At a Glance
A top-tier screened K-8 on the Upper West Side where nearly every student clears the proficiency bar.
Best suited for
Families seeking a highly academic K-8 environment who are prepared to navigate the screened admissions process and ideally live on or near the Upper West Side.
Overall Rating
Rating = average of NY State ELA + math proficiency, grades 3–8
Bands are Motley's thresholds on a 0–100 scale, not New York State performance levels.
How this is scored→What stands out
- Screened admissions create an applicant pool where the academic floor is already very high, fueling near-universal proficiency.
- Zero suspensions and 96% attendance point to a remarkably calm day-to-day climate.
- PTA fundraising of $2,172 per student — more than triple the district average — funds enrichment most schools can't afford.
- Every grade tested posts ELA and math proficiency in the 90s or higher, with sixth graders hitting 100% in both subjects.
- Parent-teacher and parent-principal trust both sit at 96%, exceptionally high for any NYC public school.
Things to consider
- Screened admissions mean entry isn't guaranteed — families should plan for a competitive application and have a backup.
- The student body is much less racially and economically diverse than the typical NYC public school.
- The program richness score of 34.7/100 suggests the formal catalog of offerings is modest, though this may not capture what's actually happening in classrooms.
- Average class size of 23.1 is identical to the district average, so don't expect a small-class feel.
- Excellent for UWS families but a longer commute for many Brooklyn, Queens, or Bronx applicants.
Based on 2024-25 data
School SummaryDistrict 3
Anderson sits at the very top of District 3's peer group, alongside the Special Music School (100/100) and ahead of top charter options like Success Academy Upper West (96/100), reflecting both the screened admissions process and the resources of its Upper West Side setting.
Academics
At 98.6% ELA and 97.4% math proficiency, Anderson runs about 40 percentage points ahead of District 3 averages (59.3% ELA, 54.0% math). The trajectory has been remarkably steady: ELA has crept up from 95.2% in 2016 to 98.6% in 2025, while math dipped to 93.5% in 2022 before rebounding to 97.4%. Every grade tested posts proficiency in the 90s or higher, with sixth graders hitting 100% in both subjects.
Culture
Climate at Anderson reads as calm and high-functioning: zero suspensions in 2023-24, matching 2022-23 and down from one the year prior, with 96% of students attending regularly. Parent trust is exceptional — 96% in teachers, 96% in the principal, 95% overall satisfaction — and 94% of teachers rate their own instruction positively, with 97% confident in school leadership. The chronic absenteeism rate sits at roughly 5%, well below what most city schools see, reinforcing the picture of a stable, engaged community.
Community
Anderson's student body is 45% White and 32% Asian, with multiracial students at 13%, Hispanic at 8%, and Black at 3% — a mix that closely tracks the surrounding Upper West Side neighborhood, where 80% of adults hold a bachelor's degree and median household income tops $151,000. The school's economic need index of 13.6 is among the lowest in the city, and the PTA raises roughly $2,172 per student, more than three times the district average. With five demographic groups represented, the school is more diverse than a glance at the largest categories might suggest.
Neighborhood
The school is in the heart of the Upper West Side, an affluent and family-oriented Manhattan neighborhood where the median home value exceeds $1.5 million and 17% of households include children. Poverty is low at 8.3%, and the area is dense with the kind of resources — libraries, parks, cultural institutions — that families with school-age kids tend to value. Most Upper West Side residents are college-educated professionals, and the school draws from that base while also attracting screened applicants from across the city.
Three nearby stations put the school within easy reach: the 79 St (1) and 72 St (1 2 3) are each about a 6-minute walk, and the 72 St (C B) stop is around 7 minutes away.
Academic Performance
ELA Proficiency
Students scoring proficient or above on the NY State ELA exam.
NYC DOE InfoHub · 2022-23
Math Proficiency
Students scoring proficient or above on the NY State Math exam.
NYC DOE InfoHub · 2022-23
Historical Trends
The dashed line marks 2023, when New York changed its grades 3–8 state tests. Scores before and after it aren’t directly comparable.
2020–2021 data unavailable due to COVID-19
Source: NYC DOE School Quality Reports
Survey Results
NYC School Survey (2025) · 366 families responded (70% rate)
Programs & Activities
Racial & Ethnic Diversity
NYC DOE InfoHub · 2022-23
PTA Fundraising
Source: DOE Local Law 171 disclosure
Discipline
NYSED Student & Educator Database (2023-24)
Economic Need & Special Populations
How to get in, step by step
Kindergarten
The Anderson School doesn't have an attendance zone of its own, so living nearby doesn't guarantee a seat here. Families apply on MySchools, and seats go to the school's priority groups first, then by random lottery.
Kindergarten application
- Opens
- Wed, Dec 9
- Closes
- Fri, Jan 22
- Offers
- Tue, Mar 30
The DOE’s published dates.
- 1Apply on MySchools during the kindergarten application.
- 2Rank this school with your zoned school, if you have one, and any others you'd take — in true preference order.
Middle school (6th grade)
Middle school is one citywide application, made in 5th grade. The Anderson School admits through one program, and each one has its own admissions method:
- The Anderson School P.S. 334 Middle SchoolScreened51 seats
Middle school application
- Opened
- Wed, Oct 14
- Closes
- Fri, Dec 11
- Offers
- Wed, Apr 7
The DOE’s published dates.
- 1Apply on MySchools during the middle school application, in 5th grade.
- 2Screened programs rank 4th-grade course grades, so last year's report card is the one that counts.
- 3Rank programs in true preference order — the match places your child in the highest-ranked one that offers a seat.
Open houses and tours
Open house
Thu, Dec 3, · 6:00 PM · In person
Open house
Tue, Dec 8, · 6:00 PM · Virtual
From the MySchools admissions calendar, checked weekly.
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Frequently Asked Questions
- Is The Anderson School a good school?
- On Motley, The Anderson School earns an overall rating of 98/100 — the average of the school's New York State ELA and math proficiency, grades 3–8, shown out of 100. Its state test results run above the District 3 average.
- What grades does The Anderson School serve?
- The Anderson School serves grades K to 8.
- How do students get into The Anderson School?
- The Anderson School is a screened school — it admits by application, ranking applicants on their course grades (4th grade for middle school, the 7th-grade core-course average for high school); a few schools add an assessment, writing sample, or interview.
- Is The Anderson School public, charter, or private?
- The Anderson School is a public school in NYC Community School District 3.
- What neighborhood is The Anderson School in?
- The Anderson School is in Upper West Side (Central), Manhattan.