17³Ô¹Ï

Enrollment Management

This subheading focuses on the administrative side of admissions, exploring topics such as enrollment agreements and rolling admissions. It's particularly useful for school administrators and parents wanting to understand the enrollment process from an institutional perspective.

View the most popular articles in Enrollment Management:

Rolling Admissions

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Rolling Admissions
This article explains the concept of rolling admissions in private schools, highlighting its flexibility and how it differs from traditional fixed-deadline admissions. It provides insights into the benefits and challenges of rolling admissions, including the importance of staying organized and applying early to secure spots.
iStock Photo/Yuliya Pushchenko

Rolling Admissions

When applying to private schools, you will encounter two kinds of admissions: regular admissions or admissions with a fixed deadline and rolling admissions.

  • Regular admissions or admissions with fixed deadlines are self-explanatory.
  • The school will publish a specific date by which applications must be submitted.
  • Rolling admissions are a little different and more flexible.

Canva generated this picture of a parent pondering admissions deadlines.

What is rolling admissions?

Rolling admissions refers to a school's practice of accepting applications until all their available seats are filled. The school will send an answer to your application within a couple of weeks, as opposed to waiting until a fixed deadline.

How does rolling admissions work?

Let's assume that the school begins accepting applications for the following school year on September 1.

  • You could submit your completed application on September 2 and expect to have a decision back from the school within a time frame from two weeks to a month.
  • At a school with a fixed deadline for admissions, you could submit your application on September 2 but not hear whether your child had been accepted until sometime in March, assuming the fairly common January 31 deadline.
  • Many schools with rolling admissions have a priority deadline.
  • You should submit your application before that deadline.
  • Once all the places are filled, applications from candidates who would otherwise have been accepted will go on a waitlist.

Professor Allen Grove explains the

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A Parent’s Guide to 17³Ô¹Ï Entrance Exams

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A Parent’s Guide to 17³Ô¹Ï Entrance Exams
Navigating private school entrance exams can be challenging for parents and students alike. This comprehensive guide explains the key admissions tests—ISEE, SSAT, and HSPT—and offers insights into their differences, scoring methods, and subject emphases. Learn how to determine the best test for your child, prepare effectively, and understand the role of these exams in the holistic admissions process.

A Parent’s Guide to 17³Ô¹Ï Entrance Exams

There are many reasons why a private, independent, or boarding school could be an excellent option for your child.

  • Private schools typically offer thrilling academic challenges, extensive STEM or arts programs, or other remarkable resources.
  • Their student-teacher ratios are low.
  • Their faculty usually have advanced academic degrees and strong professional reputations.

Canva generated this picture of an admissions director reviewing applicant files.

About 10 percent of students attend private schools nationwide.

The ISEE and SSAT are long multiple-choice tests lasting 2-3 hours and potentially covering above-grade-level content.

  • For the 4th grader applying to a private middle school, this might be the first time they have undergone two hours of solid testing with only one or two short breaks.
  • The best starting point is always to have your student take a full-length diagnostic test.
  • It’s important to know where your child is starting from so that you can help them get to where they need to be.

This video offers

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Understanding Enrollment Agreements

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Understanding Enrollment Agreements
Attorney Sara Goldsmith Schwartz answers my questions and provides some general guidance regarding best practices for enrollment agreements.

Editor's note:

I asked , whose "practice is focused on the critical issues facing school administrators and leadership," to answer my questions and provide some general guidance regarding best practices for enrollment agreements. This article is intended for the information of owners, administrators, and trustees of small to medium size private schools. ~ Rob Kennedy

The relationship between parents, students, and the school is determined by contract law. Can you tell us what that means?

The relationship between parents, students, and the school is based on a lot of documents, including the student/parent handbook, the code of conduct, the enrollment agreement, and more. The enrollment agreement, however, is the only legal contract, and it memorializes the relationship between the parents, students, and the school, binding the parties to the terms and conditions laid out in the agreement. The agreement assists schools in collecting tuition and fees in cases of non-payment and in assessing late fees in cases of late payment. However, a comprehensive agreement addresses far more than tuition and fees.

This short clip explains why contracts are important legal documents.

How can a professionally written enrollment agreement prevent litigation in the future?

A properly drafted enrollment agreement is a cornerstone of a school’s risk management strategy. For instance, it can help deter parents from bringing claims against the school, as well as help the school prevail on such claims.

An enrollment agreement

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