APPLICATION PROCESS

Thank you for your interest in Santa Catalina School. We look forward to getting to know you better.

Our regular admission season begins on October 1 and closes on February 1. After the February 1 priority deadline, applicants are welcome to complete our rolling admission process. Please contact the admission office at admission@santacatalina.org or 831.655.9356 for more information.

How to Apply

Step 1: Request information & create a Catalina Admission Portal account

Ready to explore Catalina? We can’t wait to meet you and learn about your interests and what makes you tick! To connect with us and receive a color brochure and our curriculum guide, please introduce yourself on our Request Information form.

Once you inquire you will be invited to create an account to access our Catalina Admission Portal. Your invitation will be sent to the email address provided in our Request Information form. In the Catalina Admission Portal you can see all the steps to apply, learn about upcoming events, and stay in touch with us throughout the application process.

Make sure to choose Upper School once logged in.

Step 2: Set up your SSAT account

Santa Catalina uses a common admission application for independent schools called the Standard Application Online (SAO), found at ssat.org.

How to create an SSAT account:

Create an account at ssat.org
Complete all biographical questions, including interests and activities
Choose “Apply to Schools” and select Santa Catalina School to start an anonymous application
Next, choose to share your information with Santa Catalina—without this, Catalina does not know you have started an application

Note: Applicants interested in using the Application for Bay Area Independent High Schools should contact the Admission Office for more information.

Step 3: Manage your application

Congratulations on setting up your accounts for the Catalina Admission Portal and the SSAT (Steps 1 and 2)! You can now manage your application.

Catalina Admission Portal: This account houses important admission information and is also where you will monitor the status of your application checklist. In your account you can:

Schedule your interview and in-person or virtual visit
Sign up for admission events
Keep track of missing and completed application components

SSAT: This account is where you will submit a variety of required forms via the Standard Application Online (SAO). Once a form is submitted in the SAO it will automatically upload to the Catalina Admission Portal, updating your application checklist. Forms are confidential, and you will only be able to view a checklist of what is complete. The following are the required components for SAO:

Student Essay
Parent Statement
English Recommendation (current year teacher)
Math Recommendation (current year teacher)
Principal Recommendation (current school head or counselor)
Official School Report Transcript (current year, plus two previous years)
Application Fee
- Domestic students: $75.00
- International students: $150.00

Step 4: Register for admission assessments

Note for 2021 applicants: SSAT/ISEE results are not required for the 2020-2021 admission cycle. The TOEFL is still required for international students.

International students
In addition to submitting the optional standardized testing listed above, nonnative English speakers are required to take the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL iBT). Note that due to COVID-19, there is an online option available called TOEFL iBT Special Home Edition (not available in all countries). If this option is not available in your country, please submit the Duolingo English Test (DET).

School Testing Codes
Please use the following codes when registering for a test in order to have your results sent directly to Santa Catalina:

SSAT: 7132
ISEE: 054087
PSAT: 052045
SAT: 052045
TOEFL: 8102

Note: Santa Catalina accepts the submission of multiple tests taken in the same academic year and will consider the highest composite score.

Step 5: Schedule a Tour and Interview

We can’t wait to meet you and introduce you to all things Catalina! To get to know each other better, a virtual campus tour and interview are required components of the application process for students applying for the fall of 2021. All tours and interviews are conducted via Zoom.

Regular Admission: October 1–February 1

Fill out our Tour and Interview Availability Questionnaire and your admission representative will schedule a time that works best for you. Please schedule appointments a week in advance. (Note: It is not a requirement to submit an application prior to touring or interviewing.)

Virtual tours and interviews are available at a variety of times. The tour and interview are each one hour long and are scheduled separately.

Virtual student tour
Get the true Catalina experience by taking a virtual tour of campus with one of our student ambassadors. The tour is personalized and includes applicants and their parents. This is a required part of the application process and should be scheduled before the interview.

Virtual interview
The virtual interview includes applicants and their parents. It is a great time to have your questions answered and for us to get to know you better. At the end of the interview, there will be a 15-minute writing sample conducted within the Zoom platform.

On-campus tour (optional)
If you are coming to Monterey or live locally and want to see the campus in person, contact us to schedule a tour! In-person tours are conducted on Mondays and Fridays and require scheduling three business days in advance. Tours are no more than one hour and follow our county safety protocols, which will be communicated to you in an email prior to visiting campus. Available times are 8:30 a.m., 10:30 a.m., 1:00 p.m., and 3:00 p.m. and are dependent upon space availability. We are permitted to accommodate one family per time slot. The in-person tour is not a required element of the application and is not a substitute for the required virtual student tour or interview with admission representatives.

Rolling Admission: March 10–mid-August

Rolling admission is dependent upon space availability. Requirements are the same as the regular admission process.

Contact the admission office at admission@santacatalina.org or 831.655.9356 to schedule your in-person or virtual visit. We can’t wait to meet you!

Step 6: Track application progress & view admission decision

Your application progress

You can track your application progress in the Catalina Admission Portal. Once you have completed the following application requirements your application will be complete:

Student tour
Interview and writing sample
Assessment — SSAT or other approved assessment and, for international students, TOEFL iBT or the Duolingo English Test (when approved). Note: SSAT/ISEE results are optional for the 2020-2021 admission cycle. The TOEFL is still required for international students.
Standard Application Online (SAO) components:
- Student essay
- Parent statement
- English recommendation (current year teacher)
- Math recommendation (current year teacher)
- Principal recommendation (current school head or counselor)
- Official school report transcript
- Application fee
- Note: A personal recommendation is available but not required

Your admission decision

Applicants who have a complete application by February 1 can view their admission decision on March 10 in their Catalina Admission Portal account. (Admission decisions are not available in the SAO.) Admission decisions are also sent to your home.

Rolling admission decisions

Applications are welcomed during our rolling admission process after our February 1 deadline. Rolling admission runs from March 10 to mid-August, and admission decisions will typically be available within 7 days of a completed application. Applications will be considered depending on space available. The application requirements for rolling admission are the same as regular admission. Please call the admission office at 831.655.9356 for more information.

All application materials are due by February 1. Applications received after February 1 will be considered on a rolling admission basis after March 10 and are dependent upon space availability.

Reaching Admission during the COVID-19 school closure

Though campus is closed, our admission team is here to answer your questions and help you through the admission process.

The best way to contact us is by email. Please reach out to the representative for your region or email admission@santacatalina.org for general inquiries:

International
Ala Milani '87

East Coast and Monterey Bay area
Sarah Kline

Western U.S.
Stephanie Hill

Director of Admission
Jamie Buffington Browne '85

Request Information

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