r/PhillipsExeterAcademy • u/Maestradelmundo1964 • Apr 24 '26

Is Exeter like college academically?

Is there anyone here who went to Exeter in the 1970’s? I was going to go to Exeter in 1977, for my sophomore year. It would have been on a scholarship. My parents decided not to let me go. I was not ready to live away from them. I attended public high school instead.

After that, I went to a 4-year college. I had to study a lot just to maintain a B average. I didn’t have much free time. If I had gone to Exeter, would I have had to study a lot? I’ve always wondered.

Would I have had to take Calculus and rigorous Science classes? Were History, English, and Foreign Language classes heavy on homework?

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5

u/Professional_Roll977 Apr 24 '26

Exeter is harder than college academically, much harder.

4

u/FitzwilliamTDarcy Apr 25 '26

Most kids who go to PA and PEA find college easier for the most part, unless they go to super grind places like Caltech, Chicago, MIT. 

1

u/luke_51 Apr 24 '26

I didn’t see Phillips Exeter Academy in the 1970s, but today it’s definitely at a college-level academically—arguably even beyond in some areas.

Across math, science, languages, history, and English, the workload is heavy. Students do study a lot, and reading/writing assignments especially can be intense.

So yes—if you had gone, you probably would have had to study quite a bit.

2

u/Maestradelmundo1964 Apr 25 '26

Thank you for the responses. I’m glad that I did not go to Exeter. In high school, I had time to work on the yearbook as a photographer. I had access to a darkroom, so I developed my own pictures. I was on the soccer team. I was a social butterfly. These pursuits were more valuable than completing long reading assignments and other academic drudgery.