As a parent in Nashville—or the surrounding suburbs such as Brentwood, Franklin, or Nolensville—you have a wealth of excellent private schools to choose from. Of course, having a ton of terrific options doesn’t make your selection any easier. After all, there are a multitude of considerations guiding your decision of which private schools in Nashville will be best for your child. College Transitions’ list of the Best Nashville Private Schools will focus primarily on our area of expertise—college admissions. As such, we will highlight the job that each of the schools does at sending their graduates on to the region/nation’s premier 4-year schools.

Please note that inclusion on our Best Nashville Private Schools list is a selective and criteria-based process. However, the order in which the schools appear is not representative of any further ranking; the numbering is solely intended to enhance the ease of navigating this resource. All of the schools profiled below have a history of sending graduates to the top colleges in the country. For each of our top institutions, College Transitions will provide you with—when available—each school’s:

  • Location
  • Tuition (9-12)
  • Enrollment (9-12)
  • Average SAT Score
  • Average ACT Score
  • Senior Class Size
  • College Admissions Highlights
  • Academic Highlights

Now, let’s dive in and examine the profiled high schools.

1) University School of Nashville  

Location: 2000 Edgehill Ave, Nashville, TN 37212

Tuition (9-12): $30,948

Enrollment (seniors): 106

Median: 1400

Median ACT Score: 30

College Admissions Highlights:

Over the past four years, students have matriculated into USC, UCLA, University of Michigan, Notre Dame, the University of Chicago, UNC Chapel Hill, UVA, Yale, Middlebury, Williams, Dartmouth, Bowdoin, Wesleyan, Vassar, Amherst, Brown, Penn, Colgate, and WashU.

Academic Highlights:

  • The average class size is 14 students.
  • 72% of faculty possess an advanced degree.
  • Dozens of students complete independent studies each year.
  • 36% identify as students of color.
  • International students come from 55 different countries.

2) Harpeth Hall School

Location: 3801 Hobbs Rd, Nashville, TN 37215

Tuition (K-12): $34,590

Enrollment (seniors): 110

Mid-50% SAT Score: 1270-1490

Mid-50% ACT Score: 27-32

College Admissions Highlights:

Recent graduates (2019-2022) have gone on to matriculate into highly-selective schools such as: Barnard, Columbia, Colgate, Cornell, Amherst, MIT, BU, Boston College, UMich, UCLA, Caltech, UVA, Penn, Carnegie Mellon, Duke, Davidson, Princeton, Vanderbilt, Notre Dame, UNC Chapel Hill,. Yale, Pomona, NYU, Dartmouth, and Bowdoin.

Academic Highlights:

  • Harpeth Hall is an all-girls institution.
  • 81% of faculty hold masters or doctoral degrees.
  • 92% of AP test-takers earned a 3 or better on their exams.
  • Mean GPA earned is 3.95.
  • The Class of 2022 included 7 National Merit Finalists and 9 Commended Students.

3) The Ensworth School

Location: 211 Ensworth Ave, Nashville, TN 37205

Tuition (9-12): $38,140

Enrollment (graduates): 120

Average SAT Score: Not Reported

Average ACT Score: 28-34 (for students with an 89.5 or better GPA)

College Admissions Highlights:

From 2011-2022, Ensworth grads entered the following schools: Amherst, Barnard, Brown, Colby, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Duke, Georgetown, Howard, Lafayette, Middlebury, NYU, Princeton, Tulane, UChicago, UGA, UMiami, UMich, Notre Dame, Penn, USC, UT Austin, UVA, Vanderbilt, Vassar, Wake Forest, and Washington University in St. Louis.

Academic Highlights:

  • The average class size is 16, among the best for private schools in Nashville.
  • 9:1 student-to-teacher ratio.
  • 22 AP courses are offered.
  • 71% of faculty hold advanced degrees.
  • There are 77 elective courses for juniors and seniors.

Best Private Schools in Nashville (Continued)

4) Montgomery Bell Academy

Location: 4001 Harding Pike, Nashville, TN 37205

Tuition (9-12): $33,500

Enrollment (seniors): 140

Mid-50% SAT Score: 1240-1440

Mid-50% ACT Score: 27-33

College Admissions Highlights:

In the last three years, students matriculated at many of the finest schools in the country including: Carnegie Mellon, William & Mary, Dartmouth, Columbia, Davidson, Georgetown, Harvard, Macalester, NYU, Northwestern, Princeton, Stanford, Tufts, UMiami, UMich, Notre Dame, Penn, UVA, Vanderbilt, Wake Forest, Washington & Lee, WashU, and Yale.

Academic Highlights:

  • Montgomery Bell is the oldest private all-boys school in the state.
  • The average class size is 14 students.
  • There were 141 AP Scholars in 2021 alone.
  • 8:1 student-to-faculty ratio, superior to most private schools in Nashville.
  • 70% of faculty members hold advanced degrees.

5) Battle Ground Academy

Location:  336 Ernest Rice Ln, Franklin, TN 37069

Tuition (9-12): $27,990

Enrollment (seniors): 88

Average SAT Score: Not Reported

Average ACT Score: 25

College Admissions Highlights:

College acceptances over the last five years have included: Boston College, BU, Bucknell, Columbia, Cornell, Emory, Georgetown, Johns Hopkins, NYU, Northwestern, Pepperdine, Tulane, Tufts, UCLA, UGA, UMiami, UNC Chapel Hill, UVA, Vanderbilt, Wake Forest, Washington & Lee, Washington University in St. Louis, and Yale.

