Academics

Secondary School Placement

Meet the Placement Office

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Ridley Sperling

Director of Secondary School Placement; Director of Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion; Co-Director Caps

914-244-1257

Every child has their own path to follow. We help them find it.

Independent. Creative. Confident. That’s how RippKids leave Rippowam Cisqua School. It is our mission, and we deliver every time. Our students consistently rise to the top, which is reflected in their high rate of admissions to their first-choice schools, and their ongoing commitment as active, enthusiastic, and supportive alumni.

Matriculation: Where students go when they graduate

By the time students graduate, they can identify, evaluate, and select the school where they will thrive intellectually, creatively, socially, and emotionally. The array of institutions where our students are accepted and that they ultimately select as their school of choice reflects the individuality of each child.

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Where RCS Students Are Accepted for Secondary School

Our students are evaluated alongside a remarkably talented pool of applicants from New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut for independent day schools, and alongside an equally impressive global pool for boarding schools. After visiting schools during the admissions season, students often apply to multiple schools to maximize their options. The list below represents the secondary schools to which our students have gained admission for the 2022-23 school year.

Boarding Schools
Andover (Phillips Academy Andover)
Avon Old Farms School
Berkshire School*
Blair Academy*
Brewster Academy
Canterbury School*
Choate Rosemary Hall*
Deerfield Academy
Exeter (Phillips Exeter Academy)
Frederick Gunn School
Hill School
Holderness School
Hotchkiss School*
Kent School*
Lawrenceville School
Loomis Chaffee School*
Marvelwood School
Millbrook School*
Miss Porter’s School*
Northfield Mount Hermon School*
Pomfret School
Portsmouth Abbey School
Proctor Academy
Putney School
Salisbury School
St. George’s School*
St. Mark’s School
St. Paul’s School
Suffield Academy*
Tabor Academy*
Taft School*
Trinity Pawling School*
Westminster School*
Williston Northampton School

Day Schools
Athens Academy (GA)
Brunswick School
Ethical Culture Fieldston School
Fordham Preparatory School
Greens Farms Academy
Greenwich Academy*
Greenwich Country Day School*
Hackley School
Harvey School*
Iona Preparatory School
King School*
Masters School*
Rye Country Day School
Sacred Heart Greenwich*
School of the Holy Child
St. Luke’s School*

* Two or more students accepted

Where RCS Students Matriculate for Secondary School

Where students ultimately choose to go is as varied as their individual personalities. Some choose their local public school while others choose to travel across the country to attend special interest schools that help them hone skills like horseback riding, tennis, or skiing. Below is a list of schools where students have matriculated over the past five years.

Classes of 2018-22

Boarding Schools	Day Schools
Avon Old Farms*	Archbishop Stepinac HS*
Berkshire School*	Brunswick*
Blair Academy*	Byram Hills High School*
Choate Rosemary Hall*	Columbia Grammar and Prep
Deerfield Academy*	Dwight School
Emma Willard School	Ethical Culture Fieldston School
Gunnery School*	Fairfield College Preparatory School*
Holderness Academy	Fordham Preparatory School*
Hotchkiss School*	Fox Lane High School*
Hill School*	Greens Farms Academy*
Kent School*	Greenwich Academy*
Lawrenceville School*	Greenwich Country Day School*
Loomis Chaffee School*	Greenwich High School
Millbrook School*	Horace Greeley High School
Milton Academy*	Hackley School*
Miss Porter’s School*	Harrison High School
Northfield Mount Hermon*	Harvey School*
Peddie School*	Horace Mann
Phillips Academy Andover*	Iona Preparatory School*
Phillips Exeter Academy	John Jay High School*
Pomfret School*	Kennedy Catholic High School*
Portsmouth Abbey School	King School*
Proctor Academy	Mahopac High School
Salisbury School*	Mamaroneck High School
St. Andrew’s School	Masters School*
St. George’s School*	North Salem High School
St. Mark’s School*	New Fairfield High School
St. Paul’s School*	Ossining High School
Stoneleigh-Burnham School	Pleasantville High School
Suffield Academy*	Rye Country Day School*
Taft School*	Sacred Heart Greenwich*
Thacher School*	School of the Holy Child*
Trinity Pawling School	St. Luke’s School*
Walnut Hill School for the Arts	Westhill High School*
Westminster School*	Wilton High School
	Wooster School
	Yorktown High School

