Suggest a School for Me

Prep School Admissions
1

<p>Table of Contents:
I. Current Schools of Interest/Visit List
II. My Interests/What I value(High School(Academic ECs))
III. My Resume(Sort of)
IV. The questions I want answered</p>

<p>(MY INTRODUCTION)
Well, I have realized that you guys here at CC are pretty smart in regards to suggesting quality schools of varying fame and I am hoping for a good match!</p>

<p>Current schools I am interested in(In a “tier” format"):

  1. Exeter(I got the packet and was really inspired to go there)
  2. Andover
  3. Hotchkiss</p>

<h2>4. St. Paul’s</h2>

<li>Mercersburg/Groton</li>
<li>Deerfield/Kent/Choate/Lawrenceville(REALLY TIED!)</li>
</ol>

<p>I am visiting:
Kent, Hotchkiss, Exeter, Andover, St. Paul’s MAYBE Deerfield/Groton</p>

<p>II. Interests
Athletic:
-Lacrosse(Alot)
-Wrestling(Havn’t competed in a few years due to injuries)
-Crew(I love the water and I have been doing around 12,000 meters three times a week at the gym… Never actually have done it)
-Ultimate Frisbee(Passionate about it)
-Football(Experienced)
-Water Polo(Never played)</p>

<p>Academic:
-Moot Court/Mock Trial
-Debate
-Model UN
-Youth Legislature
-Knowledge Bowl</p>

<p>I am a big fan of Economics and I read alot of Economics books(Not just freakonomics(That is the most read book by people that assume they are economists)(Great book… But it doesn’t show much interest if that is all you have read)). I have read a large variety of books ranging from LBOs, CDOs, Trapping Nations in Debt, Number Crunching to Pick Wine and NFL Stars… ect. I am very well read in the subject of statistics and economics.</p>

<p>III. My Resume
-Projected SSAT Percentile: 95%(From practice tests(Taken 2))
-I am taking AP Statistics(A senior math class), AP World(Sophmore Class) and Honors Pre-Calc(A Junior Class) as a Sophmore.
-I am taking 3 AP Exams(Microeconomics(Learned over the summer at Duke TiP) World History, Statistics)</p>

<p>One thing I am telling Boarding Schools:
Starting a “Non-Traditional School Stress” Group… Basically just a counseling/group therapy hour discussion once a week… I do this at a Christian Jesus Camp… I am pretty good at it and I give speeches at a multi-church retreat to high schoolers(Most often older then me!)
—I want them to know I am going to leave an exerlasting mark on the community of whatever school I go to… Hence why I am making a 5 page paper to send off during Christmas(After my interview). What my current school doesn’t provide, what the school provides that I need, what I will do for the school and why I am a good fit. I am sending it to the dean of admissions for each of my top choices when the time comes.</p>

<p>My grades in 7th grade were bad, I plan to tell them how I rebounded and such from it(Languages we both Cs… I had an undiagnosed learning disability). 8th Grade, Latin was a B but everything else was high 90s.
9th grade, a little trouble with spanish… But I ended the year with decent grades except in spanish.
10th grade: Unknown but look very good so far(Started school a week)</p>

<p>IN CONCLUSION:
~Would you suggest any school I don’t have up there or tell me that one I have is an excellent choice for my needs?
~Would any school in particular on my current list be a bad option?
~Any school that would get me a good base for Economics/Statistics/Business education?
~IS there one school that could get me into a good business school/get me in the spotlight for a good Business school?</p>

2

<p>Since you are looking for a business career (I am a Hotchkiss student so I may be slightly biased) there is not better school in the world other than Hotchkiss. Check out the business section of the alumni list and you will know what i mean. From Ford, Chryler, Edison, Luce(TIME MAGAZINE), Stanley (Morgan Stanley), Mars (Mars Bars Snickers etc.), Thornton (Prez. of Goldman Sachs), Kitterage (IBM), Dolby (his son), Lovelace pioneer in the Mutual funds business, Hotchkiss alumni are prevlevant. Infact in my estimation Hotchkiss has produced more billlionaires than any otehr school in the world. The connections you will make in Hotchkiss with the sons and daughters of the heads and owners of jaugernaugt companies i mentioned above shall certainly prove beneficial to you in your business careeer i certainly hope it shall benefit me in mine.
[List</a> of Hotchkiss School alumni - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Hotchkiss_School_alumni]List”>List of Hotchkiss School alumni - Wikipedia)</p>

<p>BUt do take advice from other people as well this is just my opionion.</p>

<p>Also i noticed you like debates well Hotchkiss is often considered the best school at least in new england and perhaps America if not further at debates. SO that may be a consideration you should take into account. Don’t let prestige or a glossy prospectus sell you a school let the facts and the fit speak for themselves.</p>

