<p>I’m a BS grad and found it gratifying. I grew in ways I would not have if I had stayed home. But BS is not for everyone. It takes a certain independence and ability to “advocate” for oneself once solo.</p>
<p>My D is now at a boarding school (by her own choice). She’s loving it and I can feel the joy in her heart even as my heart breaks because I miss her a lot. She’s happy - we have many giggly conversations over classes and friends and just stuff in general. </p>
<p>Pros - exposure to more rigorous class work (so college will be less of a transition for her than her public school friends). Opportunities to meet a wider range of people. More individualized attention. Smaller class sizes. Lots of international opportunities for travel. She had to “up” her game to keep up with the classroom rigor. She’s not a “face in the crowd.” Affectionate relationships with faculty that has extended to us as a family. In a word, she told me today she loves her school and on a recent visit we could see it in her eyes and in the way the faculty interacted with her.</p>
<p>Cons - homesickness (more for us than for her). Costs (tuition, airfare, books, incidentals, care packages).</p>
<p>I’m from the midwest and a lot of people criticized my husband and I (and her) for the decision. But I find that those people are the same who insist their children stay close to home (or within driving distance) for college. It’s just “not done” and the concept of BS is often more about sending a child to reform school, then to an “early college” program. I have to pry their kids out of their hands at the MIT acceptance reception. So it’s often really about the parent not being ready to let go. And if you do - that puts them under more pressure to think about their own situation. So “group think” means making you toe the party line so they don’t have to think out of the box.</p>
<p>A suggestion - when my D brought up the subject, we told her that the reality of BS was not the same as a Disney channel depiction. So we sent her to Access Exeter where she could immerse for the summer and see if she liked the concept. She loved it and had to be dragged off campus at the end (I’m being facetious for those that don’t know that) and that’s when we knew she was on the right path.</p>
<p>So try a summer program (many schools have them) and see how she - and you - adjust. If it works, let her fly away. She’ll be stronger for the experience.</p>
<p>Then apply to a range - visit as many as you can to get the “real” flavor of the culture rather than the viewbook marketing version. Then go from there.</p>
<p>Good luck. It’s tough to let them go. But when they’re happy - the feeling eases.</p>