November 20, 2008

Applying to Private School

(page 1 of 2)

 

August: Start Your Search

• Most schools advise parents to start at least a year early. By August, start a list of potential schools for the next school year. Off the top of your head, you might be able to come up with three or four schools. But there are 120 private schools in Hawaii. For a quick overview, see the comprehensive guide to Hawaii private schools.

• If you’re really planning ahead, you should know there are certain windows of opportunity in the private-school application process of which you’ll want to take advantage. Kindergarten is obviously a time when schools take in a lot of new students. Not everyone knows that many schools often add students in the fourth grade, an excellent opportunity, because, at that age, your child does not have to take the Secondary School Admission Test. Seventh grade used to be a major entry point. It still is. However, with the growth of the middle-school concept, sixth grade has become a time when schools add significant numbers of students. If you’re interested in high school, ninth grade will be the easiest time to enter. However, many independent schools take students throughout the year, at any grade level, as long as they’re not too full. This is known as rolling admission.

SSAT DATES

Oct. 13, 2007
Nov. 10, 2007
Dec. 8, 2007
Jan. 12, 2008
Feb. 9, 2008
March 8, 2008
April 12, 2008
June 14, 2008

 

September: Make Some Serious Selections

• By September, begin gathering materials. Most schools are glad to mail you catalogs, applications and other materials. At this stage, you can’t do too much research. Most schools have Web sites, as does the Hawaii Association of Independent Schools (www.hais.org). To help focus your thinking, you can use our “What Are You Looking For?” guide.

• One way to take a look at many private schools at the same time is to attend one of the HAIS School Fairs. The 2007 Kindergarten Fair is Sept. 4, the Middle/High School Fair is Oct. 9 and the Preschool Fair is Oct. 23. All start at 6:30 p.m. and are held at the Ala Wai Golf Course Clubhouse. HAIS also hosts a combined Kindergarten/Middle-High School Fair for residents on the leeward side of Oahu. The combined fair takes place on Sept. 19 at 6:30 p.m. at the Pearl Country Club. For more information, call 973-1540 or visit www.hais.org.

 

October: Take a School Tour

• By October, you should have narrowed your list of prospective schools. To how many should you apply? The consensus of most experts is five. That should leave you with a lot of choices when the acceptance letters come in.

• With your short list, you can start looking into specific school admissions and financial-aid requirements. Don’t wait too long, especially if you are interested in kindergarten. Some schools have early kindergarten application deadlines. For instance, Punahou’s is Oct. 15, Iolani’s, Oct. 30. For kindergarten applications, most schools will require: 1) teacher references, 2) testing, usually done by the school itself, and 3) an activity session and observation.

• For older students, October is the season for open houses. Try to attend them all. You’ll get lots of advice from other people, but, remember, you want to know whether a school fits your child, not someone else’s. There’s no substitute for first-hand knowledge, so go, and take your child if possible.

• In addition to open houses, check whether the schools you’re interested in allow prospective students to spend a day on campus. Some schools don’t give this option until a student is admitted, but it never hurts to ask.

 

November: Test Time

• If you are aiming for fifth grade or above, your child will probably need to take the Secondary School Admission Test, the SSAT. The test includes math and verbal skills, reading comprehension and a writing sample. Check with specific schools, but your child will likely need to take the SSAT in the fall.

SSAT tests are administered at: Hawaii Baptist Academy, Hawaiian Mission Academy, Iolani, Maryknoll, Punahou, Saint Louis, St. Andrew’s Priory and Trinity Lutheran of Wahiawa on Oahu, Hawaii Preparatory Academy on the Big Island, Akaula School on Molokai and Wilcox Elementary on Kauai.

You can get information at www.ssat.org or by calling (609) 683-4440 (Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; remember, they are on Eastern Time). You cannot register by phone, only by mail, fax or online. Registration closes three weeks before each test date, and costs $100. Late registration is possible online only, and costs $25 more.

• If your child does not have much experience with tests such as the SSAT, you might want to provide some kind of practice beforehand. There are numerous preparation options, from a study guide available from www.ssat.org to formal tutoring with diagnostic testing. It’s also possible to take the test a year in advance, without sending the scores to a school. Some schools will accept more than one set of SSAT results.

 

December: Mail Your Application

• By the end of December or early January, you’ll have completed and mailed your applications. But, beware, deadlines range from October (usually for kindergarten) to late February. You’ll want to create your own calendar.

 

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