Application Preparation
Prepare for the pieces Loomis Chaffee reads
The application mixes a parent statement, recommendations, grades, an interview and optional test scores.
Checked against Loomis Chaffee's published admissions pages on November 5, 2026.
Testing
Testing.
- Testing policy
- Standardized tests are optional. Students who choose not to submit scores will not be penalized, and the school does not admit or deny a student based only on testing.
- Test Optional Form
- Families must submit the Test Optional Form in the admissions portal. An application is not complete until it is submitted.
- Grades 9 and 10
- For grades 9 and 10 the school prefers the SSAT or ISEE. The Loomis SSAT code is 4672.
- Grade 11 and up
- For grade 11 to postgraduate applicants the school prefers the PSAT, SAT or ACT.
- English-language tests
- English proficiency is required for students whose first language is not English and who have had fewer than two years in an English-instruction school. It can be shown with the TOEFL, IELTS or DuoLingo.
- How many send scores
- About one-third of applicants, admitted students and enrolled students have submitted test scores since the policy began in 2020.
- Score reports
- The school does not publish average SSAT scores for admitted students.
- When scores are due
- Test scores sent by the testing agency should be received by February 1.
- A third recommendation
- Applicants who are not submitting test scores are strongly encouraged to add a third academic recommendation.
- 01
If your student plans to send scores, pick one test early and take a full timed practice test before building a study plan.
- 02
Leave room for a second sitting before the January deadline.
Essays
Recommendations and the parent statement.
- Parent statement
- The Parent/Guardian Statement is required for all candidates.
- Recommendations
- Three recommendations are required: the current English teacher, the current math teacher and the current principal or guidance counselor.
- A third recommendation
- Applicants who are not submitting test scores are strongly encouraged to add a third academic recommendation.
- Extra materials
- Applicants may share extra material by Vimeo, Hudl or YouTube link. The school does not review Google Drive or social media links.
- 01
Write the parent statement in your own voice, as a parent, and keep it separate from anything your student writes.
- 02
Tell teachers early which school you are applying to, so they have time to write something specific.
- 03
Use extra materials to show something the file does not, not to repeat it.
Interview
An interview that feels like a conversation.
- Requirement
- Interviews are not required but are strongly encouraged.
- Format
- Each student has one interview, on campus, off campus or online. After December 1, only students who have submitted the Candidate Profile and application fee can schedule one.
- Campus visit
- Campus tours followed by an interview are offered on weekdays when classes are in session. Visits last about 90 minutes and run through mid-January.
- Online interviews
- Online interviews run about thirty minutes with the student, then about fifteen minutes with parents or guardians. The school accepts both InitialView and Vericant online interviews.
- 01
Have two or three stories ready that show how your student thinks.
- 02
Practice explaining an interest out loud, without notes.
- 03
Bring real questions about daily life in the dorms and in class.
Preparation plan
A plan that works backward from the deadline.
Adjust the pace to your student's schedule. The order matters more than the exact days.
First
Request an interview and a visit
Visits run through mid-January. After December 1, only students with a submitted Candidate Profile and fee can schedule an interview.
Early
Decide on testing
Scores are welcome but not required. If you send them, plan the sitting so they arrive by February 1.
Next
Choose an application and tell the school if you want aid
Pick the Gateway or the Standard Application Online, not both, and indicate aid on the application.
Fall and winter
Ask for recommendations
Loomis Chaffee requires the English teacher, the math teacher and a principal or counselor. Tell them before you send the request.
By January 31
Submit the financial aid application
Families who want aid apply through Clarity before January 31.
After submitting
Watch for March 10
Decisions and aid awards arrive together on March 10, with a reply due April 10.