<p>Wow, periwinkle, great article. Thanks for that. </p>
<p>The similarities between prep school and elite college applications never ceases to amaze me. The types of essay questions - sometimes the exact same questions - are used in both. </p>
<p>Harvard used to ask students to write about their favorite word (don’t know if they still do) and that was also a question on Exeter’s app last year and I think for many years prior. My son used that choice in his app. It’s gone from this year’s app. </p>
<p>U of Penn used to ask kids to write page 217 of their imagined autobiography. Wasn’t that a choice on Andover’s app last year? </p>
<p>Tufts has questions that asks kids to respond to hypothetical situations. So do most of the prep school apps I have seen. Hotchkiss and St Paul’s come to mind.</p>
<p>No wonder these kids do so well in college admissions - they’ve already been vetted.</p>
<p>The author of the article seems to be amazed that so much is being asked of 17 year olds.
</p>
<p>Based on their application questions, prep schools look for it, or the potential for it, of 13 year olds.</p>