3

<p>First off, you’re applying to VERY competitive schools. If you think you can work amazingly hard on every application, then sure, go for it. But what I was taught by my admissions counselor in middle school was to have 1-2 “reaches” (really competitive dream schools), 2-3 schools that are competitve but aren’t as prestigious as the reaches, and 1-2 safety schools that aren’t very prestigious and aren’t as competitive. With this strategy you end up with a max of 7 schools that you applied to; I used it and ended up getting accepted at 3, waitlisted at 3, and rejected at one.</p>

<p>Your athletics and extracurriculars are great; you seem much more athletic than artsy, so a more creative school like Concord might not be right for you. You should try to do some community service before you start applying, but make sure it’s with something you take value in because interviewers usually ask what motivated you to help the community in whichever way you did. If you can answer honestly (not just “I thought it was nice to do”) it definitely shows admissions officers that you’re a passoniate, kind-hearted person.</p>

<p>I think the five-page paper thing is a bit unneccesary since you’re going to be writing essays for the schools anyway, but I don’t really understand what you’re going to be writing in it. Just make sure you send sincere thank you notes after each interview!!</p>

<p>Also, try to get some practice interviews in before you start going to schools you really love. Before I started interviewing at my top choices for schools, I “practiced” by going to schools that were closeby that I liked, but was pretty sure I wasn’t going to apply to. It always helps to get an idea of what common interview questions are before you start going for schools that really matter to you.</p>

<p>PS: You sound like you’re only considering boarding school because it’s an “easier way” to get into a great college. This might be true, but boarding school is a great opportunity to do other things than just get you into an Ivy League. :-)</p>

4

<p>Okay, I’m huge into my economics as well and I brought that up hugely in my interviews so make sure you do that, it works a charm. </p>

<p>All the schools I applied to have basically got equally impressive alumni lists, college matriculation, facilities and they’re basically the list I had but you had more schools. You just need to get the feel of the place. Like at Andover, everyone said hi to everyone else, people were smart but casual, the place seemed to be both simultaneously expansive and abundant in opportunities yet small in the good ways such as cohesive year groups, attention to all students etc. Perhaps I felt this way because the Andover tour guide was very good or maybe I just didn’t connect with the other tour guides like I did with the Andover boy but I loved it so much I didn’t think twice about any other school but I got accepted into Hotchkiss, SPS, Exeter amongst others.</p>

<p>In terms of economics, I didn’t research any of the schools and I’m only learning about Andover now but they all due to their rigor and college matriculations are a great start into the world of finance and they all have students amazingly dedicated to those fields so that shouldn’t be a criteria. I can’t say much about sports as though I like them a lot, I’m not that good, lol so it was nice to see Andover offered tonnes of teams like 3 soccer teams for the not so gifted kids like me. </p>

<p>You did the same ECs as me and all the schools promised brilliant facilities and teams all of which is true. So while this is slanted towards Andover, it shouldn’t be, it’s just that’s the only school I know about. </p>

<p>I was so casual I applied to like half a dozen reaches and thats it without realizing they were reaches (apart from Andover/Exeter obviously). I only chose Andover purely because I loved the feel of it but they all offer the same things on paper really. Also consider Groton and Choate higher. They truly impressed me.</p>

<p>PS. Most business schools in America are graduate courses and even then after usually 2-3 years of work experience. But some business schools are undergraduate and it’s an increasing trend for analysts to skip business school and then advance to associate or whatever…</p>

5

<p>NMH is ON the Connecticut River, which gives their crew team a big leg up.</p>

6

<p>Well, I want to be in a place where I can look back in 20 years and have no regrets about my high school experience. If I have a school that is a safety and I get in it would probably nag on my mind in the future… I play for keeps(A term from a rapper… Meaning I am taking this serious and applying to what I want and I will succeed).</p>

<p>The reason for the paper… I feel that not alot of students can outline how passionate they are(ONE WORD TO DESCRIBE ME!!! PASSIONATE) about things… I can go on and on about really small things(Fine cheese or cured meats included). </p>

<p>And I just think the paper will remind them right before I turn in my application who I am.</p>

<p>I know my interview will be great, my essay great… My grades not so hot.(Not all failing and the majority of my classes I got an A in)</p>

<p>NOTE~
I am also the least preppy person that I saw applying for boarding schools… I honestly wear black athletic shorts and athletic tee shirts(The tight type) 99% of the time… I listen to rap… Kids think I could be black(Even black kids say I am blacker then their other black friends(It is like an insult))</p>

