All you need to know about ISEE
What is ISEE?
Developed by the Educational Records Bureau (ERB) for its member schools as part of the admissions process and created by Measurement Incorporated, Durham, NC and ERB, with assistance from faculty of ERB member schools, ISEE stands for "Independent School Entrance Exam", and is a standardized test used by admission officers to assess the abilities of students seeking to enroll in an independent school, from Grade 2 to 12, available nationally and internationally. ISEE is a standard assessment of skills for each applicant, ranking his or her reasoning and achievement skills among students in the same grade.
Which schools accept ISEE?
ISEE is accepted by over 1,200 independent schools around the world, most of the high schools following the American system, including int'l schools, like Taipei American School, request ISEE for all applicants from Grade 4 and above. Find out more at erblearn.org.
Where to Take ISEE?
When is ISEE?
It's usually multiple times a month on Saturdays, the actual dates vary from test center to test center. Check it here.
Developed by the Educational Records Bureau (ERB) for its member schools as part of the admissions process and created by Measurement Incorporated, Durham, NC and ERB, with assistance from faculty of ERB member schools, ISEE stands for "Independent School Entrance Exam", and is a standardized test used by admission officers to assess the abilities of students seeking to enroll in an independent school, from Grade 2 to 12, available nationally and internationally. ISEE is a standard assessment of skills for each applicant, ranking his or her reasoning and achievement skills among students in the same grade.
Which schools accept ISEE?
ISEE is accepted by over 1,200 independent schools around the world, most of the high schools following the American system, including int'l schools, like Taipei American School, request ISEE for all applicants from Grade 4 and above. Find out more at erblearn.org.
Where to Take ISEE?
- ERB member schools
- 400+ Prometric sites worldwide. Families should be aware that there will be other students and adults taking other types of tests at these centers. A parent or guardian is required to stay on-site with the student for the duration of the test.
- ERB offices in New York and Los Angeles (paper based only).
- Find a test center
When is ISEE?
It's usually multiple times a month on Saturdays, the actual dates vary from test center to test center. Check it here.
What does TrinityScholar offer for ISEE?
Study ISEE with TrinityScholar
Why Trinity Scholar ISEE Prep?
- 1-on-1 Tutoring: materials and hours at your choice, completely customized (time, location, focus) tutor program with veteran instructors
- Customized Groups: completely customized tutoring for 3 or more students.
Why Trinity Scholar ISEE Prep?
- Interactive and small classes provide a personalized teaching environment with a focus on key concepts and exam strategies
- Exclusive US course materials are given to students where they will be able to access test taking strategies, practice questions and a lot more
- Trinity Scholar practice tests to help students become familiarized with the test and identify strengths and weaknesses
- Invaluable strategies are taught to improve students' scores in the verbal reading comprehension and math sections
- Designed to help you with your overall academic ability to form a base foundation for your boarding school years.
Different Levels of Tests
The ISEE has four levels, Primary, Lower, Middle, and Upper. All levels of the ISEE test include both reading and mathematics multiple-choice questions as well as a writing prompt*. The number of questions and test timing vary by level. (*New York City schools do not require Primary Level students the writing sample.)
The Primary 2 Exam is
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The Primary 3 Exam is
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The Primary 4 Exam is
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The Lower Level Exam is
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The Middle / Upper Level Exam is
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Test Formats
- The ISEE is available in both online and paper testing formats.
- Format availability varies by level and test location. Both modalities have the same number of questions, the same timing, and the same opportunity for students to change their answers within a test section.
- Online Tests
- Online tests are available for all levels.
- Test questions are presented on a testing device and multiple-choice responses are marked on a testing device.
- The essay portion of the test is typed
- Scratch paper and pencils are provided by the test site.
- Paper Tests
- Available only for students entering Grades 5 - 12 (Lower, Middle, and Upper Levels)
- Test questions are presented in a test booklet and multiple-choice responses are bubbled on a separate answer document using a #2 or HB pencil.
- Blank space in the test booklet may be used as scratch paper.
- Students handwrite the essay in the space provided on the answer sheet, using a black or blue ballpoint pen.
- Erasable pens are permitted.
How to Register ISEE
- You'd register online for all test centers. Phone registration, at 1 (800) 446-0320 or (919) 956-8524, is also available, except Prometric centers and the fee is USD 25 higher. .
- Prometric sites offer online administration and are available only for students entering grades 5-12. Families should be aware that there will be other students and adults taking other types of tests at these centers. A parent or guardian is required to stay on-site with the student for the duration of the test.
- ISEE test dates vary by year and location, check the website for updates.
- Registration fees vary from USD 125 to 230, depending on the methods for registration and testing.
- Walk-in registration is available at limited test sites and dates with an additional $40 fee. Walk-in registrations must be processed online with a walk-in code which is distributed by the test site school. There is no paper registration and neither cash or checks can be accepted as payments for testing fees.
- Rescheduling fees, cancellation fees, and refunds will vary depending on testing location and the amount of advance notice you provide. Please review our fee schedules and policies carefully.
- Fee waiver should be addressed to the school(s) to which the candidate is applying, not the ISEE Operations Office or ERB. Please contact a school to which you are applying for information on receiving a waiver.
- A parent or a guidance could set up an account, under which could have several independent accounts for different students/ kids.
About the Score Report
- The score reports, Individual Student Report (ISR), are be released online to the parent account as well as emailing to ERB schools, as soon as the Monday after that Saturday exam, and consultants which the families have listed as recipients.
- The score report provides information about the student's overall performance on each section of the ISEE, except the essay which is unscored and shared with the schools to which the student is applying.
- The ISEE scores are reported in four ways in the Test Profile:
- The Scaled Score, derived from raw scores, of the Lower, Middle, and Upper Level exams is between 760 and 940
- The Percentile Rank tells you where you stack up against other students.
- The Stanines is a nine-point scale used for normalized test scores
- The Stanine Analysis to represent the percentiles.
- The Test Profile reports percentile ranks with a reference to ISEE norms. These norms are based on independent school applicants in the same grade who have taken the test during the past three years.
- In the Analysis portion, each section score indicates the number of questions answered correctly, the number of questions answered incorrectly, and the number of questions omitted or not reached. For each section, the score is broken down by type of question, providing more specific information about a student's relative strengths and weaknesses.
- The raw score is determined solely by the number of questions answered correctly.
- There is no penalty for incorrect answers.
- Sample ISEE score report with explanation
Sending Score Reports
- Families will automatically receive their student's score report and are not required to indicate a school recipient of the scores. If a family chooses to share their student's scores with a school, they must add the desired school to the student's score recipient list.
- Families can select the schools for their score recipient list at the time of registration and/or add schools after viewing the score report.
- There is no extra charge for adding schools before or after the report is generated.
- Only a complete score report can be sent to a school—families cannot select only portions of a report to share nor can they select one section of scores from one ISEE test and another section of scores from a different ISEE test.
- The fastest and easiest way to manage your student's school score recipient list is from your parent account online. Log in to your account to manage your list. There is a $25 fee to manage your list of score recipients by phone if you call ISEE Operations at 1 (800) 446-0320 or (919) 956-8524.