Prep MAGA
Good Counsel MAGA

Bullis or none.

We have a child at Bullis in lower school and we’ve been very impressed by the school and community. The kids from all grades that we’ve met seem to be very happy and love school.

We are at SAES. DS is a strong student (grades, test scores, good executive function) who is also a solid athlete (plays club for his primary sport, is strong at whatever he tries, but isn’t really thinking about playing beyond HS). He takes all honors courses and plays multiple sports at SAES, even tried stage crew—something he never thought he’d do. His teachers are excellent, he is challenged academically, and he is having a very balanced high school experience that is very similar to what we had back in the early 1990s (not DMV). Families have been overwhelmingly down to earth with a mix of kids coming from private and public. If your kid wants a big sports “scene” with football etc, SAES might not be the best fit, but being able to play multiple sports for his HS and continue to play club for his primary sport has been fantastic for DS.

For a point of comparison, we did not look at GC because it’s too far and felt too big, but DS applied and was accepted to the other schools on your list.

Yes shadow at all and loved them all. He will focus on club for his sports and is excited to play HS too (his club will give him a waiver). He is excited to try other sports. What is the culture at each one? St Andrew’s seemed kind and fun. Bullis seems like a place you can become a high achiever. GC seems like career path can end being mid.
If your family was between the schools, why did you choose one over the other?

If Good Counsel is his favorite and that makes the most sense with your family's budget, go there (assuming he gets in). Sports are a big part of the culture at GC. Soccer, however, is one where the club aspect is more important for college recruiting than HS team so that shouldn't be the reason he chooses the school. Did he meet the coach? Academically, I would say it's not as strong as the other on your list, but they do offer AP/honors classes so there is a path for a more challenging academic path.

Did he do a shadow day at each of these schools?

Anonymous wrote:Do you want him to be with rich kids or middle class kids?

Which one has the middle class kids? GC? Bullis had an air about it.

Anonymous wrote:Do you want him to be with rich kids or middle class kids?

None of these schools are, in the average, middle class. UMC at “worst.”

Sports at st Andrew’s are a joke so I’d take that one out. How much do you want to pay?

Do you want him to be with rich kids or middle class kids?

I'm the PP - I should add that kids do play sports at the college level after graduating from SAES. But I think that's more of reflection of where they are playing club/outside leagues - not because of high school. You look at their sports instagram account you can see where kids are signing (at SAES and at other schools too). I know one of last year's students SAES is playing soccer at Duke.

We have had one child graduate from SAES and 2 others are in high school there. I don't think you should worry about the matriculation from SAES. They have a range because they have a range of students so it makes sense. In my daughter's grade they had kids go to Yale, Harvard, Vanderbilt, Wake Forest, Tulane, UVA, Wash U - plenty of strong schools if that's what you are looking for.

I do not think SAES is a big sports school. One of my kids is a big athlete and the school's sports teams are generally smaller with a range of abilities. Boy's basketball, soccer and lacrosse are probably the more popular teams. My son plays on club teams so the high school sports aren't a main focus for competition - more for camaraderie and fun so it's all good.

Best of luck!

Yes, he is on a top MLS Next team and wants to go for D1 but would rather go pro if there's any way.
We do think he has a good chance of getting into these schools but not Prep.
We have talked to friends and all are happy for different reasons.

What is sports obsessed? It sounds like you already know he will get into these schools. Is he being recruited? You say very very athletic. Does he want to play at the next level?

You can get into a good or even great college coming from any of these schools. I don't think there's a huge difference in their academic competitiveness.

They do seem to be very different schools and they serve different groups. About the only similarity I see is their geographic clustering in Montgomery County.

You need to do more talking to people you know about these schools.

Our sports obsessed boy has applied to Good Counsel, Bullis and St. Andrew's for high school next year. For a variety of reasons, we need to stay on the Maryland side. We applied to Georgetown Prep but consider it a reach. Which school would you recommend the most? We were shocked by how different each one was.
The luxurious campus and amazing teaching staff at Bullis stood out. Students seem happy and facilities could not be better.
St Andrews- seems like amazing academics, student seem really happy, relaxed and healthy, but worried about some of the matriculation rates. Is it rigorous? Same price as Bullis but facilities and offerings dramatically different.
Good Counsel was his absolute favorite . How are academics? How is student life? Are college matriculation rates great and high ranking? This is a huge investment for our family. Cost wise we like Good Counsel and facilities are great. But academics are a concern.
How would you rank these three schools? Is the cost savings at Good Counsel worth it? He's very very athletic and really into science, strong test scores, all As. Likes the arts, music, more. But sports/science are his tops. Where would you send this student?