Harrow School

What the heck are you talking about, HG?

Are you not another hypocrite in posting this:
'If you want more flexibility then St Paul's would be a better bet . . .'

And don't remind us another million times Winchester College is VERY ACADEMIC and you don't like Eton because they have fancy uniform and that boys need to run about and play, nonsense. Boys do that in primary school when they are 3 not 13. And if it's run about and play, you want, make sure you do it right at 4.00 o'clock in the afternoon after lessons at the playing fields or rowing lake till you drop.

In any case, my lastest postings are not directed at OP. You seem very frightened about people going to Eton. Care to tell us why instead of the uniform crap?

TheMead, are you really saying you're not going to meet that nice Palestinian boy, Mohamad, who has come a few thousand miles to thank you for the scholarship so as to keep your anonymity?

peteneras nobody is questioning any of the things you've posted above but being the most famous or being structured in a different way doesn't necessarily make you better than any where else. In your opinion and experience Eton in the best but there are plenty of people with different opinions and most importantly experiences of both Eton and other schools who would feel differently; neither opinion is necessarily more valid. The OP did not ask anyones opinion of Harrow just about one particular scholarship. As I've already said she's seen it, liked it, and feels its right for her son and herself and I think we should accept that. To aggressively criticise her choice is just sheer bad manners something I'm sure Eton would not approve of.

'But the way you were spoken to is not acceptable and very unlike them. Some stupid harrassed woman office worker, perhaps?'

Abitwobblynow, I can gather for whatever reason you do have some sentiment for Harrow for which I apologise to you. Let me not pretend that I like the school. To be fair, I don't know much about the school at all, that's why I phoned up to make a few urgent but very reasonable enquiries. I was given the run around for a few days because the person who could answer my questions, the senior registrar, no less, was 'busy' and could not entertain me, blah, blah, blah. Now don't get me wrong, I'm not an unreasonable person, accepting that a person of his position can be very busy etc, but my gripe was that I was told to ring back at a certain time just to be told he's just gone for lunch and some other (feeble) reason or other. Like I said I was given the runaround for a few days.

And when I finally got the man, before I could even open my mouth (his secretary must have already briefed him previously) his first question to me (angrily and discouragingly) was, "Do you know what sort of boys we have here for scholarships?"

To say I was dumbfounded must be the understatement of the decade. I didn't feel like talking more or telling him DS was already a fully paid up member of British Mensa since the age of 6. Just as well, after putting the phone down on him I made enquiries at that school in Windsor and the rest is history - DS subsequently won two scholarships, the Junior Scholarship (2nd nationally - now replaced by the New Foundation Scholarship) and the King's Scholarship.

Greythorne, but honestly, I don?t give a monkey?s whether you?re impressed or not by my attitude. For a start, I?m not out here to impress anyone and nobody needs to agree with anything I write anymore than I have to agree with anybody and everybody.

(1) 'The only nice thing about Harrow, is that on a clear day you can see Eton'. I didn?t invent this phrase nor did I post this jibe here. All I did was to put a picture into words. You obviously have no sense of humour.

(2) Harrow, a ?minor public school?. Again, I didn?t invent or post this here first but as far as I?m concerned (particularly in view of my previous treatment by them and what I have seen now), in the eyes of Eton, Harrow IS a minor public school, like it or not. Again, you don?t have to agree with me.

Quote: ?At the annual Eton/Harrow match an Eton chant is 'Who goes to a minor public school? You do, you do'.

(3) As for ?The only public school that matters? ? go outside these shores, ask an average American, Asian, African, Russian or anybody, to name one British school they know and confirm the answer yourself. Strange, in the world?s top school of each particular country, I have never heard of terms like, ?The Harrow of Japan?, ?The Win College of India?, ?The Charterhouse of Africa?, ?The Westminster of Malaysia?, ?The Shrewsbury of Sri Lanka?, The Merchant Taylors? of The Middle East?, etc.

I make no apologies for the mistakes made by these world top schools.

(4) Finally, ? the headmaster cannot touch them?. It is quite obvious you choose your quotes and words deliberately to mislead. This is what I wrote:

?It is believed the King?s Scholars (of which DS was one) are so revered that even the Head Master cannot touch them e.g. expel them;?

