Glossary
ACCEPT: Your child has been offered a seat for the upcoming school year. You must give the relevant school a decision by the designated reply deadline, or the seat will no longer be secure. If you decide not to accept the seat, notify the school as soon as possible; doing so will enable them to offer it to another family.
APPLICATION DEADLINES: Applications are generally released, completed, and submitted in the fall of the year preceding your child's start date. Independent schools may have unique deadlines; take note of and adhere to each one.
CHILD PLAYGROUP: A playgroup is often conducted in place of an interview for younger candidates. The size of the group will vary from school to school, as will the separation policy and structure. Feel free to call the admissions office in order to find out what will be expected of you - and your child - at this time.
CHILD VISIT: Children may be asked to meet one-on-one with a school's admissions officer, teacher, and/or administrator. The process will vary from school to school. Feel free to call the admissions office to find out what will be expected of your child at this time.
EARLY NOTIFICATION: Schools may offer an earlier notification of their decision to siblings and legacies who are applying for nursery, kindergarten, or 1st grade programs. Note that the definition of "legacies" will vary from school to school. Feel free to call the admissions office to clarify.
FINANCIAL AID: Each school has its own financial aid process; feel free to call the relevant office at each school to learn about the required forms and deadlines. Note that financial aid is not a loan, and will not have to be paid back by the family.
FIRST CHOICE LETTERS and REFERENCES: Formal expression of "first choice" shall not be solicited by either sending or receiving member schools of ISAAGNY; accordingly, "first choice letters" shall not be requested. Member schools may ask sending schools whether they are one of the family's top three choices.
ISEE: The Independent School Entrance Examination is an entrance exam for Grades 2 - 12. Primary Levels are for students applying to Grade 2, 3, and 4; the Lower Level is for students applying to Grades 5 or 6; the Middle Level is for students applying to Grades 7 or 8; the Upper Level is for students applying to any year of high school. The test assesses not only what students know, but also how they think. The ISEE is a required component of some schools' admissions processes; feel free to call the admissions office to find out what standardized testing, if any, is expected of your child. For more information on the ISEE, visit http://www.erblearn.org.
LEGACY: The definition of "legacy" will vary from school to school, though it typically refers to an applicant who is related to a graduate of a given school. Feel free to call the admissions office to clarify.
MATRICULATE: An admitted student "matriculates" when he or she enrolls in a school. In most cases, matriculation is marked by a family's submitted deposit and signed contract.
NAIS: The National Association of Independent Schools is a consortium of independent educational institutions that serve students in grades pre-kindergarten through twelve throughout the United States. For more information on NAIS, visit http://www.nais.org.
NOTIFICATION & REPLY DATES: ISAAGNY schools follow the same dates for school notifications and applicant response deadlines.
NYSAIS: The New York State Association of Independent Schools is a voluntary association of 180 independent nursery, elementary, and secondary schools enrolling about 78,000 students. It is affiliated with NAIS and the New York State Coalition for Independent and Religious Schools. For more information on NYSAIS, visit http://www.nysais.org.
PARENT INTERVIEW or PARENT MEETING: Schools may require a parent interview or parent meeting as a part of their admissions process. The process will vary from school to school. Feel free to call the admissions office to find out what will be expected of you at this time.
PRINCIPLES OF GOOD PRACTICE: ISAAGNY's Principles of Good Practice provide common ground for the interaction of students with schools, parents with schools, and schools with schools. All ISAAGNY members agree to abide by these principles.
RE-ENROLLMENT: After a student has enrolled at and attended a school, his or her family will generally receive a contract to re-enroll for the following year. Each school determines its own return date for contracts from re-enrolling students, but students who choose to apply out to another school do have until the parents' reply date for the grade to which they are applying to submit the re-enrollment contract or to sign a contract at another school.
REGRETS/DENY: Your child has not been offered a place and is not on the waitlist. You may inquire about re-applying the following year.
REVISIT: Some schools allow - or even encourage - newly accepted students to visit the school. These visits are typically offered to middle and high school applicants, and occur before the reply deadline.
SCHOOL RECORDS or TRANSCRIPT: An official record or transcript - or its equivalent - is a fundamental part of an admissions file; ISAAGNY schools do not formally enroll a student without first receiving his or her official transcript from the student's present school. School report materials are confidential between the sending and receiving school.
SIBLINGS: A sibling applicant is the brother or sister of a current student at the school to which the sibling is applying. If you have a child at an ISAAGNY school and plan on applying for another child to attend, feel free to call the admissions office to clarify their policy of early notification for siblings.
SPECIAL NEEDS SCHOOL: Special needs schools are independent schools that serve children with learning differences.
SSAT: The Secondary Schools Admissions Test is a standardized test focused on verbal, math, and reading skills. The Middle Level (grades 5 - 7) and Upper Level (grades 8 - 11) test has a total duration of 3 hours, 10 minutes, while the Elementary Level (grades 3 - 4) test has a total duration of 2 hours, 5 minutes. The SSAT is a required component of some schools' admissions processes; feel free to call the admissions office to find out what standardized testing, if any, is expected of your child. For more information on the SSAT, visit http://www.ssat.org.
SSS: Based in Princeton, New Jersey, the School Scholarship Service is an independent evaluator of financial aid requests. It evaluates parent financial statements, determines the level of financial need, and advises schools of its analysis. Many ISAAGNY member schools use SSS as part of their financial aid processes. For more information on the SSS, visit https://www.solutionsbysss.com.
TADS: Originally founded as Tuition Aid Data Services, TADS now offers tuition management, admissions and enrollment, and school management--in addition to its financial aid services. Many ISAAGNY schools use TADS as part of their financial aid processes, as the organization evaluates submitted financial aid documents, determines the level of financial need, and advises schools of its analysis; others use it to electronically deliver enrollment contracts and collect deposits. For more information on TADS, visit http://www.tads.com.
WAITLIST or WAITPOOL: Your child has been told that he or she has not been accepted for the following year, but that a space might become available. You may have to call a school to provide notification that you'd like to remain on a waitlist or waitpool.
WITHDRAW: You may decide to withdraw your child's application at any time during the admissions process. Doing so will remove your family from the admissions process, and your child will not be considered for admission during that season. Most schools require that families send a written letter or email to memorialize an applicant's withdrawal. Note: the submitted application fee may not be refundable.