High School

How to choose a perfect high school in the United States and secure a partial scholarship

Published on May 7, 2018

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Choosing a great high school in the United States is extremely important. Schools in the US vary incredibly in size, academic level, extracurricular offering, clubs, sports, etc.

Size and location matters

Some US High Schools can vary in size from 50 to 2000 students. They can be located close to big cities or towns or they can be located in very small areas. Even if you like smaller schools, we recommend that the school you choose have at least 100 students. These institutions tend to have better resources to offer their students. There are important questions that you should ask yourself before making your final choice – How close is the school to an international airport? What percent of students are international? What is the surrounding area like?

Academics, sports and extracurricular activities

For a full high school experience, make sure your future school has a wide choice of subjects and offers AP classes (especially if you are thinking of attending college in the future). It is worth checking if you can participate in all sports as some public schools may limit access to sports for international students. Private day and boarding schools offer free access to all sports! Interested in pursuing your passion? Find a club that matches your interest. Usually the biggest schools have more clubs, sports and classes to choose from!

Know the difference between “Christian” and “Catholic” High Schools

You may often see the words “Christian” or “Catholic” in American High Schools’ names. Christian and Catholic Schools are NOT the same in the US. 

Christian high schools take the faith component pretty seriously and require students to participate in chapel services once a week or even every day. They may also require you to take religious classes such as “Bible” or “Life of Christ”. It’s best to avoid attending these schools if you are not interested in participating in religious activities.

Catholic schools often maintain the values of the Catholic Faith, but religious practices remain optional. These schools are generally accepting of students of all faiths.

If you are not religious, we highly recommend you to look for non-Christian schools.

Non-religious schools

The best option for students who are not interested in having religious practices implemented to their daily lives are non-religious schools.  These schools do not require students to take any religious courses or to be involved in any religious activities.

Scholarships

 Many private boarding schools in the United States offer partial scholarships for international students that range from 25%-70% of the total cost. Those are generally the best schools for international students. Those schools are well established and they generally have over 100 years of history of supporting international students.