by boarding schools. If you list out your truest reasons why you want to attend boarding school, honestly, you CAN find a school that will fit the bill that is less rejective (a “hidden gem.”). And NOW is the time to put in a couple of apps to round out that list. It’s a huge bummer to arrive at M10 and realize that your blind focus on only considering a handful of schools has shut you out of the entire boarding school world, so unnecessarily.

In our case, my daughter loved the highly rejective schools on her list and was offered admission to them. She attended one of those highly rejective schools and realized quickly during freshman year it was not a fit for her. She transferred to one of her original “safety” schools that we had learned about from the parents here. And guess what – it has proven to be super rigorous and a rich, robust boarding school experience. (So much so that two of her siblings ended up choosing that same boarding school to attend!).

So I just want to offer that there ARE schools with later deadlines that might round out your lists. Mercersburg, where my daughters attend, has a January 31st deadline. And I know there are others! (Feel free to post schools if you want!). Do some checking on SAO (which makes an extra app or two SO easy to submit). But now is a great moment to just check on your list and see if you might want to add a hidden gem or two since the essays are all already done anyway. :).

As always, feel free to ask me about Mercersburg, or transferring, or applying to BS in general. Happy to support these hardworking kids who are pursuing a dream! :).

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This is so true. I got recommended a list of almost pure GLADCHEMMS and T20 schools. Luckily I’d been lurking on CC for a while and knew that my chances were slim. I kept a bunch of them but added some hidden gems/safety schools (maybe not enough in hindsight but I tried).

Mercersburg was actually one of these and I found it all on my own. My sister also went through the process and ended up in a hidden gem school she found. So my humble advice is to please research schools for yourself. It’s totally fine to get recommendations or apply where your friends are but you need to get on Niche or Boarding School Review and just check out the tons of schools out there. So many will never really be mentioned here, but they could be perfect for you.

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Hi, I’m applying to Mercersburg for 9th grade! I finished my essays and short answers but I still have my interview to go. Do you have any tips (I’m interviewing online)?

I see where you’re coming from, my grandpa used to be a consultant and when I told him I was applying to bs he gave me a list of schools and mburg was on it (and a bunch of other ‘hidden gems’). Since I started off my process open-minded regarding prestige and rankings it has been much easier to select schools that I would genuinely be happy going to.

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I did my Mburg interview online as well. Maybe this was just my AO but definitely look into the Mburg specific courses/clubs/facilities that fit into your vibe. I mean the interests or areas you’re passionate about and will most likely come up in the interview.

I talked about one of these passions and then the AO asked something like “How do you see yourself continuing that at Mercersburg?” and one or two similar questions. Besides that, really don’t overthink it, they didn’t seem to have a set list of questions and adapted to what I said. Overall one of the easiest interviews I had and I’m sure you’ll do great! Good luck :grin:

Edit: I just checked out your post in my interview thread and saw that’s basically what you were doing already :rofl:. Seems like you’re well prepared.

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Mburg is one of the schools that fall into the category of personal and welcoming in this round of school research for our second boy. Although our first boy went to an elite prep school and had a fantastic experience there, our little one might need more care and personal touch.

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@uktous - I love that your son is feeling warmth and welcoming from MB! :). One thing I heard when we first considered Mercersburg is that they offer an elite-but-not-elitest education. And I found that to be true. The school grounds are stunning. It still shocks me still four years later that 440 students share a place so well equipped. Make sure you see the gym and the inside of the chapel and the performing arts center (which my oldest daughter – who never went to boarding school – calls the Mini-Kennedy-Center). One of highest endowments-per-student schools in the US (I want to say 4th according to Boarding School review website?), so the infrastructure is there to offer these kids incredible educational opportunities and options that they never could have dreamed of at our (really great) schools at home.
Anyway, don’t hesitate to reach out with questions!

