Im currently thinking of applying to Choate, SPS, PEA/PA, Groton, Deerfield, Cate
I know Cate is different in being west coast
PEA Choate good STEM? Can’t rly tell from websites?
How do I know if I will fit in better at a larger or smaller school.
They all have good STEM. You can look at the various opportunities at each school to see if something really excites you, especially on the EC side, or in the ability to do a special project. But remember, this is high school. You will need to take a lot of everything, so it’s not like college where you may be taking 2 or 3 courses in your major every semester at the expense of everything else.
In general, at a smaller school, you will be expected to be more involved in different activities. At a larger school, there may be more specialization. But again, even the largest of these is not so big. It’s relative. When you visit, pay attention to the vibe. Many kids know immediately that one place is for them. Or not.
So what kind of kids would do better in a specialization school? @gardenstategal
Gonna speak of what I know of Choate- Choate has an amazing STEM program in both science and the more engineering/math areas. They have their huge and really nice environmental building, which I don’t know much about cause I’m not into that sort of science. I toured the Lanphier Center, which is Choate’s computer science/engineering and math building, and it was super nice. Lots of variety of courses. A really nice Maker Space. Beautiful robotics lab, and Choate has a world-class robotics team.
Also looking through the course catalogue and speaking to Choate students, they have a wide variety of rigorous STEM courses. I can’t speak for the other schools but Choate’s STEM is top-notch.
I fully agree with what has been said. Choate is awesome. And so are all the other schools on your list. So going to visit and getting a feel for the vibe is helpful for deciding your preference rank among them (and maybe ruling a couple out). You’ll do revisits of the ones you gain acceptance to, and you’ll refine your preferences then (quite a bit!).
When we were looking at that highly selective tier, we visited a few more schools and then dropped some where we didn’t like the vibe. You might add a couple hidden gem schools, where the acceptance rate is a little higher, but the quality of education is the same (might even have a culture that fits you better, who knows).
All the schools that are frequently mentioned on this board will provide an excellent prep for a strong STEM student. Quality of STEM education really will not be a differentiating factor. [My kids went to top STEM PhD production colleges from a hidden(ish) gem prep school].
Hard to generalize about how size will affect things, because cultural fit is a more significant variable in your happiness and connectedness.
My first kid thought she wanted a large school (thinking more options to find friends), but she found a small school that was a great fit for her, and i think she had more friends and connections because it was a great cultural fit. A good small school can be more intimate and connected… large schools necessarily break into smaller communities (you don’t know everyone, you know the kids in your sport, clubs, etc).
Many people advise putting a couple big and a couple small early in your search to see if you have a preference.
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@seekers what hiddenish school was that?
@seekers does my list look ok for a few big and small?
@badminton4life What field of STEM are you looking at?
St. Andrew’s School, DE. Great education, fantastic culture, 13/10. can’t recommend highly enough.
it’s a great mix of schools. a little heavy on the big ones, but groton is a great example of the small so visit it early.
@seekers I am not visiting Choate and Cate, I have seen Groton 2 years ago and will visist PA/PAE Deerfield and SPS. Will I still have an equal chance and a good enough feeling from websites for the school I do not have an on campus tour and interview?
@CavsFan2003 mostly robotics, but also looking into trying software engineering, mostly im doing mechanical and robotic engineering right now
@seekers what do you mean by cultural fit? The way the kids act? Friendliness? Diversity?
@badminton4life Have you thought about schools like St. Mark’s and Loomis Chaffee? I know SMS has one of the best robotics programs on the planet. Loomis has a cool innovation lab- when I visited, some kids were working on virtual reality stuff. Also Choate is fantastic for robotics, as I said before. 
It’s fine to not visit if you can’t manage it…
For most kids, they only get into a couple choices out of a highly selective list like that.
Then, as i said, you’ll do revisits (or initial visit in some cases) and you will get a great, detailed look at the place.
‘Fit’ is kind of different for everyone… it varies based on what is important to you. But absolutely friendliness and diversity can be a big part of that. Also level of competitiveness, stress, inclusivity, academic passion, athleticism, honor, and ethos. There really are cultural differences, and you can often get a quick read… the deeper confirmation of it comes from visit back days.
ChoatieKid took a robotics course freshman year and then never had enough time or room in his schedule for more. However, as a graduating electrical engineer, he is somewhat of a robotics expert now. Unless you attend a magnet school, you will not specialize in high school; that’s for college. I would not choose a boarding school for a “specialty.”
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It depends on what one plans to do after HS. I would certainly look at a school’s strengths. That said, I’m sure all of the schools listed by the OP are strong in STEM, and I would certainly not eliminate any of them from an application based on that criteria. For a student looking at HYPSM, or similar, none of those colleges expects (or necessarily wants) kids to specialize in HS; that’s why we have grad schools. Certainly for the schools the OP is targeting, while they are all boarding schools, they are first and foremost, prep schools - prep being the operative term.
