The Webb Schools vs. Cate School
Should you attend The Webb Schools or Cate School? Visitors to our site frequently compare these two schools. Compare their rankings, scores, reviews and more to help you determine which school is the best choice for you.
School Overview
Top Rankings
The Webb Schools ranks among the top 20 boarding schools (out of 280 schools) for:
Category
Attribute
Faculty Education
Selectivity
Offering Breadth
Offering Breadth
Student Test Scores
Student Test Scores
Cate School ranks among the top 20 boarding schools (out of 280 schools) for:
Category
Attribute
School Resources
Selectivity
Offering Breadth
Student Test Scores
Student Test Scores
Overview
At Webb, we teach students how to learn through our unique, multidisciplinary, future-focused curriculum that challenges students to participate in the design of their education.
Come for a tour of our 150-acre campus, nestled in the foothills of the San Gabriel mountains, and learn about our Advanced Studies program (that goes far beyond AP courses) taught by our expert faculty.
Our courses are engaging and expose students to various subjects, including Filmmaking, Neuroscience, Multivariable Calculus, languages, Paleontology, and the performing and visual arts.
As a boarding school, life at Webb includes upholding the core values of honor, integrity, moral courage, and community-and becoming confident, honorable leaders.
Webb's relationships in LA and locally, with the Claremont Colleges and our Alf Museum of Paleontology, offer students unparalleled exploration and advanced learning opportunities.
Founded in 1910, Cate School is a grade 9-12, coeducational, college preparatory boarding school in Carpinteria, California.
What began as a group of twelve boys and a few teachers has expanded into a 300-student, 57-teacher, deeply academic, and talented community with the most diverse student body of any boarding school of its size in the United States.
One of the most experienced and committed teaching faculty in the country: 82% hold advanced degrees, 18% of these have PhDs.
Cate is one of this nation's most selective boarding schools, accepting under 20% of our applicants each year.
60% of Cate's most recent graduating class attend the country's 25 top-ranked colleges and universities, and 18% went to Ivy Leagues and Stanford.
The Cate experience combines academics, athletics, art, and co-curricular activities in a close-knit, community setting where students are enriched by their relationships with their teachers and each other.
When students leave Cate, they have the tools and the conviction to seek out lives full of purpose and meaning.
College admissions offices often report back that Cate students are among their schools' brightest, most dynamic, and intellectually curious individuals.
School Focus
College Preparatory
College Preparatory
Grades Offered
9-12
9-12
School Type
Co-ed
Co-ed
ADD/ADHD Support
No
No
Supports Learning Differences (LD)
No
No
Year Founded
1922
1910
Campus Size
150 acres
150 acres
Students Body
Enrollment
405
300
% Students of Color
58%
54%
% International Students
21%
17%
% Students Boarding
63%
80%
Average SAT Score
1510
1350
Average ACT score
34
31
Offers Post-Grad Year
No
No
Academics and Faculty
Saturday Classes
No
No
Frequency of Saturday Classes
Weekly
Bi-Weekly
Classroom Dress Code
Casual
Casual
Average Class Size
14
10
Student : Teacher ratio
6:1
5:1
# of AP/Advanced Courses Offered
61
46
ESL Courses Offered
No
No
% Faculty with Advanced Degree
90%
80%
Summer Program Offered
Yes
Yes
Finances
Endowment Size
$60 million
$90 million
Tuition (Boarding Students)
$80,835
$74,975
Tuition (Day Students)
$57,490
$58,975
Avg. Financial Aid Grant
$50,750
$54,405
Admission
Application Deadline
Jan. 15
Jan. 15
Accepts Standardized Application
No
No
SSAT Required
No
No
Acceptance Rate
17%
17%
Director of Admissions
Dr. Jamila Everett
Kyle Mason
Associate Director of Admissions
n/a
David Soto
# of AP/Advanced Courses Offered
61
46
Sport
Total Sports Offered
15
20
Sports
Badminton, Baseball, Basketball, Cross Country, Cross Country Running, Football, Golf, Soccer, Softball, Swimming and Diving, Tennis, Track and Field, Volleyball, Water Polo, Wrestling
Ballet, Baseball, Basketball, Cross Country, Cross Country Running, Dance, Football, Lacrosse, Mountain Biking, Mountaineering, Rock Climbing, Soccer, Surf Team, Swimming, Tennis, Track, Track and Field, Ultimate Frisbee, Volleyball, Water Polo
Extracurricular
Total Extra-curric.Total Extracurriculars
99
32
Extra-curric.Extracurriculars
Acappella Club, Advanced Classical String Ensembles, AEROCLUB, American Heart Association, Amnesty Club, Anime Club, Art Club, Art Studio, AthleteLense@Webb, Athletic Trainer, Badminton Club, Banyon Books, Baseball Clinic, Basketball Clinic, Beyond the Bubble, Biomedical Research Club, BiomediGirls, Brown Student Alliance Club, Chemistry Club, Chess Club, Community Service, Community Service with Machine Learning Club, Conservation Club, Cooking Club, Crochet Club, Ctrl + PC Club, Cycling Club, Dance Company, Debate, Digital Storytelling, DJ CLUB, El Espejo (Yearbook), Environmental s Club, Everything Fashion Club, Experiential Science Club, Fashion Upcycling Sustainability, Film Club, Filmmaking Club, Fitness Club, Functional Fitness, Golf Clinic, GSA: Gender/Sexuality Alliance, Health Awareness Club, Hispanic Heritage Club, Investment Club, Jewish Club, Karaoke Club, Karate Club, Korean Culture Club, KWEB, Lace Up Culture, Literary Magazine, Math Club, Music Performance, Musical Theater, Mycology Club, Neurodiverse Alliance, Outdoor Activities, Paleontology Museum Lab, Peccary Club, Ping Pong (Table Tennis) Club, Poetry Club, Priceless Pets Club, Psychology Club, RC Club, Robotics, Rock Climbing and Bouldering Club, Rotary Club, Roundtable Debate Academy Club, Science Fair Research Lab, Sky: Children of the Light, Snow Sport Club, Social Soccer Club, Softball Clinic, Sports Broadcasting, Student Partner with Veterans, Technical Theater, Tennis Clinic, Theater, Thrifting and Sustainabilty Club, Trade to Save, Triathlon, VendingforChange, VR & Game Design Club, W.E.B.B- Webb Empowerment Baking Bunch, Webb Archive, Webb ASL Club, Webb Business Club, Webb Canyon Chronicle (Newspaper), Webb Community Basketball Club, Webb Mental Health Club, Webb Native Plant Society, Webb Physics & Astronomy Club, Webb Thespians, WebbNat, Women Entrepreneurship Club, Yoga & Hiking, Young Athletes, Young AthletesEmpowerment Baking Bunch
Alianza (Latino Student Alliance), Black Student Union, Blue Crew, California Mathematics League, Camerata, Cate Artists' Theatre, Cate Review (Literary Magazine), CateNet Masters, Chamber, Chinese Language & Culture Club, Chorale, Cultural Awareness Club, Dance Club, El Batidor (School Newspaper), Film Society, Finance Club, Green Team, Hiking Club, Latin American Students Organization, LOGOS, Round Square, RRCE (LGBTQ+ Support Club), South Asian Student Society, Student Book Club, Student Senate, TERRA, The Crew (Video Club), The Mesan (Yearbook), Theatre Arts, Tour Guides, Women's Forum, Young Men's Forum