Applying To Private Elementary Schools: An Overview

Map of LA Private Schools

For many parents, even the thought of applying to top private elementary schools in Los Angeles can be overwhelming. Competition is fierce for private schools all over the greater L.A. area, but knowing how to get started can help ease your anxiety.

 

Many top-tier schools in the L.A. and Pasadena region receive more student applications than they can admit.

 

Here’s an introduction to how it all works to make the process of getting into private schools more manageable for your family:

 

Feeder Preschools

Some of you may have heard the term “feeder preschools.” These are preschools that send their graduates to specific private elementary schools each year. While “feeder” preschools are often popular and hard to get into, you should select a preschool that best fits your child and your family’s needs, irrespective of whether it is a “feeder” school.

 

And, don’t forget, even if your child attends a “feeder” preschool, that won’t guarantee he/she will get into a particular elementary school. Having a well-connected preschool director can help, but private elementary schools accept children for kindergarten from a wide range of preschools.

 

Applying For Kindergarten

The private elementary school application process begins in September, the year before your child will enter kindergarten.

 

Here’s how it works for most private schools:

• Tour schools at least one year before child will enter kindergarten in September.

• Submit written applications to schools.

• Prepare for parent interviews (schools interview parents about your family and your child).

• Student testing—or visiting day. (For some Pasadena schools, kindergarten applicants take the Integrated Learning Solutions administered test).

• Admissions letters are mailed in March for most schools.

 

Tour Early

If you’re thinking about applying for kindergarten, you may want to begin touring schools two years before you apply. This will give you an opportunity to find schools you really like and eliminate those you don’t think are right for your child. And, some schools offer tours up until May and start again in August. You can also call and ask for an individual tour for your family.

 

This is a big time saver. And, the year you’re applying to schools you will be able to visit your favorite schools a second time to learn more about the school. You should tour at least eight schools to get a feel for the various types of schools. It’s impossible to learn about the school based on another parent’s feedback. You really have to see each school yourself!

 

What do Private Elementary Schools Really Look for?

This is the million dollar question. The reason the top private elementary schools in L.A. and Pasadena are difficult to get into is that there are far more applicants than openings. So, schools can be extremely selective in which families they accept. Most schools are looking for a good fit between the child and the school. They want kids they can teach and kids who will excel at their school—from kindergarten through graduation.

 

They also want parents who understand and embrace their educational philosophy. Families that will be involved in the school, volunteering time and contributing financially, are also an important consideration in admissions decisions.

 

Schools also need to have an equal number of boys and girls per class. After all, you wouldn’t want your daughter in a class of 18 boys and 2 girls, for example. And, they look for ethnic and socioeconomic diversity whenever possible.

 

A few of the intangible factors involved in admissions decisions are:

• A child may just meet the cutoff date for age requirements and could benefit from an extra year at preschool. In other words, the child is too young for kindergarten in the school’s opinion.

• Your child is a legacy—that is, you or your spouse attended the school. This can be a big advantage.

• A family’s connections or contacts at the school. Connections and letters of recommendations from parents at the school or board members don’t guarantee admission, but can certainly help.

• Being a member of the school’s church or temple can give a family priority in admissions.

• Support from your preschool director on your child’s behalf in the form of a call to the admissions director is advantageous.

 

The Cost of Private Elementary School

Private elementary schools require you to open your wallet. The top schools range from $17,00 to $24,000 per year. However, there are schools that cost less per year and a few that cost more annually. You should also know that tuition generally rises between 4-8 percent per year.

 

Private schools also expect every family to participate in their annual giving campaign. The amount is up to each family and typically ranges from a few hundred dollars per year to tens of thousands. Tuition alone does not cover the cost of running these schools, so auctions, fairs and other events are held to cover the gap between the tuition paid by each family and the school’s budget needs. Additional expenses to consider include enrichment classes, hot lunch, field trips and sports programs.

 

Financial Aid

Financial assistance is available for families that qualify. The financial aid application is a separate application process from the school’s admissions process. Typically, schools award financial aid to cover part—but not all—of the tuition. And, most schools assume families will need financial aid for the entire time their child is at the school.

 

However, you will be required to apply for aid every year. At most schools, admissions decisions are separate from financial aid decisions. But, at a few schools, a family’s financial needs may be considered as part of the admissions decisions.

 

Schools do not want to admit families that have no means to pay tuition. Last year was a very difficult year for new families requesting financial aid because of the fragile economy. This year, the situation has been very similar as existing families that have requested aid for the first time are granted the assistance so that they can remain at the school. Some schools are raising additional funds to offer financial aid to new families.

 

Go Ahead, Apply!

Los Angeles and the San Gabriel Valley have wonderful private elementary schools geographically accessible to you. If you’re thinking about applying to private schools, go for it! Yes, it’s competitive, but your child has just as good a chance as the next child to be accepted. The process is difficult.

 

My co-authors and I like to say that private elementary school admissions is like a game that anyone can play as long as you as you understand its rules. So, try to ignore the hype and focus on getting through the process. In the end, once your child is accepted at a great school, all the ups and downs of the admissions frenzy will be forgotten.

