Cardigan Mountain School A junior boarding and day school for boys in grades 6—9

Secondary School Counseling

Secondary School logos

The experienced team in Cardigan’s Secondary School Counseling Office guides ninth graders and their families through the process of finding the right-fit school.

The process begins in the spring of eighth grade with intentional programming and a secondary school fair. Working with students, families, teachers, advisors, coaches, and dorm parents, counselors compile a list of target schools for each student in June. This list is shared with families during the summer before the student’s ninth-grade year. During the fall, more than 80 secondary school representatives visit Cardigan to meet and talk with interested students.

Cardigan Director of Secondary School Counseling Kris Langetieg works with students at school fair

Each year, Cardigan hosts representatives from more than 80 secondary schools to help students find the right fit school.

The Process

Students should visit, tour, and interview at a number of schools before selecting the final list for application. Visits should be planned for Columbus Day/Indigenous People's Day in October (also known as Sandwich Fair Day at Cardigan; there are no classes), during the Fall Term Long Weekend, and if necessary, the week following Thanksgiving Recess. Remember that interviews are required for admission. All arrangements should be made with the permission of the director of secondary school counseling and the director of student life. Students should complete their portion of the application process by January 1.

Testing

The Secondary School Admissions Test (SSAT) will be administered to ninth-grade students on October 14 and November 11, 2023, with an optional date scheduled for December 9. Any requests for special accommodations should be made officially through the Enrollment Management Association after July 1 and forwarded to the director of secondary school counseling and the dean of academics.

Recommendations & Transcripts

The secondary school counseling office will assemble the necessary materials for each student and share them with schools via the appropriate application portal. The Standard Application Online is required if it is an available option. These materials include all letters of recommendation, the head of school/counselor report, and the student's Cardigan transcript (including ninth-grade fall term grades). All of these items will be submitted before January 10. We will also provide guidance regarding the submission of SSAT scores. 

Matriculation History

Over the past five years, Cardigan graduates have most commonly attended these secondary schools.

Class of 2023 Matriculation

Members of Cardigan’s Class of 2023 will attend 36 different secondary schools in the United States and Canada.

St. Andrews School (DE) (2)
Austin Preparatory School (MA)
Avon Old Farms (CT)
Berkshire School (MA) (2)
Blair Academy (NJ) (3)
Brooks School (MA) (2)
Carolina Day School (NC)
Choate Rosemary Hall (CT)
Deerfield Academy (MA) (4)
Dublin School (NH)
Episcopal High School (VA) (2)
Gould Academy (ME)
The Governor’s Academy (MA)
The Hill School (PA)
Holderness School (NH) (2)
The Hotchkiss School (CT) (3)
Kent School (CT) (3)
Kimball Union Academy (NH)

The Loomis Chaffee School (CT) (2)
St. Mark’s School (MA) (6)
Middlesex School (MA) (3)
Milton Academy (MA)
Northfield Mount Hermon School (MA)
New Hampton School (NH) (2)
St. Paul’s School (NH) (2)
The Peddie School (NJ)
The Pennington School (NJ)
Phillips Academy Andover (MA) (3)
Phillips Exeter Academy (NH)
Pomfret School (CT)
Proctor Academy (NH) (3)
Stevenson School (CA)
Suffield Academy (CT) (2)
The Taft School (CT) (4)
The Thacher School (CA)
Westminster School (CT) (2)

Working with Cardigan’s secondary school counseling team was pragmatic, structured, and motivating! We always kept in mind that the secondary environment must be a fit for our son and a place where he continues to strengthen cognitive and social growth and stability, not just academics. Because of our active relationship with our counselor, who helped us refine our overall strategy and engaged in realistic and transparent discussions, Carter ’22 found his next adventure at The Hotchkiss School.
George Davis P’22

Interested to learn more about Cardigan for your son? The first step is to click the button below.

How to Apply

Portrait of Cardigan's Director of Secondary School Counseling Kris Langetieg wearing dinner dress, which is coat and tie

Kristofor Langetieg P’24 

Director of Secondary School Counseling

In addition to serving the School as director of secondary school counseling, Mr. Langetieg is also an assistant coach on the Varsity Football Team. He and his wife Jungwon Park reside in Dewar House with their two sons, Terry ’24 and Stevie. Ms. Park is Cardigan’s assistant director of international relations for Korea.

klangetieg@cardigan.org

Learn More

Click below to read our helpful Guide to the Secondary School Process.

Read the Guide