Choate's academic program was extremely rigorous. High standards were built into small class sizes with teachers who were truly interested in a student’s progression – at least, most teachers were. I have found the workload in college to be far less than what I dealt with in high school, and Choate provided an excellent foundation for me in every subject – preparing me far beyond, in general, from my fellow college classmates. Further, the rigor of the program forced me to make the best of my time and prioritize – habits that will stay with me indefinitely. Choate offered a tremendous plethora of class opportunities, and within the realm of electives there was incredible choice. And if a class were not offered, tailored directed studies and independent projects were available options. Also, and just as importantly, there was no grade inflation at Choate or false sense of achievement.

With the rigor of Choate’s academic programs, I found myself sometimes questioning whether it was worth some of the sacrifices involved on a social level. Yet, I found that doing work late into the nights with friends in the dormitory even leads to, interestingly enough, another layer of friendship. Also, I feel as though several of the more difficult classes were intentionally taught, to be verbose, ruthlessly rather than a more student-friendly approach. Further, with the depth of the student body in terms of intellectual power, I sometimes felt overshadowed in classes – oftentimes this would only make me try even harder to succeed and to prove what I felt to be my own worth.

With the recent addition and remodeling of the main athletic facility, and especially the new fitness center, Choate’s athletic facilities (except for its forsaken hockey rink and track) were remarkable and easily comparable to many colleges’. Furthermore, the athletic director fully supported many of the athletic programs that usually draw much less attention – such as cross country, swimming, water polo, and squash. There was a tremendous number of different interscholastic and intramural offerings as well.

Between my senior year and freshman year at Choate there was a noticeable deterioration in the competitiveness of some of its teams. Sports that were traditionally dominant at Choate – such as soccer and hockey – were noticeably less successful and as a result, some of the school spirit, I felt, vanished as well. No one wants to watch Choate’s horrendous football team win a game or two while losing eight or ten more. Whether this turn in the competitiveness of some of these traditional sports stems from the enhanced academic rigor, I don’t know. But one thing I do know – it would’ve been nice to go to a football game with a huge crowd and a cheerleading team.

I cannot really address this question from any personal experience. My spotlight in the arts consisted solely of satisfying the base level requirements. Nonetheless, the Paul Mellon Arts Center is certainly an amazing facility and there seemed to be a high level of support for all manner of arts: from ceramics, to drawing, weaving, painting, sculpture, dance, acting, singing, and other forms of performance. The musical groups often performed at school meetings, and such brief concerts were always enjoyable.

I feel as, at times, Choate sort of attempted a sort of forced appreciation of the arts with a wink to “political correctness.” For example, the required yearly Kwanza dance and performance was, to be frank, a huge waste of time and certainly did not foster goodwill among students.

For student’s who were interested and ready to commit their time, there was a tremendous well of resources in extracurricular activities – many of these activities were available through the willingness of faculty members to lend their own time as well. For the serious endeavors, there was considerable support of both time and financial resources.

There were many extracurriculars that served no practical purpose other than a resume booster to kids intent on having a knee-length list of activities they participated in for applying to college.

No matter the quality of the dorm itself, the best thing about it was certainly the students themselves and the relationships that existed and thrived within this close-knit environment.

Some of the curfew and dormitory rules -- especially for coed vistors -- were archaic and served no purpose other than a constant hindrance to students. An examination of many of these rules, such as being forced to leave the door open, partially demonstrates the at times frustrating lack of trust sometiems displayed on behalf of the institution itself -- the faculuty, rules, etc. -- to the students. Prospective students don't be too alarmed -- coed rules are often broken and it's not that hard to do so.

Choate's dining facility was immaculate. With circular tables it fostered a close and personal environment. Though I did not think so while I was there, the food is drastically better than college fare and there tons of options readily available.

There was a lack of formal dining with quality food. Deerfield, for example, has a twice yearly lobster dinner for its students. At Choate formal dinners, the food was somewhat less remarkable or tasteful as lobster.

At first I was definitly nervous about adjusting to a new school with only a small handful of people I knew. I found, though, especially from living with people, that it was extremely easy to meet people.

Diversity is an exaggerated issue. Choate often boasts of their diversity – and to be sure, there are many Asians, Hispanics, and Blacks. But, the majority of the students are all from the same privileged socio-economic background (with the exception of the Icahn scholars on full scholarship).

Atheletic events were on Saturday afternoons, and socializing with friends, laying out on the campus lawn for frisbee and campus golf were common ways to pass the time.

The Wallingford downtown area is a close and immediate walk to the Choate campus. The extent of town visits was, for the most part, limited to frequent visitation of restaurants, cafes, and attempts to get off campus to smoke a cigarette (smoking is not allowed at Choate).