I am excite to welcome @Kristin_White, author of the recently launched book Prep: The Parent’s Guide to Boarding Schools. Kristin will share some of the interesting topics in her new book, including: merit scholarships, sports recruiting, pros and cons of boarding school life, and trends in selective school admissions. She is available for questions on whatever you would like to discuss, so make sure to ask her your
About the Author
Kristin White has been an educational consultant working with boarding schools for nineteen years. She has visited almost one hundred schools and has worked with families from all over the world. Kristin is also the Director of High School Counseling at a K-8 school in Connecticut. She recently published Prep: The Parent’s Guide to Boarding Schools, which is the first book on this topic to be published in many years.
I have been in touch with a lacrosse coach that my son met at a camp. He is encouraging but hasn’t mentioned anything about grades. When do they ask for those? Or are grades less important for athletes?? He has been very encouraging so far.
Hi everyone,
I’d be happy to answer any questions or chat about boarding schools. I spent almost a year researching and talking to people at boarding schools and I learned a lot of new things!
If you are interested in buying the book, it is on Amazon, but it is also available in many libraries across the country. If you library doesn’t have a copy, they may buy one if you make a request.
I bought the book on Amazon and was surprised by some of the information, which was different from our experience applying to schools. For instance, you wrote that accepted applicants have until May 1 to respond to their March 10 offers. (This is on p. 20 of the Kindle version.) All of our responses were due on April 10–not May 1. You may want to clarify.
Another example, which is less straightforward, you wrote that schools will often have B teams or third teams so that every student who is interested can participate in a sport. Our experience was that for the most competitive teams at a particular school, you either need to be varsity level or find a new sport. This was what we found with swimming at Peddie and Mercersburg.
Thanks for buying the book! I hope you found it helpful or interesting. I can explain about your two points:
As for the sports question, yes, my point was that boarding schools offer competitive, sometimes national level sports teams, (such as Peddie swimming) but they also offer a chance for everyone to play a sport. New athletes might be on JV track, JV softball, or a thirds soccer, or they may try rowing for the first time or mountain biking, etc. For many kids, boarding school is their first chance to play on a high school team and it is a great selling point for some families.
There are competitive sports teams, such as ice hockey, that do offer thirds teams, but you are correct that it’s not every sport that offers a thirds team or a path through JV. For a serious swimmer who doesn’t make varsity at a top program— I agree that is a disappointment and something to consider when evaluating schools and swim programs. For elite athletes, it is important to evaluate their training or club sport options at home, as well as the opportunity at boarding school. I included a chapter with information on some of the top athletic programs by sport.
About the reply date-- I do mention the April 10 reply date in many places throughout the book, but I see the page you pointed out which says May 1. There is a group of schools, primarily the lower cost schools, which have a later timeline. But yes, you are correct that most of the boarding schools do have the April 10 reply date. Although it’s also important to keep in mind that many schools are still accepting applications well into the summer, so there is no universal reply date.
I hope your son or daughter is enjoying boarding school!
@GoldenWarrior, that’s great that your son has had some attention from the lacrosse coach. It can be meaningful and helpful in the admissions process. Yes, grades are still important and your son will go through the same application process as all applicants.
How important is the SSAT? I’m trying to decide if it is really worth it to spend a lot of time and money prepping for it when it seems like a lot of schools don’t require it.
That’s a good question, but the answer depends on which schools are on your list, how your grades are, what your standardized testing usually looks like. So it’s hard for me to say! You are correct that many schools don’t require the SSAT/ISEE, so you could apply only these schools and not take the test. But most students do end up taking the SSAT/ISEE, to keep their options open and to have the chance of enhancing their profile by submitting a strong test score.
Now that the boarding school admissions season is here, I wanted to offer a few tips and ask if anyone has questions for me.
Tip 1: If you are concerned about the cost of boarding schools, consider lower cost schools such as Florida Prep or Oak Hill, or apply for a full ride scholarship at Baylor, Cranbrook, or one of the other schools that offer this level of aid. (see chapter 5 of my book for more tuition savings ideas)
Tip 2: If you are an athlete, be sure to contact the coach early in the admissions process. This can be done through an online recruiting form on the school’s athletic page, or by emailing the coach. This connection could lead to an in-person meeting when you visit campus or it may lead to coach to advocate for you in the admissions process. (see chapter 9 for information on athletic recruiting at boarding schools)
I just want to offer a different perspective on Tip 1 –
My strong suggestion to future parents would be to look deeply into schools that offer strong (need-based) FA as well as schools that offer even a handful of merit scholarships. While going to a lower-tuition school might save 20k a year from the sticker price, I’m not quite sure that always translates into a lower cost after FA/merit options.
Again, not saying that 20k is nothing – it is a LOT to save! and if you are paying sticker price everywhere, then of course…a lower tuition school is great to add into the mix. But well-endowed boarding schools very easily give out 20k (and often a lot more) to students with financial need. I feel like seeking out “the cheapest boarding school” as the first money-saving approach to save that 20k is a little like the tail wagging the dog. Of course, could a less expensive BS be a great fit for a student? yes! keep options open! But families looking for financial aid might get more mileage for their time and energy by focusing on finding the schools where the student really fits and brings a lot to the table. Boarding schools really do try to bring in students they want to join their community and many work with families to find an affordable solution. Unlike college FA, boarding school FA is often very generous and even though it is need-based, it is definitely a small enough world where they will absolutely go above and beyond to bring in a strong-fit student they want to see on campus. And then of course, some schools also have merit based awards that are definitely also worth considering!
Yes, I agree that if a family qualifies for FA, then the traditional schools are probably the best option. But there are many families who are price conscious, but still won’t qualify for aid. International families, for example, often find it challenging to get financial aid and they find the lower cost schools to be a great option.
I have heard from financial aid officers that a greater percentage of applicants are asking for aid now. Everyone is being pinched, in a sense, and it’s important for families to consider all options if they need help with the cost of boarding schools. Hopefully discussions on CC will give families insight into the FA process, FA chances, FA opportunities,etc. If I can help anyone, feel free to respond.
One thing to consider is the size of the endowment per student. Those schools with large endowments tend to have better aid. In extreme cases (Exeter, Groton, etc.), they can do need-blind admissions.
If you want to really get into the weeds, you can look at how much they spend per student after give out financial aid. That can indicate the amount of resources that go to educating each student. For example, Exeter spends over (I estimate) $125,000 per student (tuition + endowment distributions (~5%) - financial aid). So, even if you are paying full price, you are getting more than you are paying for. That comes from the generosity of prior generations.
Hopefully, today’s students will participate in funding their schools for later generations.
My book has a chapter on scholarships and financial aid and includes a list of schools that give merit scholarships. One example is Culver, in Indiana, which has full tuition scholarships.
@Kristin_White, which schools have the highest endowments per student? Some schools have large endowments, but also have to spread them across a lot of students. Thanks!