<p>I do not fit into the catagory of Boarding School and I think this gives me a unique perspective on social interactions and it really makes me stand out.</p>

<p>I am attending boarding school so I can live without any regret in regards to what I “Could have been”. I want a place where I can grow as a person… I am extremely independant and I cannot explain how well I do when I am away from home and out of my element. I just need the maturity and the PASSION FOR LEARNING. I hear that students will continue to debate topics in classes even after they leave just out of passion and interest. That one line sold me to Exeter(As my first choice).</p>

7

<p>I think you’re going in a little too confident – yeah, you have some advantages, but if you automatically say you “know” some things will be great, it can be interpreted as arrogant or rude. You can think in your head that some things are better for you than others, but you can’t forget that each school looks for different qualities in a person and that other applicants can have strengths where you have weaknesses. I guess what I’m trying to say is that you can’t say that you KNOW some things will go great, because each school wants something different.</p>

<p>As for the paper, I don’t know anyone else who did something like that… I think that’s what the essays are meant for. It might make them see more negative qualities in you, too, like you’re trying so hard to convince them to accept you that they’ll start to wonder why you need to work so hard to get them to like you.</p>

8

<p>Thats what I told him KayleeG…lol
What school are you going to?</p>

9

<p>lol, glad to hear I’m not the only one thinking it.
Exeter!!! I’m so excited, my mom is really nervous but I can’t waaaait.</p>

10

<p>Cool!
I have so many friends going there!
Ill PM you for your IM adress. lol</p>

11

<p>Well, confidence is the best way to do anything in my opinion. And I just don’t get nervous over things… I know I might not get in. But no use in assuming that I won’t… It is really lack of caring if I don’t(At the moment… I am sure when I actually get rejected(If I do) I will get pretty upset for a day or two).</p>

<p>The reason I know things will go great is because I have done practice interviews… I asked a few Exeter girls and guys and we did mock interviews. I am just saying they will go great… I know that I will do a good job. Not saying the best interview ever seen… But I won’t make any huge mistakes and I am extremely confident with interviews.(Done so many of them and I talk to school admins alot… I mean alot alot…)</p>

<p>It is just the best way to get what I want is to act with confidence and step with my best foot forward.</p>

<p>Really, I think the paper is a good thing because I am serious and I believe in a discussion group… It really helped me personally.</p>

12

<p>Don’t give him your phone number cause he will call randomly and you can’t talk about BS infront of your school friends so it makes the conversation awkward…</p>

<p>(I am just ragging on him).</p>

13

<p>Okay, why are you getting defensive when you asked for suggestions?? It’s just my opinion, and it’s a general idea in life: if you go into things too confidently, you won’t do your best (since you “know” you’ll get in) and then, when you fail, it’ll hit you that much harder.</p>

<p>I don’t know what a discussion group/seriousness has to do with a five-page paper that’s really just an essay you’ll send in a few months later… so I won’t even comment on that.</p>

14

<p>Ok calm down guys.
Lets not fight here.
Don’t get reported by mods because I remember an incident in which a fellow poster’s IP adress was banned.
Dont let that happen to you.</p>

15

<p>I wasn’t trying to be defensive… I Was just trying to explain why I don’t think I will come across as arrogant. I have had to explain that to three or four people and once they talk to me on the phone or something most of them get what I am saying…</p>

<p>A discussion group is the way that I dealt with my problems when I was younger. It was an everlasting mark on my life and I have heard from many students and administrators that Exeter has a depression problem and stress problem.
starting a group like this would leave an everlasting mark on the Exeter community… An incentive for letting me in. That will forever help the school.</p>

<p>And that general rule to life may be true. But when I come into a situation confident I believe I am at my best. I am not nervous… I won’t make mistakes. I know I won’t. I might make a mistake, but thinking about it just takes away my concentration of not making a mistake.</p>

16

<p>St. Paul’s seems like it would fit you well and I think Hotchkiss does too.
You might want to look at Taft as well if your looking-it sort of fits in to all the other places your looking.</p>

17

<p>How are the academics at taft?</p>

18

<p>i THINK [i could be wrong] but i think it’s at the topish of the second teir of schools…a little bit easier to get into than hotchkiss / andover / exeter , but still pretty hard. its a really great place though-and definetly not a bad school</p>

19

<p>I read boarding school review and Taft’s average SAT is very low(1200). so I assume the information was out dated… So no help there. Any other insight on the school?</p>

20

<p>it’s very preppy/jocky-but not like stupid preppy/jocky cause everyone there is smart…thats the reason i thought of it-its a big lax school
basically like hotchkiss but easier to get into-taft and hotchkiss are huge rivals though</p>