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Selection of 2008-2009 Freshman Class (TJ Class of 2012)

Important Dates to Remember in 2007-2008:

• September 24, 2007 - Applications become available in schools and at the TJ Admissions Office (see details below)
• September 29 - Open House (see details in Main)
• October 26 - Absolute deadline for submission of application to schools or TJ Admissions Office
• December 1 - Admissions Test (see details in Testing)
• End of January, 2008 - Letters mailed to applicants notifying them of semifinalist status
• February 19 - Information sheet and teacher recommendation forms due from semifinalists to school counselors
• April 4 - Admissions notification letters postmarked
• June 30 - Application deadline for Summer Round (only for students who moved to a participating school division after September 30, 2007)
• July 8 - Admissions Test for Summer Round applicants only
• July 28 - Admissions notification letters for summer round applicants postmarked

Freshman Selection Process

Applicants to the ninth grade at TJHSST must be in the eighth grade in 2008-2009 in any public or private school and must live with their parent and/or legal guardian who is a full-time resident of, and meets all residency requirements of, one of the participating school divisions. Applicants must be enrolled currently in Algebra 1 to be considered for admission, unless the Admissions Director has waived the requirement for the applicant.

Students and families who move to a participating school division after September 30, 2007 are eligible for a separate round of admissions in the summer of 2008 (see the information on Summer Round Admissions at the end of this section).

There are two parts to the admissions process. Part One information is relevant to all applicants. Part Two information is for students who are determined to be semifinalists at the conclusion of Part One.

Part One

Eighth grade students apply by no later than October 26, 2007 by completing a one-page application form and paying a processing fee of $90. Students who are eligible for free and reduced-price meals pay a processing fee of $25. A waiver of the fee also is available by calling the Admissions Office at 703-658-5824 or 703-658-5806, or by contacting the local school TJ liaison counselor.

All applicants then must take the Thomas Jefferson Admissions Test, which is administered on December 1, 2007. The test is a standardized reasoning test that measures how well a student can use knowledge gained over his/her previous seven years of schooling. It is not an achievement test. At the time of testing, applicants also write two essays in response to two different essay questions.

In late January/early February following the test, applicants are informed by letter whether they will be considered as semifinalists who will continue on to the second stage of the TJHSST admissions process. A sliding scale of grade point average (GPA) and test score is used to determine semifinalist status. No student with a GPA lower than 2.67 or with a test score lower than 60% correct may be a semifinalist. And, under the sliding scale used, a student with a GPA of 2.67 would need a total test score of 90% correct or higher to be considered a semifinalist. A student with a total test score of 60% correct would need a GPA of 3.67 or higher to be considered a semifinalist. A similar balancing of test score and GPA, using a sliding scale, is completed for every applicant to determine semifinalist status.

Part Two

During Part Two of the admissions process, semifinalists must collect additional information to complete their application packets by late February. At this time, the semifinalists' essays written in December also are reviewed and scored by trained readers/educators.

All semifinalists must obtain three teacher recommendations and fill out a Student Information Sheet to complete their application packets to TJHSST. The recommendations must come from a math teacher, a science teacher, and a third teacher of the applicant's choice. Recommendations should come from teachers the student has had in grade 7 or grade 8. The Information Sheet requests that the student list and describe his/her four most important academic, and four most important after-school or out-of-school, interests, activities, and accomplishments, keeping in mind the TJHSST Mission Statement. The Information Sheet also requires students to write a personal statement.

The teacher recommendations and Student Information Sheet complete the semifinalist's application packet, which also includes two essay scores; report card marks in core subjects (7th grade final marks, 1st and 2nd quarter 8th grade marks); admissions test scores (verbal and mathematics raw scores and percentile ranks); and the student's original application form. No other materials are included or considered in any student's application packet under any circumstances.

The entire application packet is evaluated holistically by two selection committees consisting of two trained, qualified educators or professionals per team. Applicants are evaluated for admission based on the following criteria:

• aptitude for successful study of science, mathematics, computer science, and related technological fields;
• record of prior academic achievement;
• interest and motivation in the study of science and mathematics, computer science, and related technologies; and
• background, skills, or experiences that would contribute to a diverse student body which will enhance the unique learning experience at TJHSST and develop future leaders of the 21st century.

In this holistic review, no one component of the application packet carries any greater weight than any other. Evaluators look for consistency across the application that correlates with one of the four ratings they may give an applicant. Students ultimately are admitted to TJHSST based on the strength of the final four ratings they receive from the selection committees.

After committee review, final decisions on admissions are made, and semifinalists are notified in early April whether or not they will be offered admission.

Freshman Application

The application deadline for the 2008-2009 freshman class (TJ Class of 2012) is October 26, 2007. This is a firm deadline. No late applications will be accepted for any reason. The deadline can be met by turning the application in to your public school identified TJ liaison counselor or to your private school principal. This is the method preferred by the Admissions Office. Submission of the application to the liaison counselor or private school principal at your middle school by October 26, 2007 constitutes timely application to TJHSST.