 

A version of this post was previously published in the Eagle Rock Patch

Guest Blogger “Emily”: Not Wealthy, Not Connected…Just Two Working Parents

Getting An Early Start

I still can’t believe that it’s over.

I remember distinctly the day it all began. I was standing outside after a preschool fundraising meeting with several other moms, and the conversation turned to private elementary school tours.  The first thing I felt was a pit in my stomach.  Was I behind the ball, again?  We had waited until very late in the game to find a preschool for our son.   I was in denial about the fact that he was even old enough for school, and truly in the dark about how competitive preschools were on the Westside.  So, at that moment, one and a half years before my son would start kindergarten, I told myself that there was no way we would be behind the ball on this one.   And so it began…

 

Touring Schools

I started touring schools in February of 2011.   The first step was learning about all of the different types of schools out there.  Where there good public options? What are these private schools like?  I toured them all, privates, charters, magnets, and parochial.   I knew nothing about educational philosophies, progressive vs. traditional, charter vs. magnet, or anything about the entire process.  I soon found myself creating files, Google doc. spreadsheets, and making calendars to hang on the fridge to keep track of all the tour dates and appointments.

 

It soon became clear to me that the lottery process of the public charter and magnet options was too random – too much to be left to chance, the luck of the draw.   And then when I started to tour the private schools, I couldn’t believe how beautiful some of these schools were, how progressive they were in their philosophies, and how much they had to offer.   Most seemed to have two full time teachers in each class.  A low teacher to student ratio always appealed to me. I knew that this type of education was something I wanted for my boy, and it became quickly clear that only a handful of publics might offer something similar, IF you were lucky enough to have your child’s name drawn out of their lottery fishbowl.

Stress!

As the process unfolded, my poor husband didn’t know what hit him.  Of course he was on board with getting our son into a great school, but really?  Tours, applications, parent interviews, and “playdates” for every school?  The process consumed me for over a year.  My husband was starting to tune out when I would bring up something about school in almost every single conversation we had.  I on the other hand loved it.   There was nothing I was more passionate about, nothing I was more committed to, nothing I wanted to think about or work towards more.

 

Written Applications

I found myself answering questions on written applications for the first time that I had never really thought about, like “what do you want in an education for your child?”  Or “why is this school the right school for your son?   And, “How would you like to be involved in our community?”  I really had no idea!  I just wanted a good education for him and a safe environment.  Little did I even know what a “good” education meant, really.  Our own education about elementary school education began.

 

Applying To Five Schools

We decided to apply to five private schools. Anything less than that seemed too risky.   I had read about how competitive it was to get into a good private elementary school, and how slim the chances are of getting accepted.  We only had acquaintances at a few of the schools.  We did not have connections, we are not in the industry, and we are not a family with deep pockets.  In fact, we were applying for financial aid.  I knew that this made our chances of getting in even worse, as the possibility of getting accepted AND getting aid would be slim.  This was all a real long shot.

 

We kept public school options in the picture, applying to several charters and a magnet school, but drew abysmal numbers in all of their lotteries. This was completely surreal.   (Really, you are drawing my son’s name out of a hat to determine his chance at a decent education??).

 

The entire application process was more work than I ever imagined. Just keeping track of parent interview dates, school “playdates”, and school events was an organizational challenge, and my husband and I both work full time jobs!  Now we literally had a third full time job.

 

Parent Interviews

The first parent interview was easy – a flowing and interesting conversation that gave us confidence for what was to follow.  The next interview was uncomfortable, forced, and formal.   Wow, I guess we blew it? “Oh well, we were ourselves,” I thought, although it was a slightly uncomfortable feeling, like a job interview where you feel like you didn’t nail it. I never felt like we needed to pretend to be something we weren’t, or that we needed to over-prepare.  If they didn’t like us, or think our son was great, then this school was not for us! I truly felt that throughout the process.  I never really stressed about how we “performed” as much as I stressed about the numbers (this many families applying for this few spots?)  I stressed that it seemed like an inside game, and that we really didn’t know families that went to these schools.  I stressed that we didn’t have any specific talents, connections, or wealth to bring to the school.  We are what you might call a “normal” family.   Not wealthy, not connected, not Ivy-League educated… just your average family with two working parents and one beloved little boy.

 

Staying Sane

I approached the whole thing like it was the project of my life. For better or worse, I am a research fanatic and over-think just about all major things in my life (one might say obsess about).  Getting married, buying a house, having a child.  This felt like the biggest so far – a crucially important move that could forever shape my son’s future.  I read Beyond The Brochure, the book and the blog religiously, posting comments and questions whenever I needed advice or just needed to be heard.  My friends and family could only help so much.  Nobody knew what I was going through except the other moms from school, and we all relied on each other heavily for emotional support and to keep the faith.  I found my mom friends to be invaluable during the process, and although we were essentially competing for some of the same spots, we were all super supportive of each other.  All of the good mojo, advice, information, and comfort we were providing each other would pay off for all of us!  And it did.  I kept my local wine shop in business too.

