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College Preparatory School

School rating 4 / 5 by

6100 Broadway Oakland CA 94618 United States
Day
9th to 12th
Gender
Coed

Academic

College Preparatory School review by .

I could not have asked for more from the academic program at College Prep (The College Preparatory School, Oakland, CA). Its rigorous classes not only demanded that I thoroughly understand the concepts being taught, but also challenged me to explore and develop entirely new ways of thinking and approaching problems. Personally, I found that the most engaging classes came from the English, Foreign Language, and Math departments. Each class I took was small and discussion-based, and the teachers came to them with thoughtfully planned-out lessons. We were encouraged to develop our ideas through conversations both with the teachers and our classmates, and even the few classes that were more lecture-oriented were interactive and engaging. The teachers were clearly invested in the success of each individual student, and made an effort to ensure that we all participated and kept pace with the class. Their support was evident in the form of level of availability--both through office hours and email--and their willingness to help a struggling student both in and out of class. There is also a Learning Center that provides faculty and student tutors to students who need extra support, and those who wanted to further their studies were also welcome to speak to their teachers outside of class, all of whom were very accommodating. My academic experience at College Prep prepared me extraordinarily well for my college classes. The student body is competitive in the sense that everyone is expected to do well, but individual grades are very much a private matter and students are always willing to help each other out.

College Counseling

The college counseling at College Prep is phenomenal. Beginning in the spring semester of junior....

Sample insights on college counseling

  • They have contacts at most of the major universities and feel perfectly comfortable picking up the phone and advocating for a student to get accepted somewhere they feel is a good fit for that student. However, these counselors are certainly not magic bullets. They cannot guarantee that a student will get into an Ivy League university...
  • For those wishing to move on to Oxford or Cambridge, the provision is second-to-none. In the months running up to application and interview, every subject faculty offers classes (often run by former Oxbridge tutors) exploring further areas of their subject as well as offering advice on personal statements, interview technique and more...

Admissions - Getting Accepted

I remember the admissions process to be very low-stress. I was required to take the....

Sample insights on admissions

  • For the interview, dress conservatively. Try to be very clean and put together. Also, I was a tour guide for two years and at the end of every tour, we were asked to evaluate the candidate so if you think the tour is not apart of the process, you are very wrong. Ask questions and be interested. Also, tip for the parents: the kids speak on the tour. Do not ask their questions for them...
  • Most younger siblings have an easy time in the admissions process. I can only think of one case of a younger sibling not being admitted. About half of the students who entered with me had come from public schools. The remainder came from private K-6 schools, or had transferred from other New York private schools The Elizabeth Morrow School and St. Bernard were two of the larger feeder schools...

School Life

I can honestly say that College Prep is a very happy place. The campus and surrounding neighborhood is beautiful and quiet and is close to a lake and several regional parks. Though there are no dining services, student groups will often sell food during breaks and lunch to help fund their causes, and the faculty dining lounge will provide a lunch to a hungry student if necessary, so there is never any lack of food on campus. There are two very well-equipped computer labs on campus as well as a tech support office that always has a staff member willing....

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