Academics at CA
At Concord Academy, there’s no single academic path. As a CA student, your interests and discoveries will shape the way you’ll move through our curriculum. With guidance from your advisor, you’ll craft your own personalized learning experience. We value questions as much as answers, and the journey as much as the destination. Our students thrive on individual attention, and the relationships you’ll develop with mentors and peers alike will be built on common trust. We’re excited to see how much you’ll learn and grow, and what unique contributions you’ll make to our community
Building Your CA Course Schedule
At CA we encourage each student to pursue their intellectual interests within a detailed set of department requirements. CA’s curriculum comprises more than 200 courses in eight academic disciplines and a co-curricular athletics program. In mid-April, new students will be introduced to the course request process by the Academic Office and receive access to the 2023–24 course catalog and course request form. Those resources explain the required courses and the elective courses that are available. New students also have access to a temporary academic advisor, an adult in the CA community who will assist you with the course request process and answer your schedule-related questions. At orientation, you will be connected with your advisor for the school year. We understand that proper placement within our academic program is important to your success and for making sure you are appropriately challenged. Here are some of the steps we take to support that goal:
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- All new students take placement tests in math.
- Any new student who would like to study beyond the first level of a language will also take a placement test in that language.
- Students who have strong computer skills may choose to take the computer science placement test to try to place out of the required Creative Computing class.
- New 10th and 11th graders take a history placement test.
Students will receive their official schedule when they come to register for school—this year, that is September 1 for new students. After the first year, students will embark on the course scheduling process in partnership with their advisors and the Academic Office.
The Advisor Relationship
At CA, we know that developing relationships between students and adults is essential. Academic advising is a core aspect of each CA student’s experience. At Concord Academy, every student is paired with an advisor—a faculty member, staff member, or administrator who is equal parts mentor and advocate. Advisors get to know each student as an individual during one-on-one weekly meetings.
The regularity of these conversations ensures that there is time to cover whatever is most on students’ minds, from academics to extracurricular activities. Advisors will encourage students to look beyond themselves and their experiences to think about how they can impact others at CA and in the world. Advisors discuss internship experiences, encourage service-learning opportunities, and celebrate moments of growth and change.
Communication with advisors helps students to discover the optimum balance of studying, relaxing, and new creative, athletic, and leadership pursuits. This dedicated guidance helps students find the path that’s right for them. For families, advisors also provide vital links between home and school.
Meet Our Faculty & Explore Our Curriculum
We encourage you to flip through our latest course catalog and discover a vibrant and inventive approach to secondary education—one that few other schools can match. You’ll find a rigorous curriculum surrounded by a range of electives so broad and so deep that it rivals the catalogs of some colleges.
