Eliminating the Admissions Application Fee

Naturally, I don’t ask any follow-up questions and quickly reply with the same waiver code the school has used for ages. At some schools, it’ll usually be a combination of the school’s acronym and may include the word “waive.” If a school really wanted to get jazzy with it, they might include the current academic year or the year the school was founded. A trained admissions officer would always specify the capitalized letters or risk getting the “it doesn’t work” email. At Live Oak School, ours was WAIVELOS. All caps.

In 2014, Live Oak’s Board of Trustees voted to increase enrollment from 230 to 420 students and expand our campus spaces. Their decision was informed by the reality that so many families wanted to access our incredible program, and we wanted to say yes. By 2022, we achieved that goal. 

Today, I’m proud to say the school has reached its highest enrollment of 426 students! This past admissions season, compared to the 2022-23 season, our applications increased by almost 20%, and our yield increased by 10%. We enrolled the highest number of new families (84) the school has ever enrolled. As we’ve expanded enrollment, we have also made strides in making our program more accessible to a socio-economically diverse community. Our tuition ranges from $500 to $44,395, Live Oak’s tuition is inclusive of any expenses associated with field trips, school supplies, technology resources, and lunch. Earlier this year, we received a $1.2 million multi-year grant to support our Adjusted Tuition program. Access is part of Live Oak’s ethos. We are doing the work and have no intention of slowing down; we must keep moving forward. 

Beginning this year, Live Oak has decided to eliminate the application fee for all applicants seeking admission to our school. We do not believe that a family, regardless of their ability, should pay to be considered for admission. Consequently, as our application numbers continue to increase, we will no longer see the financial benefits of our $100 application fee. But we know it’s worth it because it aligns with our values as a school. 

I hope my message is clear: Live Oak wants to continue eliminating as many barriers to our program as possible. An application fee is nothing more than a paywall that reinforces the sentiment that independent schools are only accessible to individuals who can afford it. 

Yes, families could’ve kept requesting the fee waiver code, and we would’ve fallen in line with the norm, but as independent schools, we have to answer the question: Should families, regardless of their ability, have to pay to apply to our schools?