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Applying To Schools: Is It Too Late?
Can you get your children into private school well after the admissions deadlines have passed? The answer is a guarded "Yes!"

Your husband has just called to say that he got the promotion. The increase in responsibilities and money makes the move exciting. But it's July. And you will be relocating across the country. What are you going to do about the children's schooling? They have just finished 8th and 10th grade in the local public schools, which are in a really fine district. It's too late to apply to a private school, right?

This scenario gets played out in thousands of households all over the globe. If your spouse works for a multinational firm, chances are that he will have to spend some time abroad. It's also certain that your children will have to move in the middle of an academic year. Business never seems to pay heed to school calendars. Business is business and has a mind of its own.

This video discusses dealing with missed deadlines.

So, is it too late to get your children into a private school? Absolutely not. And, frankly, if you have any idea that future moves may be in the offing, you need to consider seriously settling your children into boarding school. The stability of boarding school will help insulate your children from the stress and strain of moving.

Admissions After the Deadlines

Truthfully you will probably not be able to get your children into one of the very selective, highly competitive boarding schools UNLESS you or your

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Boarding School FAQs

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Boarding School FAQs
Read frequently asked questions on a range of boarding school related topics.

By Barbara Kennedy - Director of External Affairs, Baylor School/

Question 1

Boarding school seems expensive. My parents' combined income is less than $90,000 a year. I am the oldest of three children. I have had a GPA of 3.9 through middle school and 9th grade. I play intramural soccer, had the lead in the spring musical last year, and want to be a physicist. Should I even consider going to a boarding school?

Paying for a boarding school education does require some planning, but it can be manageable, and the investment is invaluable. When considering the cost of boarding school, it is essential to know that need-based financial aid based on a family's income and assets is available at most schools. For example, last year, Baylor School awarded more than $2 million in financial aid. Other schools, including Baylor, offer other merit scholarships as well. Most schools offer monthly payment plans (administered by the school or an outside agency), allowing families to spread their tuition payments over eight to ten months.

This brief video explains how one private school's financial aid program works.

One helpful resource is the School and Student Service for Financial Aid, a service of the National Association of Independent Schools, which objectively assesses a family's ability to contribute to their child's educational costs. You can access the forms needed to apply for financial aid from their

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10 Things You Must Not Forget When Applying

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10 Things You Must Not Forget When Applying
There's a lot involved in selecting the right boarding school. Don't forget these ten important things when you apply.

As you begin the process of selecting a boarding school for your child, consider the following ten items.

1. Submit your application before the deadline.

Waiting until the last minute to apply is never a good idea. Ensure your child's admissions folder is completed well before the deadline. Admissions staff are intrinsically well-organized and detail-oriented. They will appreciate the care and concern that you have shown to complete the file as soon as you can. After all, they can only begin their review process once the file is complete. If a school does not have a fixed admissions deadline but instead uses rolling admissions, the same rules of the road apply. Submit your application and all the supporting materials as soon as possible.

2. Give recommendation forms to your child's teachers early.

Don't hand the teacher recommendation forms to the teachers the week before they are due. That's discourteous. Don't forget to put a stamp on all the return envelopes. Teachers will appreciate your thoughtfulness. Recommendation forms take time and care to complete. Give your child's teachers as much time as you possibly can to accomplish this task.

While this video pertains to the college admissions process, its information is relevant to private school admissions.



3. Schedule testing a month or more before the deadlines.

While you can schedule testing at the last minute and sometimes even do walk-ins, last-minute test registration is not recommended unless you have

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Parent Perspective: Words of Wisdom for the Reluctant Parent

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Parent Perspective: Words of Wisdom for the Reluctant Parent
A parent shares her journey from reluctance to appreciation as her son attends Blair Academy. Discover the myths and realities of boarding school life and the unexpected benefits it brings to both students and parents.

By Shari Bunks Geller, parent of Blair Academy alumni

I survey my son's room. High school graduation is just two weeks away. College is no longer on the horizon but our next step forward. I am looking to see what he will need to take with him and what he will leave behind. Looking around his room, I am keenly aware of how our world has expanded more than we could have imagined just four years ago when we applied Michael to high school. Boarding school was consciously not on our radar when we began our high school search.

At the start of his eighth-grade year, our son said he would like to apply to boarding school. My husband and I seriously discussed boarding school as an option. We both attended good public schools growing up. We had decided against our public high school as an option for our four children and were committed to sending them to an independent day school. While neither my husband nor I came from families with a boarding school culture, we had many friends whose children attended boarding schools across the country. We have frequently cautioned that once a child visits a boarding school, all-day schools will pale in comparison. The facilities, the campus, and the notion of a different level of independence are alluring to a fourteen-year-old. Although our conversation was serious, we quickly agreed that we would not consider boarding school.

We investigated our local day schools. We toured,

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Gifts for the Boarding School Graduate

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Gifts for the Boarding School Graduate
May is the month for private school graduations. Boarding school graduation is an especially poignant occasion. Why not mark it with a special gift?

Chances are that if you went off to boarding school for three or four years, May is a very special month. AP exams are over. IB work is complete. You probably have your college acceptances in hand. Finally, you can focus on graduation and leaving the school which has been your home away from home for these past several years.

You will most certainly receive graduation gifts to mark this very special occasion. With that in mind here are some suggestions which you might want to email to that favorite aunt or uncle. You know that mother and father will give you something special to commemorate your achievements. So I will leave the pens, watches, and pendants off this list. To make things even easier, copy and paste the suggestions below in an email to your favorite relatives and family friends.

A Tablet

There's a tablet for every budget. These lightweight, portable devices allow you to do just about anything your graduate needs to do. Watch movies? Listen to videos? Play a game? Shop? She can do all that and so much more. Best of all, she can store all of her sensitive files such as term papers, applications, etc., in the cloud. Tip: read the reviews of the models you are considering, unless, of course, your graduate has specified a particular brand and/or model.

This video offers a review of a poplar tablet.

A

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