<p>First, I did not read the thread by Exeter Dad, so I will confine my remarks to what is in this thread. I really think you have the answer, though.</p>
<p>You have stated that you went to an Ivy League school from a rural high school, the first student from that school to go to an Ivy in something like 75 years. Therefore, being one of the top students from that school does not guarantee acceptance to an Ivy League school- you going was closer to a singularity than to a statistic.</p>
<p>@stargirl3 provided a link to Exeter’s 'College Profile" which indicated that at least 200 students in the last 3 years attended one of ten listed schools, and at least 170 more students attended an additional 17 schools. Assuming that around 1,000 students graduated from Exeter in the last 3 years (~350/yr), that says that about 20% of the graduates matriculated to an Ivy (or MIT or Stanford). If you give about half of those over to uncontrolled variables (legacy, donors, uber-famous or political people), you are left with ~10% of the class for merit. No guarantee, but you do have a 225 year track record of a large percentage of the class going to an Ivy League school to compare against a 75 year track record from your own school of zero. That’s as close to a guarantee as I can imagine. Any given public school in any given year will likely be a crapshoot with regards to Ivy League matriculation.</p>
<p>So here is your formula:</p>
<p>You already have the legacy boost, do the 7 things in @2prepmom’s post #27 that, frankly, Mr. Parks and his parents likely failed to do, encourage your son to take up a recruitable sport and get really good at it, select a school which is a good fit, and in which your son will likely graduate in the top 10 - 20% of the class (and have him graduate in the top 10-20% of the class), and hope that he “fits” very well with the ivy from which you and your wife graduated and desires to go there by the time he is a senior. Oh, and apply ED (or SAEC). That is the formula!</p>
<p>What can you control?</p>
<p>1) Select a school where your son feels a good fit, and where he is likely to be in the top quartile of the class (assuming the school has similar matriculation stats to Exeter) at graduation.
2) Do the 7 things in post #27. Particularly in item #3 choose a recruitable sport(s) and get good at it.</p>
<p>Note that while getting in from a good LPS is also a good option, the odds of any specific student getting into any particular ivy from any particular LPS are much lower, even if you follow the formula outlined here, than they are if they graduate from a “top” BS and follow the formula outlined here, because of the institutional history and familiarity and track record, as well as the competence of the college counseling department.</p>
<p>And, for the record, I am in the camp with @twinsmom in feeling that the boarding school provides the growth and challenge (life preparation) my kids need, regardless of college preparation or matriculation. Still, an interesting mental exercise.</p>