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Harvard-Westlake School

School rating 4 / 5 by

3700 Coldwater Canyon North Hollywood CA 91604 United States
Day
7th to 12th
Gender
Coed

Academic

Harvard-Westlake School review by .

Harvard-Westlake School: A diverse student body of athletes and actors, poets and physicists, historians and humanitarians, writers and musicians, linguists and leaders, all of whom are united by their raw intellectual abilities, strong curiosities, and fervent ambitions. Offering 19 AP courses and dozens of honors selections, program strengths include science, English, history/social studies, journalism and performing arts. Students are competitive, but only to the extent of pushing themselves. Strong writing and critical thinking skills are honed in a traditional college preparatory styled education that is recognized as the best in the Western United States, and perhaps the entire country. Exams are administered regularly, but students are developed beyond mere test takers to become strong analytic thinkers. Faculty is incredible accessible and office visits are encouraged, though perhaps unnecessarily because students love to visit them anyway, even if only to chat. Classroom conversations are exciting, teachers are engaging and tend to integrate students' comments with lecture. The work load is considerable and students who wish to succeed will need to commit at least 45 minutes per subject per night to studying. Busywork ends in the 10th grade, but students are still expected to study and review course materials each night even if there is no formal assignment given. The program sharpens not only mental capacity, but it forces students to manage their time, make mature decisions, and develop a solid work ethic. It is largely a consequence of this amalgam that students who graduate from "HW" or "ach-dubb" are among the most successful in their respective colleges, with many if not most attending Ivy League or similarly prestigious and rigorous institutions.

College Counseling

Excellent advising beginning in the 10th grade. There are 9 advisers, all of whom have....

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

ISEE scores are important (aim for 7s or higher). Feeder schools are incredibly helpful (John....

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

Amazing facilities that rival that of many colleges. Very safe, great neighborhood, students have free periods to do what thy wish and off campus privileges emerge in the later years. Students are generally wealthy but are not discriminatory in anyway. House parties emerge in the 10th grade but there is little interaction between grades until junior year. Semi-formals are fun and the after parties are legendary. Everyone looks forward to Ring Ceremony and Prom in the senior year. Though the life of a Wolverine can be stressful at times because of the heavy workload and extra curricular commitments, it is....

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