n the summer after seventh grade, i studied biology at CtY for three weeks on the campus of dickinson College in Pennsylvania. for the fi rst time in my life, i was surrounded by people who were academically driven and loved to learn just as much as i did. it was hard to go back to my school after that; eighth grade paled in comparison to the friends i made and things i learned at CtY.

leapstaying in touch with my CtY roommate, ali, made the

transition a little easier. one day, we were chatting online

when she mentioned that she was applying to college. in

eighth grade. When i asked her to explain, she linked me to

the website of the college she hoped to attend.

i spent hours perusing the page, learning that the

Program for the exceptionally gifted (Peg) at mary Baldwin

College allows mature, academically capable girls to bypass

some or all of their high school years by entering college

early. Peg students live together in a dorm on campus and

attend college classes full-time with traditional mary Baldwin

students. they can participate in the college’s wide range

of extracurricular activities, serve in leadership positions,

conduct research—in other words, they have access to a full

college experience.

there is a good chance that i would have been aca-

demically satisfi ed if i had stayed at my high school. i would

have been allowed to skip ninth and tenth grades, and take

advanced Placement and international Baccalaureate classes.

But i wanted to study—in depth—math and science topics

that were barely being introduced in my school’s classes. and

because i had attended the same school since kindergarten,

i was also ready for a new social environment, one that valued

intellectual growth. When i really thought about it, i didn’t see

the benefi t of waiting four years to go to college.

the door opensat fi rst, my parents wouldn’t let me apply. they wanted me

to enjoy my teenage years without the stress that college

would inevitably bring. they worried about how i would

adapt to classes with students fi ve or more years older

than i was, to the independence of dorm life, and to living

hours away. But fi nally, after several frank discussions, a lot

of tears, and a meticulously crafted PowerPoint arguing my

case, they allowed me to apply.

applying to Peg is just like applying to any other

college. the application requires students to submit

personal information, a transcript, sat scores, four

IN OUR MAY/JUNE 2010 ISSUE, we published an article about one student’s

decision to attend Phillips Andover Academy, a boarding school, for high school.

� at article, which is still available on our website, prompted letters from readers

who were interested in learning about other options for high school. We will present

student perspectives on several of these options—including magnet schools, home-

schooling, and making the most of public school—in future issues.

In the following article, Priyanka Nadar shares her experience of applying to and

attending the Program for the Exceptionally Gi� ed (PEG) at Mary Baldwin College

in Virginia. � is is one of several US programs designed speci� cally to accommodate

the academic, social, and emotional needs of students who are academically ready for college but younger than typical college students.

See page 36 for information about this and other programs, as well as resources for students considering early college entrance.

IN OUR MAY/JUNE 2010 ISSUE,

decision to attend Phillips Andover Academy, a boarding school, for high school.

who were interested in learning about other options for high school. We will present

student perspectives on several of these options—including magnet schools, home-

schooling, and making the most of public school—in future issues.

attending the Program for the Exceptionally Gi� ed (PEG) at Mary Baldwin College

High School Options for Gifted Students

SPECIAL SER IES

by Priyanka nadar

taking theWhy PEG Was the Right Choice for Me

34 imagine nov/dec 2010

Considering early college entrance?EXPERTS AGREE that early college entrance is not for all gifted students, and it’s not the only option for those students who need more challenge than their high school curriculum provides. If you’re thinking of entering college early, con-sider these questions:

❯ Have you taken advantage of the chal-lenging opportunities your high school has to offer, including local, regional, and national competitions?

❯ Have you tried college-level course-work (e.g., AP or IB, 12th-grade honors, or suitably diffi cult part-time college courses)? How well did you handle the rigor and pace of those courses?

❯ How do your SAT scores compare to those of the entering class of the college you plan to attend? Your scores should be at least average for the college you plan to attend, and preferably in the top quarter of the entering class.

❯ Are you confi dent about your written language, critical reading, mathematics, computer, and study skills?

❯ Are you truly motivated to enroll in col-lege—or do you see college as a way to avoid problems in your current home or school environment?

❯ Will you regret missing extracurricular opportunities in high school (e.g., being editor of the school paper or president of the student body, or participating in varsity sports or national competitions)?

