Private schools are as varied as the students who walk their halls. They're also an investment. As you embark on your search, remember that there's no such thing as the "best" private school — there's only the best one for you.
Defining your private school search
These days, private schools come in all shapes and sizes, including day, boarding, and semester schools. Each has its own merits and unique approach to secondary education, but how do you determine the best option? To find the right school, define what you want before you start your private school search.
Are you looking for academic rigor and high expectations? Specialization in a particular subject or interest area? A controlled social environment? Active participation and interaction? Whatever your private school needs are, there are many options you can explore.
Private school options
Some private schools are known for sports and extracurricular activities. Others are legendary for top-notch academics. Most offer a good balance. In researching your options, you'll come across the following types of programs:
Independent Day Schools
Students receive all the benefits of the private school experience; parents maintain the chance to be involved. From independent art schools with only 50 students to well-attended Catholic schools that reside on acres of property, independent day schools run the gamut in size, specialty, and affiliation.
Boarding Schools
This is the 24/7 private school experience, where students live and learn at school. Lessons taught in the classroom are reinforced with organized social and extracurricular activities. There is an element of structure, and students are essentially in a "contained" social environment where it may be easier to focus on academic and extracurricular growth. These schools may be college-preparatory, military, relgious, or arts-oriented.
Semester Schools
Similar in many ways to semester-abroad programs, semester schools provide secondary school students the opportunity to leave their home school for half an academic year to have a very different kind of experience—the experience of living and learning within a small community, among diverse students, and in a new and different place. The curricula of such schools tend to be thematic, interdisciplinary, rigorous, and experiential.
Searching for private schools
If you don't already know which ones you want to look into, the best way to get started on your private school search is via the Internet. You can search for schools by location, academics, size, type, and specialty areas. In areas where private schools (particularly day schools) are in abundance, you may be able to get leads and "insider" information via word of mouth from other students and their parents, local agencies, and school counselors.
Once you've gathered initial information, determine which schools merit a second look based on what you want in a school. From there, it's a process of visiting Web sites, requesting written materials, calling admission officers, and scheduling campus tours. If you have the option of doing so, apply to more than one school that interests you.
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