A thought provoking article. Atlantic does have some interesting articles, I must say.
I found this intriguing, having grown up in the UK in a poor town well away from London, with parents who hadn’t been to university.
What isn’t mentioned in the article is the degree to which certain (usually private) high schools in the UK provide the social conditioning that can allow you to know how to behave and overcome any potential imposter syndrome. So (for example) you can go to Oxbridge and not be intimidated by the idea of formal 5 course black tie dinners and May balls (or more importantly by the interview process to get in).
I get the sense that some of the same applies in the US, certainly that was one take away for me from the recent Supreme Court confirmation hearings, because I’d never heard of Georgetown Prep et al. But it’s much less remarked upon, at least in our social circles, unlike in the UK where most people would have heard of Eton. But maybe that’s partly due to us being in California rather than on the East coast?
Boarding schools, Prep schools and prestigious day schools are a big deal in New England. Many times moreso than their college for the connections etc. and I believe it’s fierce in NYC.
Some of the more prominent I’ve listed below, look them up and take a look. But this is a drop in the bucket and I am missing some big names. But doing this off the cuff, as they say.
And they definately cost as much as college, many times it’s more.
There’s a whole forum section in CC for admissions to these schools.
Deerfield Phillips Exeter and Plillips Andover. St Paul’s , Choate, Miss Porter’s, Tabor, St. George’s , Milton Academy, Holderness, Northfield, Mt Herman, Kimball Union st Michael’s in Worcester and lots more in CT. VT NH and Maine. .
Day schools Moses Brown in RI, Belmont Hill and Dana Hall in Boston.
Virginia NJ and PA have many too.
Quaker day schools like Moses Brown are in every major east coast city for the most part too, notably Sidwell Friends in DC.
Georgetown Prep is one of the Catholic powerhouse Prep schools. Every city has them.
Some more selective and high brow the others.
Most Catholic schools are much more accessible for middle class families.
Some are simply public school proxies but every state has a number that are much more than that.
Bishop Hendriken And Lasalle Academy in RI for boys and Bay View for girls.
Mass has St Johns Prep, Boston College High School Xavarian and Catholic Memorial.
There are dozens more in just these two states but they are not known to be as selective or rigorous.
These Catholic schools are more accessible to middle class families but are well known for producing star students and athletes. And all learn basic manners along the way.
Thanks, I always tend to forget how regional the US is for things like schools. FWIW I did attend one of those schools in the UK (but not one that anyone in the US would know and not a boarding school) and just in the time I was there we had one alumnus who won an Oscar and another who won a Nobel Prize. I definitely think it made a huge difference to my subsequent trajectory.
@privatebanker yes the list is long in New England, particularly in MA and RI.
Just a quick point of clarification in RI LaSalle is coed…was all boys up until the 80s when a number of Catholic high schools closed and consolidated with LaSalle. Much fewer Catholic High Schools now but you are spot on for the three you named being on the prestigious side. While still Catholic there are times this is downplayed. There also are many international kids enrolled in the Catholic schools now to keep the numbers up.
As far as the ones from MA that you named not only are they prestigious but they are all boys. There is also Ursuline (sister school to Xaverian) but with much smaller numbers. As is the case with Bay View sister school to Hendricken in RI. All girls Catholic schools have faced challenges in recent years which has not been as much of a concern for all boys interestingly enough.
Also interesting is geographically in the middle of most of the Catholic schools you mentioned is Bishop Feehan (right on the RI/Mass Line). This coed school has never blinked from its Catholicism and does not have challenges with enrollment, it actually has fewer spots than applicants and that is with about 250 in a grade.
In addition to prestige and strong academics all of these schools have very strong alumni networks. They also offer a private school alternative at a much more reasonable price than the other schools such as Moses Brown. However while more reasonable paying $11k-$22k a year in HS is still a price and it is becoming less accessible to middle class families which is why some schools are looking for international students or have tried focusing more on the academy aspect of the school. The one with the $11k price tag is Bishop Feehan which can explain its deeper reserves of candidates.