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Everything a family needs to evaluate fit, prepare a competitive application, and understand student life.
Quick Answer for Busy Parents
Getting into Sacred Heart Schools, Atherton (SHS) requires strong academic preparation, a family that genuinely connects with the school’s Catholic, values-driven mission, and carefully prepared application material: transcripts, two teacher recommendations, a parent statement, and a student video questionnaire and writing sample. SHS receives significantly more applications than it has seats at every grade, so families should approach the process with real seriousness even at Middle School entry.
Why Do Families Choose Sacred Heart?
Founded in 1898 by the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, SHS carries more than a century of Catholic educational tradition on a 63-acre Atherton campus. What distinguishes it from Bay Area peers like Nueva, Menlo, and Castilleja is the combination of rigorous college preparation with a genuinely values-centered community. Character formation isn’t treated as separate from academics, but taught as the same project. SHS holds an A+ rating on Niche and is consistently recognized among the top private and Catholic schools in California.
Academic & Community Snapshot
| Category | Detail |
| Founded | 1898 |
| Type | Private, Catholic, co-ed day school |
| Location | 150 Valparaiso Ave, Atherton, CA 94027 |
| Grades on this page | Middle School (6–8) · Preparatory (9–12) |
| Middle School Enrollment | 220 students |
| Preparatory Enrollment | 630 students |
| Student–Teacher Ratio | Middle School 18:1 · Preparatory 15:1 |
| Advanced Coursework | 30 AP courses · 19 Honors courses |
| Faculty with Advanced Degrees | 83% |
| College Enrollment | 100% |
| Students of Color | 50% of the student body |
| Athletics | Preparatory: 19 sports across 21 team programs (WBAL, WCAL, PAL) |
| College Counseling Staff | 5 dedicated college counselors |
| Accreditation | CAIS · WCEA · WASC |
| Memberships | NCEA · NAIS · The College Board · ACCIS · WACAC/NACAC |
How Hard Is It to Get Into Sacred Heart?
SHS does not publish an official acceptance rate; third-party estimates place it around 25%, among the more selective figures in the Bay Area private school landscape. The school reviews applicants holistically through academics, character, extracurricular involvement, and family fit rather than by numbers alone.
Top Tips for Sacred Heart Admissions
- Apply early and attend every open house.
- Lead with values, not just a resume.
- Prepare your child for the assessment without overcoaching.
Best Practices for Prospective SHS Families
- Connect with current families before applying.
- Be honest about your family’s relationship to Catholicism.
- Have an honest conversation about school fit.
Is Sacred Heart only for Catholic families?
No. While the school is rooted in Catholic tradition, it welcomes families of all faith backgrounds who are committed to the school’s mission and values.
Sacred Heart Admission Process
Every applicant begins by creating an account in Ravenna, where families schedule events and submit required documents.
Preschool and Lower School
SHS also enrolls a Montessori Preschool and Lower School (K–5) on the same Atherton campus, following a separate, earlier-childhood admissions process not covered in depth in this guide.
Middle School (Grades 6–8)
- Submit the Preliminary Application Form
- Complete the Parent/Guardian Written Statement
- Complete the Parent/Guardian Video Questionnaire (via Kira)
- Complete the Student Video Questionnaire and Written Statement
- Submit two teacher recommendations (English and math)
- Upload two academic-year transcripts plus attendance record
- Attend virtual or in-campus events (optional but recommended)
Preparatory (Grades 9–12)
Preparatory applicants follow the same core sequence, with a fuller fall calendar of campus events that meaningfully help families assess fit given the scale of the Upper School program.
Admissions Calendar / Key Dates and Events
| Event | Date(s) | Notes |
| Applications Open | September 2026 | For the 2027–28 school year |
| Virtual Parent Info Session | Fall 2026 | Required, not optional |
| Campus Events & Tours | Fall 2026, ongoing | Strongly encouraged, especially at Preparatory |
| Preliminary Application Due | Check Ravenna | Exact dates published by grade in the portal |
Application Requirements
Virtual Parent Info Session & Campus Events
A required step, not simply recommended. An application isn’t considered complete without it. Beyond that session, SHS hosts a full fall calendar of campus events prospective families are strongly encouraged to attend.
Preliminary Application Form
Basic household information, siblings, prior schools attended, and a checklist of interests and hobbies, some requiring short 300-character explanations. Learning differences and medical conditions are disclosed here.
