ISEE Independent School Entrance Exam
Grades 2–12

What is ISEE?

Advanced admission assessment
 

For over 20 years, the ISEE has provided independent schools and select public schools with a rigorous admission tool for evaluating applicants.

The 2011-2012 season marks the debut of an online version of the ISEE, as well as the introduction of ISEE Primary, for entrance to Grades 2-4. Please click here for more information on the ISEE Online.

Highlights of ISEE

The ISEE is used by consortia throughout the U.S., internationally, and for the City of Boston’s Exam Schools. It is the most advanced admission test available for independent schools.

The ISEE:

• Provides schools the ability to choose their own test dates, at individual school test sites
• Is a standard assessment of skills for each applicant, ranking their abilities and achievement among peers
• Enables a student to take a single, fair and reliable test for entrance into top-performing independent schools
• Does not penalize for incorrect answers
• Is available in multiple modalities (online and paper/pencil),  giving schools flexible administration options
• By providing innumerable test location and date options for ISEE Online, ERB gives greater choices to member schools and families through an exclusive partnership with Prometric
• Provides free, online preparation materials available with ERB'a approved guide,  "What to Expect" on the ISEE
• Offers reasonable testing fees for families ($95*)
• Delivers electronic score reports within 48 hours
• Offers accommodations for learning difference,  with approval
• Provides fee waivers for test sites
• Aligns with standards from the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE), the International Reading Association (IRA) and the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM)
• Provides hands-on customer service for schools and families at every turn
• Allows convenient payments made directly to supervisors, administrators, and proctors

*traditional paper/pencil modality

To learn more about how to become an ISEE test site or to receive ISEE test scores, click here.

ISEE Test Standards

ISEE test questions continue to be aligned to the current standards defined by the National Council of Teachers of Math and the National Council of Teachers of English. Each item was written by grade level content specialists and ERB faculty members under the guidance of Measurement Incorporated. Upon approval, the item was subjected to a Universal Design review to make sure that there were no barriers to students of varying backgrounds (e.g., gender, ethnicity, handicapping conditions) in order to make sure that the items measured the constructs intended, rather than irrelevant group differences. The items measured the skills intended. Items were reviewed and assessed for bias by experts. Approved items were then field tested and, after completing all steps, included in the final form.

ISEE Norm Process

The process by which the ISEE is normed continues to be a 3-year rolling norm pool of applicants to the same grade regardless of gender. The test is scored based on the total number of correct answers and there is no penalty for an incorrect answer. From the raw score, the scaled score is derived. The scaled score is then compared to a 3-year rolling norm pool of applicants to the same grade to determine the student’s percentile ranking. Stanines are also reported to represent the percentiles.

Test Sections and Timing

Please click here for a list of ISEE test sections and associated timing.