Machon Sarah Seminary

amother

OP ↓

Yesterday at 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

Yesterday at 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

Yesterday at 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

Yesterday at 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

Yesterday at 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 ↓

Yesterday at 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

Yesterday at 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

Yesterday at 10:10 am

amother OP wrote:

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