Machon Sarah Seminary

amother

OP ↓

Wed, Nov 13 2024, 8:33 am

Please share what you know about Machon Sarah.
Which schools do the girls come from?
Is it growth oriented?
Jappy?
Is it a warm place where the girls form a relationship with their teachers?
Is it hard to get into?
What other seminaries are most similar?
Dd is a solid frum BY girl but also open minded and slightly out of the box. She's a good student but prefers hashkafah based learning. She wants her year in seminary to be an opportunity to grow in yiddishkeit and form lasting friendships.

Chayalle ↓

Wed, Nov 13 2024, 8:42 am

I have a close relative that works there. She told me it's for a solid frum BY girl that is not so in-the-box (those were her words). It's definitely growth oriented, academic, and the principal is known to be amazing - she used to be the principal of Machon Raaya and I have heard was a big draw there, I know people who were disappointed when she left......really smart person, and yes, warm and into the students. The seminary is a little to the right of MR though. It is somewhat selective (I have a relative who didn't get in.) It sounds like a good option for your daughter, based on your description.

My relative also told me they are very into safety (like if there's a trip planned, they will research to the nth degree that it's safe to go) but at the same time they try hard to give the girls a great experience.

amother

Tangerine

Wed, Nov 13 2024, 9:04 am

I have a cousin there, who is so happy!
Frum BY but open-minded, definitely would describe her as to the right of Machon Raaya but with similar hashafos. She chose this over BJJ and was the best decision for her (BJJ girls were waaaaay too closed-minded for her)
I would do some research if its hashkafa-based or textbook-style learning, because the girls they attract are generally very academic.

amother

↑ OP ↓

Wed, Nov 13 2024, 9:18 am

Thanks for the info.
If dd were to apply to machon sarah what would be a similar seminary to apply to?
At some point her mechaneches suggested seminar but she said she wouldn't get in. Not sure why not. Dd is very smart but doesn't have perfect grades because she wasn't very motivated in school. More like an A- average. What do the seminaries look for? Specifically good grades? Pls inform me as she's my oldest...

amother

Red ↓

Wed, Nov 13 2024, 9:26 am

amother OP wrote:

I reached out to my daughter who's there now. Here's some info:

Machon Sara is an incredible seminary for top academic bais yaakov girls. The learning is very text-based.
The girls come from MHS, TAG, a bunch from London, Mesoras, Bais Kayla, and then a bunch from out of town schools too.
It's very growth oriented, and the girls are all mature and willing to listen (nobody came to party the whole year).
It is relatively Jappy but to an extent- if your DD is the type to care if she does not own any brands then she might be overwhelmed.
It is pretty warm, but the teachers aren't running after the girls- if your dd wants a relationship she can initiate it.
It's very hard to get in (this past year there was something like 2,000 applicants and there are 110 girls there.
Hashkafically it's similar to Machon Raaya, Kesser Chaya, Lahav, etc and academically it's similar to Bnos Sara and Machon Raaya.

DD is there this year and she loves it BH- just be aware it is extremely academic so the girls work pretty hard.
Hope this helps!

amother

Magenta ↓

Wed, Nov 13 2024, 9:43 am

I went to Machon Raaya so same principle. She is beyond amazing!!! She is extremely down to earth, calm, caring, easy to talk to, and runs everything extremely efficiently. I don't know much about Machon Sarah but I'm sure it's amazing with that principle and they share some of the same teachers I had. I heard it's slightly more out of Towny than Machon Raaya but very similar.
I would say though if the learning is similar there is definitely hashkafa but everything is very textual base.

amother

Zinnia

Wed, Nov 13 2024, 9:48 am

amother Magenta wrote:

This this this! Mrs. Rosenblum is a master mechaneches and I know at least one (fabulous!!) teacher we had at Machon Raaya teaches at Machon Sarah.

amother

Bubblegum

Wed, Nov 13 2024, 10:10 am

amother OP wrote:

