relaxed that almost everyone gets in. In short,the student populations cover all ability levels. The bottom line:The critical factor is that private independent schools not only expect but require more of their students. Most private school heads and virtually everyone connected with boarding schools now concede that admissions standards are so relaxed that almost everyone gets in This is definitely untrue for elite schools. I have a close family member who is an administrator in an elite boarding school. Their applicant pool has shrunk, but not significantly. They still have 10-15 applicants for every place. I went to an unofficial reunion of my own class at a non-Ontario prep school. Even with the recession, and annual tuition exceeding that of Harvard (for a day school yet), they have not 10 but 25 applicants for every place. Standards are higher than ever, and so is the competition to get in. Is the academic work offered significantly advanced over that of even excellent public schools? Yes, precisely because the school(s) can be selective. My alma mater only accepts candidates who place several SD above the mean in measured academic ability. The "dumb clucks" in my class are now head of pediatrics at teaching hospitals, director of programs at selective universities, research scientists and similar positions. And a few of us became teachers;-) Students who could not keep up with the pace and volume of work required were gently but firmly eased out. This is still the situation. When I got to a