How to Apply

Step 2: Submit your Application

Option A: Apply through the GCDS Veracross Application (Nursery-Grade 11)

Submit and complete your application through our GCDS Admission Portal. Be sure to check the GCDS age requirements before indicating the grade to which your child will apply. 

1. In the Admission Portal, Update your Household Information, Candidate Information, and submit the $75 application fee as soon as possible but no later than December 15. Fee waivers are available with demonstrated need. Contact the Admission Office. 

2. View the Checklist of Supplemental Application Requirements and schedule your interview. All supplemental requirements must be completed by January 15.

Option B: Apply through the SAO (Grades 9-11)

1. After completing the GCDS Inquiry Form, from the GCDS Admission Portal complete the Household Information and Candidate Information. Do not submit your application fee through this portal.

2. Start your SAO Application by submitting the Student Biographic Profile and $75 application fee as soon as possible, but no later than December 15.

3. From your GCDS Admission Portal, schedule your interview and monitor the receipt of the required forms. The GCDS Admission Portal will reflect the most accurate status of your application checklist, so please refer to the Portal regularly. 

4. Submit the Parent Statement, Student Essays and request the required Recommendation and School Forms through the SAO no later than January 15.

The interview is a required part of the application process for all parents/guardians who do not currently have a child enrolled at GCDS and for all applicants to Grades 6-11. Students applying to Grade 6 or higher should plan to be interviewed on the same day as their parents/guardians. If you are a current GCDS parent, an additional tour and interview is not required but may be requested. The required Parent Statement should be submitted prior to your scheduled interview.

Interviews are offered Monday through Thursday from late-September through January at 8:30 a.m., 10:30 a.m., and 1:00 p.m. Please allow approximately 90 minutes for your visit. During the interview you will meet with an Admission Director and also have the opportunity to tour the campus and ask any questions that you may have. Because our Nursery program ends at noon each day, we encourage parents of nursery applicants to schedule their interview during one of the morning time slots. 

Please be advised: Masks will be required for all visiting families. If you prefer an entirely virtual admission process, please contact us at admissions@gcds.net. 

If any member of your group may benefit from a specific accommodation, such as an interpreter, please notify the Admission Office as soon as possible.

Testing and/or student screening remain a required part of our process.  Depending on the grade level, applicants may have a combination of virtual and in-person screening and/or testing. We remain committed to being responsive to health and safety guidelines and the needs of our applicant families. These requirements and dates may be adjusted, if needed, in response to health and safety guidelines. All testing should be completed by January 15.

Nursery, Pre-Kindergarten, and Kindergarten Applicants:
Candidates will have video and in-person assessments to evaluate readiness for our academic program. Video assessments will take place in early December and in-person assessments will take place at GCDS in January. Additional details will be shared with applicant families in the fall.

Grade 1 and Grade 2 Applicants:
Applicants for Grades 1 and 2 will have a Zoom and in-person assessment. Zoom assessments will take place in early December and in-person assessments will take place at GCDS in January. Additional details will be shared with applicant families in the fall. 

Grade 3 and Grade 4 Applicants:
Applicants for Grades 3 and 4 are required to take two sections of the Educational Records Bureau (ERB) CTP 5 test. The CTP 5 is administered at several participating independent schools in the Greenwich area. Families may register to test at any school serving as a test site and request that scores be sent to any of the participating schools.

• CTP 5 Testing will be offered on campus at GCDS on Saturday, November 13 and Saturday, December 4. Please contact the Admission Office to register. Early registration is encouraged as space is limited at all test sites.

Grade 5 – 11 Applicants:
Students applying for Grade 5 - Grade 11 are required to take either the Independent School Entrance Examination (ISEE) or the Secondary School Admissions Test (SSAT). In some cases, we may accept the results from another standardized test or educational evaluation that a student has completed in the past year. Applicants may take the ISEE or SSAT at any test site. Both the ISEE and the SSAT offer “At Home” test options for applicants who prefer a virtual test administration.

To register, visit ww.iseetest.org or www.ssat.org.  When registering, please list GCDS as one of the schools to which your child is applying so that test results will be sent directly to us. Our ISEE school code is 071009. Our SSAT school code is 3580. Early registration is encouraged as space is limited at all test sites. 

• ISEE testing will be offered at GCDS on Saturday, November 13 and Saturday, December 4.

Current Teacher Recommendations help us better understand each child as a learner and as a community member. The appropriate, grade-specific required recommendation forms can be found within the GCDS Admission Portal or the SAO Portal, depending on the application platform you have used. 

From either online portal, parents can email a request for the required recommendation form(s) and school records directly to the appropriate adults and school officials. We strongly suggest that parents do not initiate this request prior to November 15. The deadline to receive Teacher Recommendations and School Records is January 15.  

Note: If the applicant’s current school does not allow teachers to provide recommendations, please ask one individual who has worked with your child in a setting outside the classroom (e.g., a sports coach, a religion teacher, or a music instructor) to complete the Personal/Extracurricular Recommendation

Students applying to Grades 9-11 should upload a piece of written work submitted during the 2021-22 academic year. The writing sample does not have to be graded by a teacher.

In addition, although not required, we welcome the submission of any creative work that represents the academic or extra-curricular interests of the applicant. Students can upload multimedia submissions through their chosen application platform.

Login to the GCDS Admission Portal to monitor the status of your application and receipt of supplemental forms.