ISEE Test Breakdown

The Independent School Entrance Examination (ISEE) is a three-hour admission test for entrance into grades five through twelve.

With many of the items written by independent school faculty under the guidance of Educational Testing Service, the test has three levels:

  • a Lower Level for students currently in grades four and five who are candidates for admission to grades five and six
  • a Middle Level for students in grades six and seven who are candidates for admission to grades seven and eight
  • an Upper Level for students in grades eight to eleven who are candidates for admission to grades nine through twelve

 

 

Verbal Reasoning (40 questions, 20 minutes)
  • Synonyms 
  • Sentence Completion
Quantitative Reasoning (35 questions, 35 minutes)
  • Arithmetic/Algebra/Geometry 
  • Concepts/Understanding 
  • Applications/Higher Order Thinking 
  • Quantitative Comparison
Reading Comprehension (40 questions, 40 minutes) 
  • Humanities Passages 
  • Science Passages 
  • Social Studies Passages
Mathematics Achievement (45 questions, 40 minutes) 
  • Arithmetic/Algebra/Geometry 
  • Knowledge and Skills 
  • Computation/Comprehension 
  • Applications
Essay (30 minutes)