Category: Applications

Preparing for a Boarding School Interview?

Here’s a list of the top 10 questions most frequently asked during boarding school interviews. Proper preparation can help you ace your entrance interview. Let’s get started!

Baylor School (Chattanooga, Tennessee)

We rounded up some of our favorite boarding school students and asked them what they remembered from their entrance interviews. Use this list and our helpful admission tips to put yourself in position to nail your boarding school interview. Though each school has its own criteria, there are a few questions you can expect walking into any interview. Here are the top 10 boarding school interview questions.

Why are you pursuing a boarding school education?
Schools are going to be curious about what you’re looking to get out of a boarding education. Be prepared to explain how you think their particular school will enable you to achieve your goals.
What is the most important thing you can learn in school?
You may want to think outside the box about this one. Yes, academics are critical to educational success, but what else? How can boarding school prepare you, completely, for future success?
What is your current school like? What do you like about it and what would you change?
Showing that you’re invested in your education, wherever it is, demonstrates the kind of dedication for which boarding schools are looking. Be honest and let them know what you value.
Describe your personal strengths and weaknesses.
This is a question you’ll hear time and time again throughout your adult life. From boarding schools to potential employers, people are always curious about your levels of self-awareness.
Are you involved with extracurricular activities?
Chances are, if you’re pursuing boarding school, you’re an active and engaged individual! From athletics and the arts to more niche hobbies, it’s important to show how you spend your time and that you’re skilled at managing it.
Tell us about an accomplishment that has made you feel especially proud.
This can certainly be academic-related, but it doesn’t have to be. Perhaps you’ve coordinated a fundraising or volunteer effort, written your own music, or helped a family member in need—the important thing here is passion.
Tell us about a time where you’ve demonstrated leadership.
Again, this is a great opportunity to showcase how you are able to take initiative whether in the classroom, on the field, or in a lab. Boarding school is a place where leaders are created, show them your potential.
What do you think you might study in college?
You may not know, and that’s okay. This question is more to show that you’ve at least considered what your future may look like and what might like to learn. Don’t dwell on the details, but be sure to have some aspirations to share.
Tell us about your family and personal life.
Just as important as your education and future goals, boarding schools want to see a well-rounded person who values community. This is a chance to show your personality and talk about people and places that are important to you.
What questions do you have for us?
And you better have some! This will show that you’ve done the research and have a point-of-view about your educational future. They will want to see that you have your own criteria for success.

As you read through these and begin to brainstorm, remember, there is no right or wrong answer to any of these. Rather, focus on how your responses can highlight all of the aspects of your personality and habits that make you a prime candidate for their school.

Whether you’re interviewing for a school soon or just starting to explore your options, we’re dedicated to helping you find the right boarding school. Visit us at readyformore.com/students to learn more.

Tags admissions, Questions, students

Applications

Where You Should Be in the Application Process by Mid-December

Post author By
Post date September 13, 2017

Stay On Track

Each school has its own application process and financial aid deadlines. Stay organized with our checklist.

The traditional application deadline is about a month away. Again, know your admission application and financial aid application deadlines. Deadlines could be anywhere from January 10, January 15, February 1, or rolling admission. Each school has its own admission and financial aid application deadlines. Make sure you know them. Have them in writing, or, in a spreadsheet.

Make sure you’ve narrowed your school list to a reasonable number.
Each school should be a good fit for your student – a great place for your child to grow and learn.
If you require a substantial financial aid package to make attendance possible, make sure your student is in the stronger end of the school’s applicant pool.
Make sure you’re keeping track of what each school requires for a complete application – a completed application, transcripts, teacher recommendations, writing samples/essays, parent essay, portfolio, etc.
Update and organize your files. Know what you’ve submitted to each school and what you still need to finish. Many schools provide a checklist as part of their application material. These are really helpful tools, and following these guides can give a picture of exactly what you need to do for each school. If your school doesn’t provide an admission application check sheet, make one.
Take the SSAT if you still need to, or a second test if it might improve your score. You may need to take a Flex SSAT administration if you’ve waited until now to take the exam.
Make sure that you know how your school wants application pieces submitted – and by what dates. Schools may accept some pieces of your application at a later date.
Make sure that your recommending teachers have their directions and/or forms in hand, and that they know how to submit them to your schools. Ask them if they have any questions, or need anything from you.
Complete and submit your applications ahead of the deadlines.
If you have any questions, this is a great time to call the admission officer working with you and ask.
Talk with private school friends at home on break, especially if you have friends or family members attending any of your potential schools. This is a great way to get a feel for schools – for both students and parents.