	*indicates two or more students

Where RCS Students Go to College

The skills students learn at RCS last a lifetime. Alumni often credit their experiences at RCS as a key influencer in choosing a college. As high school seniors applying to college, RCS students have a distinct advantage over some of their peers as they experienced a similarly self-reflective and complex application process when they applied to secondary schools. Moreover, they often refer to their RCS coursework in their college essays and interviews, and they can count on RCS teachers for advice, written recommendations or general support as they continue their education.

College Matriculation

RCS Classes of 2014-19

American University*	Hamilton College	University of California Santa Barbara
American University of Paris	Hobart and William Smith Colleges	University of Chicago*
Amherst College	Howard University	University of Colorado Boulder*
Barnard College*	Indiana University*	University of Connecticut
Bates College*	Ithaca College	University of Delaware*
Bentley University	Johns Hopkins University	University of Denver*
Boston College*	Juilliard School	University of Louisville
Berklee College of Music	Kenyon College*	University of Maryland
Boston University*	Lafayette College*	University of Miami*
Bowdoin College*	Lehigh University*	University of Michigan
Brown University*	Marist College	University of Mississippi
Bucknell University*	Middlebury College*	University of Missouri
Claremont McKenna College	New York University*	University of New Hampshire
Colby College*	Northeastern University	University of North Carolina*
Colgate University*	Northwestern University*	University of Notre Dame*
College of Charleston*	Penn State University	University of Oxford
College of the Holy Cross*	Pitzer College	University of Pennsylvania*
Clemson University	Princeton University*	University of Rhode Island
Colorado College*	Rhode Island School of Design	University of Richmond*
Columbia University*	Roger Williams University	University of Southern California*
Cornell University*	San Diego State University	University of St Andrews Scotland*
Dartmouth College	Santa Clara University*	University of Tampa*
Denison University	Skidmore College	University of Texas
Dickinson College	Southern Methodist University*	University of Vermont*
Dublin Institute of Technology	St. Lawrence University*	University of Virginia*
Duke University*	Stanford University	University of Wisconsin*
Elon University*	Suffolk University	Vanderbilt University
Emerson College	SUNY Oneonta	Villanova University*
Emory University	SUNY New Paltz	Wake Forest University*
Fairfield University	Syracuse University*	Washington University in St. Louis
Fordham University*	Temple University	Washington and Lee University*
George Washington University*	Trinity College*	Wheaton College
Georgetown University*	Tufts University*	William & Mary
Georgia Tech	Tulane University*	Williams College
Gettysburg College*	Union College*	Yale University*
Gordon College	University of Albany
		*indicates two or more students

Placement Services: How we help families transition from RCS

Whether your child is considering boarding, public, or day school, a dedicated placement counselor will work with your family to help identify the right school(s) to match your student’s strengths, weaknesses, and areas of interest while complementing the vision, dreams, and plans you have for your child.

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Application Management

Application materials that are the responsibility of the family include: fee, essays, short answers, graded writing sample (if applicable), parent statement, biographical info, photograph, etc. Parents must also send selected SSAT scores electronically to each admissions office.

Application materials that are sent by RCS include: cover letter, placement counselor recommendation letter and form, current English teacher recommendation letter and form, current math teacher recommendation letter and form, optional additional recommendation letter(s), grades, transcripts.

