The Taft School is a boarding and day school in Watertown, Connecticut, and its application for fall 2027 entry comes down to one main deadline: January 15, 2027. Decisions are emailed on March 10, and admitted families reply by April 10. This guide walks through the steps in the order families meet them, using what Taft publishes on its admission pages.
Who can apply and for which grade
Taft prefers to accept students entering grades 9, 10 or 11. It also says there are times when entering as a postgraduate (PG) student is appropriate. Taft lists 592 students, with 495 boarding and 97 day, so both boarding and day applicants apply through the same process.
Step 1: Start the inquiry form and set up your accounts
Everything starts with Taft's inquiry form, which sets up your Taft Admission Portal. Taft also asks families to create an account with either the SSAT or Gateway to Prep Schools. You need both: the portal for Taft's own pages and the testing or application account for the application itself.
The same inquiry form is how you schedule an on-campus visit, an online interview or an off-campus interview. Fill it out, then log into the admission portal to register. Questions about visits go to the admission office at 860-945-7700 or admissions@taftschool.org.
Step 2: Choose an application
Taft accepts either the Standard Application Online or the Gateway to Prep Schools application. Both include biographical data and essay questions, so there is no shortcut on writing. Pick the one your child's other schools also accept, and finish it once.
Taft also lists optional portfolios. If your child has artwork or other work they want to share, check the school's admission site for how to submit it.
Step 3: Line up recommendations early
Taft asks students to request forms for their principal or guidance counselor and for an English teacher and a math teacher. Teachers submit them by January 15. Give each teacher the form and a clear date well before the holidays, because December is a busy month for them.
Step 4: Plan testing
Taft requires standardized testing for all applicants. That is different from some peer schools that treat scores as optional, so do not skip this step.
- Grades 9 and 10: take the SSAT or ISEE.
- Grade 11: may submit SSAT, PSAT, SAT or ACT scores.
- Grade 12 and postgraduate: may submit PSAT, SAT or ACT scores.
Taft's SSAT code is 7600. Its TOEFL code is 3834. For applicants whose primary language is not English, Taft looks for an internet-based TOEFL score of 105 or higher. It also accepts the IELTS (minimum 7.5) and Duolingo (minimum 140).
Taft recommends, but does not require, the Character Skills Snapshot. It is a short assessment run by the Enrollment Management Association, which also runs the SSAT and ISEE family of tests. Because it is optional, ask the school whether it is worth your child's time.
Step 5: Ask about the interview
Taft's pages describe on-campus visits and online or off-campus interviews, and they tell families how to schedule them. The pages we reviewed do not say whether an interview is required for admission. Because the school does not state it, ask the admission office directly, and book a visit or interview early if you want one.
Dates at a glance
| Step | Date | | --- | --- | | Application and teacher recommendation deadline | January 15, 2027 | | Financial aid application deadline | February 1, 2027 | | Admission decisions emailed and Notice of Award | March 10, 2027 | | Enrollment deadline for admitted students | April 10, 2027 |
Taft's apply page prints the January, March and April dates without a year. We read them as the 2026-27 cycle because the same page lists the SSAT test dates for that season and the aid page prints February 1, 2027. If anything looks different on the school's page when you read it, trust the school.
Application fee
Domestic families facing financial hardship can request a fee waiver. Requests for waivers of both the application fee and the SSAT testing fee open on August 1. Taft typically does not offer fee waivers for international students. The pages we reviewed do not state the application fee amount, so check Taft's admission site for the current figure.
What Taft has not published
Taft does not publish an admit rate, the number of applicants or seats, or mean test scores on the pages we reviewed. We do not guess at those numbers. Essay prompts are also not listed in public pages, so look for them inside the application you choose.
A simple working plan
1. Submit the inquiry form and create both accounts. 2. Register for a visit or interview through the portal. 3. Choose your application and request the three recommendations. 4. Book the SSAT or ISEE (or plan SAT or ACT scores for grade 11 and up). 5. Draft the essays, then finish everything before January 15, 2027.
You can see these steps laid out on the timeline, the admissions page and the FAQ.
If you want help organizing this season, EduAvenues has a general overview of high school admissions at https://www.eduavenues.com/highschoolprep.
Sources
TaftPrep by EduAvenues is an independent service, not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by The Taft School.