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Haverford School

School rating 3 / 5 by

450 Lancaster Avenue Haverford PA 19041 United States
Day
PK to 12th
Gender
Boys only

Academic

Haverford School review by .

One of the annoying things about the school academically was, honestly, its lack of AP classes, and how its so-called "Honors Classes" are, from my experience talking to others, virtually like AP's in rigor, but they simply don't count for college credit. Imagine my frustration, then, when it comes to my attention that in order pass certain requirements, I would have to once again take pretty much the same classes that I did in high school, and learn essentially the same things. If you would like to take an AP test, it's totally possible to sign up, but just be aware that if you want a teacher's help, you'll have to go outside of class to make up/learn any new material, as they won't be going over it in class. That is, unless you have an excellent Calculus II teacher as I had, who ran his class as close to an AP class as the school will get. Like I said, in terms of rigor and the amount of homework, you'll have enough to occupy your time, and help you learn study skills for college. Each class was different, but the majority of the classes were directed and taught by the teacher. However, there were plenty of opportunities in pretty much every class to work in/among peers (e.g. writing and giving presentations on infectious diseases, working with others to come up with a solid argument as to why a particular country was innocent for starting WWI, talking about the most recent chapter in classic novels, or even prepare a lesson in math and teach it to the class). The learning environment was very comfortable, for each class usually had no more than 20 students per teacher, and teachers were always available for extra help after class or during free periods, before/after school, or any time, really. There was also a tutoring department for anyone who was struggling so no one would be left behind.

College Counseling

The one thing that didn't really help me with the college process was the apparent....

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 can't say much about the admissions process because I was 10 at the time.....

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

My class was actually very competitive and dynamic, with everyone majorly excelling in some way or another. That was a defining characteristic of my class, but I'm not sure about the other ones. The school is a very conservative school, with many students coming from very esteemed backgrounds. But the school also really emphasized community service to us students, alerting us to many fun community activities....

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