Head-Royce School

What makes this school special

A K-12 Oakland school whose ~440-student upper school is built on a four-year interdisciplinary Humanities Core, senior seminars, and a capstone
Honors and advanced-topics courses in place of APs, on an 8-day rotating block schedule
The senior Capstone sends students off campus for a three-week real-world project, capped by a senior Shakespeare production
A strong civic streak through its Center for Community Engagement and Global Studies travel

Academics

Curriculum

Honors and advanced-topics courses, a 9-12 interdisciplinary Humanities Core, and a senior Capstone

Advanced coursework

No AP courses · 55 UC-approved honors courses

See the list filed with UC

World languages

French, Mandarin, Spanish, Latin, Arabic

Schedule

8-day rotating block (75-minute periods)

Signature programs

Humanities Core (interdisciplinary, grades 9-12)
Senior Capstone
Center for Community Engagement
Global Studies (study-travel)
Four-year computer science & robotics

College matriculation

UC Berkeley, UCLA, University of Chicago, USC, University of Washington, NYU, Northeastern, Washington University in St. Louis, Tulane, Tufts, Northwestern, Stanford, University of Michigan, Brown, Cornell, Yale

See the full list

UC admissions · For fall 2025 entry

applied: 87
admitted to at least one campus: 64
enrolled at a UC: 10

See UC’s data

What these numbers can and can’t tell you

Athletics, arts & activities

Athletics · Bay Area Conference — BCL East

Baseball (boys)BasketballCross CountryGolfLacrosseSoccerSoftball (girls)SwimmingTennisTrack & FieldVolleyball

Arts

TheaterDanceJazz BandChorusVisual & Performing Arts

Clubs & activities

Black Student UnionDemocracy MattersAsia ClubIndia ClubFine Arts Dance Ensemble (FADE)Robohawks (robotics)DebateThe Hawk's Eye (newspaper)Colla Voce (choral)Caravan (jazz)

See all clubs

Applying

Key dates

Applications open: Late August
Preliminary application due: December 4, 2026
Application due: January 8, 2027
Decisions released: March 12, 2027

Tours and events

See the school's schedule

The application

Head-Royce admits through its own application: a preliminary application is due in early December and the completed application in early January, with decisions in March. Unlike most schools on this list, it requires a standardized test. Families who need help can apply for need-based aid through the school's flexible-tuition program.

Application requirements

Application and fee via Ravenna
Supplemental forms and materials
ISEE required

Testing

ISEE required

Testing explained

Sources

College Admissions Profile 2026-27 — "441 students in the Upper School," 72% students of color, $8m in tuition assistance awarded, 65 honors courses, the curriculum and the outcomes
How to Apply — the fall-2027 dates: preliminary application and fee due December 4, 2026; completed applications due January 8, 2027; decisions for grades 9-12 posted March 12, 2027
Affording Head-Royce — 2026-27 tuition, Upper School (9-12) $62,900; what tuition does and doesn't cover; and on aid, "More than a quarter of our students receive tuition assistance, with more than $8 million awarded each year"
Upper School academics — Humanities Core, languages, requirements
Athletics — teams, league membership
Head-Royce School | Wikipedia — founding, notable alumni
Head-Royce School homepage — motto ("Student-centered. Mission-driven.," the homepage hero tagline)
Bay Area Conference — conference structure and division membership
UC A-G course list — Head-Royce School — the 2026-27 course list the school files with the University of California: 55 UC-approved honors courses. The school's own profile counts 65; we carry the filed number. The same filing names the languages the school teaches: Arabic, French, Latin, Mandarin, Spanish
Confirmed by Head-Royce School Office of Admissions (correspondence, August 2026) — 2026-27 tuition ($62,900), no AP classes (honors and advanced topics only), 8-day rotating block schedule (sample-schedule PDF provided; not linkable). Held, not re-verified: the ISEE requirement was read on the school's How to Apply page on 2026-08-06, and the rebuilt page names no admission test. The school has been asked whether it still stands
California Private School Affidavit 2025-26 | CDE — the 916 K-12 students and 116 full-time teachers the student:teacher ratio is estimated from (the affidavit does not split teachers by division). CDS 01612596932925.

Details checked August 2026

Head-Royce