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Standardized Testing is Required*:

• The Secondary School Admission Test (SSAT) is required. For more information on registration and test dates, call SSATB in Princeton, NJ at 609.683.4440 or via the web at http://www.ssat.org/.
  To ensure St. Mark’s receives your official score report, our SSAT school code is: 6730.

• Domestic applicants may submit the Independent School Entrance Exam (ISEE) in lieu of the SSAT. For more information on registration and test dates, call ERB at 800.989.3721 or via the web at http://www.erblearn.org/.
  To ensure St. Mark's receives your official score report, our ISEE school code is: 570103.

*For the 2024-2025 school year, St. Mark’s School is returning to requiring the SSAT or ISEE as part of the application for 2025-2026 applicants. Test scores, in addition to the rest of your application, help us understand areas of strength and contextualize the variety of different grading methods that are used across our diverse applicant pool. Recommendations, transcripts, application responses and test results are all important factors in assessing an application and determining whether or not St. Mark’s is a good fit for an applicant.

While some may view standardized testing as a barrier preventing access, St. Mark’s sees testing as a means to overcome barriers such as grade inflation and incomplete recommendations. Test results help contextualize an application especially when admission counselors are unfamiliar with an applicant’s school. Without standardized test results, great applicants may be missed. Test scores are evaluated with consideration of each applicant’s educational background and they are only one of many factors considered in a St. Mark’s application.

English Language Proficiency is Required:

Please review our English Language Proficiency Requirement information to determine if the TOEFL iBT or IELTS Academic, and Vericant are required for you.

• The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL)* is required of all applicants whose primary language is not English. For more information, call TOEFL at 609.771.7100 or via the web at http://www.toefl.com/.
  To ensure St. Mark’s receives your official score report, our TOEFL school code is: 9222.

• The International English Language Testing System (IELTS)* may be submitted in lieu of the TOEFL if you have an overall band score of 7.5 or higher. For more information, call IELTS at 323.255.2771 or via the web at http://www.ielts.org/.
  To ensure St. Mark's receives your score report, please remember to ask your test center to submit your scores electronically to our institution. An institutional code is not required. No paper test forms will be accepted.

*St. Mark's does not accept DuoLingo, iTEP SLATE, SLEP, TOEFL Essentials or TOEFL Jr. tests.

The completed application and the application fee must be submitted online by January 15 for the first round of admission decisions. Please do not submit multiple application types as this will delay processing of your application.**

You can:

• Apply online through Gateway to Prep Schools (GTP)* or the Standard Application Online (SAO)* common applications.
• Submit the Candidate/Student Profile section well ahead of our application deadline. This allows us to provide you with access to your St. Mark's  checklist* email updates for application status tracking.

*Please review the checklist information at the bottom of this page.

**While St. Mark's does not have a preference of choice between GTP and SAO, if you attend a school with a secondary school placement office, we encourage you to speak with them before starting your application as they may prefer one or the other for uploading recommendations. 

Whether you choose to apply through GTP or SAO, all applicants are required to complete St. Mark's application supplement and fulfill all of the recommendation requirements listed in sections 4 and 5 below.

• The St. Mark's Application Supplement for SAO applicants is included on the SAO website
• The St. Mark's Application Supplement for Gateway applicants is included on the Gateway website

Community-Based Organization Applicants:

If you are applying through an organization such as A Better Chance (ABC), Alexander Twilight Academy (ATA), Daniel Murphy Scholarship Foundation (DMSF), New Jersey SEEDS, or Oliver Scholars please submit an inquiry with us in order to receive emails regarding the application process.

We request that you submit your candidate/student profile as early as possible. Please check with your organization to see if they have a preference for Gateway or SAO. If you have any questions about your application, please contact us at admission@stmarksschool.org or 508.786.6118.

Optional Supplement: EMA's Character Skills Snapshot (CSS)

St. Mark's is more than just a place where your child will learn math, English, and science. Certainly the reason you're seeking to enroll your child here is because you're interested in an education that focuses on instilling character values and encouraging personal growth. Similarly, we know that your child is much more than grades and test scores. That's why we're asking your child to take The Character Skills Snapshot as part of their application. It will give us richer holistic information about your child, and show us areas where our community can help them grow, thrive, and shine. Visit the Enrollment Management Association (EMA) to learn more.
 

St. Mark's requires three current teacher recommendations: English, Math, and a third current core academic subject such as Foreign Language, Science, or History. Ask your current teachers to complete the forms after November 1 and submit them to our office by January 15. If you are not enrolled in a foreign language course, or if English is your foreign language, please submit the science or history recommendation instead. The Special Interest Recommendation form is optional. St. Mark’s accepts the Common Recommendation form.

Both GTP and SAO applicants are required to submit all three recommendation forms.

Please contact admission@stmarksschool.org if you have questions or concerns about submitting current teacher recommendations. 

If you are an SAO applicant who used the "Any Teacher" recommendation for another subject; please ask your current foreign language, science, or history teacher to complete a third recommendation for St. Mark's using the PDFs below.

Foreign Language Recommendation Form
Science Recommendation Form
History Recommendation Form

Optional Special Interest Recommendation Form

• Ask your principal or guidance counselor to submit the completed Principal Recommendation form through Gateway to Prep or SAO.

• St. Mark's requires complete transcripts (final grades) from the two previous years as well as grade reports for the current school year. Please ask your counselor or registrar to submit these items through Gateway to Prep or SAO. In addition, ask your school official to submit updated grades through February to admission@stmarksschool.org when they become available.

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  Home schooled and online schooled students are required to submit the Home Schooling Supplement. You may download a printable copy or contact the admission office to have one mailed.

  Home/Online Schooling Supplement

If you have a well developed talent in the creative or performing arts, you may submit samples of your work for review by St. Mark's art, theater and music faculty.

St. Mark's only accepts athletic videos and art submissions via Slideroom. Please review the detailed submission instructions on the Slideroom website. The deadline to submit to Slideroom is midnight, Eastern time, on January 15. If you elect not to submit materials via Slideroom, you may include with your application a printed art portfolio or athletic resume that lists your training and experience, repertoire or roles performed and honors received.

For network security purposes, we cannot accept submissions via USB drives, CD, DVD, or email, and we will not consider media links submitted through SAO or Gateway.

Note: If you are interested in submitting athletic videos for our coaches to view, please email admission@stmarksschool.org

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