FAQ

List of 12 frequently asked questions.

• I was accepted to Fay but cannot attend. May I defer my admission to next year?

  Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, boarding families enrolled for the 2020-2021 school year may in some circumstances have the option of deferring their admission for one year. Please contact the Admission Office for more information. We do not anticipate offering a deferral option in future years. Because many considerations go into each admission decision, including the number of spaces available and the strength of the applicant pool for a particular grade level, we are usually not able to defer offers of admission to the following school year.

• Do I need to submit a completed application before I visit the School?

  We are happy to give a tour to anyone who inquires about admission to Fay. If you are interested in proceeding further with the process and booking an interview (for Upper School applicants) or a parent interview or applicant screening (for Primary and Lower School applicants), we ask that you submit the Applicant Information Form and the Parent/Guardian Statement before your visit. Please note that while we ask for those forms to be submitted before your appointment, you do not have to submit those forms in order to schedule your appointment.

• How do I pay the application fee?

  There are three options for paying the application fee:

   

  • Use our fee free peer transfer account. Log on to flywire.com/pay/fayschool and create an account. The entire process will take less than 5 minutes.

   

  • Send a wire transfer. Please contact the Business Office at dbyrne@fayschool.org or 508-490-8213 for our account number.

   

  • Write a check payable to Fay School and send it to Fay School Office of Admission, 48 Main Street, Southborough, MA 01772

• My child is a good student, but I have heard that there are many benefits to repeating a grade when starting at an independent school. How do I decide which grade my child should apply for?

  While it is true that several students each year elect to repeat a grade when they enter Fay, we find that the decision is a personal one that is best made on a case-by-case basis. Many families apply for their preferred grade but include a letter with their application saying that they would be willing to receive an acceptance for the other grade if the Admission Committee feels it is the best fit. We encourage you to discuss your child’s particular situation with your Admission Officer. Please know that admission to Fay School is selective, and students who wish to repeat because of very poor scholastic achievement in the past year are not strong candidates.

• I just found out about Fay and I want to apply but it is after January 15. Do I have to wait until next year?

  The deadline for day students to apply to Fay is January 15; however, we often save a handful of spaces in select grades for late applicants. We encourage you to contact the Office of Admission at admission@fayschool.org to find out which grades are still accepting applications. Admission to Fay is rolling for boarding applicants, which means we accept applications throughout the year until all of the spaces have been filled.

• Two days after my child submitted the application to Fay, he won an award. Can I call the Admission Office to add it to the file, or is it too late?

  If you have any new information you would like to include with your child’s application, please do not hesitate to contact us. We will be happy to add supplemental materials to his or her file.

• I was accepted to Fay but can't attend. May I defer my admission to next year?

  Because many considerations go into each admission decision, including the number of spaces available and the strength of the applicant pool for a particular grade level, we are not able to defer offers of admission to the following school year. However, we do welcome students to re-apply to Fay. As a re-applicant, you do not need to fill out the application again unless you are applying for a different division (i.e. last year you were an applicant to grade two in Primary School, and this year you will be an applicant to grade three in Lower School). Nor do you need to re-take any standardized tests if you submitted a current test last year. However, we do ask for updated school reports, including transcripts and teacher recommendations. Applicants to grades four and higher may submit a one-page written statement from the student updating us on the past year since he or she applied, both academically and personally. Please note we may also require another campus visit for an updated assessment, screening, or interview (depending on grade level.) If you have questions about what else you may submit to support your re-application, please contact the Office of Admission at admission@fayschool.org.

• I have already applied to Fay once. May I re-apply?

  Because many considerations go into each admission decision, including the number of spaces available and the strength of the applicant pool for a particular grade level, we welcome students to re-apply to Fay. You do not need to fill out the application again unless you are applying for a different division (i.e. last year you were an applicant to grade two in Primary School, and this year you will be an applicant to grade three in Lower School). However, we do ask for updated school reports, including transcripts and teacher recommendations. Applicants to grades four and higher may submit a one-page written statement from the student updating us on the past year since he or she applied, both academically and personally. We may also require another campus visit for an updated assessment, screening, or interview (depending on grade level.) If you have questions about what else you may submit to support your re-application, please contact the Office of Admission at admission@fayschool.org.

• I live far away. May I interview via Skype?

  We do offer Skype interviews (for Upper School applicants only); you may arrange one through the Office of Admission at admission@fayschool.org. Alternatively, you may opt for an in-person interview near your home if we have an admission officer traveling to your area. We change our travel schedule every year in order to reach the most places in the United States, and indeed around the world. Please check the Admission Events page of our website for the latest information on our travel plans.

• In my country, the school year runs from January to November. Can I apply to begin 7th grade at Fay in September if I haven’t fully completed 6th grade in my country?

  No. We require all students to successfully complete the previous grade level before entering Fay.

• I study at an international school. Do I still need to submit a TOEFL or TOEFL, Jr. test score?

  Yes, we require all students whose native language is not English to submit a TOEFL or TOEFL, Jr. test score regardless of where they attend school.

• I’ve heard the TOEFL, Jr. is an easier test than the TOEFL, but it’s not offered in my country. Will getting a low score on the TOEFL hurt my chances of getting accepted?

  We understand that the TOEFL, Jr. is a test written for middle school students, and the TOEFL is a test written for applicants to college, and we take this into consideration when we review a student’s test scores.