I’ve already chosen but I just want to hear some thoughts on this topic. Because im unsure if i made the right decison.
Both are excellent choices. My question is - can you reverse your decision if someone here offers perspectives that might change your mind 
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Having known multiple families from each school, I would say that the major difference lies in the makeup of nationalities. Roughly 60% of Le Rosey students are European and speak two or more languages. The other 40% hail from all over the world and speak fluent English, and to some extent French (the school does offer an English and a French track).
At Hotchkiss, international students account for 15-20% of the student body. Therefore, the culture is still predominantly American. About 40% of students identify as persons of color, so there is quite a bit of diversity - just fewer non-Americans.
Then there is the difference in the socioeconomic background of the students. Le Rosey has a long history of educating members of royal and noble families, in addition to billionaire families from the Middle East and Africa (wealth from natural resources), as well as Asia (steel, produces and tech tycoon families). While Hotchkiss is also known to have educated children from the highest echelons of American society, it should definitely be noted that a around 40% of its students receive financial aid. Therefore, you will likely come across a more interesting mix of students. Financial aid kids at top US schools are highly qualified and tend to work extremely hard. At Hotchkiss, trust fund babies hang out with FA kids quite a bit. At Le Rosey, many families are in the top 0.01%, so you are likely to see more privilege and entitlement among the students.
Physical settings: the schools are quite similar, although Le Rosey is more scenic than Hotchkiss’ already beautiful campus. Hotchkiss is situated by a lake whose name I cannot recall or pronounce, while Le Rosey’s spring/fall campus is right on Lake Geneva. Hotchkiss comes with a golf course on its campus; Le Rosey offers skiing (powder snow in Gstaad!) and equestrian facilities. Take your pick.
In terms of academics, Hotchkiss is known to be rather demanding all 4 years. It also offers close to 200 elective courses - great variety. Le Rosey’s English track uses the IB system, which may seem more rigid to some.
Finally, as you consider what’s beyond high school, Le Rosey is better positioned with UK universities. Hotchkiss, as you probably know already, typically sends a third of its graduates to Ivies and Ivy+ schools. This is not to say that top kids from Le Rosey cannot get into a top American university. They still do, but it’s much less common.
It is indeed a difficult choice, as both schools are excellent. I hope I hit on some points worth considering. Whichever you chose, I wish you the best of luck!
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@cinnamon1212 is an expert on the Hotchkiss School.
Without knowing anything of your interests or background, I suggest attending Le Rosey due to the location, exposure to different cultures, and for the potential of lifelong contacts with connected/influential people.
If uncomfortable at Le Rosey, elite US boarding schools should remain as an option to you.
Two great choices ! Congratulations !
Nonetheless, I assume that you have some type of prior connection to the Hotchkiss School as being paired with Le Rosey seems, to me at least, a bit unusual. Did you consider other boarding schools–or just these two ?
P.S. Just did a quick Google search on Le Rosey. The most interesting fact was that no more than 10% of the student body at Le Rosey can be from a single country. Do you know this to be true ? If so, Le Rosey would be an easy choice for one wishing for exposure to different cultures and to develop contacts worldwide.
Congrats on the options! Assuming both are comfortably affordable, this is a case where two reasonable people could make two different choices. If you feel you made the best selection for you and your family, that is the only thing that matters. Hope you have a wonderful experience.
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Should we assume you’re European, OP?
nope im from east asia
so if my dream school was JHU it would be reasonable for me to go to hotchkiss
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Only six Hotchkiss students have matriculated at Johns Hopkins (JHU) over the past four years. Relatively few students from the most prestigious U.S. boarding schools end up going there.
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Go to the HS that will be best for your HS years. It is way too early to think about any specific college. HS should be a time of personal growth, exploration, and learning….not a four year plan to get into one specific (and very competitive) college.
FWIW I would drop the idea of a “dream college” right now. There will be many colleges where you can have a great four year experience and get where you want to go in life.
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Yes, I would say so. Admission officers at JHU (or any other top U.S. universities) will recognize the Hotchkiss name right away (or any tippy-top boarding schools, for that matter). Meanwhile, some of them may have never heard of Le Rosey. The opposite will hold true in Europe.
For what it’s worth, you can refer to the college matriculation results for Hotchkiss grads over the past 4 years. As @ameridad pointed out, 6 Hotchkiss grads have attended JHU over this period. Using JHU’s historical yield of ~51%, then there were 12 kids in total, or 3 per year on average.
Le Rosey also published its matriculation results, but in less detail: University and College Destinations | Institut Le Rosey
As @happy1 suggests, it may not be all that practical for an 8th grader to have a “dream college” at this point. JHU is a great college for many reasons, but many other schools can help you achieve your goals just as effectively, if not better. You have the next 3 years to figure this out, alongside your guidance counselor(s).
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While Hotchkiss would be a more familiar name, I expect college admissions officers are familiar with the top Swiss boarding schools. (ETA) College admission officers routinely evaluate international students, deal with varied curriculums, grading systems, etc.
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That is true. I do know a few colleges that assign individual officers to cover a specific region. Thank you for pointing this out!
I’ll say the quiet part out loud:
There’s a difference between a school where the very wealthy send their kids before university and a great prep school. If you want to go to school with rich kids and ski in Gstaad, go to Rosey. If you want rigorous preparation for a challenging college experience, go to Hotchkiss. Pretty easy call.
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Probably not the case. But I agree that they may not see the rigor as equivalent.
Edited to add that I see this was addressed above. AOs cover European schools.
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Just echoing the above, I would not particularly worry about highly selective US colleges not knowing about top international secondary schools, but I do think if you want to go on to a US college, you should think carefully about preparation.
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Overly simplistic summary.
And, if it is an “easy call”, then Institute Le Rosey would be the choice.
College matriculations of Le Rosey student are excellent. Exposure to different perspectives should be a strong benefit of attending a school which limits percentage of students from each country to 10% (if accurate).
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What a unique perspective on diversity. (To spell it out, Le Rosey is populated with students mostly, if not entirely, from the top .001%). Economically, there is very little diversity.
Hotchkiss has a different kind of diversity. Economically, internationally, racially. (For example Global Initiatives - The Hotchkiss School).
While my sons attended we hosted international students on breaks from the Palestinian territories, Afghanistan, Japan, China, Ghana. As I said, it’s a different, I would argue, more comprehensive version of diversity.
No one can say which school is better for the OP, but let’s at least characterize things correctly.
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Agree. An I did. Le Rosey is the easy choice and the more diverse option from the perspective that I mentioned. Just as you portray Le Rosey, many have noted Hotchkiss’ affinity for Wall Street bankers’ kids.
Show me the boarding school without a majority of full pay kids (who definitionally are wealthy)!
The two schools are not remotely comparable. Le Rosey offers 3 to 5 partial scholarships, with a student body of 450. That’s it for financial aid! https://www.rosey.ch/admissions/how-to/
Hotchkiss spends over $14 million each year on aid; 38% of all the sudents get aid, and 28% of all students get full rides. At Le Rosey zero students get full financial aid.
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So ?
There are different types of diversity.
Regardless, the OP has already made his/her choice.
Are you under the impression that OP was/is seeking need based financial aid ?
The only info. shared by OP was that he/she was admitted to both schools and that OP has an interest in attending JHU for college. But, again, OP has made a decision.
While I understand your point, you misunderstood my point.