SPS Admits Newest Paulies

New students from 27 states and 17 countries will bring a wide variety of talents and passions to the SPS community this fall.

New students will impact every area of life at St. Paul’s School when they arrive in the fall of 2022. From ballet to alpine skiing, from robotics to student government, from classics to theatre, the School will benefit from students with a wide variety of talents and passions.

St. Paul’s goal was to enroll about 150 students for the 2022-23 academic year and received 1,509 applications. In the process of selecting the incoming class, the Admission Office received 2,547 inquiries and conducted 1,575 interviews between September and January. Of those who applied, 15.7% were accepted.

The 158 new students hail from 27 states and 17 countries. Nineteen percent of those admitted come from countries other than the United States, while 47% are non-Caucasian. According to Interim Director of Admission Derek Johnson, the international interest in St. Paul’s continues to expand, with students enrolling from Thailand, Jamaica, Italy, New Zealand, Peru and Serbia, among other countries.

Ninety-eight of the new students will enter as Third Formers, 44 as Fourth Formers and 16 as Fifth Formers. Total enrollment for the School next year is expected to be 535.

Of note is that 32 percent of the newly admitted students will receive some form of tuition assistance during the upcoming academic year. On average, 39% of the SPS student body receives financial aid each year. The School also extended its tuition freeze for a third consecutive year at $62,000 for 2022-23.

While the COVID-19 pandemic prevented traditional visits to campus for much of the admission cycle, the School hosted group visit days in the fall and two revisit days in April — available in person for the first time since 2019. St. Paul’s also continued to connect with prospective students through virtual tours and information sessions.

“We had some visit days in the fall, which were a huge success and a nice way to have people on campus,” Johnson says. “Overall, decisions being made in the first week of April, by people who had not visited, certainly has had an impact on families trying to figure out what would be the best landing spot for their children.”

The incoming students are an impressive group, who will contribute to the School community on many ways. Among them are a published author; a three-star girls basketball recruit; a student who successfully swam the Congo River in Africa; another who runs a nonprofit selling beaded bracelets for charity; and a musician who sings lead vocals and plays electric bass in a classic rock band in New York City.

As in years past, a combination of rigorous academics, vast extracurricular opportunities, and a strong sense of community continue to be factors in the decision-making process for families who choose St. Paul’s School.

“The community is a big pull,” Johnson says. “Outside of that, [students] will be challenged academically, have options for classes, benefit from a committed faculty and be around other kids they can learn from. Ultimately, people see our community, and families want their kids to grow up to be like the ones they see here.”