Harrow School vs Rugby School 13+

[Chilli2005]

Hi MNetter's!

DS is currently at a fee paying day school in the Midlands. We have been offered Harrow Boys school and Rugby School for year 9 entry. Does anyone have experience of either of the schools please?

DS is a bit of an all rounder, good kid, not highly academic so I dont want him to feel out of place. We are also, not overly wealthy so we dont want him to feel out of place surrounded by lots of rich kids either! He's not scholorship material and we dont qualify for a bursery so we will be making quite big financial sacrifices to send him to either one of these schools. Are these sacrifices worth it and what can Harrow or Rugby bring to the table which an independent day school cant?

Now we are holding both offers, it feels very real and we are not really sure if the financial sacrifice is really worth it espeically with the increase in cost of living and inflation. Neither of the schools have released their 2023/2024 fees as yet which could increase a further 10% and for the next 5 years.

Though on the otherhand it is doable and I feel we would be mad to turn these places down too, we are stuggling to weigh up whether it really is worth it!

We had an offer for Harrow but chose another boys boarding school for DS, you sound similar to us in that you will be making a big financial sacrifices to send him. My advice would be absolutely not,if only we could go back in time. In fact I wouldn’t send DS again under any circumstance. It is not worth it in any way, I still ask myself what on earth I thought I was paying for. I actually think that boarding schools should be closed,they are not fit for purpose.

From what you've described I'd say that Rugby would definitely suit your DS more than Harrow.

The main advantage of being at a boarding school, imo, is that there is SO much to do. Aside from lessons there's loads of time for sport and other cocurriculars, social events etc. It's an opportunity to form really close friendships that can stay for life, and at a school of that calibre there will be amazing opportunities for networking. It's worth keeping in mind that there will be lots of 'extras' on top of the fees - things will be billed to you that may be covered at your DS's current school (eg textbooks). How does your DS feel about it?

I’d go for Rugby for more of an all-rounder as Harrow is seen as one of the more academic boys schools out there.
I wouldn’t worry too much about your son feeling out of place since boarding school children will be sharing most of the same experiences leaving little room for comparisons outside of holidays or visiting each others homes.