Concord, New Hampshire’s St. Paul’s School has provided a quality education grounded in Episcopalian values since its founding in 1856 by George Shattuck.
The school is known for its highly selective admissions process and the success many of its graduates find in seeking admission to Ivy League schools.
The school’s campus covers 2,000 acres and has miles of trails, a number of ponds, and is situated alongside a large portion of New Hampshire’s Turkey River. Its grounds have seen some of the earliest games of hockey in the United States.
The school was originally founded as a boys-only school, but it became coeducational in 1971 and is known as one of the earliest all-boys boarding schools to do so.
St. Paul’s has a current student population of 535 students across the 9th through the 12th grades and offers a student-to-teacher ratio of 4 to 1, according to Niche.com. As the school is entirely residential, all students enrolled at the school board there.
Throughout its long and storied history, St. Paul’s School has provided its students an excellent and enriching educational experience through its rigorous college-preparatory curriculum and 360-degree approach to education.
With many alumni from the school going on to positions of prominence in society, many students will feel that St. Paul’s School will provide the education and experience necessary to set them on the same path.
St. Paul’s School Acceptance Rate
Applicants to St. Paul’s School face a highly selective admissions process, with the school only accepting 16% of the students who apply.
Given the prestigious reputation the school has held over the course of its history, this figure is not surprising.
Students interested in attending the entirely residential boarding school will begin the application process by filling out the school’s inquiry form and scheduling a tour and interview.
The school encourages students to interview in person but will also conduct interviews remotely.
Once these steps have been completed, applicants need to submit a Candidate Profile, which is the first step of the Gateway to Prep School application. Students should also apply for financial aid at this time if they intend to seek financial assistance.
The bulk of the application materials requested by the school consists of letters of recommendation from those who know the student academically and personally.
The school also requires student and parent statements and transcripts in addition to the materials listed above.
Standardized test scores can be submitted but are not required for the current admission cycle. Students may also submit a special interest recommendation as well as additional documents pertaining to athletes, musicians, and ballet dancers.
All application materials must be submitted by January 15th, and applications for financial aid are due at the same time. The school will post its admission decisions by March 10th.
St. Paul’s School Alumni
Alumni from St. Paul’s School have gone on to succeed in a variety of fields, such as politics, sports, the military, business, entertainment and media, science, medicine, engineering, and academia, among many other fields.
Massachusetts Senator and presidential nominee John Kerry, former director of the FBI Robert Mueller, and many other politicians and U.S. ambassadors are among the noteworthy graduates of St. Paul’s school who have found success in public service.
Winner of the 1954 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, John Franklin Enders, is celebrated for his work with poliovirus and for developing the measles vaccine and attended St. Paul’s School.
Electrical engineer and researcher at General Electric, Francis Parkman Coffin, attended St. Paul’s School before his pioneering work in the field.
The school is also noted for the attendance of Hobey Baker who was an early American ice hockey star and served in the United States Army Air Force during World War I before his death as a test pilot in France.
Son of the famed banking magnate, J.P. Morgan Jr., attended St. Paul’s School before taking over the family business and financing and brokering military purchases for both France and Britain during World War I.
William Randolph Hearst is another famed attendee of the school and is known for his work in newspaper publishing and politics.
St. Paul’s School Tuition
Niche.com reports that the cost of tuition and boarding for St. Paul’s School is $62,000 per academic year.
According to the same source, 39% of the school’s students receive some form of financial aid, and the average amount of financial aid given to a student is $56,206.
The cost of tuition at the school has been frozen at $62,000 for the time being and will remain so at least for the 2022 to 2023 academic year.
St. Paul’s School is committed to meeting the needs of students with demonstrated financial need, funding 100% of the costs for students who meet the criteria.
Most families with an annual household income of $125,000 or less will qualify for financial aid from the school.
Further good news for families concerned about the cost of attending St. Paul’s School is the fact all financial aid from the school is given as a grant.
