Admission FAQs

Our selection is based on both academic and non-academic considerations. The admission committee looks for students who love to learn, are curious and have varied interests. A strong applicant demonstrates strong character and integrity and has a desire to engage in both the Harker and the greater communities. We look for families who support our mission and want to partner with us to build a community where students are supported on their own unique journeys, growing at their own pace into the global citizens of tomorrow.

We admit students with a range of interests, talents and perspectives. We receive more applications than we have spaces, so if your child is not admitted in a given year, they may be admitted in different year. We are always balancing the needs of the grade level with the applicant pool that year. Sometimes a child is a better fit for Harker in another grade level. Please contact us if you have specific questions about your child.

Our main entry points are kindergarten and grades 3, 4, 6 and 9. We accept applications to all other grades except grade 12, and enrollment will be offered to qualified applicants if a space becomes available.

*Harker, K-12, has a 97% retention rate with minimal attrition.

Children applying to our kindergarten must be 5 years old by Dec. 1 of their kindergarten year. We believe that students should remain in their peer cohort and should not be significantly older or younger than their peers. Therefore we don’t recommend repeating or skipping a grade at Harker.

We value the commitment of our families, alumni and faculty/staff who want to have their children attend the same school and this is considered by the admission committee. Admission is not automatic, and they must be a good match for our program and meet our qualifications.

The Harker School will release decisions through Ravenna, our online application portal, on March 19, 2021, 4 p.m. Application and decision notification dates are established by the Bay Area Admission Directors (BAAD) consortium of independent school admission directors.

The parent/guardian response (signed contract and deposit) is due by March 27, 2021.

Members of the admission committee review applicant files and then meet as a group to discuss and make recommendations to the admission office. The committee’s goal is to find the best fit between Harker and the students we enroll, seeking those students and families who represent a range of diverse interests and experiences. We take a holistic view of each applicant’s file, with every component being considered in our admission decision. There is not a single piece that determines whether or not a student is offered admission. We strive to admit a balanced and diverse group of students who will thrive at our school and add to the overall Harker community.

All completed applications will receive one of the following admission decisions:

• Acceptance: An offer of admission is extended, and the applicant is invited to enroll.

• Wait Pool: When an applicant meets our qualifications, but space is not available, they will be placed in the wait pool. There is not a ranked list within the wait pool. Should space become available between March and late summer, the admission committee will review all wait pool applicants and select one who best fits the composition of that grade. The wait pool does not carry forward into the next admission season, and applicants will need to reapply.

• Regrets: Harker may not be the right fit at this time and the applicant does not meet our qualifications. Some students will be stronger applicants when re-applying for a later grade level.

We only enroll students in the fall of the new school year. We do not accept mid-year transfers, and we typically don’t fill from the wait pool once the school year has started.

Offers of admission cannot be deferred to the following year. Because many considerations go into each admission decision, including the number of spaces available and the strength of the applicant pool for a particular grade level, we are not able to defer offers of admission to the following school year. If you decline the offer of admission for this year, you may reapply for admission next year.

Yes. An application is considered late if it is submitted after our January deadline. If qualified, late applicants are placed in our wait pool and considered for openings that may occur after first round decisions are released in March.

We are a day school only. All students must be living with a parent or guardian while attending Harker.

We welcome international applicants who are fluent in English and prepared to fully engage in our program. Applicants who are attending a school outside of the United States and/or require the I-20 are considered as “international applicants.”

• At Harker we work directly with applying families and do not work with educational consultants or agents. International families must apply directly to our school and communicate with the admission directors.
• We do not offer an ESL program, boarding or arrange home-stays. It is expected that lower and middle school students reside in the Bay Area with a parent. We prefer that upper school students live with a parent.
• We do not have a separate pool for international applicants. International students applying to The Harker School must meet the same admission standards as domestic students, and successfully complete all stages of the highly selective admission process.
  • Unless students have been attending a school where all their courses are taught in English, it is unlikely that they will qualify.
  • We do not accept the TOEFL.
• If an international student is accepted and enrolls, Harker will issue an I-20 after full tuition is received in mid-June.
• While Harker does not offer ESL curriculum during the regular school year, we do offer a robust English Language Institute (ELI) in the summer. For more information visit https://www.harker.org/summer#bookmark-eli or contact ELI@harker.org.

Kindergarten-Grade 2

Applicants will schedule an individual readiness assessment with our admission team and submit a cognitive assessment from one of our preferred psychologists (found in Ravenna).

Grades 3-4

Applicants will schedule an individual ISEE with our admission team.

