by NYC Private Schools on January 24, 2010
A tour of your child’s potential NYC Private Schools can give you the opportunity to stand apart from the rest of the application crowd, in every way possible. You can make a wonderful and lasting impression of your self and your family, or you can make a very bad and unfortunately lasting impression of your self and your family. It is easier to do both if the tour is small or private, but there is always a few in every crowd, too.
Private School Touring Tips: The 4 Ps
Putting the P in Private: Many schools will state the tour if for adults only and this explicitly means that your child, even the one applying, should not attend that specific tour. If a school does not state that the tour is adults only, than it can be assumed that your child(ren) are welcome. The common consensus is that most parents appreciate the time to get a good look at the school without the added distraction of someone else’s child.
Be Present, Be Polite, Be Positive! Focus on the tour, not on your blackberry or current state of your Mother-in-Law’s mind. Be gracious and kind to others on your tour. If you are on a Private Tour, be polite and do not bad mouth other parents, children or schools. You never know who may be friends with the very people that you don’t have anything nice to say about. In addition, never, ever make derogatory remarks about another school to anyone during the tour, not to a fellow parent or any school administrator.
by NYC Private Schools on January 18, 2010
The end of January is a time of waiting for the many parents with children applying to NYC Private Schools. After dotting all the Is and crossing all the Ts there is little else to do other than wait for the upcoming wave of acceptance letters. Of course, there is also the wave of rejection letters and much dreaded wait-listed letter that leaves you in a state of Private School Limbo.
Application Complete
Once you have made sure that your child’s application is complete and you and your child have successfully navigated the open houses, interviews and tests, you can begin to really ponder what it means to wait.
Remember that stellar test scores and transcripts do not directly translate to an undulating wave of acceptance letters. Private schools and prospective students are successful when they find a good match within each other. This match, or lack of one, is usually the deciding factor if all other results such as test scores were highly desirable. A “good match” is a pretty subjective idea, and so without a concrete assigned numerical value attached to it, like the value that accompanies test scores, the matching scenario can be a struggle to comprehend. There are no guarantees.
If you and your child have made the knowledgeable decision to apply to multiple NYC Private Schools then you have increased the likelihood of your child finding that right Private School Match. While some schools may decline your child’s application, by looking at a number of schools that share your family’s educational philosophy your child has a greater chance of being matched with the school that will further his or her education and future.