Application Preparation
Prepare for the pieces Groton reads
The application mixes two statements, recommendations, grades, a writing sample, an interview and required test scores.
Checked against Groton's published admissions pages on November 5, 2026.
Testing
Testing.
- Testing policy
- Groton requires standardized test results. Applicants may take the SSAT or the ISEE.
- Which tests
- Groton's code is 3598 for the SSAT and 220930 for the ISEE. The school can only accept scores directly from the testing services.
- Tests by grade
- Second Form (Grade 8) applicants may take the middle or upper level SSAT, and Third Form (Grade 9) applicants the upper level SSAT. Fourth and Fifth Form applicants may submit PSAT, SAT, ACT or upper level SSAT results. All grade levels may take the ISEE.
- English-language tests
- Groton accepts results from the Duolingo English Test, TOEFL iBT and IELTS. Its TOEFL code is 8224.
- When to test
- The November or December test dates are preferable and the January date is acceptable.
- Fee waivers
- The Enrollment Management Association and the Educational Records Bureau provide schools with fee waivers for the SSAT and the ISEE.
- How scores are weighed
- Groton evaluates test scores with consideration of each applicant's educational background, and says they are only one of many factors.
- 01
Pick one test early, either the SSAT or the ISEE, and take a full timed practice test before building a study plan.
- 02
Leave room for a second sitting, since Groton calls November or December preferable and January acceptable.
Essays
Statements that sound like your student.
- Candidate Statement
- A Candidate Statement written by the applicant is part of the application.
- Parent Statement
- A Parent Statement is part of the application.
- Writing sample
- Groton asks for a graded writing sample and prefers non-fiction papers written during the current school year.
- 01
Pick specific moments from the last year, not a list of achievements.
- 02
Get the substance right before polishing the style.
- 03
Write the Parent Statement in your own voice, as a parent, and keep it separate from the Candidate Statement.
Interview
An interview that feels like a conversation.
- Requirement
- An interview is part of the process. A student-led campus tour comes right before it. Groton does not state an interview completion date on the page we reviewed.
- Remote interviews
- Remote interviews are limited during the school year. Families who request a remote interview after November 15 must submit standardized test results (SSAT, ISEE, PSAT, SAT or ACT) and/or the School Report with the first-term transcript.
- Video introduction
- A video introduction is allowed and should not exceed five minutes. It can serve as an alternative to an interview.
- 01
Have two or three stories ready that show how your student thinks.
- 02
Practice explaining an interest out loud, without notes.
- 03
Bring real questions about daily life in the dorms and in class.
Preparation plan
A plan that works backward from the deadline.
Adjust the pace to your student's schedule. The order matters more than the exact days.
First
Start the Candidate Profile
Submit this common biographical form through Gateway. Within 24 hours you get a link to the Application Portal.
Early
Choose and book a test
Groton requires the SSAT or the ISEE. November or December dates are preferable, and January is acceptable.
Next
Draft the Candidate and Parent Statements
Read the prompts in the portal first, then write.
Fall and winter
Ask for recommendations
Groton asks for a principal or counselor, an English teacher and a math teacher, plus a personal and a special interest recommendation.
By January 15
Submit the application and the aid application
Both deadlines fall on January 15, 2027. Families who want aid apply through Clarity.
After submitting
Watch for March 10
Decisions and aid awards are sent on March 10. Check the admission page for the reply date.