You can be forgiven for thinking Eton is just another school which is run like any other school where the Headmaster is king. But unfortunately (for you), at Eton, the king is not the Headmaster but literally the King himself or his representative, the Provost, who even till today, is appointed by The Crown. The procedural appointment of the Provost, Fellows, , Head Master etc. are more or less set in stone, so to speak, in Statues of the Foundation. I have already said previously the KS?s are the King?s Scholars, i.e. belonging to the King and not the Head Master.

Given that the daily running of the school including disciplinary matters is managed by the Head Master, but when the question arises in expelling a KS, only the Provost has the power to do that albeit he?ll be heavily influenced by the Head Master.

Just in case you can?t read properly, the song and dance of the 'Mohamad At Eton' programme was made by an Aljazeera filmmaker Shehani Fernando.

I meant "anonymous" aspect in your writing.

Peterenas,

"I can visualise a polite OP asking some very reasonable and polite questions about scholarships/bursaries, exams, admissions etc. - just to be ?slagged? off by Harrow as if she?s a pain in the behind, or worse still, a bloody cancer that Harrow wish will go away."

Harrow have just had an unbelievable headmaster, Barnaby Lenon (started off being a house tutor at Eton!), who had incredible vision and drive.

The upshot of his tenure is that whilst applications to public schools are falling, applications to Harrow are up 400% and they can afford to pick and choose. A lot of Eton parents are coming over because it is said that the ethos of Eton is being lost under Tony Little.

But the way you were spoken to is not acceptable and very unlike them. Some stupid harrassed woman office worker, perhaps?

Peteneras
I have met some OEs and I have always been quietly impressed.

To say I am not impressed with your attitude ("minor public school" / "the only publie school that matters" / "the headmaster cannot touch them" etc) would be a masterpiece of understatement.

A Note to Mohamad Fahed

Many congratulations to you, Mohamad. I'm sure your leader, Yasser Arafat, somewhere out there, is mightily proud of your achiements and smiling down at you with a broad grin. Your people are looking towards you to lead them to freedom and Eton will provide you with the tools to do the job like she has done so a million times in the last 600 years!

Very well done!

Really enjoyed this, thanks for mentioning it. He is such a lovely chap.

Benefactors of the school contribute anything from a million to £10 million without having to make a song and dance out of it. In fact, the benefactor who contributed £10 million only did so on the one condition that he/she remains anonymous.

That is absolutely correct.

The Horizon Foundation Scholarship is an Eton Sixth Form Scholarship made possible by an Eton benefactor that has absolutely nothing to do with the programme.

Just in case you can?t read properly, the song and dance of the 'Mohamad At Eton' programme was made by an Aljazeera filmmaker Shehani Fernando.

Quote
Filmmaker?s View
While travelling in Lebanon in 2010, I heard about a boy from one of the Palestinian refugee camps who had won a scholarship to Eton College, Britain's most prestigious school. I was intrigued to find out more, attracted by the sharp cultural contrasts his story was likely to reveal. Mohamad Fahed turned out to be a bright, articulate young man, the son of a teacher, whose grandparents had fled Palestine in 1948. Top of his class and with hopes of being a genetic engineer, Mohamad had been given a lucky break. His family and Eton, a school that rarely permits filming, agreed to let me document his story.

Benefactors of the school contribute anything from a million to £10 million without having to make a song and dance out of it. In fact, the benefactor who contributed £10 million only did so on the one condition that he/she remains anonymous. [peteneras]

Mohamad at Eton at 21:10?

Only one bright son, but lazy. The other is musical...and lazy!

Wow, Colleger, your boys must be very bright. Well done!

I know schools like Eton or WinCol claims that scholarship does not bring financial benefit. Bursary's been offered (provisional), but not enough to commit for 5 yrs.

I wonder in reality if scholarship would make me in the better position for us to re-negotiate financial support. Or completely means tested support.