The school does not include loans in its financial aid packages, so students and their families do not need to be concerned with carrying a financial burden after graduation.
The school’s financial aid budget for the 2021 to 2022 school year was approximately $12 million. The school provided financial aid to 211 of its students for the year, meeting the full demonstrated need of these students.
St. Paul’s School Ranking
Perennially held in high regard among private boarding schools in the United States, St. Paul’s School is highly ranked across a number of categories by niche.com.
The school ranks as one of the best private high schools in the country, coming in at number 17 out of 4,323 private high schools reviewed by the company.
Niche.com also considers the school one of the best boarding schools in the United States, placing the school at number 7 out of 418 boarding schools on its list.
Among Christian high schools in the country, niche.com puts St. Paul’s School at number 4 out of 2,024 such schools in its list.
College-bound students interested in science and engineering will also be impressed by the ranking of the school’s STEM and private college preparatory high school rankings, coming in at numbers 31 and 25, respectively.
St. Paul’s rankings among schools in New Hampshire are equally impressive, with niche.com considering it the best Christian high school and most diverse private high school in the state.
St. Paul’s School takes the number 2 spot in niche.com’s STEM high schools, private high schools, private college preparatory high schools, and boarding school categories for New Hampshire.
With such high recognition across a broad range of categories, students interested in attending St. Paul’s School can rest assured that they will receive an excellent college preparatory education upon acceptance.
What Extra-Curriculars and Athletics Are Offered at St. Paul’s School?
St. Paul’s School offers a wide range of extra-curricular and athletic programs to enrich its students’ lives and education.
Among the school’s clubs and activities, the Angler’s Society, Boxing Club, and St. Paw’s Club stand out as opportunities not common among other schools.
The Angler’s Society promotes enjoyment of the outdoors through activities on the campus grounds such as fishing tournaments and stocking the school’s stream with trout every spring.
The school’s Boxing Club promotes athleticism and health through its friendly approach to the sport, and the St. Paw’s Club provides animal therapy services to a variety of local hospitals.
The school’s dance, fine arts, music, and theater programs provide students the opportunity to grow and express their creativity under the guidance of 13 arts faculty and 20 music educators.
The school has performed The Nutcracker for 40 years and hosts three art gallery exhibitions every year.
Athletics play a big role at St. Paul’s School, with teams competing in the New England Preparatory School Council, Lakes Region League in New Hampshire, and among the Eight Schools Association.
In addition to football, soccer, track and field, and basketball, students may participate in the school’s crew, lacrosse, Nordic skiing, ice hockey, and squash teams, among a range of other sports.
The school has played a significant role in American ice hockey with the attendance of Hobey Baker in the sport’s early days.
Students who wish to participate in athletics without competing interscholastically have a range of intramural and fitness options available to them. Among these are bouldering, ice hockey, yoga, and mountaineering.
Should You Apply to St. Paul’s School?
Students will be enticed to apply to St. Paul’s School for a variety of reasons. Whether it is due to the school’s high rankings and Ivy-League matriculation rate, history in athletics, beautiful residential campus, or prestigious overall history, many students will jump at the opportunity to apply to St. Paul’s School.
With 76% of the school’s faculty holding advanced degrees and former faculty members going on to further positions of prominence as politicians, ambassadors, and clergymen, students at St. Paul’s School receive instruction and guidance from highly acclaimed and respected faculty.
Further enticing students to apply is the fact the school is committed to meeting 100% of the demonstrated financial needs of its students through grants covering much of the cost of attending the school.
For students with a strong sense of faith and religious devotion, the school’s affiliation with the Episcopal Church and The Chapel of St. Peter and St. Paul offer ample opportunities for daily prayer, reflection, and community engagement as they pursue their college preparatory education.
These reasons and the opportunity to live on a campus filled with a diverse and eager group of peers and dedicated educators will encourage many students to apply to St. Paul’s School as part of their educational journeys.