Catholic high school admissions: timeline and entrance tests

Applying to a Catholic high school usually happens during eighth grade, and the busiest months are fall and early winter. Dates differ by school and diocese, so treat this as a typical calendar and confirm each step with the schools you are considering.

A typical timeline

1. Spring and summer before eighth grade: make a list of schools. Look at faith life, academics, distance, and cost.
2. Early fall of eighth grade: go to open houses and book a “shadow day,” when your student spends a day with a current student.
3. Late fall or early winter: take the entrance exam, and submit applications and financial aid forms.
4. Late winter or early spring: decisions arrive, often with scholarship offers and course placement.
5. Spring: accept an offer and pay the enrollment deposit by the school’s deadline.

Entrance exams

• HSPT (High School Placement Test): the exam many Catholic high schools use, covering verbal skills, reading, math, language, and quantitative reasoning. Schools often use it for both admission and course placement.
• TACHS (Test for Admission into Catholic High Schools): used by Catholic high schools in the Archdiocese of New York and the Diocese of Brooklyn.
• ISEE or SSAT: some independent Catholic schools use one of these instead.

Ask each school which test it uses, when and where it is given, and whether scores affect scholarships.

Beyond the test

• Most schools also look at seventh- and eighth-grade report cards, teacher recommendations, and sometimes an essay or interview.
• Some give preference to students from Catholic elementary schools or parishes, or to siblings of current students.
• Ask how the school supports students who learn differently, if that matters for your family.

Next steps

• Bring our visit questions for high schools to open houses.
• Read Paying for Catholic high school.
• See the best Catholic high schools and Catholic high schools by state.