 

My Son’s Visiting Day

The playdates or visiting days were the next big stressor.  My son has always struggled a bit with separation, and I thought for sure that one of the visits would end in screams and tears.  He even told me before one that he did not want to go and that he would “scream the whole time.”  Awesomely ironic, I thought.  Luckily they all went flawlessly and his threats were idle.  Besides, if a school doesn’t understand that kids have meltdowns and bad days, and that the whole thing is just strange to them, then we don’t want to go there anyway! That took the pressure off for me.

 

Leaving Nothing To Chance

After the interviews and visits, we really started to feel the vibe of each school.  It was becoming apparent that some felt more comfortable than others, that some continued to impress us more, and some didn’t feel quite as right for our family.  Our favorites were rising to the top.  I diligently wrote thank you notes to the admissions directors and after every event we attended (my budget for thank you cards skyrocketed!).  I asked acquaintances we barely knew to put in a word for us, which was slightly uncomfortable at first, but what did we have to lose?  I had to get over my fear of rejection quickly.

We were really uncomfortable with the whole “first choice” thing.  Did we really need to pick one and tell them those words? (YOU are our first choice!)  My husband and I had different top three lists (mine based more on gut feeling and reputation, his more on commute and school administration). This was so hard, the thought of picking a top choice and communicating that to the school. This was something I agonized over incessantly towards the end.   We decided to not tell any school they were our top choice specifically, but to sincerely express our strong interest to each.  How confusing!!  (I told friends I felt like a serial dater who cannot commit!)

 

Our Financial Aid Applications

The financial aid piece was another huge part of the puzzle. For us, an offer of enrollment without aid would be no offer at all.  The paperwork required was extensive and detailed.  Each school had different forms and a slightly different deadline for submission.  If you are applying for aid, start early by putting together a budget – how much comes in and how much goes out. You will have to submit this to the school, and it is not necessarily something that is easy to pull together overnight (including the documentation they require).

 

As the March 23rd “D-day” loomed, I started to feel remarkably calm.  There came a point where we had done all that we could do, and fate would handle the rest.  Besides, I had read time and time again, being waitlisted is not a death sentence to entry, right?  I DID stalk the postman and check my e-mail incessantly that Friday and Saturday.

 

Getting Our Admissions Letters

The first e-mail arrived early Saturday morning.   Wow, it was a letter of acceptance from a highly coveted Westside school – the one where we thought the parent interview as a disaster! What a surprise!  Then, the next one rolled in… offer #2 from one of our top choices.  This was unexpected.  Really, we got into more than one?

 

When the mail finally arrived at noon, we could not believe our eyes when we saw four large envelopes and one small one.   We got into four out of the five schools to which we applied!   YES! We did!  As we opened each envelope, we started to read the details…. “We are happy to welcome you to Wildwood!  However, due to X, Y, and Z, we are unable to offer you financial aid at this time…”

 

A Financial Aid Twist

Four offers… but only ONE accompanied by an offer of AID.  This was something I NEVER expected. If they didn’t have aid to give, and we applied for it, why wouldn’t they just send us a rejection letter?    Hmmmm, we started to think…. Is this a test?  Do some families apply for aid, don’t get it, and then come up with the money some other way?   We concluded that this must be the case. But for us, there was no plan B to finance this deal.

 

My gut to apply to five schools was solid. I knew that the combination of getting in, AND getting in with aid would be tough.   I had heard that the number of families applying for aid was on the rise because of the economy, and at the same time, there were fewer funds available for aid because of the economy.

 

Making A Very Important Phone Call

For a moment, we thought, well that’s it! The ONE school that offered us aid is the one that chose us. And we really liked this school!  But it was not one of our top choices.  After thinking about it and talking to friends and family, we thought, why not call and see if this is negotiable?  Is the rejection of aid a done deal?  Or is this something that can be revisited?  Discussed?

 

Good News!

I contacted the school that I just could not turn my back on. The one that in the end, really felt like my top choice.   I had a wonderful conversation with the school director, and the door was open. We thought this school was an amazing choice for our son and absolutely loved it from day one, but without financial assistance, it was impossibility.    Monday was the deadline.    We had one great school that offered us aid, and my number one choice couldn’t let us know until Monday afternoon.   This was insane!   I was literally working from home that day, waiting for the call.  Was I driving a deposit check over to school A, or to school B?

Happiness

The call came at 1:30 p.m..  Our top choice school was able to revisit the situation and offer us aid!   It was an amount that made it feasible for our family (albeit still a big stretch!).   I took a deep breath, got in the car, and drove a check over to my son’s new school.   I was shaking filling out some of the paperwork…. I couldn’t believe this was finally happening!  Was this for real? The school we ultimately chose and that my son will be attending this fall, was a school that seemed like the ultimate long shot in the beginning.  We are thrilled with the outcome and still in disbelief that not only is the search over, but we got our little boy into that amazing school.

 

And now, a new chapter begins.

 

“Emily Summers” is a Westside mom who will have a son attending a popular Santa Monica private school in September.

* names and identifying characteristics have been changed due to the sensitivity of financial aid.