Independent, or private, school applications involve a gamut of things: deadlines to meet, applications to fill, tests to take and details to juggle. The key is to start early; many families are sometimes surprised how early they actually need to begin the search and application process. Unfortunately, many wait until the same calendar year they want their child to begin private school only to discover that they are too late. Therefore, the best strategy is to begin the year before that which you want your child to attend. For example, if you’d like you child to begin in the fall of 2014, you may want to start the process as early as late-summer or early fall of 2013. This holds true for most independent schools that have application deadlines around January 15th. Remember the goal is to allow enough time to ensure that the application process is done correctly and with as little stress associated with it as possible. To begin, and one of the most vital steps, is to understand how the timing process works. Below is a general timeline that provides an overview (keep in mind that the timeline will vary a bit from school to school so to get a more customized timeline, contact your school of interest to get the appropriate requirements and deadlines or contact our Dolphin consultants to help advise you):

Time is of the essence, so don’t delay! This is the right time to start thinking of your options for an independent school. For more help on preparing your child for the SSAT/ISEE test or for assistance with the entire independent school admissions timeline, contact one of our Dolphin consultants today by calling 646-490-5075.

Summer is almost at an end and it’s the right time to start planning ahead. If your student is planning on taking the SSAT or the ISEE for independent/private school admissions, then the time to start preparing is right now! Many a times families wait until the last minute only to realize that their student isn’t as well prepared as they would like. Parents will have their student take a practice SSAT or ISEE either in late September or in October with the intention of taking the actual test in December. The problem with that is that sometimes a student doesn’t do as well as you’d like. Then at that point, you’re left with only two months of time to prepare. During these two months a great deal of info, including learning test-taking strategies, reviewing key concepts, memorizing basic facts, etc. will need to come in to play. That can cause stress and anxiety for both parents and student since generally that’s not adequate amount of time to fully prepare. Therefore, don’t wait! This is the time to really formulate a plan and get your child started. Start preparing for the SSAT or ISEE today!

First determine which test, the SSAT or the ISEE, your independent/private school recommends your student take. Then, have your student take a full-length practice test as soon as possible. The practice test will provide you with an estimate of your student’s score while at the same time shine light upon his or her areas of strengths and weaknesses so that you can plan appropriately. Remember, the best case scenario is that your student does exceptionally well, and therefore you don’t have to worry about the test score when it comes to the application process. The worst case scenario, which if you start early enough is not all that bad, is that your student will need to spend a little bit of extra time preparing for the test. In that case, give Dolphin Academic Prep a call and we can discuss how one of our professional SSAT or ISEE tutors can best help your student do better.

As part of our SSAT and ISEE programs, Dolphin offers diagnostic tests to help gauge a student’s readiness for the actual test. We work one-on-one, in the comforts of your home, with each individual to tailor a program specifically to address the needs of each student. Your best tool for the entire independent/private school admissions process is planning ahead. Taking the SSAT or the ISEE is certainly no exception to this. Have your student take a practice SSAT or ISEE as soon as possible or if you’d like give us a call and we can arrange it for you. Whether it’s general questions that you have about the test or need help in preparing for the SSAT or ISEE, Dolphin Academic Prep is here to help so give us a call or email us today.