Admission process

We welcome you to complete an online enrolment form for consideration.

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Currently we do not have any spaces for 2025 at Tauranga Adventist School.  However, please complete an online enrolment form to ensure your children are placed on our waiting list should a position become available.  We also welcome applications for future years, however, please be aware that positions are limited.

If a position becomes available, our office will be in touch to arrange an interview with our Principal and Chaplain.  If successful, we will communicate in writing, share some next steps and the Welcome Book at the same time.  As for our Year 0 & 1 tamariki, our New Entrant Teacher – Mrs Sarina Alston will contact you to arrange visitations for your child and she will also contact your child’s early learning centre to arrange a visit.

Student Enrolment Procedure

Rationale

The Board of Trustees has a responsibility, as recognised in its integration agreement with the Ministry of Education, to provide a relevant and appropriate enrolment policy.  This responsibility extends to providing the Principal, staff, and community with an enrolment procedure and to ensure all relevant Ministry of Education requirements are being met.

Purposes

1. To ensure there is a set procedure for considering all applications for enrolment into the Tauranga Adventist School.
2. To ensure that all student intakes are in accordance with the Tauranga Adventist School’s Deed of Integration and Charter.
3. To ensure that the school’s special character is preserved.
4. To ensure that all legal obligations are met.

Guidelines

It is the responsibility of the principal and the Board of Trustees to ensure that:

1. No more than 10 students are enrolled in the school who are deemed “non-preferential”.  This is a legal responsibility between the school’s proprietors and the Ministry of Education as specified in the “Deed of Integration”.  A preferential student is defined as a student whose caregivers have established a particular or general connection with the special character of the school.
2. All prospective students will be screened to determine their preference status.
3. The total roll does not exceed that which has been determined by the Proprietor and the Ministry of Education; that is 125 students.
4. Where possible, class sizes are to be evenly distributed throughout the school to ensure sufficient resources are available to meet student needs.  As a general guide, year group numbers should average around 15 students (15 students per year group x 8 year groups).

Intake of New Entrant Students

There will be 4 intakes of new entrant students each year. The times are as follows:

Commencement of Term 1, Commencement of Term 2, Last week of Term 3, Commencement of Term 4. New Entrant students who commence after the first intake will be considered Year 0.

Priority for Enrolment

Preference for enrolment will be granted to (as a general guide to determine the order of priority):

1. Children belonging to Seventh-day Adventist families (deemed “Preference with a particular connection”) who have been on the waiting list the longest.
2. Those prospective students who already have one or more siblings enrolled in the school who have been on the waiting list the longest.
3. Children from the wider community who are deemed “Preference with a General connection” who have been on the waiting list the longest.
4. “Non-preference” applicants who have been on the waiting list the longest.
5. It will be assumed that all students (excluding the year 8 class) currently enrolled will be enrolled for the next year.

Procedures for processing Applications for Enrolment

1. Caregiver completes a “Student Application” form and their name is entered on the waitlist.  Their siblings are entered on the potential waitlist.
   1. Enrolments for our waitlist open at the age of 6 months.
   2. Year 1-8:  enrolment applications close for Year 1 at the end of Term 3 the previous year.  All applicants will be notified in October of their enrolment status.  Enrolment intent must be received by November.
   3. Year 0:  enrolment applications close for year 0 at the end of Term 4 the previous year.   All applicants will be notified in February of their enrolment status. Enrolment intent must be received by March.
2. An interview is arranged between the Principal, and then the Chaplain and the prospective parent/ caregiver.  The following needs to be ascertained at this interview:
   1. Any special needs the student may have.  Additional information on the child might be requested eg references, tests.
   2. The student’s attitude towards the special character of the school.  This is especially important with older children whose attitudes have been largely formed.
   3. The willingness of the caregiver to support the Special Character aspect of the school.
3. The Principal has the authority to accept or not accept any student and may “fast track” an enrolment application should that be deemed necessary because of time.  This is subject to all other considerations in this procedure.  The principal will not normally refer applications to the BOT for discussion and decision unless acceptance of an applicant into the School may involve extraordinary circumstances.
4. After the cut-off dates spaces will be allocated for the year according to priority for enrolment. 
5. The Principal will inform the Board of any new enrolments and will keep the Board informed regarding class sizes and present and predicted roll numbers.
6. To confirm or deny an enrolment, the Principal will inform the parent in writing which caregivers will need to accept or decline the enrolment within the month.

Enrolment Exceptions

Enrolments outside of this selection process may happen for the following reasons

1. Students have left the school and there have been spaces become available in that class or year.  The preference criteria are still applicable.
2. The roll for that year or class is not full and there is no waitlist.  The preference criteria are still applicable.
3. We have elected to save five spaces for emergency/Preference with a particular connection enrolment.
4. Applicants under this criteria will be advised of their status within 1 month.

Commitment to Pay Forms for the New Zealand Seventh-day Adventist Schools Association

1. Each year parents must sign a Commitment to Pay (CTP) form for the following year to agree to the Attendance Dues set and collected by the New Zealand Seventh-day Adventist Schools Association (NZSDA Association or also known as the Proprietors).
2. As Tauranga Adventist School maintains a waitlist for enrolments, it is essential that the CTP forms are returned to the school office by the end of Term 4 each year to reconfirm your child/ren’s allocation for the new year.
3. Forms will be sent home late in Term 3 or early Term 4 and must be returned to school signed by the end of Term 4 each year. 
4. Failure to return the signed forms automatically reallocates the child/ren’s place at Tauranga Adventist School to someone on the waitlist. Students cannot commence schooling at Tauranga Adventist School until a CTP form is signed covering 100% of Attendance Dues for the new year.

Waitlisting

If the prospective student meets all entry criteria but there is no place immediately available in the school, the caregiver will be given the choice of:

1. Withdrawing the application
2. Waitlisting until a place becomes available.

Waiting list and potential waitlist, including siblings, verbal inquiries or notifications of circumstances are to be kept up to date and in an easily reviewable format to provide clear and up to date information when required.