This article has been updated to reflect 2026 data and recent developments.
For many reasons, it can be more difficult to get your child into a preschool or kindergarten than into a prep school. Especially if you live in a major city like New York or Chicago. Competition for places still varies widely by school and local market in 2026, so families should check each school's current availability and admissions timeline. Getting your child into preschool is not quite the same as walking into Bergdorf's and purchasing an expensive item of apparel. Your money and your accomplishments take a back seat to your child and her abilities and accomplishments. Preschools look at your child first. Then they will give you the once-over.
If you live in an area where places in the local preschools are not as difficult to come by, count your lucky stars. In any case, here's an overview of the process.
Getting Started
Much depends on the area in which you live. Major metropolitan areas can have fewer preschool places relative to demand. How do you make sure your child will get into a school? You start the process as soon as you can, and you go through the admissions process at least three schools, five if you can manage it. In those highly competitive markets, getting into a preschool, any preschool, can be almost as dicey as drawing lots. So cover your bases by applying to more than one school, preferably three. Applying to five schools couldn't hurt. Private School Review's Admissions 101 recommends developing a shortlist of three to five schools as part of the broader private school admissions process.
Listen to Joanna Port's preschool admission tips.
If you have the option of choosing between several schools, you need to visit the schools. That is a must. Don't rely exclusively on hearsay and other people's opinions. Very often those opinions were formed years ago and may even be based on gossip. Go and visit the schools. See for yourself. Ask questions. Find out if the school is a good fit both from your point of view and also your child's. You know your child better than anybody. Go with your gut. If something tells you that the school isn't quite right for your requirements, move on to other options.
Depending on the market where you live, places may be at a premium. Begin your school selection process as early as you can. At the very least, start exploring your options and determining what is out there. Private School Review's Applications Calendar recommends beginning the broader private school search well in advance, noting in its 2026 update that families should start at least 18 months before they want their child to begin classes. New schools open every year. Should you send your child to a new preschool? Why not? But be sure to do the same thorough due diligence that you would do with an established school. Find out how they teach, what they teach, how they treat staff and parents, and so on.
Current early-childhood research continues to support careful attention to how young children actually learn. A 2025 article from the National Association for the Education of Young Children emphasizes that high-quality preschool curricula should be responsive to children's individual interests, needs, and strengths.
Each private school is unique. So expect differences in the admissions procedures. While schools may require an interview, application, child visit, assessment, or some combination of these, precisely how each individual school goes about each part of the admissions process is something the school decides. In other words there is nothing uniform about private school admissions. Expect differences. Some subtle. Some rather obvious. Be aware of those differences. In 2026, admissions requirements continue to vary by school and grade level, as Private School Review's Private School Admission Process: 2026 Complete Guide explains.
Interviews
The school will want to meet you and your child. What are they looking for? Pretty much the same things that you are looking for. They want to make sure that you and your child will fit in. Wait a minute! What do you have to do with this? You are not going to the school. Your child is. That's the point: the school wants to make sure that you are going to be a willing and able partner with the school in your child's education. It needs to know that you are in agreement with the school's philosophy and methodology. The school needs to know that your child will flourish in the school's unique environment.
Laura Gradman, an educational consultant, offers useful tips for navigating the preschool admissions process.
Depending on the school, you will be interviewed by a teacher, an admissions staffer, or the head of school. In some cases, you will be interviewed by more than one of these people at some point. Be alert. Pay attention to the questions asked and, in particular, how they are asked.
In 2026, fit remains an important part of private school selection. Private School Review's Choosing a Private School continues to recommend identifying your child's needs, visiting schools, and evaluating whether the school and family are a good match.
Applications
Applications for preschool and primary school are not nearly as extensive as those found at the high school level. Requirements vary by school, so check carefully before assuming that recommendations, records, or other documents will not be requested. The school may also ask families about expectations for volunteering or participation in the school community. There will be the usual medical forms and agreements to sign regarding drop-off and pickup times, as well as school closure policies.
Admissions may be on a rolling basis or follow a fixed admissions calendar. That means that once all places are filled at a school using rolling admissions, the rest of the applicant pool may be put on a waiting list. Make sure you adhere to any deadlines the school sets forth. The way many preschools work is that once the admissions deadline has passed and admissions have closed for the next year, the staff meets to consider all the applicants. Their goal is to build a class which will be compatible with what they are trying to accomplish, among other things. Each private preschool sets its own admission standards. Once again, that is why it is so important not to put all your eggs in one basket. Always apply to several schools.
Testing
Most of the time, preschools are interested in making sure that 4 and 5-year-olds are socialized and ready for the school's particular program. Toilet-training requirements vary by school, age, and program and should be confirmed directly with the preschool. Schools may also try to determine whether the child will be able to keep pace with the school's academic program. The technical term for this kind of evaluation is developmental assessment. Each school administers its own assessment routines according to its established protocols. There is no single standardized test used for preschool or primary school admission nationwide.
The understanding of developmental assessment has evolved. A 2026 review published by the American Academy of Pediatrics examined dozens of developmental screening and follow-up measures and found evidence supporting the reliability, validity, and usability of many measures, while also identifying feasibility and standardization as continuing concerns.
Veronica Bidwell explains the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC IQ Test), which some schools have used.
In 2026, parents should ask a preschool directly what, if any, assessment it uses and how the results factor into admission. Developmental screening and an admissions assessment are not necessarily the same thing. A 2025 study published by the American Academy of Pediatrics also demonstrated that different screening tools can identify different areas in which preschool-aged children may need support, reinforcing the importance of looking at development broadly rather than relying on a single measure.
Should you hire a consultant to prep your preschooler for the admissions testing and interviews? In my opinion, this is unnecessary, though I am well aware that preschool children are 'coached' or 'prepped' in major metropolitan areas such as New York. If you have done a good job of parenting, your child will under normal circumstances reflect that love and attention. So, relax and let your child be herself.
That advice remains sensible in 2026. The National Association for the Education of Young Children emphasizes learning through play and exploration, including giving young children opportunities for choice, problem-solving, creative thinking, and engaged learning.
Recourse
If the school decides not to offer your child a place, you generally have no recourse unless the school provides a specific reconsideration or appeal process. The decision is generally final. Don't be upset. As I pointed out earlier, there can be a certain lottery aspect to preschool admissions in highly competitive markets. So move on and find another school which will accept your child. If the school puts your child on a waiting list, you would be well-advised to have Plan B ready just in case the place never materializes. Private School Review's Admissions - The Acceptance Letter notes that places can become available from waitlists after schools learn which accepted families will actually enroll.
In conclusion, all I can say to reassure you that things will work out is that I have been there and done that. It is a bit of an ordeal, but do it and do it right. You will get your child in somewhere that will meet your requirements. Both our daughters went to preschool or nursery school, as I remember calling it. My late wife handled all the admission details at both schools. One school was a new primary school at St. Peter's by the Sea Episcopal Church, Bay Shore, New York, and the other was the Cathedral Nursery School housed in the basement of Cathedral House in Garden City. The headmistresses of both schools cared about their students. As a result, the education our daughters received was both solid academically and affirming from an emotional and maturation perspective.
