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Prep Means Prepared.

Ready for Anything.

The Prep Difference

For more than 60 years, Santa Fe Prep has been dedicated to opening a world of possibilities for our students, in the classroom and beyond. At Prep, our two highest commitments are to academic excellence and active citizenship. Vitality, curiosity, engagement, exploration, and discovery...

When you come to Prep, you are choosing an active education.

A group of over thirty young adults and students gather closely for a photo on a hilltop during dusk. They are dressed in casual cold-weather clothing, including hoodies, jackets, and beanies. In the background, an expanse of land stretches out toward a flat valley floor with low mountain ranges visible beneath a clear sky on the horizon.
  • 14 Average class size
  • 1:9 Faculty to Student ratio
  • 322 Total Students
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The Prep Experience

At Prep, every student finds their own path — in the classroom, on the stage, on the playing field, on the trail, and in the community they are part of.

A close-up profile view of a young male student leaning over a wooden workbench in a workshop or laboratory setting. He works with precision using a magnifying glass and a helping-hands clamp tool to

Academics

A close-up profile view of a young male student leaning over a wooden workbench in a workshop or laboratory setting. He works with precision using a magnifying glass and a helping-hands clamp tool to

Academics

Academics at Prep are rooted in curiosity and shaped by the exchange of ideas and perspectives. In our classrooms, students explore questions and exercise ideas through discussion, inquiry, and evidence. Learning is active and applied, with students demonstrating understanding through traditional scholarship, creative work, and project-based experiences. Along the way, they develop strong academic foundations and the confidence to articulate ideas, question assumptions, and engage thoughtfully with the world around them.

Academics

Cast members perform energetically on stage in a theatrical musical production under warm lighting.

Arts

Cast members perform energetically on stage in a theatrical musical production under warm lighting.

Arts

The arts at Prep are central to the lives of our students. Fine arts courses aim to equip students with both the conceptual understanding and technical skills needed to express ideas with clarity and confidence. With an emphasis on high artistic standards, we foster visual awareness and a commitment to craftsmanship, believing that every student benefits from the discipline and insight that come from making art. Our performing arts program invites students to dive into theatre, acting, improv, music, and vocal performance while building skills in technique and theory. At Prep every student has the chance to shine and grow as a performer.

Arts

 

A group of students sitting in a circle on a grassy mountain ridge during a cloudy outdoor backpacking trip.

Experiential Education

A group of students sitting in a circle on a grassy mountain ridge during a cloudy outdoor backpacking trip.

Experiential Education

Camping trips and outdoor programming instill an appreciation for the beauty and diversity of New Mexico and foster a strong sense of community and belonging. Lessons learned through the challenges of camping and backpacking build resiliency and adaptability in all aspects of our students' lives. Prep's community service program — the Teen Action Program, or TAP — connects our students to the larger Santa Fe and Northern New Mexico communities, giving them opportunities to develop civic commitment, leadership, social responsibility, and personal discovery. The culmination of these experiences are the Senior Internship Program (SIP) and Senior TAP.

Experiential Education

Happy high school soccer players wearing matching blue jerseys hugging and celebrating together on a field.

Athletics

Happy high school soccer players wearing matching blue jerseys hugging and celebrating together on a field.

Athletics

At Prep, athletics are an extension of what our students learn in the classroom. Through sports, students challenge themselves, build friendships, and discover new capabilities via team commitment and personal accountability. On the field, the court, the track, the course, and in the pool, our student-athletes learn perseverance, teamwork, and confidence.

Athletics

A teacher or student presenter points at a monitor screen during a university presentation in front of a seated class.

College Counseling

A teacher or student presenter points at a monitor screen during a university presentation in front of a seated class.

College Counseling

College counselors at Prep seek to connect with every student by encouraging them to lead their own unique college search, with parents and counselors in a supporting role. Close partnership with students enables our counseling team to guide students towards a balanced list of schools based on their academic and co-curricular interests. We believe that students should find the college that best fits them not only academically, but also socially and financially.

College Counseling

Students gather outdoors around a long table painting with watercolors on a sunny day.

Student Life

Students gather outdoors around a long table painting with watercolors on a sunny day.

Student Life

Prep fosters a culture of inquiry and participation that extends well beyond the classroom — to the sports field, the stage, clubs, and student-led assemblies, committees, and events. Advisors and teachers work closely with students throughout their time at Prep, coaching them to communicate clearly, take risks, find balance, and grow in confidence. When graduates move on to college, they do so feeling ready to navigate the complexities of the world with confidence, integrity, and a keen sense of humanity.

Student Life

PREPARED IN SANTA FE.
READY FOR THE WORLD.

What are you prepared for?

Prep's Portrait of a Graduate is an expression of the intellectual habits, skills, and mindsets students gain from their Santa Fe Prep experience.

 

  • Critical and Creative Thinker
  • Effective Communicator
  • Balanced Person
  • Intentional Craftsperson
  • Culturally Aware and Responsive Citizen
  • Steward
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A student with glasses sits attentively at a library table with textbooks, a binder, and a copy of 'These Truths' by Jill Lepore in front of him.

Critical and Creative Thinker

A critical and creative thinker takes time to activate prior knowledge, acknowledge multiple perspectives, and look for patterns that can explain the world or reveal new possibilities.  They apply a critical lens across disciplines and have the courage to express their originality.
Two students with curly hair sit at a classroom table discussing coursework with binders, notebooks, and laptops open before them.

Effective Communicator

An effective communicator listens before responding and articulates their ideas clearly through written, spoken, visual, or physical languages. They can engage in active discussion thoughtfully and respectfully using data and opinion.

A young boy sits on the floor drawing in a sketchbook in front of a large aquarium glass display while a penguin swims nearby underwater.

Balanced Person

A balanced person makes the most of their mental, emotional, and physical selves to be healthy, aware, and grounded. In doing so, they utilize their talents and skills to engage in the world with care and purpose.
A young boy leans closely over a pottery wheel, shaping wet clay with his hands in an art studio.

Intentional Craftsperson

An intentional craftsperson explores both technical and ambitious challenges in all disciplines with agency and resilience. Open to making mistakes and with a strong sense of ownership, they craft their work with the goal of personal growth.
Volunteers wearing hairnets and gloves scoop food into plastic bags inside a food bank packing warehouse.

Culturally Aware and Responsive Citizen

A culturally aware and responsive citizen relates to people with different perspectives and life experiences. They compare and contrast cultures, backgrounds, and beliefs in order to celebrate differences and create a more just world.
A young boy wearing work gloves and a white baseball cap carries a heavy wooden log along an outdoor path during a service project.

Steward

A steward has a reflective awareness of themselves and their connections to the larger world, which results in actions and behaviors that make them positive caretakers of the natural world, their communities, and their relationships.

Prepare your next step

We can't wait to meet you!