FAQ Kew Forest School

General Questions

List of 13 frequently asked questions.

Q. What are the school hours?

The academic day begins at 8:00am and continues until 3:00pm (Lower School) or 3:10 (Middle and Upper Schools). The building opens at 7:30am. All students may arrive beginning at that time. Lower School students who arrive before 7:50 should go to the gym, where a faculty member will be supervising morning care.
Q. What is your average class size and student-to-faculty ratio?

Our average class size is 16. Our student-to-faculty ratio is 9:1.
Q. Do you have Extended-Day Programs?

Lower School students who cannot be picked up at 3:00 should enroll in our Aftercare program. For more information, please click here.
Q. Does K-F accept International applicants?

Yes, we do! International students are valuable members of our community. Students needing an I-20 to secure an F-1 student visa will be designated as international students. For more information, please visit our international student page.
Q. Can interested families visit the school? (Open House, private tour)

We encourage all interested families to schedule a visit. Each Fall, we offer four open houses. These provide the best and most comprehensive window into the K-F community. For families unable to attend an open house or who are applying in our rolling admission cycle, we will be happy to schedule an individual tour.
Q. What are the main entry points at K-F? Do you accept applications for all grades?

We accept applications for all grade levels. Our primary entry points are preschool, kindergarten, 6th grade, and 9th grade.
Q. Do you admit students in the middle of the year?

We will consider midyear applications, if there is space available in the grade. We always prefer that midyear applicants begin with us as close as possible to the beginning of the school year, so please do not wait until we are approaching the semester break.
Q. If I miss the priority-round deadlines, can I still apply?

Yes, if there is still space in the grade to which you’re applying. Any family applying outside of the priority round will be placed in our rolling admission cycle. This means that we will issue an admission decision as soon as we have all required materials.
Q. If we do not receive an offer of admission, can we be placed on a waiting list?

Yes, in many cases. Each year, our number of qualified applicants exceeds our available spaces. If our admission committee determines that a student is qualified for admission, but we do not have sufficient space, we will offer the student a spot on our waitlist. Our waitlist is not ranked. In the event that a space becomes available, we will consider all waitlisted candidates for that grade when deciding who to admit.
Q. Is your school affiliated with a church or other religious organization?

No. Kew-Forest is an independent school and not affiliated with any religious organizations.
Q. Does your school require students to wear uniforms?

Yes. We require all students to wear a uniform during the academic day, with the exception of PE classes.
Q. Does your school offer bus service?

We offer limited bus services, covering some areas of Queens. Because of our small size, we are unable to offer extensive routes.
Q. Does your school offer lunch service?

Yes. The cost of snacks during the day and lunch is included in tuition. Lunch is a time for our community to come together, so we want to be sure everyone can participate in the same way. Lunch is prepared on site and provides students with many nutritious options. Please take a look at our current menu as an example of what’s available.

Financial Questions

List of 4 frequently asked questions.

Q. What is your tuition?

To see our current tuition and information about Tuition Assistance program, please visit our Affording Kew-Forest page.
Q. Are there other costs or fees?

We aim to have our tuition be inclusive, so that families are not surprised by fees after enrolling. Aside from academic year instruction and extracurricular activities, tuition covers the cost of snacks and lunch during the school days, books, field trips, and the K-F Parent Association fee. Typically, the only other significant cost families will incur will be for uniforms.
Q. Do you offer different payment plans?

Yes, we offer three standard plans: (A) Full payment by June 15th; (B) Sixty percent payment June 15th, forty percent balance due November 15th; and (C) Eight monthly payments, beginning June 15th. For options B and C, there is a $150 administrative fee.
Q. How do I apply for Tuition Assistance? What factors are considered in determining the amount of assistance?

We know that our full tuition is out of reach for many families. If this is the case for you, please visit our Affording Kew-Forest page, where you can learn more about our Tuition Assistance (TA) program and submit your application. The TA review process is holistic, considering many elements of a family’s financial circumstances in calculating what we believe each family can reasonably afford to contribute toward tuition.

