The Overlake School is the Eastside anchor of Seattle's secular independent K-12 set, enrolling about 555 students in grades 5-12 with a 7:1 student-teacher ratio on a Redmond campus. In published comparisons (Seattle Met, Tomo, Niche), Overlake sits alongside Lakeside, University Prep, Eastside Prep, and Seattle Academy as the canonical peer group; Bush is sometimes added but reads as more experiential. Niche has recently moved Overlake to #1 among WA private schools, ahead of Lakeside, on a combination of strong inputs and a low acceptance rate of about 23 percent (versus the roughly 80 percent national private-school norm).
The college-prep curriculum is AP-heavy and academically rigorous, with 100% of graduates attending four-year colleges. Tuition for 2025-26 runs $48,489, putting Overlake in the same band as Lakeside and roughly in line with EPS. Founded in 1967, the school has the most established reputation among the Eastside secular options; EPS is smaller and language-focused, while The Bear Creek School covers the Christian liberal-arts niche on the same side of the lake.
Among admissions families on the Eastside, Overlake is typically the first-choice independent option for those who want a Lakeside-equivalent experience without the cross-bridge commute. The application process requires SSAT or ISEE testing and is selective enough that the school publishes acceptance-rate guidance — a sign that interest exceeds capacity in most years.
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