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I’ll add that my daughter researched, visited, and in the end wasn’t interested in any of the “usual suspects” schools so she applied to what many would call a list of all hidden gems:

Emma Willard
Miss Porter’s
Proctor
Pomfret
Millbrook
Suffield

She was accepted to all and had a very hard time choosing between a few in the end. She decided to attend Proctor due to the incredibly friendly students and faculty plus not only the campus (2500 acres with ponds and trails and mountains - they have their own ski hill and ski jump!), but also the breadth/variety of courses available (over 30 different types of art courses alone plus courses like ornithology and forest ecology), and their very unique off-campus programs (she is particularly excited about European Art Classroom).

So far it has been an overwhelmingly positive experience. A couple of bumps here and there, but nothing serious and nothing I wouldn’t expect any kid to go through learning to live away from home the first time. I would highly recommend looking into schools beyond the “usual suspects” and to keep an open mind. In the case of our daughter, she was looking for:

Kind, caring community of teachers and students
Great arts/theater community
Option to run XC/track
Natural beauty/surroundings
No more than about 400 students
Lots of academic options in terms of courses offered

Among a few other things.

She researched about 35-40 schools, narrowed it to the 13 or so we visited, then applied to 6 that she liked the best and felt she could see herself at.

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My kid had a hidden gem (George) as his first choice, and while BS is a receding image in the rear view mirror at this point, his experience was great. Excellent academics and preparation for college, lots of opportunities to try new things and grow, and friendships that have stood the test of time.

Many of the schools that are considered hidden gems will be a cinderella fit for students who have not considered them. Many people think they can only find advanced academics and smart classmates only at super-selective schools, while in reality, you’ll find those at almost every school. No need to “go big or go home!”

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Nice to see that prospective boarding school families are researching the other schools in the Maple League besides Lawrenceville.

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That is so nice of you! We actually visited Mburg last summer and got in contact with AO, attended Mburg event at our side. The stunning campus, the warmth of the AO and alumni parents and current students impressed us. My son had a really relaxing interview which lasts around 40 minutes, with almost half of the time introducing by the AO what Mburg can offer. I will surely turn to you if any questions. Thank you for your offer.

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New prospective BS parent here. DS is also applying to Mercersburg and George. When we went to visit MBurg we were blown away by the facilities. I jokingly said that every building looks like a church, even the gym. The theatre has 3 levels of Opera seating. There are small cities that don’t have those facilites. I have NO idea how likely he is to get in. He is a straight A student at a well regarded private Day school but is not a prodigy or an athlete. He is an Artist and we choose Mburg specifically because their Art program is so fantastic. They seemed incredibly welcoming and had an Art teacher meet with him for that part of the tour to see the “Mini-Kennedy-Center” that someone mentioned above. The George school is also a top choice, I actually love that it is walking distance to a great town with shopping, restaurants, etc. And I loved their 5 week long class schedule. So we’ll see. Again, never had a child look at Boarding, so I’m lost as to what his chances are.

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@DEfour , those are 2 schools known for having cultures of kindness. I can attest that in DS’ experience, the reputation was in fact reality.

Fingers crossed for you!

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Oh Garden! Thank you for that. A “culture of kindness” is EXACTLY what we are looking for. That’s so lovely to hear.

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My son is at a hidden gem of a boarding school! The Winchendon School in MA. I had never heard of it! We were looking for a co-ed, smaller, no suit/tie school with great sports and academic support and Winchendon was the perfect fit! There is literally every kind of kid at Winch… sporty, artsy, fratty, high academic, entrepreneurial, average academic, quirky. And it’s small…285 kids. 25% international and they come from all over Asia, Africa, Europe and the Caribbean. Many D-1 commits in hockey (women’s and men), basketball and baseball. If you’re not sporty, there are great arts opportunities or ways to support sports by managing social media, photography etc.
Winch offers a 2 week Collab (experiential project learning) with off campus opportunities including service in the Dominican Republic or language immersion in Quebec. And lots of on-campus or local projects including things like the physics of rollercoasters.
There is a year long leadership course, many APs and opportunities for independent study or DE if desired. Kids can hold a job on campus and there are many leadership opportunities available.
The academic support is incredible with options on 1-1, small group support, supported study halls and of course 24/7 access to faculty with conference hours every weekday.
We love it. Our son is thriving.
And, because they’re not one of the usually applied to suspects, they do offer rolling admissions if space is still available.

