The Buckley School Tuition, Costs, and Financial Aid: A Comprehensive Overview

The Buckley School is a private, college preparatory day school located in Sherman Oaks, Los Angeles, California, serving students from kindergarten through 12th grade. Founded in 1933, the school emphasizes academics, arts, athletics, and ethical education. This article provides a detailed look at the tuition costs associated with attending The Buckley School and the financial aid options available to families.

About The Buckley School

The Buckley School is an independent co-educational institution founded in 1933 by Isabelle Buckley. It operates on an 18-acre campus in Sherman Oaks and is accredited by several prestigious organizations, including the California Association of Independent Schools and the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. The school is divided into three divisions: Lower School (K-5), Middle School (6-8), and Upper School (9-12), with a total enrollment of approximately 830 students.

The school's Middle and Upper divisions follow a six-day block schedule, with 70-minute class intervals. The Lower division follows a five-day schedule and combines a developmental approach with structure.

Tuition Costs

The tuition for all grades in the 2025-2026 academic year is $64,000. This tuition covers the annual costs of instruction during the regular academic day, as well as the cost of textbooks, workbooks, certain school supplies, physical education uniforms, school publications, and support of extensive classes in the visual and performing arts.

Additional Expenses

In addition to the base tuition, families should be aware of supplemental fees for various items and activities. These include:

Lunch: The cost of lunch is not included in the tuition fee.
Technology Use: Grades 6-12 have a fee for technology use.
Uniforms: The cost of school uniforms is an additional expense.
Transportation: Transportation costs are not included in tuition.
Experiential Learning Overnight Trips: Grade-level trips have fees that vary per grade.
Laptop: Students are responsible for providing their own laptops.

Optional items include bus transportation and the hot lunch program.

Payment Options

The Buckley School offers several payment plan options to accommodate different family needs:

One-Pay Payment Plan: The full tuition amount is due in June.
6-Month Payment Plan: Tuition is paid in monthly installments from May through October.
8-Month Payment Plan: Tuition is paid in monthly installments from May through December.

Parents are responsible for full payment of tuition and fees for the entire year after May 1, even if their child is withdrawn before the start of the academic year or is withdrawn, absent, suspended, or dismissed for cause during the academic year. For this reason, an optional tuition insurance policy is available for purchase. This policy entitles subscribers to a partial refund of tuition and fees when a student who has attended at least 14 consecutive days of school is unable to attend classes for medical reasons, a non-medical withdrawal, or dismissal.

Financial Aid

The Buckley School is committed to making its education accessible to students from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds. The Financial Assistance Program is designed to make a Buckley educational experience possible for all families based on demonstrated financial need and the availability of funds. Nearly 1 in 4 students at Buckley receive assistance for tuition and qualify for other expenses related to the student experience that includes but is not limited to school uniforms, bus transportation, required technology and more. At Buckley, equity and inclusion through affordability is aligned to our mission to community.

Financial Assistance Commitment

Families earning $100,000 or less annually and with limited financial resources are eligible for full tuition coverage, which includes books, lunch, technology, athletics, arts programs, grade-level trips, and extracurricular activities.

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Financial Assistance for School-Related Activities

Financial Assistance is available for participation in school-related activities such as school sponsored community events and after-school programs (Boomerang).

Eligibility for Financial Assistance

Typically, if a family does not apply for Financial Assistance when first admitted to Buckley, the family is not eligible to apply until the student has attended Buckley for three years.

Financial Assistance Process and Dates

The Financial Assistance Program is designed to make a Buckley educational experience possible for all families based on demonstrated financial need and the availability of funds.

Step 1: Submit Clarity Application

Buckley uses Clarity to determine a family’s level of financial need based on the information that the family shares in the application, which includes assets, income, expenses, and debts. To get started with your financial assistance application, please go to Clarity and create an account.

The application typically takes approximately less than 30 minutes to complete and is mobile-friendly, so you can complete it from anywhere. Simply use the dropdown menu in the application to select those schools.

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Step 2: Notification on Financial Assistance Grant

If your application is submitted by the priority deadline listed on this page, you will be notified of your financial assistance grant along with the Acceptance Letter & Enrollment Agreement for 2026-2027. You will be notified separately in the decision letter if you are not eligible or did not receive financial assistance.

Late applications may not be considered until the end of the awards process or availability of funds. If the tuition assistance budget has been exhausted by that time, you may be placed on a financial assistance wait pool.

Key Dates

Priority Deadline for New Families: January 5, 2026.
Priority Deadline for Siblings: November 17, 2025.

Confidentiality

Discussion and financial statements held by the Financial Aid Committee are strictly confidential. All awards are conditional upon the review of required documents.

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