Lower School Questions

List of 1 frequently asked questions.

Q. What is the age cutoff for entrance to each of your grades?

Students applying to our preschool class must turn three before the school year begins in early September. For all other grades, our birthday cutoff is October 22nd. For example, a student applying to kindergarten must turn five by October 22nd of the year she starts with us.

Middle/Upper School Questions

List of 4 frequently asked questions.

Q. What are the standardized testing requirements for admission? (e.g. ISEE, SSAT, TOEFL)

We recommend that Upper School applicants take either the ISEE or SSAT. They are not required, but are helpful in the admission and course placement process. We do not require the TOEFL for international applicants, though it also helps in course placement, in the event that the student enrolls with us.
Q. What are some colleges and universities that your graduates have matriculated to in the last three years?

Adelphi University
Amherst College
Baylor University
Baruch College
Binghamton University
Boston College
Boston University
Bucknell University
Buffalo University
City College of New York
Colgate University
Connecticut College
Drexel University
Emory University
Fairleigh Dickinson University
Fordham University
Hofstra University
Hunter College
Ithaca College
Johns Hopkins University
Lehigh University
Loyola Marymount University
Marymount Manhattan College
Maryland Institute College of Art
New York University
Northeastern University
Pennsylvania State University
Purchase College
Rutgers University
School of the Art Institute of Chicago
Skidmore College
St. John's University
Stevens Institute of Technology
Stony Brook University
Swarthmore College
Temple University
Trinity College
University at Albany
University of California – Santa Barbara
University of California – Davis
University of California – Irvine
University of Connecticut
University of Illinois at Champagne
University of Massachusetts at Boston
University of New Hampshire
University of North Carolina Chapel Hill
University of San Francisco
University of Vermont
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Wheaton College
Q. What AP courses are offered?

2019-20 School Year, we offer AP Studio Art, Calculus AB, AP Calculus BC, AP Biology, AP Physics 2, AP US History, AP US Government & Politics, AP World History, and AP Spanish.
Q. What clubs and sports do you offer?

We have Chess Club, Debate Club, Fashion Club, Centennial Cookbook Club, Peer Partners, Karaoke Club, Cultural Diversity Club, LGBTQ+Awareness Club, the Blotter, Kaleidoscope Club, Student Council, Mock Trial, Debate Club, Computer Science club, AMC (one for Middle School and one for Upper School), drama club, Mock Trial (US only), Model UN (US Only) and The Forester.

If students want to start their own club, they can do that through an application process.

We offer soccer, volleyball, crosscountry, tennis, basketball, swimming, track, archery, badminton, fencing, etc.

FAQ

General Questions

List of 13 frequently asked questions.

Q. What are the school hours?

Q. What is your average class size and student-to-faculty ratio?

Q. Do you have Extended-Day Programs?

Q. Does K-F accept International applicants?

Q. Can interested families visit the school? (Open House, private tour)

Q. What are the main entry points at K-F? Do you accept applications for all grades?

Q. Do you admit students in the middle of the year?

Q. If I miss the priority-round deadlines, can I still apply?

Q. If we do not receive an offer of admission, can we be placed on a waiting list?

Q. Is your school affiliated with a church or other religious organization?

Q. Does your school require students to wear uniforms?

Q. Does your school offer bus service?

Q. Does your school offer lunch service?

Financial Questions

List of 4 frequently asked questions.

Q. What is your tuition?

Q. Are there other costs or fees?

Q. Do you offer different payment plans?

Q. How do I apply for Tuition Assistance? What factors are considered in determining the amount of assistance?

Lower School Questions

List of 1 frequently asked questions.

Q. What is the age cutoff for entrance to each of your grades?

Middle/Upper School Questions

List of 4 frequently asked questions.

Q. What are the standardized testing requirements for admission? (e.g. ISEE, SSAT, TOEFL)

Q. What are some colleges and universities that your graduates have matriculated to in the last three years?

Q. What AP courses are offered?

Q. What clubs and sports do you offer?

The Kew-Forest School