Benefits of a Small Boarding School

Updated June 20, 2025

Discover the advantages of small boarding schools, including personalized attention, close-knit communities, and enhanced academic support. Learn how intimate learning environments foster strong relationships between students and faculty, leading to a more tailored educational experience and better preparation for college and beyond.

The Benefits of a Small Boarding School

When choosing a boarding school, size can quickly determine the ultimate experience your child will have, both educationally and socially. Small boarding schools provide both intimate learning environments and close bonds within the student body and are an excellent choice for any student looking for personal attention in the classroom.

What is the Definition of a Small Boarding School? While boarding schools are generally already small compared to public schools, small boarding schools typically have less than 200 students enrolled in the program, with some institutions boasting as small a roll call as 25 students. According to the Small Boarding School Association, they are characterized by low student-teacher ratios and emphasis on individual learning.

Small boarding schools can also be highly specialized. For example, some schools within this category have programs designed for children with learning disabilities like Attention Deficit Disorder.

What Advantages Do Small Boarding Schools Offer?

Small Class Sizes For students who want more attention in the classroom, small boarding schools are a great option. Small classroom sizes help students find and build relationships with mentors. This opportunity for more personal contact and communication with teachers and counselors is unique to the small boarding school environment.

Accessibility of Teachers and Academic Help Not only is close teacher-student interaction a priority, but the depth of relationships in small boarding schools reaches far beyond the classroom as teachers often serve additional roles as coaches and dorm parents. Students will have

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Quaker Education: What’s Different about a Friends School?

Updated June 19, 2025

by Robert Kennedy

Quaker Education: What’s Different about a Friends School?

This article delves into the unique aspects of Quaker education in Friends schools, emphasizing community, spirituality, and social responsibility. It explains Quaker principles, testimonies, and how they shape the educational experience, fostering a diverse and inclusive environment focused on character development and academic rigor.

Editor's note: Lynette Assarsson of the Westtown School wrote this article offering an overview of Quaker education.

While each Friends school has its own unique style and personality, they all have a common purpose: not only to provide a rich and challenging education but also to foster the ideals of community, spirituality, responsibility, and stewardship. A hallmark of the Quaker school experience is the basic belief that we are all teachers and learners and that each child has unique gifts and talents. Students are called upon to discover their own voices and interests within the framework of rigorous, college-preparatory academics. The foundation of the educational experience is built upon the idea that students’ quality of character – what kind of people they are becoming – is as important to their lives and to the world as their intellectual growth and exploration.

Because Quaker education endeavors to be a socially responsible one, Friends schools’ curricula emphasize service, social action, and experiential learning. Can education be socially responsible and academically rigorous at the same time? Educators in Friends schools believe that one is not developed at the expense of the other; instead, they work in tandem to prepare students for college and for life.

This video explains a Quaker education.

How do students learn community, responsibility, and stewardship? By living it! The Quaker belief in the “Inner Light” or that of God in each of us

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Understanding Financial Aid

Updated June 19, 2025

by Robert Kennedy

We explore the intricacies of financial aid within boarding schools, exploring how institutions are working to make quality education accessible to students from diverse economic backgrounds.

Understanding Financial Aid

One of the major issues most families consider when thinking of sending their child to boarding school is the cost.

Though it may seem daunting, the boarding school financial aid process isn’t as complex as you might think.
Understanding the system will pay off in the long term.

Recently, boarding schools began reshaping their financial aid policies to allow more talented, middle-class students to attend their schools.

Today, a large percentage of students at boarding schools receive some form of financial aid from grants; in some cases, that number is as high as 40%.
Each school’s aid policy is different, and officers are your best bet for accurate information.
Contacting them will give you a better understanding of the steps you will need to take, but below are some basic tips that will apply to all schools.

What is financial aid?

Financial aid is funding intended to help students cover the cost of attending private schools (tuition, board, fees, etc.).

Aid does not have to be repaid, unlike loans.
Generally, a school's endowment correlates directly with the amount of financial aid that can be offered.
Each year, a percentage of the budget is set aside for financial aid.
Thus, it’s very easy for a boarding school to run out of financial aid.

Tip: sending in all the required documents as soon as possible increases your student's chances

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Boarding School Pictures

Published December 19, 2007

by Robert Kennedy

What does boarding school life look like? View photos from a variety of boarding schools and see if you can also picture yourself there.

International Students: Boarding School Benefits

Updated April 27, 2025

by Robert Kennedy

International Students: Boarding School Benefits

This article explores the advantages of American boarding schools for international students, including world-class education, English immersion, college preparation, and cultural diversity. It highlights the benefits of a structured environment for non-native English speakers and the opportunity to gain a global perspective.

With over 250 schools in the United States, American boarding schools appeal to international families for a variety of reasons. According to The Association Of Boarding Schools (TABS), international students make up about 15% of the population of their member schools. We look at some of the reasons why an American boarding school is a popular option with international students around the world.

A world-class education

Almost all American boarding schools offer rigorous academics combined with compulsory athletics and a wide variety of extracurricular activities. Even more important to a parent who will probably remain at home while her child goes off to school in the United States is that boarding schools take the safety and well-being of your child very seriously. While your child is at school, 24/7 supervision is what you can expect to find at a boarding school in the United States. During vacations, the school will help you find a host for your child instead of flying him back home if that is not possible.

The academic programs at boarding schools exceed any federal, state, and local requirements. College preparatory schools usually offer Advanced Placement courses or the International Baccalaureate curriculum. Standards are high. The other advantage of an American boarding school is the small class size. Typically, the teacher-to-student ratio is 1:15 or even less.

What is an international student?

An international student is a student who holds a foreign or non-U.S. passport. He or she is

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