Eton College

[chimera1]

Has anyone got any information on college

Hello every one. I so glad that the Eton thread is alive and kicking. My son has now completed his first month in College, and apart from a sprained hand, he loves Eton. I seldom hear from him, despite giving him a phone, a lap top etc.

Hi chimera1 great to hear that your son has settled in nicely and is enjoying school. I think it is every parent's lament that they hardly ever hear from theis DSs, but they are so busy that it is quite normal. I probably have an exchange via Facebook messenger once a week - but only if I initiate it .

Could anyone offer any advice on how to explain to my son that he wasn't offered a house in the house allocation process. I'm not sure how/why this happens. Apparently this is a rare occurrence which makes it all the more devastating for him. He was very chatty at the meetings with the four housemasters we were given and things appeared to go well but none of the three we put as first options have chosen him.

Did you actually put all three equal first on the form? Because at least one of them told us that there's a fair bit of manly pride involved and a HM really wants to be put first on your list.

Ah, maybe that's what we did wrong. We honestly liked all of them and thought as they recommended putting two first then three wouldn't be much different. I did wonder whether they would all know about each other but hoped that the admissions dept would keep it to themselves!

Mmm ... Can't quite remember all the correspondence but had the impression they would each know. (May be mistaken.)

I'm sure it's a bit disconcerting not to have been allocated a house but everything happens for a reason - the perfect HM for your DS will eventually be found. In the meantime he can be proud of having passed the pre-test.

It does sound as if putting three first choices may have contributed to this situation. They are trying to marry up 125 boys with 24 HMs - bearing in mind that another 125 boys will be going through the whole thing again in the summer. There is a new Admissions Tutor this year as well, which could be a factor too, so please don't take it personally.

If your DS liked most of the HMs that he met, then it should be straightforward to find him somewhere where he will thrive and I'm sure Admissions will do all they can to achieve this.

Well done to your DS. As Zero says, just getting the place is no mean feat!

Am I right in understanding from this that the winter round of house allocations have been mailed out?

There has just been an allocation of house places, but it is for boys who took the assessment, and were offered places, in the summer.

Thanks - I thought they were about now but had lost track. Am keen to know where some of my son's school mates have ended up

Thanks for your encouraging responses, it is hard not to take this personally but hopefully all will be resolved in the end. It's worrying to think that 4 HM didn't think that DS would fit into their house and I start to wonder whether this is the right school for him. However he is so keen to go that we will just take it on the chin and hope that there is a wonderful HM out there for DS who we otherwise wouldn't have found. I have asked for feedback so will keep you posted! Thanks again for being kind enough to respond.

Pollymum Is your DS at a school that regularly sends boys there? If so I'm sure your Head would be able to say something authoritatively reassuring. It's harder if your DS's success is a one off.

It's completely understandable for you to feel somewhat deflated - but remember this is not a "qualifying round." No one has failed. You already know how thorough pre-assessment is; they take so much into account beyond the computer thing and the interview before coming to their decisions. So they wanted your DS at the school more than all the boys who didn't make the A list or who never moved from the B list. They believe he will thrive there and help the school to thrive.

You've met four HMs so far and liked three of them enough... So in all likelihood there are several others who will also suit. It will be sorted out. Don't despair. School applications are so gruelling - don't let this change your mind. (And it's probably not the worst problem to have in the world right now ...)

I completely agree with Zerosome. My DH's housemaster found the process really tricky. He wanted the parents who had put his house first to get their wish. He also wanted to "balance" his intake as far as possible (truly academic boys, sporty boys, creative boys, musical boys, extroverts, introverts etc). This balancing act meant that every year he turned away some boys he really liked.