Parent/Guardian Written Statement
The most underestimated component of the application. Admissions officers want insight into who the child is at home. The strongest statements set aside anything already visible elsewhere (grades, activities, awards) and describe moments that appear nowhere else in the file: a dinner-table conversation that surprised you, how your child handled disappointment, a book they returned to more than once.
Parent/Guardian Video Questionnaire
Delivered via Kira after the application is submitted; requires a laptop or desktop with camera and microphone. Families with multiple applicants complete separate questionnaires per child. Two-household families or those preferring Spanish may email the admissions team directly.
Student Video Questionnaire & Written Statement
Short recorded answers plus a timed writing prompt. The highest-value preparation is practicing organization under time pressure across varied prompts — not memorized content, which tends to read as inauthentic.
Teacher Recommendations
Exactly two letters count: current English and math teachers, via Ravenna. No other recommenders are accepted, which puts unusual weight on cultivating those two relationships well before application season.
Transcripts
The official transcript from the prior academic year plus the current year’s first semester, with complete attendance records.
Get Expert Help With Your Sacred Heart Application
Cardinal Education’s admissions consultants can help you build a competitive, genuine application for Sacred Heart’s Middle School or Preparatory program.
What should my child wear during the student visit?
Neat, comfortable clothing is appropriate — this isn’t a formal occasion, and comfortable kids tend to engage more naturally.
Student Life at Sacred Heart
Campus life is organized around faith, leadership, service, collaboration, and self-discovery, with an explicit intent to balance school and personal life. Faith and spiritual life includes liturgies and prayer services, daily prayer and meditation, community prayer (Espacios), and retreats.
Academics
Middle School (grades 6–8) offers a rigorous core in English, mathematics, science, social studies, and religion, with Spanish and Mandarin language options, hands-on STEM, visual and performing arts, and an advisory program supporting well-being and character development.
Preparatory (grades 9–12) spans English, Mathematics, Science (Biology, Chemistry), Social Science, World Languages, Fine Arts, Religious Studies, Service Learning, and Health & Wellness, with 30 AP and 19 Honors courses. Eighty-three percent of faculty hold advanced degrees, supported by a five-person college counseling team and a 100% four-year college enrollment rate.
Activities
Preparatory students choose from more than 50 student- and faculty-led clubs spanning student government, media, technology, fine arts, and social justice, alongside named affinity spaces for Asian American and Pacific Islander students, MENA (Middle Eastern and North African) students, Southern European students, Jewish Student Union, Black Student Union, and Mi Gente.
Athletics
Known as the Gators, SHS fields varsity and JV teams across 19 sports at the Preparatory level, plus freshman-only teams in boys basketball and girls volleyball, for 21 total team programs — seven with a no-cut policy. Preparatory teams compete in the West Bay Athletic League (WBAL), West Catholic Athletic League (WCAL), and Peninsula Athletic League (PAL). Middle School athletics run across four seasons, with team size determined each season by student sign-ups rather than a fixed roster.
Arts
- Visual Arts — drawing, painting, printmaking, ceramics, sculpture, photography, textiles, and (Grade 8) mural painting
- Music — band, chorus, orchestra, jazz band, strings, vocal ensembles
- Drama — theatre classes, curricular drama in Grades 6–8, after-school productions and musicals
- Performance Opportunities — annual art shows, holiday concerts, theater productions
Famous Alumni
- Tierna Davidson — professional soccer player, U.S. Women’s National Team; youngest player on the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup-winning squad
- Caroline “KK” Clark — water polo player, U.S. National Team at the 2013 World Aquatics Championships and 2016 Rio Olympics
- Kelly Crowley — Paralympic swimmer; 17-time Disability Swimming National Champion and two-time Paralympic gold medalist
- Drue Kataoka — Japanese American visual artist; World Economic Forum Young Global Leader
- Melissa Pritchard — award-winning short story writer, novelist, essayist, and journalist
Read the full profiles in Famous Sacred Heart School, Atherton Alumni: Where They Are Today.
“Their personalized guidance helped my daughter stand out in Sacred Heart’s competitive admissions process. We couldn’t have done it without their expertise.”
— Parent of a 5th-grade student
Finding the Right Fit at Sacred Heart
SHS asks more of families than academic readiness alone — it asks whether a family is genuinely comfortable inside a values-centered, faith-rooted community, whatever that family’s own faith background. Families who engage honestly with that question, rather than treating it as a formality, tend to be the ones who thrive there for six or seven years, not just the ones who get in.
Related Articles:
Famous Sacred Heart School, Atherton Alumni: Where They Are Today
Sacred Heart Schools, Atherton Campus Life: How Faith and Service Shape Student Life