HSPT Prep in New Jersey

Both names now point to the same test. The Cooperative Admissions Examination Program (COOP) for the Archdiocese of Newark and the Diocese of Paterson uses the High School Placement Test (HSPT) for its 2026 administration. Families still register through the COOP site at njcoopexam.org, but the test their child sits is the HSPT.

The COOP HSPT for Newark and Paterson schools is Friday, November 6, 2026, from 8:00 a.m. to 11:45 a.m., with a makeup on Saturday, November 14, 2026 at select test sites. Schools that give the HSPT on their own campus set their own dates: Immaculata offers November 6, 7 and 14, while Red Bank Catholic, St. John Vianney and Notre Dame (Lawrenceville) test on November 7, and Notre Dame adds January 16, 2027 for Regular Decision.

The HSPT has 298 multiple choice questions in five sections: Verbal Skills (60), Quantitative Skills (52), Reading (62), Mathematics (64) and Language (60). Testing time is about two and a half hours, and the full session runs close to three hours with breaks and instructions.

HSPT results are reported as standard scores from 200 to 800, where 500 is average, along with national and local percentiles. There is no single cutoff. Selective schools and merit scholarship committees look closely at percentiles, and higher percentiles open more doors for honors placement and scholarships. Each school weighs the score differently alongside grades and records, so ask each school how it uses HSPT results.

For the COOP program, Scholastic Testing Service emails HSPT score reports to parents on January 11, 2027, and high schools send admission decisions on January 15, 2027.

COOP results can only be sent to participating high schools in the Archdiocese of Newark and the Diocese of Paterson. Schools that run their own HSPT sessions, such as Immaculata, St. John Vianney or Notre Dame, handle scores directly, and Notre Dame also accepts HSPT scores from other schools.

Several of the most selective boys and independent Catholic schools use their own entrance exams. Seton Hall Prep states that the COOP HSPT is not used for admission and requires its own exam. Delbarton, St. Joseph High School in Metuchen and Christian Brothers Academy in Lincroft also give their own tests.

Often, yes. St. John Vianney selects academic and merit scholarship recipients using grades from 6th through 8th grade and the HSPT score, and several schools use HSPT results for honors placement. Ask each school whether a scholarship requires taking the test on its own campus.

Students who registered but could not attend because of illness or another unexpected circumstance can take the COOP makeup on November 14, 2026. The COOP program also allows walk-in testing, and some schools, such as DePaul Catholic, offer an in-house test for applicants who missed the November exam. In-house scores are not shared with other schools.

For most students, two to four months of steady prep is the right range, starting in the spring or summer after 7th grade. Students aiming for merit scholarships or the most selective schools benefit from starting with a full-length diagnostic early, so the plan targets the sections with the most room to grow.