Private high schools

Entrance exams at private high schools in San Francisco Peninsula and Silicon Valley

31 of the 39 private high schools in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties name an entrance exam, or say they require none, on their own admissions pages. By exam: HSPT 7; SSAT 1; ISEE or SSAT 2; School's own test 5; Optional 1; None required 4; None posted 10; ISEE or school's own assessment 1. Each school's wording, test dates and source page are below.

Home › Private high schools by metro › the San Francisco Peninsula and Silicon Valley › Entrance exams

Which private high schools in San Francisco Peninsula and Silicon Valley require the HSPT?

7 of the 31 private high schools in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties with an entrance-exam entry use the HSPT: Archbishop Mitty High School, Bellarmine College Preparatory, Junipero Serra High School, Mercy High School, Notre Dame High School, Presentation High School, and Saint Francis High School.

Which private high schools in San Francisco Peninsula and Silicon Valley take the ISEE or SSAT?

4 of the 31 private high schools in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties with an entrance-exam entry take the ISEE or the SSAT: The King's Academy, BASIS Independent Silicon Valley, The Harker School, and Oakwood School.

Which private high schools in San Francisco Peninsula and Silicon Valley require no entrance exam?

4 of the 31 private high schools in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties require no entrance exam: Castilleja School, Crystal Springs Uplands School, Sacred Heart Preparatory School, and The Nueva School. 1 makes the test optional: Notre Dame High School. 5 give its own placement test: German International School Silicon Vlly, Live Oak Academy, Menlo School, Rise Academy, and Woodside Priory School.

When are the entrance exams and application deadlines at private high schools in San Francisco Peninsula and Silicon Valley?

11 of the 31 schools post their test dates, printed beside each school below. 24 have an upcoming application deadline on file; the earliest is Junipero Serra High School on Nov 20, 2026.

Preparing for one of these? Reach has a guide to the HSPT and a guide to the ISEE, each with the test's structure, dates and the schools that use it.

HSPT (7 schools)

School City Grades What the school says Test dates as posted Application deadline Source
Archbishop Mitty High School San Jose 9–12 HSPT January 9, 2027 and January 23, 2027, 9:00 a.m., approximately three hours Dec 11, 2026 Admissions page
Bellarmine College Preparatory San Jose 9–12 HSPT January 9, 2027 (1:00-4:00 PM); January 23, 2027 makeup (1:00-4:00 PM) — Admissions page
Junipero Serra High School San Mateo 9–12 HSPT (required; administered at Serra Dec 5, 2026; scores from Archdiocese of SF /… — Nov 20, 2026 —
Mercy High School Burlingame 9–12 HSPT (required of all applicants; hosted at Mercy Dec 5, 2026, may test elsewhere) — Jan 15, 2027 —
Notre Dame High School Belmont 9–12 HSPT (administered at NDB; must be applying to NDB to take it there) — Dec 11, 2026 —
Presentation High School San Jose 9–12 HSPT January 9, 2027, with a make-up on January 23, 2027 — the Diocese of San Jose HSPT dates. Dec 11, 2026 Admissions page
Saint Francis High School Mountain View 9–12 HSPT (required for all 8th-grade applicants; hosted at SFHS Jan 9 and Jan 23, 2027) — Dec 11, 2026 —

SSAT (1 school)

School City Grades What the school says Test dates as posted Application deadline Source
The King's Academy Sunnyvale K–12 SSAT, administered at TKA on round dates (FAQ page: required for grades 4-12; apply page… — Feb 6, 2027 —

ISEE or SSAT (2 schools)

School City Grades What the school says Test dates as posted Application deadline Source
BASIS Independent Silicon Valley San Jose TK–12 ISEE or SSAT — "required for Grades 2-9; we accept scores from the ISEE or SSAT"; none… — Jan 27, 2027 —
The Harker School San Jose TK–12 ISEE or SSAT No fixed school-administered date; exam must be taken after August 1, 2026 with scores submitted by the January 5, 2027 deadline Jan 5, 2027 Admissions page

School's own test (5 schools)

School City Grades What the school says Test dates as posted Application deadline Source
German International School Silicon Vlly Mountain View Preschool–12 Own assessment: German language assessment for non-native speakers (grade 2+) plus… — — —
Live Oak Academy Santa Clara K–12 Own assessment — full student assessment required for all applicants ($95 regular / $145… — — —
Menlo School Atherton 6–12 School's own assessment STAR Assessments run October 2026 - January 2027, booked through the Ravenna portal; must be completed by Jan 5, 2027. Jan 5, 2027 Admissions page
Rise Academy San Jose 9–12 Own placement/screening tests plus teacher assessments and report-card review (no… — — —
Woodside Priory School Portola Valley 6–12 STAR testing on campus (boarding applicants: STAR or ISEE/SSAT alternative); English… — Jan 5, 2027 —

Optional (1 school)

School City Grades What the school says Test dates as posted Application deadline Source
Notre Dame High School San Jose 9–12 Optional Not published on this page; HSPT registration is done through the school's FinalSite application portal Dec 11, 2026 Admissions page

None required (4 schools)

School City Grades What the school says Test dates as posted Application deadline Source
Castilleja School Palo Alto 6–12 No entrance exam None. Jan 5, 2027 Admissions page
Crystal Springs Uplands School Hillsborough 6–12 No entrance exam n/a - no entrance test stated Jan 5, 2027 Admissions page
Sacred Heart Preparatory School Atherton 9–12 No entrance exam n/a - no entrance test Jan 5, 2027 Admissions page
The Nueva School San Mateo PreK–12 No entrance exam n/a - no entrance test Jan 5, 2027 Admissions page

None posted (10 schools)

School City Grades What the school says Test dates as posted Application deadline Source
Cristo Rey San Jose Jesuit High School San Jose 9–12 No entrance exam posted — Jan 15, 2027 —
Eastside College Prep School East Palo Alto 9–12 No entrance exam posted — Dec 11, 2026 —
Fusion Academy Cupertino Cupertino 4–12 No entrance exam posted — — —
Fusion Academy-Los Gatos Los Gatos 4–12 No entrance exam posted — — —
Khan Lab School Mountain View TK–12 No entrance exam posted — Jan 15, 2027 —
Mountain View Academy Mountain View 9–12 No entrance exam posted — — —
Pacific Bay Christian School Pacifica 9–12 No entrance exam posted — Jan 15, 2027 —
Pinewood School Los Altos Hills K–12 No entrance exam posted — Jan 5, 2027 —
Silicon Valley International School Menlo Park Preschool–12 No entrance exam posted — Jan 13, 2027 —
Valley Christian High School San Jose 9–12 No entrance exam posted — Dec 7, 2026 —

ISEE or school's own assessment (1 school)

School City Grades What the school says Test dates as posted Application deadline Source
Oakwood School Morgan Hill Preschool–12 ISEE or school's own assessment "Applicants should take the ISEE no later than January 8, 2027." Jan 4, 2027 Admissions page

The same schools ranked by college outcomes, with tuition and deadlines, are on the the San Francisco Peninsula and Silicon Valley private high schools page; tuition for every California private school is ranked on the tuition page.

Each exam entry is read from the school's own admissions page and shown only where the school posts one; the wording in "What the school says" is the school's, lightly shortened, and the source link is that page. Test dates and deadlines are as posted for the season the school's page describes and may change; a deadline already past is omitted. A school with no entry here did not state an exam on the pages we read. The list excludes nonclassroom-based online schools and schools the California Department of Education records with no 12th grade.