Each school typically requires at least two teacher recommendations. Because our teachers know your child so well, they are able to provide thoughtful, in-depth insights that provide a unique profile of your child and help them stand out from the broader applicant pool.
Guidance and Support

Your placement counselor is available for questions and consultation throughout the year. In addition to parent informational sessions and a monthly placement newsletter, they are available by phone, by email, and by appointment, and they have regular meetings with the students on the application process, conduct, and the social/emotional aspects of leaving RCS.
Interview and Tour Preparation

The placement officers meet with each student privately to discuss the student’s interests as well as to give tips on tours and interviews. RCS also conducts a mock interview with each student, and prior to each school visit a placement officer sends a letter of introduction on the student’s behalf to admissions offices.
SSAT

RCS administers a "benchmark" SSAT to all seventh graders in the spring of their seventh-grade year to provide students exposure to and experience with standardized testing. All eighth- and ninth-grade students take an SSAT Flex test that is administered during school each November. RCS covers the test taking fees for the seventh-grade "benchmark" test and for the eighth- and ninth-grade Flex test. RCS students are invited to enroll in an SSAT prep course to learn test-taking strategies. The test prep course is optional and incurs a separate fee through our partner.

Secondary School Testimonials: What Headmasters and Admissions Officers say about RCS graduates

Admissions officers stress that academic preparation, confidence, intellectual curiosity, and willingness to engage in all areas of school life make RippKids stand out in the admissions process. They are also quick to point out that our students’ ability to demonstrate their capacity for leadership is a real point of difference.

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Berkshire School

Berkshire has been thrilled to welcome so many outstanding Rippowam graduates over the years. They bring a level of excellence and dedication to our classrooms, studios, stages, and playing fields that defines our culture. Perhaps even more importantly, as community members, role models, and school leaders, they help set a distinctive standard for all our young women and men. - Pieter Mulder, Head of School
Choate Rosemary Hall

Choate is fortunate to be the beneficiary of the robust educational experience RCS provides. When I reflect on our “shared” students, I am struck by the many ways RCS alumni have contributed to the Choate community. RCS graduates that have come to Choate have proven to be confident, energetic leaders who embrace the opportunity to become active participants in all aspects of school life. - Alex Curtis, PhD., Headmaster
Deerfield Academy

Bright, inquisitive, and highly motivated, Ripp’s graduates arrive at Deerfield with a commitment to excel and to contribute their talents and strengths in building a strong, closely knit, vibrant community. They seem to understand that it is not enough to do well, or to focus exclusively on self-advancement. In a world facing so many challenges, they sense they have a responsibility to do good -- to transcend narrow personal interests and to elevate kindness, rationality, and inclusion in the world around them. - Dr. Margarita O’Bryne Curtis, Head of School
Lawrenceville School

Graduates from Rippowam Cisqua consistently exhibit qualities that enable them to succeed at Lawrenceville and become an integral part of campus life -- diligence, empathy, and academic focus combined with a healthy sense of balance that we value tremendously. There is little doubt that their educational experience prior to Lawrenceville helped them to develop a solid foundation. - Tom Sheppard, Dean of Admission and Financial Aid
Masters School

We have had a long and positive relationship with RCS students and families. RCS students enthusiastically embrace the Harkness Teaching method and quickly warm to the distinctive culture of The Masters School. RCS families are leaders in our parent community as volunteers and supporters of the School. - Laura D. Danforth, Head of School
Westminster School

Enthusiastic, energetic, curious, competitive, ambitious, and involved, Rippowam graduates embody the attributes Westminster School cherishes. Their names prompt in my mind memories of school leaders, top students, outstanding athletes, and dedicated volunteers as well as performing and creative artists. Perhaps most telling, my memories across three decades of students from Rippowam always include the enduring joy reflected in their warm smiles.- William V.N. Philip, Headmaster

RCS Graduates in Their Own Words

Rippowam Cisqua School
439 Cantitoe Street
Bedford, NY 10506
phone: (914) 244-1250

Rippowam Cisqua School is a PreK-Grade 9 independent day school in Westchester County, New York. RCS offers challenging academics built on innovation, fine and performing arts, competitive athletics, wellness, leadership, service learning, and a wide selection of extracurricular activities.