There are about 20 private schools which are very competitive to get into. Think of them as the Ivies if you will. Everybody wants to go to them. Just like supposedly everybody wants to go to Harvard or Princeton. Let's be very clear about something: these are great schools. But the harsh reality is that they receive many more applications than they have places for. The young men and women who do get into these top private schools are talented, academically gifted, and so on. Should you feel bad if your son or daughter doesn't get into one of these schools? Not at all, and here's why. 残酷的现实是这些名校所收到的申请远远多于其应该招的学生名额。

Fit trumps selectiveness. 找到适合自己的学校才是王道.
The right school for your child is the one which suits your needs and his needs best. How do you figure that out? By actually visiting the school. Try to do that while classes are in session. If at all possible, arrange an overnight if your child is considering a boarding school.
适合学生的学校是指最符合学生家庭的需要也最符合学生需要的学校.

Now I can hear you thinking to yourself that the videos and the Skype chats were so wonderful that the school has to be perfect for your child. There's no need to visit. So expensive and so much trouble. Perhaps. But, you know how videos are produced. No matter how relaxed and casual they may appear, they show you exactly what the school wants you to see. A Skype chat certainly is useful and can answer many questions. However, and I cannot stress this enough, it is no substitute for actually experiencing the school during a visit. After all, you wouldn't buy a house or rent an apartment sight unseen, would you? Apply the same common sense to selecting a private school.尽可能的去学校参观了解是否适合学生

There are hundreds of gems out there.
For every Exeter, Andover or Hotchkiss et al, there are literally hundreds of fine private schools out there. Not all in the northeastern states either. How do you find these 'gems'? You search for schools on this site which match your requirements. Start by eliminating all the things you don't want in a school. For example, if you only want to send your child to a boarding school, don't bother looking at all the day schools in your area. Or if you feel that your religion is a really important selection criterion, then eliminate the schools which don't meet your needs. It will take some time but eventually you will identify 10-15 schools which you think might be a good fit. Whittle that list down to 3-5 schools which you are serious about. Visit these schools. Each and every one.

If you can afford a consultant, then this is one reason you need one. Your consultant will match your needs and requirements with schools which will be a pretty good fit. One of them will be the 'right fit'. That's what consultants do.

留学咨询机构的专业顾问可以把你的需要和要求与适合你的学校进行匹配,总有一所是最适合你的学校.

Determine what you need and want in a school.
While it is important to ask advice and listen to the opinions of friends and family, in the final analysis the school which you will select is the one which fits your needs and requirements. Think carefully about why you plan to make such a substantial investment in your child's education. What are you really trying to accomplish? Preparing her for college? Yes, a college education is important. But as you know very well after this dreadful recession we are still muddling through, a college education does not automatically guarantee employment. Wouldn't you be better running with your child's strengths? If she is an avid rider, then find a school which will allow her to excel at riding. Hockey? Situate him in the school which offers the best mix of ice experience and competition combined with solid academics. A private school can help its students identify a niche which works for them. 接受大学的教育并不能完全保证可以找到好的职业机会,找到学生的优势,并重点发展这这些优势,岂不更好. 适合的私立学校可以帮助学生发现有助于学生发挥优点和特长的广阔空间.

The beauty of the right private school is that it will bring out all kinds of attributes and possibilities which your child intrinsically possesses, but that you never thought would blossom. The right nurturing atmosphere can make that happen. A competitive school isn't the only place where you can achieve these kind of results. Those results and a happy child are what you are looking for after all. Don't ever lose sight of that objective.

适合学生的私立学校，其魅力之处就在于学校会激发学生与生俱来的品质特性，并帮助学生创造奇迹，使各种可能成为现实。而这些奇迹和一个快快乐乐的孩子才是我们在孩子教育上投入巨资真正想要得到的回报，作为家长，您说呢？

Look beyond the competitive schools. They are not the only game in town.

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