How to Get Into Deerfield Academy: Acceptance Rate, Fall 2027 Deadlines, Tuition and Aid
By Rona Aydin
Does Deerfield Academy publish an acceptance rate?
No. Deerfield does not publish an acceptance rate, an applicant count or the number of students it admits on its admission, application or financial aid pages, or in its School Profile 2026-2027, so any rate quoted for the school is an outside estimate (Deerfield How to Apply; Deerfield School Profile 2026-2027). What the profile does publish is the size of the school: 658 students, 584 boarding and 74 day, from 36 states, the District of Columbia and 52 countries, with 198 seniors in the Class of 2027 and an average class size of 12.
Deerfield was chartered in 1797 and enrolls students in Grades 9 through 12 and a postgraduate year. It is one of the ten founding members of the Ten Schools Admission Organization (Ten Schools) and one of the eight members of the Eight Schools Association (Eight Schools Association). In our view, the lack of a published rate means families should plan around what Deerfield does publish: its deadlines, its testing windows and its interview requirement. Our guide to the Ten Schools compares Deerfield with the other nine members.
What changes at Deerfield for students entering in fall 2027?
Deerfield becomes a fully boarding school in fall 2027. Its admission page says that when the new West Campus Dorm opens in the fall of 2027, “its 38 student rooms will allow us to expand our boarding population and welcome local students into the residential life of the school, and from that time forward, Deerfield will be a fully-boarding school” (Deerfield Admission). The same page says Deerfield “will also move to a single tuition rate that is truly comprehensive with no additional fees or hidden costs,” and that its Financial Aid Initiative will support local families in the transition.
Deerfield had not published the 2027-28 tuition rate on the pages we read on November 4, 2026, so the 2026-27 figures below are the latest available. In our view, local families who were planning on a day place should now plan for boarding, and should file the financial aid application on the same timeline as the admission application.
When are the Deerfield deadlines for fall 2027 entry?
Deerfield calls January 15 its priority application deadline, and admission and financial aid decisions are released together on March 10 (Deerfield How to Apply; Deerfield Financial Aid). Deerfield accepts students for September enrollment only.
| Milestone | Date | Status on November 4, 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Gateway to Prep Schools application opens | July 1, 2026 | Passed |
| Clarity financial aid application opens | September 1, 2026 | Passed |
| Interviews and campus visits | Book early; Deerfield says interview space is limited in December and January | Open |
| Priority application deadline (all three Gateway parts) | January 15, 2027 | Open |
| Financial aid application deadline (Clarity) | January 15, 2027 | Open |
| W-2 upload for U.S. tax filers | February 15, 2027 | Upcoming |
| Admission and financial aid decisions | March 10, 2027 | Upcoming |
| Enrollment contracts and aid acceptance due | April 10, 2027 | Upcoming |
Late applications are possible but riskier. Deerfield says it will try to consider applications completed after January 15, including testing, but it cannot promise a March 10 notification, and late candidates compete for the places still open after April 10. To be eligible, applicants must be attending a school or educational program at the time they apply.
What does the Deerfield application require?
Deerfield uses the Gateway to Prep Schools application, plus a Deerfield Admission Portal checklist that opens once Part I is submitted (Deerfield How to Apply). The application fee is $60 for students living in the United States or Canada and $125 for students living outside the United States, and fee waivers are granted on the basis of financial need. The file has these parts:
- Part I, the Candidate Profile, which must be complete before a family can schedule the interview.
- Part II, three essays: a short answer, a personal essay and a graded essay with teacher comments from a current course. Deerfield says a paper showing teacher commentary and revision effort “is more valuable to us than one that simply received a high grade.”
- Part III, grades and recommendations: current English, mathematics and third academic teacher recommendations, a Principal or Counselor Recommendation, and grades. Grade 9 applicants send last year’s grades and the current first marking period; Grade 10 to postgraduate applicants send the current first marking period and all previous high school grades.
- A required interview, either an on-campus tour and interview (two hours) or a one-hour Zoom interview with time for parents to speak with an admission officer.