"I have also never had any bad experiences and also find it hard to believe that Eton would act in such a fashion." Nevertheless, colleger, it's true.
I too had heard of Eton's generousity, so was a bit shocked. Perhaps the unpleasant woman was having a bad day

I get an impression that more middle & upper class are dominant in middle range private schools. Am I also being biased?

Rachel101, I'm not defending Eton or Harrow but your view on both is very inaccurate and you'll be in for a shock if you think you'll be mixing with a certain type at Harrow. In fact most of the aristos and Lords' kids are not bright enough to get into the top schools.

Rache, the 10 boys in my DS's year in his house at Eton were all distinctly middle-class. 7 of them had two working parents. Businesspeople, doctors, lawyers, architects etc.
There was no boy in the whole house with titled parents.
Your stereotype s way off mark.
Harrow has generally had a sprinkling of royalty in its ranks. All foreigners of course.

Everyone's experience seems so different. My communications with Harrow have been excellent. They actually encouraged both my boys to sit for the Peter Beckwith scholarships but I had to tell them we could afford the fees twice - must look poor! Out of Eton and Win it is the only school willing to allow my son not to sit CE as his school does not prepare for it. The other schools know I'd have to get private tutors in but Harrow said they'd prefer he concentrated on something else if he had any free time left. I like the school very much but I really dislike the parents.

Regarding bursaries at Eton and Win, I have also never had any bad experiences and also find it hard to believe that Eton would act in such a fashion. They are the most generous of all the schools and constantly advertise their scholarships in newspapers including the Sun.

HG - I did speak to Wincoll and they were lovely. So were Oakham - so that's my plan A and plan B and the moment. The other place as arrogant as Eton was Repton, also off my 'list'.

Kerrygrey you should have spoken to Win Coll everyone I know who has spoken to their bursar comes away feeling positive.
peteneras there are many out there who think Etonians are arrogant, I personally am not a fan of the school but having met many Etonians of all ages don't actually believe this is the case; lets face it their are arrogant people from all walks of life. But comments like "As for the only public school that matters" do not help this view.

Oh peteneras, I know just how you felt when patronised and treated as scum by Harrow. It happened to me when speaking to Eton - truly. All was fairly reasonable until I asked about bursaries, then I had the impression that I was a scrounger and they could do without my sort. F'instance, asking if younger children's expenses were taken into account when fixing a bursary I was told 'if people chose to have several children one must presume that they can afford them'. That's when Eton was crossed off my mental list.

Perhaps it just depends on whether you're unlucky enough to get an arse on the end of the phone

Huh! So you thought.

How many of you guys, particularly those who criticised me, have had direct dealings with Harrow? No, I?m not interested in stories about ?my friend?s friend blah, blah, blah . . .?

Just that . . . how many of you had actually picked up the phone and asked Harrow about things they should be telling you in the first place, e.g. scholarships/bursaries, admissions etc.?

I now know OP has done so and she has made it a point to include an angry face when she tells us above that she has contacted Harrow. If it?s any consolation, OP, you?re not the first nor the last that Harrow has insulted and patronised.

I do not know exactly what OP?s conversation with the school was but I can visualise a polite OP asking some very reasonable and polite questions about scholarships/bursaries, exams, admissions etc. - just to be ?slagged? off by Harrow as if she?s a pain in the behind, or worse still, a bloody cancer that Harrow wish will go away.

At least that was how I was treated by them some years ago.

The sad fact about a minor public school is that it artificially inflates its ego when it deals with ordinary members of the public. Can you believe it . . . it even tries to play God!

I say, there?s no need for all that humbug. The scholars in the video aren?t exactly there for free. They will win honours for the school and when their time comes, they may contribute perhaps more millions back to the school than your self-made God.

As for the only public school that matters back in Windsor, instead of the annual parade to demean and patronise them, Scholars there are much venerated. It is believed the King?s Scholars (of which DS was one) are so revered that even the Head Master cannot touch them e.g. expel them; they are the King?s Scholars, not the Head Master?s. Benefactors of the school contribute anything from a million to £10 million without having to make a song and dance out of it. In fact, the benefactor who contributed £10 million only did so on the one condition that he/she remains anonymous.

You are a poor show, Harrow.