Now if a hypothetical student were looking for colleges for a BFA in musical theatre like, CMU, Mich, etc., then I would certainly look for a BS like Interlochen that specializes.
But back to best STEM. The question is really moot until one is deciding amongst one’s acceptances, since some schools will make the decision for you. And unless one is taking Calc BC as a freshman, which will eliminate some schools, all will likely provide a strong STEM experience.
Look at the courses offered to see if they offer some STEM courses and higher level math, if you think that applies to your child (ie, whether they would be eligible to take the higher math). Good signs are programming classes, robotics classes/team, maker space, new science/math/computing labs etc.
Things to consider for STEM kids:
- Does the school have advanced math classes? Ok, what if you are on track to finish BC Calc before 12th grade. What happens? What if you are done with all the classes? Do they let you do independent study? Who runs it? What is the background of the person? How many kids do this per year? Are any of these kids from the US ( this question is only important as it’s more about highly gifted kids versus other cultures which are a few years ahead of the US system for regular kids.
- Does the school have an internship Summer program? How many spots? In which fields? How do students get selected?
- Can a kid double up in science or math? Why or why not? How many kids do this? What challenges does this present?
- Robotics: Have they won a national championship? World championship? How old are the kids on the team ( grade)-this is critical as you need a mix of Ju who runs the program? Does it run every year or only if there is interest. ( Same questions apply for math competitions). DOUBLE check here. Having a program once is different than a team which has won year after year.
- What % of kids go on to engineering or math programs? There are some surprises out there.
- What do the STEM buildings look like? Bring someone who studied STEM in college. Make a list of questions. One school had a lab where kids could do independent studies related to science. Another was confined to the class but the teachers were pretty stellar. Personally, I think the buildings are less important than the teachers and curriculum. We saw some awesome buildings and fewer awesome programs.
- Geography: If you want to go into software or thing you might have an interest being in an area where that manifests is really important for knowledge transfer and even internships or visits. Likewise, if you want to be in medicine it’s better to be in Boston than Santa Fe. You shouldn’t limit yourself at this young age, but you can definitely find areas and schools which are really really strong and those that are just very good. Very good is probably fine to go anywhere. But if you know STEM is your passion than chose with care.
- Curriculum: Does the school force everyone to take the same math/science classes the first year/or two. Or do they allow choices from year 1. There were some with Earth science freshman year. My kiddo didn’t even consider these schools. Others have a marine biology or ask you to take a science then take the subject again as an AP.
While I do think that most highly rated schools are excellent in terms of STEM they are not even close to being equal if you are a real STEM kid. They ALL say they are good at Stem and they are. But if you are not the average STEM kid look under the covers. You will find some programs that are amazing and some that are enhanced but not outstanding.
I wouldn’t choose a school based on STEM offerings. You can evaluate buildings, lab equipment, and course offerings fairly objectively, but that doesn’t mean that you will develop your STEM potential to the fullest there. You might go farther in a school with less stellar offerings but a single wonderful teacher and mentor who takes an interest in you and helps you achieve more than you even imagined.
Pick a school where you will feel supported and encouraged even as you are challenged to achieve high standards. And with facullty that will support you in pursuing topics you are interested in, whether or not there is already a formal class on the topic…
@calimex Makes a good point. For the most part, you can do well STEM wise anywhere. But if your skills was being a great pianist or being a great lacrosse player you are likely going to go to a school with a reputable program beyond the norm. If you are a stellar football player for example and your school has a great team, that benefits you. For kids who specialize early, some schools attract certain types of coaches, experts and assistants. This can help you should you pursue whatever your craft is. It makes no sense for example to put a kid who is a math olympic kid into a class with a kid who is doing Alg I just as it makes no sense for a kid who can attend Juilliard to play matchsticks.
I’m of the opposite opinion though, having STEM kids and being told for years that it was good enough. Well you know what, it wasn’t and until my kiddo found an awesome group of like minded and highly skilled kids there just wasn’t enough challenge there. It was boring. All the time. The teachers were good enough. And the program was good enough. But it wasn’t stellar. And my kiddo wanted stellar in that department. I would do the same if my kiddo was a gifted musician or theater kid or what have you. Some kids don’t fully develop potential until college or even graduate school. But there are also kids who show gifts early. Many many kids with all kinds of gifts go to BS. They all should know that what they value is important. We need artists and social worker and math teachers and all the rest.
There’s a real interest at my kids school in STEM. Kids in the Admissions office mention it, they feel it, they know which direction they want to go into and they ask specific questions about specific things. I wouldn’t tell any of them that it’s not important. To them it is. Many have broad ideas that encompass what they want to do in STEM. I’d say go for it.
We learned a great lesson from kiddo #1. That is-don’t settle. Advocate for the things that are important to your kid and let them decide about what type of environment they think is best for them.