- Standardized testing, which Deerfield says is required, from the windows below.
| Applying for | Accepted tests | Test dates accepted |
|---|---|---|
| Grade 9 or 10 | SSAT or ISEE | January 2026 to January 2027 |
| Grade 11 | ACT, PLAN, PSAT, SAT or SSAT | September 2026 to January 2027 |
| Grade 12 or postgraduate year | ACT, PSAT or SAT | September 2025 to January 2027 |
| English proficiency, if required | IELTS Academic, TOEFL iBT or Duolingo English Test | January 2026 to January 2027 |
Deerfield suggests testing in October, November or December. A January test is still considered in the regular cycle, but only after the scores arrive. Our ISEE preparation guide covers one of the two tests accepted for Grades 9 and 10, and our guide to private school interview questions helps with the required interview.
What does Deerfield cost, and how does financial aid work?
For 2026-27, Deerfield lists tuition of $79,940 for boarding students and $57,850 for day students, and says “Laptop, Textbooks, and Health Center Services are included in our tuition” (Deerfield Financial Aid). It reports that 38% of current families receive financial aid, 35% of aid recipients pay nothing, the average boarding grant is $68,235 and 14% of funded students are international.
| Item | 2026-27 figure | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Boarding tuition | $79,940 | Includes room and board, textbooks, a MacBook Air and the health center |
| Day tuition | $57,850 | Deerfield moves to a single tuition rate when it becomes fully boarding in fall 2027 |
| Current families receiving financial aid | 38% | 2026-27 |
| Aid recipients who pay nothing | 35% | 2026-27 |
| Average boarding grant | $68,235 | About 85.4% of boarding tuition, by our calculation |
| Domestic families earning up to $150,000 | Pay $0 | Financial Aid Initiative; two years of W-2 income required |
| Domestic families earning above $150,000 | No more than 10% of total income for tuition and fees, per student | Financial Aid Initiative |
| Annual spending on financial assistance | More than $15 million | Deerfield Admission page |
Under the Financial Aid Initiative, Deerfield says “Domestic families making up to $150,000 will pay $0” and families above $150,000 pay no more than 10% of their total income for tuition and fees, per student. To qualify, families must live and work in the United States and have two years of verifiable W-2 income with assets consistent with their income profile. Families outside those terms, including international families and families without W-2 income, can still apply for need-based aid, and Deerfield says admitted families receive 100% of demonstrated need. Aid is need-based only: Deerfield offers no merit or athletic awards and requires no loans.
Applying for aid can affect admission. Asked whether it will, Deerfield answers “Possibly,” explaining that its aid budget is limited, “and therefore we cannot always accept all admissible financial aid applicants.” The Clarity application fee is $65, and U.S. tax filers must upload 2026 W-2 forms by February 15, 2027.
| School | 2026-27 boarding figure | What the figure covers |
|---|---|---|
| The Lawrenceville School | $82,710 | Comprehensive tuition, inclusive of most fees |
| The Hotchkiss School | $80,800 | Tuition of $79,350 plus technology and health services fees |
| Deerfield Academy | $79,940 | Includes laptop, textbooks and health center services |
| Phillips Academy Andover | $79,800 | Boarding tuition |
| The Loomis Chaffee School | $77,340 | Tuition before technology and health center fees |
| Choate Rosemary Hall | $74,530 | Tuition of $73,530 plus $1,000 technology fee |
| Phillips Exeter Academy | $71,797 | Tuition; books and supplies estimated separately |
Where do Deerfield graduates go to college?
Deerfield lists the colleges attended by three or more students in the five graduating classes from 2022 to 2026, and marks those attended by 10, 20 or 30 or more (Deerfield School Profile 2026-2027). It gives these bands rather than exact counts, and the profile says that 100% of Deerfield graduates ultimately attend four-year colleges and universities.
