No. Wish I could turn back the clock.

It depends on the child and the school. Not all private high schools are worth the money, and it is not simply about the academics, either—the entire experience is what matters, and the child must understand that he/she needs to leverage that experience. I had the good fortune of attending one of the area's (and country's) top private all boys high schools, and the experience followed me for life. Not only did my school provide me with a superior education (most challenging academic environment I ever experienced, including college and law school), the relationships forged during high school benefitted me personally and professionally well into my adult life—in a manner that college and law school never could/did. As a minority, immigrant who speaks English as a second language (fluently), I was not the typical kid who attended my high school. Notwithstanding my background, I can honestly say that no community has ever treated me better than the people I met in high school—classmates, faculty and parents, alike. As an adult, I am one of the very few minorities at my country club (thanks mainly in part to my high school classmates), and I leveraged my relationships to help my son gain entry into a private grade school that often feeds a majority of their graduates to my high school (I plan to send my son there as well). I can trace about 90% of the gross revenue for my business, either directly or indirectly, to relationships forged from my association with my high school. I remain forever indebted to my parents for having the foresight to send me there (and to foot the significant tuition) and to the school. I value my high school diploma much more than my college and law degrees. I would not be where I am had I attended Churchill or Whitman—no matter how good a student I was.

posting if private school is worth it on the private school forum... yes, yes, yes. Selection bias and self-reassurance will rule your answers.

Anonymous wrote:Thanks to the pp for sharing how your dds high school prepared her for college.

+1. This was music to my ears! It's what I hope is the end result of me sending my DC to private school. It's what I was unable to do in college because I spent so much time playing catch up thanks to being inadequately prepared at my inner city public school.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Lol. Why did you ask how she is doing if you don't want to hear it? I just want to share that the right HS can be a blessing if you feel your child will benefit from the environment. It doesn't have to be competitiveness; it could be nurturing that you are looking for. My child wanted a higher level of academics and we had to pay to get that. She also happened to get self confidence as a bonus. YMMV

I didn't ask...someone else did. You were just over the top with your bragging. Sorry, but there is a way to share without bragging. Signed, parent of a private high school kid with a 4.2 gpa

She was not bragging. Everything I read in her comment was factual examples of how she saw her kid kicking ass in college. I'm so over this notion that we must never "brag" about how great our kids are. Her kid has worked hard and is excelling. She should be proud and have no shame in screaming it from a mountain top! Nothing it what she said was a put down to anyone else. Your snarky response to her undeserved.

Thanks to the pp for sharing how your dds high school prepared her for college.

Anonymous wrote:Lol. Why did you ask how she is doing if you don't want to hear it? I just want to share that the right HS can be a blessing if you feel your child will benefit from the environment. It doesn't have to be competitiveness; it could be nurturing that you are looking for. My child wanted a higher level of academics and we had to pay to get that. She also happened to get self confidence as a bonus. YMMV

I didn't ask...someone else did. You were just over the top with your bragging. Sorry, but there is a way to share without bragging. Signed, parent of a private high school kid with a 4.2 gpa

Anonymous wrote:Well, she is double majoring in stem/stem at a school highly ranked for STEM. Great GPA, great internship at a science based software company and tons of undergraduate research in both majors. If there is a checklist in college on how to prep for the future, then she is ticking them off at a steady pace. The thing that surprised me is that she has always been quiet and introverted. Now, she's super aggressive with what she wants. She literally told her mentor that it would be in their best interest to pick her for research and that they would keep her for two and a half years. She is producing work for this mentor at an undergrad level that my husband didn't achieve until he was working on his doctorate. My DD attributes this directly to her experience in HS. Her classmates were super competitive (always derided here at DCUM). She had her eyes opened to what could be accomplished if you set your mind to succeed and had the resources at your disposal.

Most STEM jobs go to h1b's or offshore. She should choose her career very carefully.

Lol. Why did you ask how she is doing if you don't want to hear it? I just want to share that the right HS can be a blessing if you feel your child will benefit from the environment. It doesn't have to be competitiveness; it could be nurturing that you are looking for. My child wanted a higher level of academics and we had to pay to get that. She also happened to get self confidence as a bonus. YMMV

Anonymous wrote:Well, she is double majoring in stem/stem at a school highly ranked for STEM. Great GPA, great internship at a science based software company and tons of undergraduate research in both majors. If there is a checklist in college on how to prep for the future, then she is ticking them off at a steady pace. The thing that surprised me is that she has always been quiet and introverted. Now, she's super aggressive with what she wants. She literally told her mentor that it would be in their best interest to pick her for research and that they would keep her for two and a half years. She is producing work for this mentor at an undergrad level that my husband didn't achieve until he was working on his doctorate. My DD attributes this directly to her experience in HS. Her classmates were super competitive (always derided here at DCUM). She had her eyes opened to what could be accomplished if you set your mind to succeed and had the resources at your disposal.

Well isn't she just wonderful.

Well, she is double majoring in stem/stem at a school highly ranked for STEM. Great GPA, great internship at a science based software company and tons of undergraduate research in both majors. If there is a checklist in college on how to prep for the future, then she is ticking them off at a steady pace. The thing that surprised me is that she has always been quiet and introverted. Now, she's super aggressive with what she wants. She literally told her mentor that it would be in their best interest to pick her for research and that they would keep her for two and a half years. She is producing work for this mentor at an undergrad level that my husband didn't achieve until he was working on his doctorate. My DD attributes this directly to her experience in HS. Her classmates were super competitive (always derided here at DCUM). She had her eyes opened to what could be accomplished if you set your mind to succeed and had the resources at your disposal.

Anonymous wrote:We paid for three private schools. The first two were almost nothing cost wise, but not worth the pittance we paid. The last school was basically the cost of college and was worth every penny. If your kid is constantly demanding more of an education and you find yourself supplementing to fill that drive, then private is worth everything. Choose carefully and you can change your child's life. My DD is so comfortable with who she is and what she is capable of after attending the right school for her. I disagree about the cost equating with a better college outcome. If your family isn't wealthy then you aren't getting in to HYP just because you went private. You need to pick the school because your kid needs that environment now. My DD is now attending an OOS research U, and I will admit, she does seem to be running circles around almost everyone else at that U.

Interesting comment. How so?

The small class sizes in private high school allow them to do a much better job of teaching kids how to write. Almost no multiple choice tests, and numerous essays/papers assigned each year. It's a lot of work for the kids, but they end up very well prepared for college. A public school teacher, no matter how dedicated, is limited in the number of writing assignments they can assign, because each one gives them 150+ assignments to grade.

We paid for three private schools. The first two were almost nothing cost wise, but not worth the pittance we paid. The last school was basically the cost of college and was worth every penny. If your kid is constantly demanding more of an education and you find yourself supplementing to fill that drive, then private is worth everything. Choose carefully and you can change your child's life. My DD is so comfortable with who she is and what she is capable of after attending the right school for her. I disagree about the cost equating with a better college outcome. If your family isn't wealthy then you aren't getting in to HYP just because you went private. You need to pick the school because your kid needs that environment now. My DD is now attending an OOS research U, and I will admit, she does seem to be running circles around almost everyone else at that U.

I moved from public to private for 10th and my parents would definitely say it was worth the money, but that was because of our particular school system. My husband grew up in a fantastic school system in NY and if I'd had somewhere like that I would have stayed in public. It depends on your schools and family situation.