Expert tips, strategies, and insights to help you succeed in academy entrance exams and beyond.
Explore Articles
BASIS Independent Bellevue's admissions team personally scores the ISEE writing sample on six specific criteria — and families never see those results. This post reveals exactly what the team looks for and how targeted essay practice gives Bellevue applicants a real edge before December 2026 testing begins.
Most Berkeley Prep families spend months on SSAT prep — and completely overlook the on-campus OLSAT reasoning test and timed writing sample that admissions reviews directly. This post gives 8th graders a complete, Berkeley-specific prep strategy for all three assessments, including OLSAT Level G skill-building that almost no test prep resource covers for private high school applicants.
Dimensions Academy Bloomington uses three parallel testing pathways — FastBridge achievement, CogAT, and IQ testing — to place gifted middle schoolers. This guide explains every threshold, deadline, and prep strategy your child needs for the ISD 271 gifted program. Find out how STEM critical thinking practice directly builds CogAT Quantitative and Nonverbal scores.
Choosing among CPS Classical Schools — Skinner North, Skinner West, Metz, Coonley, and LaSalle Language Academy Classical — starts with understanding one test. This guide compares all five schools by location, grade span, admissions competitiveness, and exactly what the 300-point Classical exam measures. Find out how to prepare your child before the November testing window opens.
The HSPT quantitative skills section is the most overlooked part of Catholic high school admissions prep in the East Bay — and at Bishop O'Dowd, it directly affects scholarship decisions. This post gives Oakland-area 8th graders and their parents a practical breakdown of the section, realistic score targets, and the prep strategies that actually work when your child gets exactly one shot at the test.
Every student applying to Central High School Philadelphia must score at or above the 80th national percentile on the PSSA in both ELA and Math. This guide covers exact score targets, the TDA essay, and a grade-by-grade prep timeline built around Central's 2027 admissions requirements. If your child is in 6th or 7th grade, start here.
If your child is applying to Cathedral High School in Boston, the HSPT is the one test they take once — no retakes allowed. This post breaks down exactly what HSPT scores Cathedral looks for, how percentile rankings affect scholarship awards, and how to prepare your 8th grader before the fall testing window opens.
Bishop O'Dowd's HSPT is a single-sitting, no-retake exam administered through the Oakland Diocese — and your 8th grader gets exactly one chance per admissions cycle. This guide covers score targets, Oakland Diocese test logistics, the Presidential Scholarship threshold, and how STEM Critical Thinking practice tests prepare students for the quantitative reasoning sections that matter most at O'Dowd.
Getting into the California Academy of Mathematics and Science means clearing four separate admissions hurdles — SBAC scores, transcripts, a Saturday student interview, and a parent interview. This guide walks you through every requirement, exact benchmarks, and preparation steps for the 2026 application cycle.
The HSPT Quantitative Skills section is the most logic-intensive part of Carondelet High School's required admissions exam — and most prep resources miss it entirely. This post covers exactly what the section tests, why calculators are banned, and how targeted STEM critical thinking practice before January 2026 gives East Bay girls a concrete edge.