University Prep, known as UPrep, is an independent grades 6-12 day school in the Wedgwood neighborhood of northeast Seattle. Founded in 1976 by a group of Seattle Public Schools teachers, it has grown into one of the most consistently-cited members of the canonical Seattle secular-independent peer set: Lakeside, Overlake, Eastside Prep, UPrep, and Seattle Academy / SAAS. In published rankings (Seattle Met, Tomo, Niche), UPrep is typically placed third to fifth in the group, with selective-college placements often described as second only to Lakeside.
UPrep distinguishes itself within this peer set in two specific ways. The curriculum has no AP track; the school instead emphasizes seminar-style discussion, the Senior Project capstone, and a year-round outdoor program with backpacking trips in the Cascades and Olympics plus international travel courses. Compared to Lakeside, UPrep is usually described as smaller (roughly 600 students vs. Lakeside's ~900) and somewhat more progressive in pedagogy; compared to SAAS, it leans less toward arts and more toward academic intensity; compared to Overlake, it is the north-Seattle rather than Eastside option.
Tuition sits among the highest in Seattle's independent-school market. Veronica "Ronnie" Codrington-Cazeau became head of school in July 2020, succeeding longtime head Erica Hamlin. Codrington-Cazeau previously led The Evergreen School in Shoreline and held senior leadership roles at Harvard-Westlake in Los Angeles.
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