Academic Highlights:

  • 80% of the 46 faculty members possess advanced degrees.
  • The Class of 2022 included three National Merit Commended Scholars.
  • 84% of AP test-takers scored a 3 or above; 54% were a 4 or 5.
  • 8:1 student-to-teacher ratio.
  • The average class size is only 12 students.

6) Pope John Paul II Preparatory School

Location:  117 Caldwell Dr, Hendersonville, TN 37075

Tuition (9-12): $19,050

Enrollment (Upper School): 130

Average SAT Score: Not Reported

Average ACT Score: 23.5

College Admissions Highlights:

Recent students have enrolled in schools such as Clemson, Connecticut College, FSU, Georgetown, Georgia Tech, Macalester, NYU, Northeastern, Purdue, Sewanee, Syracuse, Tulane, UGA, University of Michigan, University of Miami, Notre Dame, URichmond, Vanderbilt, Vassar, Villanova, and Wake Forest.

Academic Highlights:

  • There were 51 AP Scholars in the Class of 2022.
  • 12:1 student-to-teacher ratio.
  • 79% of AP test-takers scored a 3 or better; 58% scored a 4 or 5.
  • The Class of 2022 earned more than $13 million in scholarship offers.
  • Students come from 55 different zip codes.

Best Private Schools in Nashville (Continued)

7) Christ Presbyterian Academy

Location:  2323-A Old Hickory Blvd, Nashville, TN 37215

Tuition (9-12): $24,925

Enrollment (seniors): 114

Average SAT Score: 1252 (most recent available)

Average ACT Score: 26 (most recent available)

College Admissions Highlights:

In one recent four-year period, students matriculated into William & Mary, Davidson, Emory, FSU, Georgetown, Pepperdine, Princeton, Purdue, U.S. Air Force Academy, University of Florida, UGA, UNC Chapel Hill, University of Richmond, USC, UVA, Vanderbilt, Wake Forest, and WashU.

Academic Highlights:

  • The school offers 41 AP/Honors classes.
  • 10:1 student-to-teacher ratio.
  • 47% of faculty hold advanced degrees.
  • 58 athletic teams have produced 151 college athletes.
  • There are 20 arts instructors and 37 total classes offered in the arts.

8) Brentwood Academy

Location: 219 Granny White Pike, Brentwood, TN 37027

Tuition (9-12): $30,430

Enrollment (seniors): 123

Average SAT Score: 1040-1270

Average ACT Score: 21-29

College Admissions Highlights:

From 2019-2022, students matriculated into the following schools: Boston College, Boston University, Dartmouth, Davidson, Duke, FSU, Georgetown, University of Miami, NYU, Northeastern, Oberlin, Rice, Sewanee, Spelman, Tulane, US Military Academy, Vanderbilt, UVA, Wake Forest, and WashU.

Academic Highlights:

  • 14:1 student-to-teacher ratio.
  • 100% of the Class of 2022 were admitted into a 4-year college.
  • 59% of faculty members hold advanced degrees.
  • 24 AP classes are offered.
  • 54 AP Scholars in the Class of 2022.

9) Lipscomb Academy

Location: 3901 Granny White Pike, Nashville, TN 37204

Tuition (9-12): $21,093

Enrollment (Pre-K-12): 1,112

Average SAT Score: Not Reported

Average ACT Score: Not Reported

College Admissions Highlights:

Graduates frequently gain acceptance to and enroll in schools such as Vanderbilt, Cornell, Georgia Tech, Northeastern University, Wake Forest, Johns Hopkins, Boston College, Rice, Duke, Penn State, Penn, UVA, and the United States Military Academy.

Academic Highlights:

  • 65% of teachers have advanced degrees.
  • 30 courses are available every day through Lipscomb University.
  • Students earn over $20 million in college scholarship offers per year.
  • Last year, Lipscomb produced six National Merit-recognized students.
  • Students take a number of Biblical/Spiritual Learning courses.

10) Franklin Road Academy

Location: 4700 Franklin Pike, Nashville, TN 37220

Tuition (9-12): $28,600

Enrollment (seniors): 85

Average SAT Score: Not Reported

Average ACT Score: Not Reported

College Admissions Highlights:

Members of the Class of 2022 matriculated into BU, GWU, Northwestern, Sewanee, UGA, UW-Madison, Vanderbilt, Wake Forest, PSU, Ohio State, Clemson, Baylor, Tulane, and the College of Wooster.

Academic Highlights:

  • Three college counselors for just 85 seniors.
  • 8:1 student-to-teacher ratio, among the best of any private schools in Nashville.
  • FRA offers 20 AP courses each year.
  • 70% of faculty members hold advanced degrees.
  • The average class size is 17 students.

Final Thoughts – Best Nashville Private Schools

We hope you found our blog on Nashville private schools to be helpful. All high school students and families may wish to explore further information regarding the college search and admissions process at our Dataverse, Blog, and List-Building Tool.