THE LAWRENCEVILLE SCHOOL · PRIVATE SCHOOL GUIDE
Lawrenceville’s 830 students learn around Harkness tables and belong to 18 Houses near Princeton, New Jersey. Start here to picture daily life and prepare each part of your application.
Fall 2027 entry
GET TO KNOW THE SCHOOL
Lawrenceville has 830 students in 2026–27, from 39 U.S. states and 34 countries. Every student, boarding or day, belongs to one of 18 residential Houses.
IN CLASS
Lawrenceville describes Harkness as collaborative learning through discussion, experimentation, and critical review.
IN YOUR HOUSE
Houses are grouped by grade, with separate areas for ninth graders, for 10th and 11th graders, and for seniors. Day students belong to a House too.
WITH YOUR ADVISER
Your adviser is one of the adults on your House’s team. They talk through your classwork with you and are your family’s main contact.
The campus is in suburban New Jersey, five minutes from Princeton, about 40 miles from Philadelphia, and 55 miles from New York City.
Your House: Heads of House live with the students, supported by a steady team of adults who also teach and coach.
Every term: You take part in a co-curricular activity, such as a sport, the performing arts, or farming and sustainability. There’s also a community service requirement.
Extra help: Seniors run evening study halls as peer tutors. The Educational Support Office arranges accommodations for documented disabilities and helps eligible students with study skills.
Entry points: Lawrenceville admits boarding and day students to grades 9 through 12, and for a one-year postgraduate (PG) year.
Form names: Ninth grade is the Second Form, followed by the Third, Fourth, and Fifth Forms. New seniors and PGs join the Fifth Form.
Testing: Grades 10 and 11 can send the SSAT, ISEE, PSAT, SAT, or ACT. Seniors and PGs send the PSAT, SAT, or ACT.
Where seniors live: Seniors have their own House area, separate from the younger grades.
Writing support: New seniors and PGs can take a fall Writing Seminar, which prepares students for Lawrenceville’s advanced English electives.
UNDERSTAND WHAT LAWRENCEVILLE LOOKS FOR
The school describes admission as a way to learn who you are, who you’re becoming, and what you need to thrive. It publishes no checklist of criteria, so let your application show your character, your interests, and what you would bring.
YOUR QUESTIONS
Lawrenceville’s admission team writes that a good question tells them more about you than a polished answer.
Letrado’s advicePrepare two or three questions you actually want answered, about classes, your House, or weekends. Let them lead to a real conversation.
WHAT YOU’D BRING
Lawrenceville asks your parents to describe your character, interests, experiences, and the qualities you would bring to the school.
Letrado’s adviceThink about how you already contribute, in class, at home, or on a team. Specific moments are more convincing than titles.
WHO YOU’RE BECOMING
The dean of enrollment says the process is about who you are, who you’re becoming, and what you need to thrive.
Letrado’s adviceYou don’t need to seem finished. Describe something you’re still working on and what you’re doing about it.
WHAT LAWRENCEVILLE DESCRIBES
The interview is required. You can meet an admission counselor on campus or online, and both formats carry the same weight. If you attend school outside the U.S., you can also interview through Vericant.
You book it after submitting Part 1 of your Gateway application. Day-student interviews run until November 13, 2026, and boarding applicants can interview any time before the January 15, 2027, deadline. The school says interviewing early doesn’t help your chances.
Times fill up, and the two weeks before each deadline are the busiest. If your mind goes blank, the admission team says, just say so and start again.
WHAT LAWRENCEVILLE DESCRIBES
Lawrenceville calls Harkness learning “the organizing principle” of its community. Students teach each other, the school says, with teachers and coaches facilitating.
Some English courses in the 2026–27 catalog list active Harkness participation, or co-leading class discussions, as a course requirement.
WHAT LAWRENCEVILLE AND GATEWAY SAY
Lawrenceville’s admission pages don’t publish a rule on AI or on outside help with the essays.
Gateway’s Candidate Profile includes a certification that everything you submit, including any essays, is “factually accurate and honestly presented.” It warns that an admission may be revoked if the information is false.
2026–27 FIGURES
Lawrenceville doesn’t publish its average class size, student-to-teacher ratio, or admission rate.
PLAN THE APPLICATION
Lawrenceville uses Gateway to Prep Schools, an online application shared by 64 private schools, for boarding and day applicants. Your application and financial-aid application are due January 15, 2027, and decisions arrive on March 10.
Day-student interviews
Nov 13, 2026Application and aid
Jan 15, 2027Decisions
Mar 10, 2027For applicants working with community organizations such as A Better Chance or TEAK, Part 1 is due before December 15, and fee waivers come through their program director. Applications that arrive after January 15, 2027, are considered on a rolling basis, only if space remains.
Start with the Candidate Profile (Part 1), which also lets you book your tour and interview. The fee is $50 for U.S. applicants and $100 for international applicants. U.S. families can ask for a waiver.
From your principal or counselor and your current English and math teachers. After your first marking period, your school sends this year’s grades and the two previous years.
Required at every grade. Grade 9 applicants send the SSAT or ISEE; grades 10 and 11 the SSAT, ISEE, PSAT, SAT, or ACT; seniors and PGs the PSAT, SAT, or ACT.
Required for everyone, on campus or online, or through Vericant if you attend school outside the U.S.
Student essays and a statement from a parent or guardian, in Part 2 of the Gateway application.
The SSAT and ISEE: Both are admission tests for private schools, covering verbal, reading, and math skills, plus a writing sample that isn’t scored.
Test dates: For grades 9 and 10, Lawrenceville asks for scores from tests taken “on or after June.” Gateway’s listing gives the same window for every grade. Neither names a year, so ask the admission office if you’re unsure whether your scores count.