Applications also may be brought to the Admissions Office at the Holmes Middle School Annex at 6525 Montrose Street, Alexandria, VA 22312, or mailed to the Admissions Office. If you must mail your application, make sure that the envelope has a clear and legible postmark of no later than October 26, 2007. Make a copy of the completed application for your file.

All applicants must complete the TJHSST Freshman Application form in order to be considered for admission. Beginning September 24, 2007, applications will be available as follows:

• All participating school divisions' public schools with an eighth grade class have applications. One counselor (the "TJ liaison counselor") at each of the schools has been designated as the contact person for applicants.
• Many private schools in the area have applications for admission to TJHSST.
• If your school does not have applications, or if you are home schooled, contact the TJHSST Admissions Office at 703-658-5823 to request an application.

The application is a one-page form that seeks demographic information regarding the applicant, including name, address, school of attendance, choice of testing site, math course taken in grade 8, etc. The application form must be signed by the applicant's parent or legal guardian and by the student's TJ liaison counselor or principal.

There is a $90 processing fee for the application process, which should accompany the application form. Checks may be made payable to "Fairfax County Public Schools" or to "FCPS." Students who qualify for free or reduced-price meals pay a processing fee of $25. In addition, the fee may be waived (no fee) by calling the Admissions Office at 703-658-5824 or 703-658-5806, or by talking to the student's local school TJ liaison counselor.

Applicants who are not enrolled in a public middle school in a participating school division at the time of application also must submit proof of residency with their applications. Applicants' parents or legal guardian must provide a copy of their lease or deed AND a copy of a current utility bill (gas, electric, water, or land-line telephone).

Summer Round Admissions for New Residents

For students who become residents in a participating school division after September 30, 2007, there is a second round of selection (called "Summer Round") scheduled for July 2008. Summer-round applicants must have already completed Algebra 1 during the eighth grade year.

Application Deadline: The application deadline for the Summer Round is Monday, June 30, 2008. This is a firm deadline. No late applications are accepted.

Summer-round applicants must submit a completed application form, Student Information Sheet, and three teacher recommendations when they apply. These forms will be available for summer-round applicants beginning in late November/early December 2007. You can request a summer-round application packet by calling the admissions office at 703-658-5823 or by e-mailing the admissions director (Judith.Howard@fcps.edu) beginning in November.

Summer-round applicants also must provide copies of their middle school transcripts or final report cards with their applications. If the applicant is not enrolled in a public middle school in a participating school division at the time of application, the applicant also must provide the required proof of residency at the time of application.

Testing: All summer-round applicants must sit for the Thomas Jefferson Admissions Test on Tuesday, July 8, 2008. There is no alternate test date. For more information on the admissions test, go to Testing.

Summer round applicants who require testing accommodations due to identified disabilities (IEP, 504 plan, or other formal written educational plan) must complete the Request for Testing Accommodations form included in Resources. The form and required documentation must be submitted before the June 30, 2008 application deadline.

Summer round applicants who may require medical testing or medication during the admissions test (e.g., glucose monitoring, medication or snacks during test time, Epi-pen, etc.) must complete the Request for Testing Accommodations form included in Resources. The form and required documentation must be submitted before the June 30, 2008 application deadline.

Because of the short period of time between the application deadline and the summer round admissions test, we request that you notify us immediately if you will be submitting a Request for Testing Accommodations so that we can make the necessary arrangements for testing accommodations. Please contact the admissions director at Judith.Howard@fcps.edu or call 703-658-5824.

Eligibility: Summer-round admissions are available only to eighth graders who are newly moved to a participating school division, provided that the applicant is applying from a school division that has not exceeded its cap (or limit) on the number of students who can attend TJHSST for the incoming freshman class. If you do not live in Fairfax County, you should check with the Admissions Office before you apply (but not before May 1, 2008) to make sure that the school division in which you live has not exceeded its cap for the Class of 2012. If the cap has been exceeded, applications will not be accepted from students living in that school division.

Students who lived in a participating school division before September 30, 2007 and missed the October 26, 2007 application deadline may not apply through Summer Round. Those students are only eligible to apply for admission to the sophomore class at TJHSST at the end of their freshman year of high school (summer 2009).

Summer Round Process: The evaluation and selection process for Summer Round is the same as the winter-round process described above, but is compressed into a one-month time frame. Therefore, it is imperative that all of the required paperwork (i.e., transcripts, report cards, and teacher recommendations) be submitted with the application.

If you are relocating from overseas, make sure that you hand carry all middle school report cards and transcripts and other school-related materials. Do not pack these documents for a shipment you will be unable to access during July 2008.

By regulation, we are required to have seats available for students who apply during the summer-round admissions process. Those seats, however, are not guaranteed. Summer-round applicants must be rated comparably to students accepted for admission during the winter round of admissions in order to be offered admission to TJHSST in the summer. Final admissions decisions for the summer round will be mailed on July 28, 2008.