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Thank you for your perspective. My daughter is applying as a Sophomore transfer to Choate, Andover, Exeter, and Lawrenceville with Lawrenceviille being her top choice. We aren’t concerned about “prestige” so much but a school culture that is social/emotionally healthy. The list of Hidden Gems was super helpful. Do you know of any schools on the list that DO NOT utilize Harkness method? My daughter has been in a school that uses this method since sixth grade and is not looking for AP type of education. This is an important reason for considering boarding schools for her. She would gladly continue at her current school, but it is an online program and she wants to go to an in person school. Thank you for any input.

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Most BS that don’t use Harkness are still very participative and interactive, so a high level of engagement is pretty much the norm.

It’s not clear, with L’ville as a top choice, what alternative you’re looking for. George, about 20 minutes down the road, has a radically different vibe and schedule. It has AP, IB, and any other path a student might choose. Very nurturing, collaborative, and community-oriented. But it might not be the choice for a kid who fell in love with L’ville which is more amped up.

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@veryquietcricket All four of those schools have amazing things to offer, and my daughter considered and visited them all and attended one of them. But I’m finding them to be a little surprising if your daughter is prioritizing non-harkness and healthy work-life balance? I had to re-read your note to confirm that I didn’t misunderstand that you were looking for exactly the opposite. :).
I’ll plus 1 Garden’s comment that many boarding schools will use some form of Harkness table for at least some of their classes since the classes are so small. That said, many of those smaller classes will be more discussion oriented and around a large oval table, while not a “true” Harkness in the strict interpretation of the word.
At Mercersburg, for example, the English classes I’ve seen over the five years we’ve been there I think have all been oval table discussions, but Math and science were more classic classrooms/labs. At Andover, I want to say all my daughter’s academic classes were Harkness tables, but I might be remembering that wrong.

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I believe that, although DD is applying to Andover, Exeter, etc, she is asking about Harkness at Hidden Gems schools. At least, that’s my interpretation, since we don’t need this to turn into a discussion of non-Hidden Gems.strong text

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Yes, [skieurope]! Your undertstanding of my question is accurate.

Am I to understand that the Hidden Gems Schools are “easier” academically or expect less from the students? My daughter is definitely interested in academic rigor (and fellow classmates who can handle it), but not if it means she has to be with unkind/disrespectful people. Also, I do understand that there are many courses that offer participation and discussion. This is not exactly Harkness, however, based on my understanding and experience. For example, the role of the teacher is very different between let’s say an AP Eng Lit vs. an Eng Lit course conducted in Harkness. The structure, and the core outcomes are totally different. My daughter is adamantly against AP courses after having taken 3 of them at a local high school, and scored 5 in all. She said AP classes just cram information and are taught to test. She likes Harkness for how it has helped her become a critical/analytical thinker, writer, and speaker. I support her in her choice of the type of education she wants.

Please help me understand. I wonder if I am being naive. Is there a general agreement that the Ten Schools with Harkness pedagogy do not offer healthy work-life balance? What my daughter wants is to go to a school with harkness pedagogy, teachers who are passionate about their subjects, genuinely respects their students and trust their intellect, with fellow classmates who are intellectually motivated, genuinely enjoy learning (and do not think school is a chore), and is organized and self directed. She doesn’t like it when students show up to class and present classroom management issues for teachers. Perhaps, both of us are naive in believing that boarding schools can provide this kind of experience. Feeling a bit discouraged…

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Can you speak to this school’s campus in NYC?