Grade 5

Applicants will submit scores from either the ISEE (Independent School Entrance Exam) or SSAT (Secondary School Admission Test) entrance exam.

Grades 6-11

For the 2020-21 admission season for fall 2021, the entrance exam is not required. Due to uncertainty around COVID-19 on the 2020-21 admission process and taking into consideration student health and test accessibility, we feel a test-optional model is the most prudent choice.

In place of the entrance exam, each applicant will complete a proctored writing sample. You will be able to sign up for a proctored writing sample session once you have applied by submitting the preliminary application and application fee. There is no preparation necessary for this writing exercise. If you decide to submit entrance exam scores (ISEE - Harker code 054148 or SSAT Harker code 3711) which include a writing sample, you do not have to sign up for the proctored writing sample, and we will waive it once exam scores are received. While we have previously hosted the ISEE test on campus for applicants, we will not be doing so this year.

At Harker we value all facets of a student and, when evaluating for admission, take into consideration many aspects beyond a test score, such as interests, character and love of learning. We use standardized testing as a common assessment tool because applicants come from a wide variety of academic programs. For applicants to grades 6-11 who choose to submit entrance exam scores, we do not recommend enrolling in a test prep program as test results are only one factor in the admission decision. We recommend becoming familiar with the entrance exam by visiting their website and taking their sample practice test.

All fall admission events will be virtual this year. We are committed to doing our best to help you learn about our school community through a variety of virtual events. We are hopeful that we will be able to let admitted students visit campus in the spring before having to make an enrollment decision.

We understand school last spring and this fall are different than in past admission seasons, and it has been an adjustment for students and schools alike. Every school responded differently to the challenges of COVID-19 based on what was best for their school community. We will keep this context in mind when evaluating applications, and the choices made by your school will not impact your application in any way.

For grades 6-11 only: entrance exam scores are not required for the 2020-21 admission season for fall 2021. See the next FAQ for more details.

Tuition covers the vast majority of the cost to participate in the academic, extracurricular and other programs offered at Harker. For example, lunch, before- and after-school care, intercampus shuttles, and local transportation to athletic and performing arts events and field trips are included. Please see below for an overview of costs by division.

Lower School

Additional costs include school uniforms and a few optional after-school activities where Harker brings in an outside organization onto campus to run a specific class, i.e., karate or gymnastics.

Middle School

Additional costs include school uniforms, a laptop, textbooks and elective fees such as performing arts show fees, or non-local travel fees such as orchestra or debate trips. These additional costs are about $500-$1,000 annually.

Upper School

Additional costs include a laptop, textbooks and elective fees such as performing arts show fees, or non-local travel fees such as orchestra or debate trips. These additional costs are about $500-$1,000 annually.

We are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, independent school and our strong culture of philanthropy plays an essential role in the overall quality of our academic, extracurricular and character programs. Annual giving provides the “margin of excellence” in our programs that makes the Harker education truly exceptional inside and outside the classroom, in areas such as teacher development, athletics, the arts, library, technology, field trips and so much more. Like all independent schools, we ask every family to make Harker a philanthropic priority by supporting the annual giving campaign to the best of their ability. Some families are able to contribute more while some contribute less, but participation by all is important to creating an environment in which all families share in our commitment to the success of Harker’s mission. In addition, during your time at Harker you may be asked to support a capital campaign, which provides the facilities and infrastructure that help our students thrive. All campus buildings were built by past families for future students to benefit. For more complete information visit www.harker.org/giving.

Student:teacher ratio: 11:1

Average Class Sizes

K-5: 15-22
Grades 6-8: 16-18 students
Grades 9-12: 14-15 students

We have buses from south San Jose and the Peninsula and continually evaluate the transportation needs of our families. Many families also carpool. We also have a free intercampus shuttle between our three campuses (lower, middle and upper school), so families with multiple children may easily drop them all at one campus where they can take a shuttle to the other campuses. To learn more please visit our transportation site: http://www.harker.org/transportation

Students attend Harker from across the Bay Area. The largest source of students are from San Jose, Saratoga, Los Altos/Los Altos Hills and Los Gatos, but we have students who attend from more than 45 cities, 120 ZIP codes and as far away as Santa Cruz, Hillsborough, Gilroy and Pleasanton.

New students entering Harker come from many different types of schools. For example, the newly admitted students K-9 for 2020-21 come from more than 100 different public, charter, for-profit, independent and parochial schools. It’s a common misperception that Harker prefers students who attended more structured, heavily academic-oriented schools.