❯ If you had your heart set on attending a highly selective college, will you have regrets if entering early means that you must attend a less selective college?

—adapted from “early entrance to College: academic, social, and emotional Considerations” by Linda e. Brody, michelle C. muratori, and Julian C. stanley, in A Nation Deceived, Volume 2 (the Connie Belin & Jacqueline n. Blank international Center for gifted education and talent development, 2004).

essays, and letters of recommendation. Peg also requires

interviews with each candidate and her family. about a

week after i submitted my application, my family and i

made the three-hour drive to staunton, Virginia, for Peg’s

Prospective student overnight. i stayed in the Peg dorm

with a current student and met other prospective appli-

cants as well as alumnae of the program. in the morning,

i attended a discussion-oriented english class and was

surprised at how much i had learned by the end of it. i

wanted to be part of this program more than ever.

two months later, i received my acceptance letter from

Peg. i was giddy with excitement about starting this new

part of my life.

the summer passed quickly, and before i knew it, i

was moving into my dorm. in the fi ve days before classes

started, i participated in both Peg-specifi c and campus-

wide orientation activities. some, such as skits run by

the honor council and judicial board, taught us about

the rules of Peg and mary Baldwin. others included

icebreakers, free movies, and giveaways to welcome

us. during this time, i met up with ali again, made new

friends, and got to know my roommate, maggie. i was

homesick for a few days, but by the time classes started, i

felt much more settled.

getting Adjustedthe transition from middle school to college classes was diffi -

cult at fi rst. though mary Baldwin offers courses that help Peg

students catch up—many Pegs haven’t taken the courses that

most incoming college freshmen have taken—the teachers

still had high academic standards. i was shocked when i got

my fi rst-ever B- on a test. after that, i resolved to exceed my

teachers’ expectations—and forged good relationships with

my professors and advisor in the process.

the single-sex environment was also new to me. i

had attended a co-ed school, and growing up, some of

my closest friends were boys. after the initial shock, i

noticed that female students (including me) really do tend

www.cty.jhu.edu/imagine imagine 35

to speak up and share their opinions more freely in this

environment. outside of class, Peg students have oppor-

tunities to socialize with boys our age at various mixers

that the program coordinates.

even though mary Baldwin students are all female, the

student body is quite diverse: i’ve met people with religions,

political views, sexual identities, and interests i never would

have encountered in my largely homogeneous middle

school. my classmates have opened my mind to new ways

of thinking and made me a more accepting person. many

of my friends have views, beliefs, and interests that i do not

share, but what we do share is a passion for learning—and

that includes learning from each other.

my roommate sophomore year taught me a lot about

fashion; through other friends, i discovered finnish glam

rock, The X-Files, and Doctor Who. in addition to a wide

range of interests, most of my friends have diverse and

ambitious career plans—they are budding writers and

historians, lawyers and professors, psychologists and

Broadway stars, neurosurgeons and astrobiologists.

Living and studying in an environment where most

everyone is passionate about school has inspired me to

work hard and achieve more: i won the fi rst-year calculus

award and have been accepted into three honor societies.

Yet Peg girls also remind me that there are plenty of people

more intelligent than i am, which keeps me grounded.

drawbacks & benefi tsmary Baldwin is a small liberal arts school, so its sci-

ence program does not have the resources and funding

that larger research universities have. though the

The PEG dorm at Mary Baldwin College. As in many other early college entrance programs, PEG students live in their own housing with staff dedicated to supporting these students.

The following programs are residential; unless otherwise noted, students live in dorms especially for early entrants. Grades listed indicate the grade in which students typi-cally enter the program. Links to these and selected com-muter early entrance programs are available on our website: www.cty.jhu.edu/imagine.

