Transfer admission covers two situations: applying to a grade that is not a main entry grade, such as grade 3 or grade 7 at a K-8 school, and transferring mid-year, such as after moving to Irvine partway through the year. In both situations, openings usually come from departing students, are few in number, and are often not known until spring.
Where Private School Transfer Openings Come From
At private schools, main entry grades (such as kindergarten, grade 6, and grade 9) have a fixed number of new student spaces each year. Openings in other grades depend on how many students leave.
Harbor Day School
Openings known only in March
Openings in grades 1 through 4 and grades 7 and 8 depend on attrition and are usually not known until the re-enrollment period ends in March.
The Pegasus School
0 to 2 spaces per grade
Grade 1 has 0 to 6 new student spaces, and grades 2 through 5 and grade 7 each have 0 to 2; grade 8 is not an entry grade.
Sage Hill School
Very few upper-grade transfer spaces
The website states that transfer spaces in grades 10 through 12 are very limited and recommends applying for grade 9.
Private School Mid-Year Transfers: Policies Vary by School
Mid-year enrollment when a space is open
- Stratford School (Mission Viejo): enrolls students throughout the school year; when no space is available, applicants are placed on a waitlist by application date
- Carden Conservatory: enrolls year-round and accepts mid-year transfers when spaces are available
- LePort Montessori Irvine Spectrum North: accepts mid-year enrollment when a program has space
- TVT Community Day School: after the February 1 priority deadline, enrolls on a rolling basis until full
Mid-year transfers explicitly not accepted
- Harbor Day School: the website states that there is no rolling admission and no mid-year transfer
- Huntington Christian School: the website states that it does not accept mid-year transfers
Tuition for mid-year enrollment is usually prorated. For example, St. Paul’s Lutheran School states that tuition for students who enroll after the first day of school is prorated by quarter.
Materials and Assessments to Prepare for a Private School Transfer
Transcripts
Most schools require the most recent transcript. St. Junipero Serra Catholic School requires the transcript from the previous grading period and the most recent test scores; Pacific Academy requires at least two years of official English transcripts.
Academic assessment
Mariners Christian School requires applicants to grades 1 through 8 to complete reading, writing, and mathematics assessments on campus; elementary and middle school applicants to LePort Montessori Irvine Spectrum North may complete an assessment lasting from 1 hour to half a day.
Grade placement
The Geneva School states that transfer students are generally placed in the grade applied for; if placement testing shows insufficient preparation, the student may need to repeat the previous grade.
Interview
Most schools interview students before admission, and some also meet with parents. Stoneybrooke Christian School adds an academic assessment when needed.
Steps in a Private School Transfer Application
- 1
Step 1
Ask about openings first
Call or email the admission office to ask whether the target grade has an opening this year and when that will be known.
- 2
Step 2
Prepare transcripts
Request transcripts from the current school; students transferring from abroad should prepare English versions in advance.
- 3
Step 3
Submit the application and complete assessments
Schedule the academic assessment, interview, or classroom visit as the school requires.
- 4
Step 4
Stay in contact if waitlisted
The waitlists at Harbor Day School and The Pegasus School are not ranked; Harbor Day School's waitlist remains active through the summer.
Some schools still review applications submitted after the deadline, depending on available space. Pacific Academy states that applications received after January 15 may still be considered when space is available; St. John’s Episcopal School reviews applications submitted after the deadline, based on available space, after its first round of decisions.