Seminar is way more yeshivish and Machon Raaya is more academic. Not really similar at all.

amother

↑ OP ↓

Sat, Nov 23 2024, 6:35 pm

Bumping up to see if I can get more info. (Dd school is not very helpful with seminary advising.)
Is Machon Sarah a warm place? Are the teachers and principals approachable?
Dd is a good frum girl. She doesn't have a smartphone or social media. She doesn't watch secular videos or listen to secular music. She's not into the latest trend and doesn't need the latest brand. She's low maintenance but very neat and classy. She's very street smart and academic. She wants to go to college for nursing but wants to marry a learning boy. We live in town but she enjoys the OOT mentality.
Is machon sarah geared for this type of girl?

amother

↑ OP ↓

Sat, Nov 23 2024, 6:44 pm

amother OP wrote:

Just adding on that DD will most likely get a smartphone once she starts college. She attends a very RW BY and comes from a good heimish home but in hashkafah she's more open minded and accepting of different types. Maybe because she has somewhat more exposure to different types in our extended family. She's a deep thinker and likes to learn the reasons we do things rather than follow the crowd or do things out of habit.

↑ Chayalle

Sat, Nov 23 2024, 6:52 pm

amother OP wrote:

According to my relative, very much so.
I think it sounds like a good option for your daughter, based on your description (which I get, is limited and I can't know for sure, but it sounds like it.)

amother

↑ OP ↓

Sun, Dec 08 2024, 1:58 pm

Machon Sarah vs Keser Chaya. What's the difference as far as the type of girls. Is one more warm than the other? We attended the open house for both. We liked both and we know that Machon Sarah is way more academic while Keser Chaya seemed less pressuring... MS was over zoom so we didn't get to see the clientele. KC had a very diverse clientele at the open house. Does it make sense to apply to both? In a way we'd want our daughter to be with other high achieving girls especially because she's smart. But we really want her in a warm environment with nice girls where she will make friends and connect with the teachers. We are heimish/chassidish. Dd is very intelligent and open minded. As per her sem advisor both are a suitable option. We want to know more about the girls.

amother

↑ Red ↓

Sun, Dec 15 2024, 10:58 am

amother OP wrote:

Bump

My daughter's very close friend applied to both. Dd is in Machon Sarah and friend is in Keser Chaya. Machon Sarah is an academic seminary. Keser Chaya has tracks so an academic girl can take classes that are challenging for her. I don't know anything about the clientele in Keser Chaya by judging from the girls from my daughter's school who went there, solid, open minded bais Yaakov types. Similar crowd in Machon Sarah. Machon Sarah has a big in towny crowd (more brands etc) but there's definitely out of towny girls there and if your daughter is like that she would find her chevra in Machon Sarah. Both are great schools. If you have more specific questions, I can ask my daughter to try to answer them along with her friend.

amother

↑ OP ↓

Sun, Dec 15 2024, 7:17 pm

amother Red wrote:

Thank you for your reply. My impression of keser chaya was that it's an extremely warm place. Teachers are very invested in the girls and they have chaburos in teachers' houses once a week. Machon Sarah seems more official and formal. Are the teachers there also warm?
Also are the girls coming from homes with a lot of exposure like television, movies, social media? Dd is open minded but doesn't watch secular movies or have a smartphone or social media.

amother

↑ Red ↓

Yesterday at 5:11 am

amother OP wrote:

Has your daughter considered Bnos Sora or Neimas? Both of those places are more similar to what you are describing in terms of media exposure.

amother

↑ OP ↓

Yesterday at 2:42 pm

amother Red wrote:

Has your daughter considered Bnos Sora or Neimas? Both of those places are more similar to what you are describing in terms of media exposure.

No those were not recommended for her. Keser Chaya and Machon Sarah were recommended for her by her teacher and seminary advisor. They did warn that there will be girls who come from less sheltered backgrounds than her but because she's smart and broad minded the other seminaries might be too "yeshivish" for her.