Bullis, SSFS or SAES.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Commute is a big deal in high school in my opinion. I live near Bullis and SAES, never considered SSFS.

I have a senior at SAES, and have been very happy academically. In hindsight, Bullis may have been a better fit socially. SAES seemed to get small quickly. I don’t think my child will look back with tons of fondness for their HS experience and will lose touch quickly with these friends. The college preparedness is really there though, and that’s worth a lot. The later start and short commute are major pluses as well.

Bullis was my child’s third choice and at the time, that seemed correct. I think Bullis has come a long way in a short time in terms of academics and reputation. We know a lot of happy families there. We also know many happy families at SAES.

Having said all that, and going through school choices multiple times, the kids know, that deserves a lot of weight, especially for HS. Take him to at least two of the admitted students events, point out things that he may not fully understand, and then trust his gut. I didn’t let my kids apply anywhere I would say no to.

We chose St. Andrew's over Bullis and regretted the decision. Our sons class at St. Andrew's was a disaster.

What year did you enter? What do you mean by disaster? Thx

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Commute is a big deal in high school in my opinion. I live near Bullis and SAES, never considered SSFS.

I have a senior at SAES, and have been very happy academically. In hindsight, Bullis may have been a better fit socially. SAES seemed to get small quickly. I don’t think my child will look back with tons of fondness for their HS experience and will lose touch quickly with these friends. The college preparedness is really there though, and that’s worth a lot. The later start and short commute are major pluses as well.

Bullis was my child’s third choice and at the time, that seemed correct. I think Bullis has come a long way in a short time in terms of academics and reputation. We know a lot of happy families there. We also know many happy families at SAES.

Having said all that, and going through school choices multiple times, the kids know, that deserves a lot of weight, especially for HS. Take him to at least two of the admitted students events, point out things that he may not fully understand, and then trust his gut. I didn’t let my kids apply anywhere I would say no to.

*year meaning "grade"

We chose St. Andrew's over Bullis and regretted the decision. Our sons class at St. Andrew's was a disaster.

What year did you enter? What do you mean by disaster? Thx

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Commute is a big deal in high school in my opinion. I live near Bullis and SAES, never considered SSFS.

I have a senior at SAES, and have been very happy academically. In hindsight, Bullis may have been a better fit socially. SAES seemed to get small quickly. I don’t think my child will look back with tons of fondness for their HS experience and will lose touch quickly with these friends. The college preparedness is really there though, and that’s worth a lot. The later start and short commute are major pluses as well.

Bullis was my child’s third choice and at the time, that seemed correct. I think Bullis has come a long way in a short time in terms of academics and reputation. We know a lot of happy families there. We also know many happy families at SAES.

Having said all that, and going through school choices multiple times, the kids know, that deserves a lot of weight, especially for HS. Take him to at least two of the admitted students events, point out things that he may not fully understand, and then trust his gut. I didn’t let my kids apply anywhere I would say no to.

*year meaning "grade"


We chose St. Andrew's over Bullis and regretted the decision. Our sons class at St. Andrew's was a disaster.

What year did you enter? What do you mean by disaster? Thx

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If your son prefers SSFS, go with that assuming commute is reasonable.

SSFS has several bus routes that make the commute much easier. It has been a blessing to not have to drive out there everyday. DC who joined for 9th grade loves it. I was not sure what to expect and was initially disappointed bc DC was waitlisted at SAES, but it is such a charming school with excellent teachers and good kids.

This. Our DC is in 9th at SSFS and could not be happier!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Commute is a big deal in high school in my opinion. I live near Bullis and SAES, never considered SSFS.

I have a senior at SAES, and have been very happy academically. In hindsight, Bullis may have been a better fit socially. SAES seemed to get small quickly. I don’t think my child will look back with tons of fondness for their HS experience and will lose touch quickly with these friends. The college preparedness is really there though, and that’s worth a lot. The later start and short commute are major pluses as well.

Bullis was my child’s third choice and at the time, that seemed correct. I think Bullis has come a long way in a short time in terms of academics and reputation. We know a lot of happy families there. We also know many happy families at SAES.