| Deerfield students attending, Classes of 2022 to 2026 | Colleges |
|---|---|
| 30 or more students | Georgetown University, Harvard University, Middlebury College, Yale University |
| 20 to 29 students | Brown University, Cornell University, Tufts University, University of Pennsylvania, University of Virginia, Vanderbilt University |
| 10 to 19 students (selected) | Bowdoin, Columbia, Dartmouth, Duke, Michigan, New York University, Northwestern, Princeton, Stanford, University of Chicago, Williams |
| 3 to 9 students (selected) | Carnegie Mellon, Johns Hopkins, MIT, Notre Dame, Pomona, Rice, Swarthmore, UCLA, Wellesley |
For the Class of 2026, the profile reports a middle 50% SAT range of 1260 to 1480 (mean 1370) and an ACT composite range of 29 to 34 (mean 31). Deerfield says it has moved away from teaching AP courses and offers official AP courses only in math and the arts, plus AP Seminar; in 2025-26, 295 students sat for 708 AP exams. Our guides to Ivy League acceptance rates, Harvard and Yale cover the college side.
How should families plan a Deerfield application now?
In the view of Oriel Admissions, a family applying for fall 2027 should submit Part I of the Gateway application now and book the interview before December, register for an SSAT or ISEE date in November or December, and start the graded essay early, since it must come from a current course with teacher comments. File the Clarity aid application by January 15, 2027 alongside the admission file. Deerfield describes a “phone-light culture,” academic dress (a blazer or sportcoat for all students, and neckties for boys) and sit-down, family-style meals (The Deerfield Difference; Deerfield Dress Code), so in our experience the short answer and personal essay work best when they show how a student would take part in that shared life. Our guides to Hotchkiss, Loomis Chaffee and reach, match and safety schools help balance a boarding school list.
Frequently Asked Questions About Deerfield Academy Admissions
Deerfield does not publish an acceptance rate or applicant counts on its admission pages or in its School Profile 2026-2027, so any figure quoted elsewhere is an outside estimate. The school enrolls 658 students, according to its School Profile 2026-2027.
The priority deadline is January 15, 2027 for all three parts of the Gateway application and for the Clarity financial aid application. Decisions arrive March 10, 2027, and enrollment contracts are due April 10, 2027.
Yes. Testing is required. Grade 9 and 10 applicants submit the SSAT or ISEE taken between January 2026 and January 2027. Grade 11 applicants submit the ACT, PLAN, PSAT, SAT or SSAT, and Grade 12 and postgraduate applicants submit the ACT, PSAT or SAT.
Yes. Deerfield lists the interview as a required part of the application. Families can choose an on-campus tour and interview or a one-hour Zoom interview, and Deerfield says space is limited in December and January.
Tuition is $79,940 for boarding students and $57,850 for day students, and it includes a laptop, textbooks and health center services. Deerfield plans a single comprehensive rate once it becomes fully boarding in fall 2027.
Under its Financial Aid Initiative, domestic families earning up to $150,000 pay $0, and families above $150,000 pay no more than 10% of total income for tuition and fees, per student. Families must live and work in the United States and have two years of W-2 income.
Deerfield says it will be a fully boarding school from fall 2027, when a new West Campus Dorm with 38 student rooms opens and local students join residential life as boarders.
From 2022 to 2026, 30 or more Deerfield students attended each of Georgetown, Harvard, Middlebury and Yale, and 20 or more attended each of Brown, Cornell, Penn, Tufts, Vanderbilt and Virginia. Oriel Admissions suggests reading these bands as context, not as odds for any one student.
Sources: Deerfield How to Apply, Deerfield Financial Aid, Deerfield Admission, Deerfield School Profile 2026-2027, The Deerfield Difference, Deerfield Dress Code, Ten Schools Admission Organization, Eight Schools Association, Lawrenceville Tuition, Hotchkiss Tuition and Payment Plans, Andover Tuition and Financial Aid, Loomis Chaffee Tuition and Financial Aid, Choate Tuition and Financial Aid, Exeter Tuition and Costs. All read November 4, 2026.
About Oriel Admissions
Oriel Admissions is a college admissions consulting firm advising families nationwide on elite university admissions strategy, with offices in Princeton, New Jersey and New York. Our team pairs deep admissions expertise with a distinctive 360 approach spanning academic planning, extracurricular strategy, essays and application execution. To discuss your strategy, schedule a consultation.
