Debating where to send your kid to school next year? Luckily for you, Washington, DC, and the surrounding areas in Maryland and Northern Virginia contain several private day and boarding schools.  Of course, while having tons of choices is a “good problem to have”, it doesn’t make your decision any easier — but don’t worry, we’re here to help. Keep scrolling to learn about private schools in the DMV!

St. Albans

Located in Washington DC, St. Albans School is a private, all boys day and boarding school. For more than a century, St. Albans has offered a distinctive educational experience for young men in grades 4 through 12. While our students reach exceptional academic goals and exhibit first-rate athletic and artistic achievements, as an Episcopal school they place equal emphasis upon moral and spiritual education.

BASIS Independent McLean

BASIS Independent McLean is a school community in a setting that fuels discovery and connectivity between students, teachers, and ideas. The 11-acre campus is located in Tysons Corner in Northern Virginia. Our Fairfax County school is conveniently located less than 15 miles outside of Washington DC, giving students and teachers easy access to all of the cultural offerings of our nation’s capital.

Designed with their content-rich, interactive curriculum in mind, the campus features specially-outfitted classrooms and wings for the sciences, early learning, performing arts, and more. The school’s atrium-style great hall offers a literal window into their program, as a great deal of the learning spaces are visible from this central point in the school.

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Georgetown Day School

Georgetown Day School is a Washington, DC preK-12 independent school with an enrollment of 1,075 students, a city campus, and a comprehensive, innovative curriculum. Founded in 1945 as the first integrated school in Washington, DC, GDS maintains a diverse student body as well as a diverse faculty and Board. The High School is college preparatory, sending 100% of its graduates to colleges and universities throughout the world. For the 2023-24 school year, GDS allocated $9.2 million in financial aid to 23.9% of students with an average award of $34,800.

Holton-Arms School

Founded more than a century ago, Holton-Arms School encourages young women to approach the world with a thirst for challenge, unflinching curiosity, and a sense of responsibility to use what they learn for the greatest good.

Holton-Arms cherishes the uniqueness of each of the members of our community including current and former students, faculty, and staff. They seek to create an inclusive environment that sees, values, and supports diverse identities and experiences, cultivates engaging discourse, and empowers every student to be a thriving member of the global community.

National Cathedral School

An independent girls’ school for grades 4-12, NCS believes in the power of young women. NCS is more than a place for skill-based learning, it’s a place where students will also uncover and shape who they are, what they need, how they relate to others, and so much more.

Set on the grounds of the Washington National Cathedral, a calm space of green within our bustling and busy Nation’s Capital, NCS’s highly curated environment helps each student believe in her individual power and learn to use it to actively engage in any pursuit with excellence, service, courage, and conscience.

Sidwell Friends

Sidwell Friends School is a dynamic educational community grounded in the belief that differences among us enhance intellectual inquiry, expand understanding, and deepen empathy. Individually and collectively, the Sidwell community challenges themselves to pursue excellence in academic, athletic, and artistic realms.

They are committed to the joys of exploration and discovery. The Quaker pillars of the School inspire active engagement in environmental stewardship, global citizenship, and service. Sidwell encourages its students to find strength in reflection and shared silence, and to discern deeper truths about themselves and their common humanity, preparing students and adults to “let their lives speak.”

Want to find a home to suits the whole family? Get in touch with our team directly by calling us at 202.280.2060 or emailing us at jsmira@jennsmira.com.