Applications

Applying to Private Schools After The Deadline

Post author By
Post date September 13, 2017

Past The Deadline? It May Not Be Too Late

When your school plan changes, you need to know what’s available. Consider that many boarding schools will still have room even past the posted application deadline.

As a family, choosing an independent school for the coming fall may not have been in your plans when the school year began, but circumstances change and needs change with them. This time of year, you may be thinking about a school change.

While it is true that the most selective schools are full and have only waiting lists by the spring time, many good schools will have openings.

Moving, family dynamics, a need for a more personal , challenging or structured academic environment can lead to considering a boarding or independent day school for the coming fall.

If you are considering a late spring-early summer school change, relax. The first thing to keep in mind is that you will have options. You are not alone, nor the first to work through this process. While it is true that the most selective schools are full and have only waiting lists by the spring time, many good schools have openings, and as a result, they offer rolling admission programs throughout the summer.

Schools with Available Spaces

If you’ve already checked our School Finder list and can’t find schools with openings beyond the typical deadlines, SSATB (Secondary School Admission Test Board) publishes a list of private schools that have post-deadline openings. Visit www.ssat.org/member-search and look for Schools Currently Considering Applicants (SCCA) to find links to schools with openings.

Financial Aid Realities for the Late Applicant
Before embarking on the late application process, families need to know a blunt fact. At almost every school, financial aid is not available to late applicants. Financial aid deadlines are firm and aid was awarded earlier in the school year. If you need aid, check with each school you are interested in prior to completing an admission application.

How to Begin the Search?
How does a family arriving late to the admission process approach a late spring or summer application?

Process is key.

As we explain, the usual and systematic approach for the late applicant-albeit with compressed and accelerated steps -works best. Before beginning the application process, ask yourself these questions:

Can we, as a family, work through this process successfully and comfortably on our own?
Can we reasonably complete each step and will we have enough information to make good decisions?
Are we comfortable with the process from beginning to end?

Families familiar with independent schools may answer “yes” to all of these preliminary questions.

Short Notice Application Resources
However, even for a family familiar with private schools, a compressed admission time frame presents challenges.
Do we have time to learn about each school?
Can we build a complete picture of our child quickly?
How can we focus on schools that will be appropriate places for our child?
We don’t have time to waste.

Begin by reading Mastering the Private School Admissions Process, which provides a reference backbone for the application process.

Admission Testing
Admission tests will be a required part of any admission application. You will need to check with each admission office as to which test the school requires and when they want you to take the required exam(s).

The SSAT (Secondary Schools Admission Test) and the ISEE (Independent School Entrance Exam) are the two primary entrance exams. Each test’s respective web site provides the most up-to-date information regarding testing dates and fees. Access them here:

SSAT: https://ssat.org/
ISEE: https://www.erblearn.org/parents/admissions-testing-isee

Keep in mind that in a pinch, the testing companies may offer non-standard test administration – meaning that you can take the test privately, on short notice, to facilitate a compressed or fast moving admission timeline. Preparation for your test is key. Each test offers preparation materials for sale on their web sites. By all means, purchase a test prep guide to practice the exams.

Additionally, many reputable private testing and tutoring services offer classes and/or curricula designed to prepare students and improve their test scores. Time permitting, these services are worth exploring.