Having said all that, and going through school choices multiple times, the kids know, that deserves a lot of weight, especially for HS. Take him to at least two of the admitted students events, point out things that he may not fully understand, and then trust his gut. I didn’t let my kids apply anywhere I would say no to.

We chose St. Andrew's over Bullis and regretted the decision. Our sons class at St. Andrew's was a disaster.

We got into both, can you please elaborate?

[Anonymous]

We chose Bullis over SAES and have been very happy. Lots of friend choices, extremely committed and caring teachers, joyful environment. Perhaps we would’ve liked SAES too but it just seemed a little small and insular. For what it’s worth, in my DS’s grade, there are a few SAES kids who transferred from SAES, I believe for social reasons. Good luck with your choice!

[Anonymous]

It's your son who is going to school, not your DH. Barring something important and specific, your son's opinion and preferences should control, after all shadow days.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Would like to hear from families who sent their children to Bullis, SSFS or SAES. Upper school admit - having a hard time deciding which is best. Son wants SSFS and dad wants Bullis.

Either is good. Just not SAES.

The other two are heads an tails better.

SSfS is out in the middle of nowhere. Do which one you are closest to.

[Anonymous]

We are looking at these three schools as well (want co-ed, not Catholic), but are a couple years out from applying so just starting to research. Can anyone do a breakdown of how many kids are in each class/upper school total? We are coming from a small k-8 and would like something that is significantly larger (e.g. 90-150 kids per grade range).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Commute is a big deal in high school in my opinion. I live near Bullis and SAES, never considered SSFS.

I have a senior at SAES, and have been very happy academically. In hindsight, Bullis may have been a better fit socially. SAES seemed to get small quickly. I don’t think my child will look back with tons of fondness for their HS experience and will lose touch quickly with these friends. The college preparedness is really there though, and that’s worth a lot. The later start and short commute are major pluses as well.

Bullis was my child’s third choice and at the time, that seemed correct. I think Bullis has come a long way in a short time in terms of academics and reputation. We know a lot of happy families there. We also know many happy families at SAES.

Having said all that, and going through school choices multiple times, the kids know, that deserves a lot of weight, especially for HS. Take him to at least two of the admitted students events, point out things that he may not fully understand, and then trust his gut. I didn’t let my kids apply anywhere I would say no to.

We chose St. Andrew's over Bullis and regretted the decision. Our sons class at St. Andrew's was a disaster.

We got into both, can you please elaborate?

They are probably referring to the current sophomores. I also have a child who left that class. There have been threads about it/discussing it.

There were problem kids there before 9th grade, a few of them were asked to leave last year. When the new class formed in 9th grade (fall 2022), the mix was just off. Further dynamics escalated previous problems, and kids, like mine, were unhappy for other reasons, primarily social. Between the kids asked to leave and those who chose to leave, 12-15 (that I know of) are elsewhere this year.

Personally, I still recommend the school academically.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We are looking at these three schools as well (want co-ed, not Catholic), but are a couple years out from applying so just starting to research. Can anyone do a breakdown of how many kids are in each class/upper school total? We are coming from a small k-8 and would like something that is significantly larger (e.g. 90-150 kids per grade range).

The HS grades are, on average, 90 kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think it says something that the upper school head from SSFS is moving to Bullis…

She is moving to Bullis because that’s where she came from.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are looking at these three schools as well (want co-ed, not Catholic), but are a couple years out from applying so just starting to research. Can anyone do a breakdown of how many kids are in each class/upper school total? We are coming from a small k-8 and would like something that is significantly larger (e.g. 90-150 kids per grade range).

The HS grades are, on average, 90 kids.

Bullis is much less private school feel with closer to 150 kids per grade.

[Anonymous]

Bullis still feels very intimate, but the students have more friendship choices. Obviously, only a quarter of the size of the public schools, but especially in a co-ed environment, some critical mass of students is important.

[ApplesToApples]

My daughter was accepted to all three as well and we chose SAES and I'm so glad we did. Excellent experience so far.