In America, boarding schools carry with them a stigma. They are associated with punishments and threats to bad children. But the fact is that, boarding schools are often college prep institutes and greatly benefit the children who attend.
The Truth About Boarding School
All boarding schools are not the same. While some schools are just made to be long term boarding schools, often found in the U.K. or Europe, many in America are college preparatory high schools. They give students the upper hand when preparing for the college work loads and the separation anxiety. Many include a post graduate year as well if students have already graduated from high school and need another year to prep for college.
Boarding at these preparatory schools is not a punishment. Many times an entrance exam, like the SSAT, is required in order to apply and be successfully admitted into the school. The Princeton Review does a SSAT course, in order for applicants to successfully pass the exam. College preparatory schools are a privilege that needs to be earned. Not a place that parents send children that they can not deal with.
Problems With Boarding School
Boarding school is not for everyone. That is why many college prep schools also offer a day student option. This means that students can also attend the schools as a regular high school, coming and going everyday. Many kids as young as 12 or 13 can not cope with being away from their families at such a young age, so this option is often open to switch to if they find that boarding is too much for them.
Other problems that are associated with these schools are the astronomic prices and the reduced amount of supervision. While many boarding schools now cost almost the same amount as some colleges, financial aid is offered to families who cannot afford the tuition and scholarship are also offered to students who are elected to them.
The problem with lack of supervision is often not really a problem. All dorms have dorm supervisors that keep track of the students at all times. They know that they are in at night and when they sign out of the campus. In all fairness, students are not any more or less supervised at boarding school by adults then they would be with parents who work full days.
Benefits of Boarding School
The benefits of a college prep school far out weight the problems to those students who find the atmosphere for them. Living at school at such a young age creates a community with very strong bonds. Teachers are there to guide, look after, and give advice to all students. The support students give each other also gives them bonds that last a life time.
School work, like many things, will give the results that the student’s effort deserves. The opportunity is what each student makes of it. If every opportunity is seized and worked on to the best of the student’s ability, then the positive results that a prep school can offer are very important. The college counseling offices and teachers expect students to strive for and expect the best. While not everyone gets into Harvard or Yale, most students find themselves attending universities with very good reputations.
These kinds of schools are designed to give students the best experiences that they can offer. As a result, a student might receive better opportunities if attending a college preparatory school then a regular town high school. This is often because of the large endowments and alumni support that these institutions have. It allows them to afford the best opportunities for their students and therefore prepares them for not just lots of school work, but also lots of life experiences.
Deciding on Boarding School
While boarding school is an amazing opportunity, there are also the set backs. What students need to consider when applying is, what they are looking for, what kind of places would benefit them, are they mature enough to be away from home, and what they want out of life.
This might seem like a lot of questions, but in order to apply to prep schools, these questions will need to be answered anyway in the application to some extent. It is important to remember that, though it might sound exciting it isn’t for everyone. The term of the "boarding school survivor" is true in a way, because the "survivor" managed, at a young age, to thrive and excel in a competitive arena.
Going to a college preparatory boarding school should be based on one decision. Is it the best fit for what the student wants to do in life? To make that decision easier, the Boarding School Review is an online tool that compares several boarding schools and the Princeton Review also has a guide to college preparatory schools.
Boarding school is a once in a life time experience and an amazing one. Choosing which one and if it is best, is a hard decision, but in the end, when those college applications need to be filled out, it’ll be worth it.