Schools for students with learning differences or special needs may require additional educational testing such as the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC) and or the Woodcock Johnson Test for Cognitive Abilities (WJIII). In these situations, the school’s Admission Office will make the requirement clear. However, as a family, you can be preemptive and ask about the testing requirements early in the process.

Consider an Educational Consultant
Families new to the independent school world, as well as those not completely comfortable with their ability to assess their child, should consider working with an educational consultant. A professional educational consultant can help a family with all phases of student assessment and school planning. Consultant services are not inexpensive, but they can prove crucial when time is of the essence.

We recommend starting your consultant search by visiting our Educational Consultant partners.

Working Through a Compressed Application Period
Whether working independently or with an educational consultant, using our admission process framework can help you systematically address each step in the application process.

The following is a compressed version of our Admission Timeline:

1. Know your child and your family. Schools may ask about your late arrival to the admission cycle. Be honest if asked.
2. Have student information such as grades, test scores and report cards ready for submission.
3. Build a profile of your child. In what type of school might your child have the greatest chance of success? What types of schools and activities interest your son or daughter?
4. Consider an academic summer program or another type of growth program to strengthen candidacy and to demonstrate seriousness. A summer boarding experience can introduce and prepare a student for school in the fall.
5. Contact schools that look like good fits. Ask the admission officers about “school fits” and their opinions in relation to your child’s academic and personal profile. If not their school, can the office make any suggestions?
6. Contact recommendation authors (teachers, school administrators, etc.) Ask each to thoughtfully complete a recommendation. Prepare transcript requests.
7. Schedule campus visits and interviews.
8. Complete applications and essays. Submit the applications. Follow submitted applications with telephone calls to confirm that each school has all required information.

Even though a compressed time frame accelerates events and decisions, do not shortchange your analysis and information. Examine each step carefully and move forward with deliberation.

Through all of the steps, use admission officers, teachers, administrators and if using one, your educational consultant as resources. These professionals can help you make good decisions you move through the process.

Pitfalls – Issues and Actions That Can Jeopardize Your Child’s Admission Process

Dismissal from the previous school – admission officers will want to know why. In this case, a parent should be ready to present a compelling, honest story and be prepared for the new school to call the previous school for their perspective on what occurred.

A student and family shopping for a better offer – admission officers and schools do not look kindly at a family currently enrolled in one school but shopping for another. If in this position, make sure that you can explain your situation and reasons for looking elsewhere.
Admissions directors and their schools make a commitment to each family and student accepted. They expect and deserve a similar commitment from each family and student.

Overreaching – insisting on applying to the most popular, most selective schools so late in the process is a fool’s game. Only the most supremely, multi-talented students should even endeavor into this area. And, even then, the probability of a best-fit, positive outcome is low.

Most importantly, slowing down your admission process with the folly of an unrealistic application could cause you to lose a great opportunity at another school.

Best School Fit
Keep in mind that, as a parent, you’re not looking for the ‘best’ school. You’re looking for the school that best fits your child – the school that can meet your son or daughter in terms of who he/she is and help him/her grow the furthest and fastest.

Success results from programs that truly fit a student’s individual interests and abilities and thereby encourage best effort to be put forward.

Applications

Applying Late to Boarding School

Post author By
Post date September 13, 2017

Many Schools May Still Have Openings

If you’re researching boarding schools well after the application deadline, don’t stress. Many wonderful options may still be available.

Applying late to boarding school can be a stressful endeavor. Our advice – relax, breathe and create a plan. Even with uncertainty about space availability, you quite possibly may have several options. While it is true that the most selective schools will be full and have only waiting lists by spring time, many good schools will still have openings.

Explore our School Finder Tool to learn about all the different boarding schools there are. Once you’ve combed through our website and visited each school profile, we can point you to one more resource to help you narrow your search, especially if time is tight.

SSAT is the Secondary School Admissions Test provided by the Enrollment Management Association. They update their Open Seat List of schools dynamically, so be sure to check it out regularly to see which schools have openings this fall, or the following winter/spring semester. This feature is found within their school search tool in the left hand column.