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why is that?

also, does SPP make the students take religion courses? if so, that'd be a huge negative for me.

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all the more reason for single-sex education.

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suzychapstick wrote: Quote:


That wasn?t me it came from JCJunie (post #5) I was the one saying that only 20 out of a freshman class of 220 last year or the year before were from JC. Also I know kids who were equal in grades and test scores where one got into prep and the other didn?t. The difference was one boy?s father graduated from prep. Guess who got in? Don?t they even have the box on the application to check if a relative went to prep?


Yeah both schools are very good. I will take this decision process one step further with something from my own experience. I went to an all boy?s high school. When I got to ..heaven err I mean a coed college and later grad school I was mad at my mom for a few years for sending me to that all boys high school. A waste of 4 good years, if you know what I mean! ;)

Brewster,

As a former member of the faculty at Prep, I can say honestly that there are, of course, sports minded students at St. Peter's. But for the atmosphere to be referred to as "marine-jock" by Neverleft is inaccurate. Students who are interested in the arts, in service, in extracurricular academic activities, etc. can all succeed at Prep.

While you're not Catholic, please know that students of all faith traditions are welcome at Prep. The theology coursework is rigorous and encompasses scripture, social justice and world religions, among others. The Jesuit identity is important and seeks, as we say, to form the whole person.

As you know, your son should be where he'll thrive. McNair and Prep are both excellent choices. Congratulations!

Interesting posts everyone, thanks.

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Neverleft, what makes you think they're not trying? I know several B students accepted at Prep who didn't have what it takes to get into McNair. The 20 locals is fascinating though. How many hours a day do these suburban kids spend in JC if their entire social lives are here? It seems a definite negative that most potential friends don't live within distance to hang outside of school.

As for the religious thing, we're not Catholic and have the religious instruction already covered, so that's not a plus. And Marine-like culture is a little scary, that jibes with other things we've heard about it being so jock oriented. My son is athletic but on the small side of 8th graders, some kids are a full head taller than him. He'd have to put on 15 lbs to wrestle the lightest class. I can't imagine that's a good thing in a "marine-jock" culture.

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McNair?s student body is made up of the cream of the crop of ONLY Jersey City kids and is very diverse.
(they do now and then catch a rogue suburb kid posing as JC kid and kick them out)

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SSP?s student body is made up of ONLY kids from the suburbs whose grandfathers, fathers, uncles, and brothers went to Prep (does help a lot with admissions) and it is not very diverse. In last years freshman class of 220 kids guess how many were actually from Jersey City? About 20. (yes twenty ) The kids are also very cliquish, kids of a burb stick together. Funny they all try and act like they are from the hoods of JC though. Yo yo check my new kicks out yo.

You would think that since SPP isn?t paying any property taxes. (I am pretty sure this is true look it up) And how the city bent over backwards giving them that valuable football practice field (almost the GC via eminent domain too) and shutting off a public street during school hours. So the burb kids could cross from one building to another. They should at least make it a point to accept more JC kids paying full tuition of course.

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This is what you do look at the list of colleges and universities that the kids from Prep got into. You will see that the kids from McNair got into the same colleges and universities.

Both my son and daughter went to McNair graduating in 2005 and 2007, respectively. Both were products of primary Catholic Schools, Holy Rosary and OLC. They did not have a favorable impression of the Catholic schools, and therefore chose McNair over St Peter's Prep (in which my son was offered a full ride). Some of my son's classmates attended St. Peters Prep, and did pretty well in getting into the College/University of their choice. I can vouch for the standards of McNair when it comes to the faculty, as I attended every open house/report card day in those 6 years.

The kids are very smart, ambitious and driven, and the main difference in my view is the AP Courses. All subjects in McNair are Honors and the students can choose (sometimes assigned) AP - as my daughter received AP Biology as a Freshman.

I understand that St. Peters Prep may have the advantage when it comes to the Humanities, they teach Latin, instill the Jesuit ideals as another poster opined. I thought my kids received outstanding instruction in English language communication and the all important Writing and critical thinking skills.

I think it really depends on the flavor of education you prefer. With Religion or without.

I would have to say that the main difference in my opinion between the two schools is the tradition and values that is instilled in boys upon arrival. Some of the traditions that are learned in St. Peter's are Jesuit traditions; that is the idea of brotherhood and emphasis on education- it is one of the very few schools that I know the boys will donate or attend alumni functions years later to show support. I liken the attitude and confidence the boys develop to the attitude and confidence of a Marine. Not to say that students from McNair lack esteem or pride, but it is not often (or hardly at all) that any of my friends or family who attended McNair visit the school 15yrs later
One other difference while obvious is still important none the less, is the religious element. That is not to say it is either good or bad, but religious based classes exists in one and not really the other.
I'm not entirely sure if I understand or agree with the idea that the kids are the difference, seeing that most of the kids can go to either school (except of course the girls).
Full disclosure... I would hope my son would choose St. Peter's

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Yes, but care to elaborate?

Cd: We know most of the "facts", it's the firsthand experiences we're looking for.

jesuit vs secular
all boys vs coed
NJ and NY student body vs JC student body
It would not be unusual if legacy played a part in admission to SPP

McNair has racial quotos for admission, so may be more diverse. http://www.jcboe.org/media/80214/mcnair_academic_profile.pdf

SPP boys probably come from wealthier and better educated families (just a hunch)

IMO, The difference is the kids.

I can't believe this has never been discussed here, but it's the biggest deal in the world for the cadre of boys who learned this weekend that they got into both high schools, and now have to choose.

So far our main anecdotal impression is that while Prep has great sports, an excellent college advising staff and alumni programs, it simply isn't as strong academically as McNair in math & science. Yet, as far as I can rummage from the internets, their avg SAT scores are virtually identical. I know there's alumni & parents of such of both schools on the list, what do you view as the main differences? (Besides the cost of Prep, of course)