Your child may have just started their eighth grade year but you need to start planning for their high school years. It is hard to believe that you need to think that far into the future but it is necessary, especially if your student is considering one of the Valley’s Catholic schools, like Brophy, Xavier or Notre Dame. Now is a great time to familiarize yourself with the admissions process, which begins in January. A key component to admissions at any of the private Catholic high schools is the High School Placement Test, or HSPT.

The HSPT is administered to students seeking admission to private Catholic schools in January of their eighth grade year. The exam results are used in admissions decisions, class placement and scholarship awards. The next exam will be administered on January 20, 2018. Students take the test at the school to which they want to apply. It lasts for approximately two and a half hours and consists of 298 multiple-choice questions, divided into five sections—Verbal, Quantitative, Reading, Mathematics, and Language Skills.

Practice is the key to performing well. As with any sport or musical instrument, the more you practice, the better you become. Your child can work towards performing their best on test day by participating in organized test preparation. Focus Tutors is proud to offer two options for HSPT preparation: fall or winter group classes. Both are led by experienced educators. The fall class consists of 16.5 contact hours, including two practice exams, as well as interview and essay practice. Sessions begin in mid-October and run through January. The winter class is designed for those students unable to commit to a class on school days but still looking for some guided preparation. This class will take place over Winter Break (January 2-5).

If you are interested in having your child work with Focus Tutors to increase their potential on the HSPT, please register online.