Sending scores: Lawrenceville’s codes are 4564 for the SSAT and 310680 for the ISEE. For the SAT, ACT, or PSAT, your counselor can add scores to your transcript, or you can email an official score report to the admission office.
If cost is a barrier: Lawrenceville’s financial aid office offers SSAT and ISEE fee waivers, and asks families who may struggle with the testing requirement to get in touch.
Time and fee: Lawrenceville’s aid director says most families finish Clarity in under half an hour. Clarity charges $65 per household, whatever the number of children or schools, and waives it automatically for families who qualify.
Details that must match: Use the same student name and date of birth on the admission application and on each parent’s aid application.
Tax documents: Clarity asks you to sign a release so the IRS sends your federal tax return to Lawrenceville. Business owners also send business returns, which take longest. Don’t email tax documents.
Common delays: The aid director names password-protected PDFs as the biggest cause of delay, and an empty “Other Considerations” box as the second. That box is where you explain anything the forms can’t show, such as a change in your finances.
English tests: Gateway asks for a TOEFL or IELTS score if English isn’t your first language or you haven’t spent two years at an English-language school. Lawrenceville’s own page lists both tests as optional, so confirm with the admission office. IELTS results must come straight from the test center.
Documents and interview: Grade reports must be translated into English. You can interview on campus, online with Lawrenceville’s admission team, or through Vericant, and all three count the same.
Vericant: A separate, paid service: a recorded interview in English of 11 to 13 minutes and a 30-minute writing sample, sent to the schools you choose.
Health insurance: International students must buy the school’s plan, which cost $2,595 for 10 months or $2,895 for 12 months in 2026–27.
Financial aid: The tuition page describes need-based grants for U.S. applicants, while the aid director’s guidance welcomes documents from international families. Ask the aid office before you apply.
WRITE IN YOUR OWN VOICE
Prompts appear in your applicationLawrenceville doesn’t publish its essay prompts or word limits on its website. You’ll find them in Part 2 of the Gateway application, with the parent statement. Part 2 opens once you’ve submitted Part 1, and Gateway schools usually write their own questions.
Lawrenceville says its essay questions ask you to think, reflect, and write, and advises giving yourself real time for them. Use them to show how you think, not to repeat your activity list.
Letrado’s adviceDraft early, then come back with fresh eyes. A small moment you remember clearly will say more than a big statement about who you are.
Read each prompt closely and answer it with real moments from your own life. If a question asks what you’d bring to Lawrenceville, point to things you already do.
Lawrenceville says the statement helps it understand you through a parent’s perspective, including your character, interests, and experiences. It adds that there are no right or wrong answers.
Your current English and math teachers see how you work in class. A short note reminding them of a discussion or project can help them write clearly. Lawrenceville also accepts a history, social studies, or social sciences teacher for English, and a science or engineering teacher for math.
The Candidate Profile asks for each activity’s years, hours a week, weeks a year, and your role. Gateway’s examples include jobs and hobbies, and it says some students have more chances for organized activities than others.
MAKE ROOM FOR THE FINANCIAL QUESTION
More than 30% of current families receive need-based grants, which are never repaid. The school says applying for aid has no bearing on the admission decision.
INCOME UNDER $125,000
average yearly cost to families, after an average grant of $72,697.
INCOME $125,000–$275,000
average yearly cost to families, after average grants of $61,359 to $69,960.
INCOME OVER $275,000
average yearly cost to families, after average grants of $39,577 to $52,351.
These are averages for grants offered in 2026–27, which Lawrenceville publishes as a reference only. Your own award depends on your family’s full financial picture, and families reapply each year.
Lawrenceville’s tuition and aid (opens in a new tab)PUBLISHED 2026–27 TUITION · BOARDING
$82,710Day tuition is $68,060. Tuition covers most fees; families also budget for a laptop, a phone, books, and supplies.
For fall 2027 entry, use the 2027–28 costs when Lawrenceville publishes them.
2026–27 payment schedule (PDF) (opens in a new tab)
AI illustrationLetrado’s adviceStart with the average for your income band above, then add travel and insurance to see what a year would really cost your family.
Your grant usually stays similar from year to year unless your family’s circumstances change significantly. Once you’re enrolled, Big Red on a Budget, a group of more than 100 students receiving aid, offers community and mentorship.
What aid covers at Lawrenceville (opens in a new tab)ADMITTED TO LAWRENCEVILLE · S.M.
She was an articulate humanities student from Lagos whose answers could sound prepared without answering the question, and her family needed substantial financial aid. We helped her show how she changes her mind and build a school list her family could sustain.
Interview practice slowed her down, so she gave a direct, personal answer before widening to a bigger idea.
Her newsletter piece on traffic enforcement hadn’t included any commuters. She talked with staff who traveled different routes, and her conclusion changed.
A school stayed on the list only if her family understood its aid process, deadlines, and costs beyond tuition.
Revising an argument after hearing from others is good practice for Harkness classes, where students build ideas together.
AI illustrationHER LAWRENCEVILLE OUTCOME
Offered a place at The Lawrenceville School
HER CHOICE: LAWRENCEVILLEMemorial Hall, The Lawrenceville School · Photo: Bmzuckerman / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0. Cropped.
Once her family compared the aid packages and travel arrangements, Lawrenceville was the most sustainable option. She also liked its House system and the range of ways she could keep writing.
ALSO ADMITTED TO
WHEN YOU’D LIKE A HAND
Bring your questions to a free 45-minute introduction with your proposed mentor. Afterward, we’ll email a personalized plan with recommended next steps.
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