Boarding School Planning & Placement
If your local schools don’t meet your child’s needs, you may want to consider a boarding school where your child can flourish – both academically and socially.
With hundreds of accredited boarding schools throughout the USA, Canada, and Europe, selecting the right one can be daunting. Few parents have the resources needed to identify the best choices.
That's where the specialty services of Judi Robinovitz Associates play a pivotal role. Judi and her staff of educational consultants offer a high level of personalized counseling to students and families, helping them choose and apply to “best fit” boarding schools.
Judi and her staff frequently travel to visit boarding schools across the country every year to:
Meet with admission counselors, faculty,, and students
Tour campuses and dorms
Sit in on classes
Learn about each school’s culture and academics
Our experts’ personal insight provides families with a more intimate, personalized understanding of a boarding school than any viewbook or website can offer. Additionally, our relationships with admission directors can give families a leg up on the daunting application process.
Why Enroll Your Child in a Boarding School?
Boarding schools offer students the unique opportunity to fully immerse themselves in their education and peer relationships. Students who attend boarding schools can experience these benefits:
A wide array of core academic courses and electives
Impressive community-based motivation
Small, discussion-oriented classes
Environment and support conducive to great learning
Close relationships with teachers
Better time management skills
Strong work ethic and a sense of independence
Individualized attention from faculty and administrators
Numerous extracurricular activities
All of these factors, coupled with the away-from-home environment, lead most boarding school students to feel highly prepared for college and higher education. As boarding school consultants, we’ve seen many of our own clients move on to prestigious universities after graduating from residential schools.
To learn more about the benefits of enrolling your child in boarding schools in Florida, reach out to JRA Educational Consulting. We’ll help you understand what kind of opportunity will best benefit your student, both now and in the long term.
What Types of Boarding Schools Are Out There?
Finding the best boarding school for your student depends on what you’re looking for and what your child needs. The most common options include:
1) Traditional Boarding Schools
This is what most of us think of when we picture boarding schools. Students live on campus supervised by staff and dorm parents. Some traditional boarding schools are more rigorous than others, and their sizes, age ranges, and gender restrictions may vary.
2) Single-Sex Boarding Schools
Single-sex education, also referred to as gender-isolated or single-gender, separates male and female students. At these boarding schools, male and female students will not attend classes together and will likely live in separate buildings.
3) Military Boarding Schools
Most military boarding schools assist students en route to military careers, but they can also be options for parents seeking more serious discipline. Many graduates of these schools go on to attend prestigious universities such as West Point, the Naval Academy, or the Air Force Academy.
4) Boarding Schools for Students With Learning Differences
Some boarding schools are specifically geared toward supporting students with learning differences. To determine if this is an option for your family, speak to our boarding school consultants about your child’s specific needs and differences.
5) Summer Boarding Schools
Summer boarding schools essentially function as short-term programs for children/teens between their regular school semesters. They can be a good option for students who want to get ahead academically, or for parents who want their children to stay monitored and engaged over the summers.
Services JRA Offers for Boarding School Planning
JRA's expertise puts a student ahead of the pack with cutting-edge advice on how to stand out during the boarding-school application process. Our counseling includes a full range of services:
Planning Consultations
Are you wondering “What boarding schools are near me – and how do I apply to them?” Schedule a consultation with our experts. We’ll help you understand the boarding school planning process from start to finish.
Student Evaluations
At JRA, we help conduct complete student evaluations by assessing students’:
Academic records
Activities and interests
Strengths and weaknesses
Mental health
Short and long-term goals
Our thorough evaluations allow us to identify the best boarding schools for each student’s needs which can include location, religious affiliation, and other important factors. Once we’ve learned what we need to know, we create a profile for each student that we can present to boarding-school admission directors during the pre-screening process.
Test Preparation
Most boarding schools will require at least one specific admission test, likely the Secondary School Admission Test (SSAT) or the Independent School Entrance Examination (ISEE). Our JRA tutors provide one-on-one preparation sessions to help students improve their scores.
Interview Preparation
Many boarding schools schedule interviews with prospective students during the admissions process. Our educational consultants provide students and parents with essential information prior to these interviews, including the best interview tips for each school.
Application Assistance
If an essay is required in the boarding school application, we help students brainstorm ideas, edit their drafts, and submit a stellar final essay. We know what boarding school admissions teams are looking for, and we ensure that all of our applicants shine during their evaluations.
Placement Support
Once you’ve applied to the boarding schools of your choice, we can also help you select the school, pick the right courses, and deal with any problems that may arise. We’re here to keep parents in the loop throughout the placement process and advocate for your needs.
Why Turn to JRA?
Our boarding school consultants make planning for and applying to boarding school less stressful – for students and their parents. At the same time, we give our customers a much-needed edge when applying to prestigious or competitive schools.
Virtually all aspects of our comprehensive boarding school services are available on an hourly basis. This way, a family can work with us as much or as little as needed, targeting only those aspects of the process requiring our support.
What JRA Customers Say?
"We honestly can't say enough positive things about our experience with Barb. She helped us navigate the daunting task of finding the right boarding school for our son.
We were very late in the process, and in just a matter of time, she identified the right schools for our son in the most efficient way. She worked with our son on a regular basis to engage him in the application process from start to finish. She also empowered him to make a decision on the right school. She listened intently to our criteria and especially our son's.
We toured all of schools that we were considering. It was well worth the trip because as an added bonus, we had a chance to spend quality time together. Barb is professional, knowledgeable, and a pleasure to work with."
— Jules Schlecker
FAQs About Boarding Schools
1. How long should a student attend a boarding school?
The duration of a student’s attendance at a boarding school depends on his or her age, needs, and preferences. Some children are sent to boarding schools for as little as one year while others spend their entire childhood attending. Many schools are K-12, but others only offer admission to the four years of high school.
Of course, boarding school is never a permanent decision for you or your child. You always have the choice to try it temporarily and determine if it’s right for your family.
2. What is the difference between boarding schools and therapeutic programs?
Therapeutic programs, such as wilderness therapy or residential treatment centers, differ significantly from typical boarding schools. While both provide strong academic environments, therapeutic programs focus more on serious counseling and psychological support.
If you’re not sure what your child needs to thrive, talk to our team. We’ll help you evaluate the differences between therapeutic programs/schools and live-in schools. Ultimately, we want to find the educational solution that works best for your child.
3. How long does the process of boarding school counseling take?
Although there are thousands of boarding schools out there for us to evaluate, our consultants are focused on narrowing things down quickly and efficiently. We’ll learn as much as we can about your preferences and requirements, then immediately jumpstart the process.
Typically, most boarding schools in Florida begin accepting applications for the next semester around March. We’ll begin working with you in the months leading up to the spring so that you can apply quickly and put your best foot forward.
4. How can I convince my child to meet with a consultant about attending boarding school?
Not all students will be thrilled at the prospect of leaving home to attend a boarding school. If you’re trying to convince your child to begin the process and speak with a consultant, start by asking the child’s opinion on the matter and listening to what they have to say. Their opinion matters.
Once you’ve heard your child’s side of the story, present your reasoning for evaluating boarding schools. Explain the benefits, both academically and socially, and encourage the child to at least learn more with the help of an experienced boarding school consultant.