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St. Mark's School - Review #2

Read more details about St. Mark's School on their 2020 profile page.

About the Author:
Years Attended Boarding School:	2006-2010
Sports and Activities:	Monitor (co-president), crew, choir, female a cappella, peer discussion leader, cross country, field hockey, ice hockey
College Enrolled:	Bates College
Home Town, State:	Millis, MA

Reflections and Advice:

1.) What do you think makes your school unique relative to other boarding schools?

St. Mark's is extremely community based, and I believe it has made both students and faculty proud to be a member of this school. Because a majority of the school functions within one or two buildings, students can pass by everyone at least once every day. Within four years, students and faculty alike understand how important it is to thrive off of the support of one another to exceed individual success.

2.) What was the best thing that happened to you in boarding school?

By the time I graduated, I had spent and completed four years of really figuring a lot our about myself. I found the stuff I was good at, the class I liked the best, the friends and type of people I got along with. I had a great work ethic, a ton of people I looked up to, and I know I always have people to come back to. The best thing that happened to me was figuring out on graduation day how ready and prepared I was to go on to bigger things in my life.

3.) What might you have done differently during your boarding school experience?

I would have figured out how important it is not to waste time. Procrastination can kill St. Markers, considering that there is always something to do. Because so much of the students' lives are scheduled, time management is the key to not becoming overstressed.

4.) What did you like most about your school?

I loved how important achievement was at St. Mark's. If a student is struggling, there are others, students and faculty, there to support and push him or her to succeed. Students use each other to help each other succeed. It makes the atmosphere more positive. People want to achieve all the time, and everyone in the community is present to making it happen.

5.) Do you have any final words of wisdom for visiting or incoming students to your school?

Get creative on the weekends. Sometimes St. Markers don't realize how much fun it is to just explore the campus. There are more things to do than just sitting around Forbes.

Academics:

1.) Describe the academics at your school - what did you like most about it?

The academics are challenging; yet, the greatest aspect of the academics is that students figure out over the years how much they are able to achieve. The academics at St. Mark's have changed who I am as a student. Due to the close knit relationship to the teachers, students can get one-on-one attention at any time. Teachers do everything they can to help you succeed. I would not be the student I am today without the support of the teachers from St. Mark's.

Athletics:

1.) Describe the athletics at your school - what did you like most about it?

I love that every student participates in athletics. Personally, I would have never given crew a chance if it wasn't mandatory, and now I'm rowing in college. The point of it being mandatory makes it so you have an automatic support group and automatic friends. Since teachers coach, students bond to the faculty, creating an even closer community.

Art, Music, and Theatre:

1.) Describe the arts program at your school - what did you like most about it?

The arts department is highly supported at St. Mark's. St. Mark's has produced some of the most beautiful music I have ever heard live. Every theatre production packs the house, and the visual artwork of students covers the walls of the school. There is evidence everywhere of how supported the arts are in the school.

Extracurricular Opportunities:

1.) Describe the extracurriculars offered at your school - what did you like most about it?

The student organizations are not a strong point of the school. While a few organizations are strong and noticeable, many of the organizations don't make too much of an impact.

Dorm Life:

1.) Describe the dorm life in your school - what did you like most about it?

All of my closest friends are because of dorm life. Most students live in very close quarters of one another, which makes it very easy to stay close to friends living in different dorms.

Dining:

1.) Describe the dining arrangements at your school.

The dining services leave snacks available between meal times, which is great to students on the run all the time. Other than that, the food at St. Mark's has never been that exciting.

Social and Town Life:

1.) Describe the school's town and surrounding area.

There are a lot of food places in walking distance (like pizza, Starbucks, ice cream, sandwich, convenient stores, and the Natick Mall is about 10 minutes away. Southborough is extremely safe.

2.) Describe the social life at your school - what did you like most about it?

Everyone becomes really close very quickly. You make relationships with people that stick far beyond high school.

Daily Schedule:

Weekday

8:00 AM	chapel
8:30 AM	class
11:45 AM	lunch
1:15 PM	class
3:30 PM	athletics
7:30 PM	study hall
12:00 PM	bed

Weekend

8:45 AM	Class
11:30 AM	Lunch
1:00 PM	Games
3:00 PM	Free time
5:00 PM	Dinner
12:00 PM	Check in