This year, we have been receiving calls from devastated parents who had applied to top private schools and are now discovering that their children on the “forever” wait-list or rejected. There have been increased calls from U.S. as well as international parents.
We have received calls from families have received “forever” wait-listed and rejection letters from top boarding schools: Andover, Exeter, St. Paul’s, Lawrenceville, Deerfield, Choate, Loomis Chaffee, Hotchkiss, Taft, Kent to name a few. We also heard from parents who applied to the Westchester/Fairfield County schools: Rye County Day, Hackley, Greenwich Academy, Brunswick, Masters; the Manhattan elite schools: Dalton, Horace Mann, Trinity, Collegiate, Chapin, Brearley, Packer, Columbia and Riverdale.
So what’s causing the increased number of families on to be “forever” wait-listed or rejected from top private schools:
- Parents whose children are in public schools are increasingly applying to private schools
- Parents are finally realizing that top private high schools send the greatest percentage of students to the Ivies.
- More parents are viewing the relationship between wealth and education.
- More international families are applying to top boarding schools.
- Parents continue to make mistakes on private school applications.
When parents call our offices, the first question we ask: Did you hire an educational consultant? The answer is usually “no”. The second question: Did you hire a consultant whose expertise and specialty is placing students into elite private schools? The answer is always “no”. Third question: Did you hire a consultant who visits elite private schools and understand the specific admissions policy of each school? The answer is always “no”.
I don’t have the time, the professional experience or expertise to figure out how to do my own taxes correctly, so I pay a top accounting firm for expert advice and counsel and to assist me in filling out and filing tax forms. I prefer to engage a specialist. I certainly don’t hire a math teacher or a plumber to do my taxes. To me, it’s a question of your priorities. It’s simply a choice whether to give your child a competitive advantage so that he/she will not be “forever” wait-listed or rejected.
This year, eight of our clients each received acceptances from Andover, Exeter and Choate. Three of our clients who applied to the ten schools were accepted to all ten. All of our international clients were accepted to their top choice boarding schools, including, Andover, Choate and Lawrenceville. We must be doing something right!
“Admissions is a competitive sport! Why gamble with uncertainty?” – Dr. Paul Lowe
Dr. Paul Reginald Lowe is the managing director and lead admissions expert at Pinnacle Educational Center Admissions Advisors Group’s Private School Admissions Advisors. Dr. Lowe specializes in providing exclusive concierge-type admissions advisory services for U.S. and international students who are interested in applying to top U.S. boarding and day schools. Dr. Lowe helps U.S. and international students gain admissions into top U.S. private schools even after they have been wait-listed and rejected. Dr. Lowe and his team of admissions advisors also visit prestigious and elite private schools, where they have the unique opportunity of interacting one-on-one with heads of schools, directors of admissions and senior admissions personnel. Dr. Lowe provides parents with the knowledge they need to decide where there children should attend and the admissions strategies they need to be admitted into their top-choice school.
Dr. Paul Lowe - Admissions Expert 