446 Students Accepted For Upcoming Year
Every year, Phillips Exeter welcomes the best and the brightest students from all over the country and world to join its ranks. The incoming class of 2019 is filled with diverse, intelligent individuals who have a drive to succeed at the Academy.
This year, 2,347 applicants completed the admissions process, and 446 students were accepted, making for an acceptance rate of just above 19 percent.
According to Director of Admissions Michael Gary, the admitted students represent a “wonderful breadth and depth of academic and extracurricular talent.”
The admitted class is comprised of 215 boys, and 231 girls. The gender ratio is tipped in favor of girls, with females making up fifty-two percent of the class, and males occupying the remaining forty-eight percent.
The incoming class features a larger percentage of boarders than in recent years, with ninety percent of students boarding at Exeter. This contrasts the current standings of only 75 percent of students boarding across all grades.
In terms of financial aid, the admissions office estimates that around 47 percent of admitted students will be on some form of financial aid, with the remaining students paying the full tuition. Exeter will award $7.9 million in financial aid to the incoming class of 2019.
This class, like all others at Exeter, features stunning geographic diversity, and will continue to bring different cultures together at the Academy. “Admitted applicants hail from 38 states and 27 countries,” Gary said.
“I really liked the idea of having a community of people who were from all over, and not from just six small towns in New Hampshire. I wanted to have some new experiences.”
The diversity that boarding schools provide is a major factor as to why students chose to apply to schools such as Exeter. “I really liked the idea of having a community of people who were from all over, and not from just six small towns in New Hampshire. I wanted to have some new experiences,” incoming prep Ingrid Bergill, sister of Niklas Bergill ‘14, said.
However, what sets Exeter aside from the other top-notch boarding schools is the discussion based learning. Prospective prep Reina Matsumoto, sister of Issay Matsumoto ‘17, is ready to switch from the traditional lecture-based learning to the Harkness style.
“At the school I’ve been attending for almost ten years, we have based our class discussions off of hand raising. As young kids this was a structure we needed, but as we began to grow up, the teachers became more and more biased towards certain individuals causing some students to talk more than others. At Exeter, the Harkness system is in place leading to a more balanced and equal discussion-based classes,” Matsumoto said.
Incoming lower Elly Lee, sister of Chris Lee ‘16, is ready to accept the new challenge that Exeter brings as well as be an active member in the classroom. “I’ve decided to go to Exeter because I know that coming here will allow me to challenge myself and explore new things. The Harkness table is a method of teaching and learning that I know I can learn from, and being able to talk during class is something I look forward to.”
Students also expressed their excitement for the many unique and diverse opportunities that Exeter provides its students.
“I’m really looking forward to all the extra-curriculars that the school offers, and I’m excited to explore the things that I want to do,” said Bergill.
In addition, the sheer number of classes and learning disciplines that Exeter offers is a huge plus for admitted students.
“There are so many things I’m excited about, but I think I’m most excited for the extent of classes I can choose from and being able to live in a dorm away from home,” Lee said. “I’m excited to meet a ton of new people, and am very excited to join some of the many dance clubs on campus.”
This class also features a high volume of students who have relatives who are either attending Exeter, or who have attended PEA in the past. Matsumoto and Lee both have siblings currently enrolled at the Academy, and Bergill’s brother graduated in 2014.
Many parents and students feel that a sibling or family presence can be helpful in the stressful environment of Exeter.
“My father and uncle went to Exeter for high school and they encouraged my brother to apply when he was in eighth grade,” Lee said. “My parents thought it would be good for me if I came on the visit days with him so I could see if I liked it. I ended up wanting to apply too, and I did.”
Mathematics instructor Joseph Wolfson, like many faculty at the Academy, read admission folders this year and looks for certain criteria in the applications that he reviews.
“Well there are some basic things. They have got to be good at school. If you’re not good at school and if you don’t have good grades, then don’t come here,” Wolfson said.
“I look for good writers, I look for people who are superb at anything. I look for people who are praised highly from the adults that work with them.”
Wolfson also explained that most classes are relatively similar from year to year. “Obviously there are different people, but the overall quality of the pool of the kinds of people who are applying are similar.”
Even if incoming classes may be similar from year to year, each group of students includes Exonians with eclectic talents and creative ideas, and many members of the Academy community are excited to see what next year has to offer.