BARD COLLEGE AT SIMON’S ROCKGrade 11 or 12. Four-year liberal arts college exclusively for early entrants. www.simons-rock.edu

CLARKSON UNIVERSITY Clarkson School (Bridging Year Program)Grade 12. One-year program allows students to earn college credits but does not award a diploma. www.clarkson.edu/tcs

LAMAR UNIVERSITYTexas Academy of Leadership in the HumanitiesGrade 11; TX residents only. Two-year program with a focus on the humanities and character and leadership development. Students earn a high school diploma.http://dept.lamar.edu/taolith

MARY BALDWIN COLLEGEProgram for the Exceptionally Gifted (PEG)Grades 8–11. Four-year college; students typically take core college courses for first two years. Younger students receive more intensive support.www.mbc.edu/peg

MIDDLE GEORGIA COLLEGEGeorgia Academy of Aviation, Mathematics, Engineering & ScienceGrade 11 or 12. Two-year college with emphasis on technical fi elds. Students work simultaneously toward a high school diploma and an associate’s degree.www.mgc.edu/academics/Natural-Science-Math/GAMES

NORTHWEST MISSOURI STATE UNIVERSITYMissouri Academy of Science, Mathematics, and ComputingGrade 11. Two-year program allows students to earn an associate’s degree.www.nwmissouri.edu/MASMC

STATE UNIVERSITY OF WEST GEORGIAAdvanced Academy of GeorgiaGrade 11 or 12. Four-year college. Students are enrolled in the university honors program and earn concurrent high school and college credit.www.advancedacademy.org

UNIVERSITY OF IOWANational Academy of Arts, Sciences, and EngineeringGrade 12. Four-year college. NAASE students are automatically enrolled in the university’s honors program and reside in the honors residence hall.www.education.uiowa.edu/belinblank/old/programs/naase

UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXASTexas Academy of Mathematics and ScienceGrade 11; TX residents only. Two-year program with an emphasis on math and science. Students earn a high school diploma.www.tams.unt.edu

UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIAResident Honors ProgramGrade 12. Four-year college. RHP students are enrolled in the honors program and live in a residential learning community with other honors students.http://college.usc.edu/resident-honors-program

selected Early Entrance Programs

36 imagine nov/dec 2010

Hunt Dining Hall at Mary Baldwin College

quality of science instruction is very good, the lab and

research opportunities are not as extensive as at other

schools. there is not as much demo equipment or lab

equipment, especially for the physical sciences. that said,

i do have what i need to conduct my chemistry research.

Currently, i am trying to fi nd a way to use bacteria to better

dispose of harmful compounds in wastewater.

some of my friends have chosen to transfer to other

universities to pursue their academic interests, especially

in science. others were accepted as transfer students

to schools such as Johns hopkins University, UC santa

Barbara, UVa, and Virginia tech, but in the end chose to

stay at mary Baldwin.

the peer group and support system that Peg pro-

vides, along with the liberal arts education we receive

at mary Baldwin, make this a place where most of us

thrive. Before coming here, i hardly knew how much math

existed beyond calculus. now, i’m majoring in biology

with minors in math and chemistry. i’ve tested the effects

of endocrine-disrupting compounds on the development

of chicken embryos, and i’ve modeled nash equilibrium

with a professor who earned his Phd at harvard. and i’ve

made the best friends of my life. i couldn’t imagine leav-

ing here—at least, not without my bachelor’s degree. i

Priyanka Nadar is a junior at mary Baldwin college, where she is treasurer of the college’s chapter of the american chemical Society, a member of the honor council and PeG’s Steering committee, a calculus tutor, and an active member of three honor societies. Priyanka is also involved with the Spencer center for Global and civic engagement,

where she helps organize events to share indian culture.

Wo

od

S Pi

eRc

e]

Early College Entrance resourcesCONSIDERING THE OPTIONS: A GUIDEBOOK FOR INVESTIGATING EARLY COLLEGE ENTRANCEStudent version:http://print.ditd.org/young_scholars/Guidebooks/Davidson_Guidebook_EarlyCollege_Students.pdf

Parent version:http://print.ditd.org/young_scholars/Guidebooks/Davidson_Guidebook_EarlyCollege_Parents.pdf

EARLY ENTRANCE TO COLLEGE: A GUIDE TO SUCCESS by Michelle Muratori (Prufrock Press, 2007).

A NATION DECEIVEDVolume 1 (see especially chapter 9: Getting to college early)www.accelerationinstitute.org/nation_deceived

Volume 2 (see especially chapter 10: early entrance to college: academic, Social, and emotional considerations)www.accelerationinstitute.org/nation_deceived/ND_v2.pdf

www.cty.jhu.edu/imagine imagine 37