11 Ballet Boarding Schools in North America (2026-27): Fees, Ages and Auditions

A ballet boarding school is a full-time pre-professional program where a young dancer lives on or beside the school, trains every day and keeps up academic school at the same time. In North America only a handful of ballet schools run their own residence, and a few arts high schools board dancers in a ballet-based program, so the real list is short.

Most "top ballet school" lists rank prestige and leave out the questions parents actually ask: from what age a child can board, who supervises them, where the academic classes happen, and what a year costs once room and board are added. We checked the official page of each school in this guide on 7 October 2026 and took every fee, grade and date from there. Where a school does not publish a number online, we say so instead of guessing.

The Short Answer

All 11 Ballet Boarding Schools at a Glance

Canadian fees are in Canadian dollars and US fees in US dollars. "Boarding cost" is the school's own published figure for a boarding student for one year. It is not a full budget: travel home, pointe shoes, health insurance and spending money come on top.

How We Chose, and What "Boarding" Means Here

This is not a prestige ranking. Every school here had to show, on its own website, a full-time ballet program for school-age dancers and a supervised place for them to live. We grouped the list by type, because the type decides most of what a family's year looks like. Ballet schools with a residence put ballet first and arrange academics around it. Arts boarding high schools put a full high school first and run a serious ballet-based dance major inside it.

We left out schools whose sites show no residence for full-time students, even when they are excellent. École supérieure de ballet du Québec in Montreal is one of Canada's major ballet schools, but we found no residence on its site; its 2027-28 auditions are on 31 January 2027 for classical ballet. For the wider picture of full-time schools, including day programs, see our list of the best ballet schools in the world.

Canada: Ballet Schools That Board Students

Canada is unusual. Four ballet schools run a full-time program that combines daily ballet, academics from Grade 6 or 7 to Grade 12, and a residence or boarding rate, all published on their own sites.

1. Canada's National Ballet School, Toronto

• Grades: 6 to 12 in the Professional Ballet-Academic Program
• Academics: on campus, Junior-Intermediate School (Grades 6–8) and Senior School (Grades 9–12), September to June
• Residence: Currie Hall and the main campus residence, meals on site
• Cost 2026/27 (CAD): Canadian boarding $47,750, day $24,250; international boarding $66,500, day $43,000; plus $130 registration and $16 accident insurance
• Entry for 2027-28: in-person audition on the tour or a video, then a second stage in winter or at the July Summer Intensive

NBS is one of very few schools in North America with ballet, academics and residence on the same campus. A detail that is easy to miss: for Grades 6 to 11, the year runs September to July, and the July Summer School is included in the fee. The school says it gives $3 to 4 million a year in needs-based aid and that most full-time families receive a package, so do not rule it out on the sticker price. Students also dance in the National Ballet of Canada's Nutcracker.

Best for: Canadian families with a dancer ready to board at 11 or 12. Official page, checked 7 Oct 2026.

2. Royal Winnipeg Ballet School, Winnipeg

• Grades: students entering Grade 6 or higher in September 2027 can audition for the Ballet Academic Program
• Academics: at two partner private schools, St. John Brebeuf School and the University of Winnipeg Collegiate
• Residence: the RWB Student Living Centre
• Cost: not published on the website; ask the school
• Entry: in-person, live virtual or video audition, video by 1 June 2027; second-round candidates attend the Summer Session as part of admission

The Professional Division is a seven-level full-time program, and the same school runs a two-year post-secondary Aspirant Program and a Teacher Training Program, so a dancer can stay in one place from middle school to the edge of a career. Unlike NBS, academic classes happen at partner schools rather than in the ballet building, which means a daily commute between the two. Ask how that schedule works for your child's grade.

Best for: families who want a company-linked school with a long pathway after Grade 12. Official page, checked 7 Oct 2026.

3. Alberta Ballet School, Calgary

• Grades: 7 to 12, plus a Professional Graduate Program
• Academics: full academic instruction is included in tuition, September to June
• Residence: a private floor at Mount Royal University, staffed 24/7, all meals included
• Cost Sept 2026–June 2027 (CAD): tuition $17,400 (Alberta), $19,500 (other provinces), $24,600 (international); residence $18,500
• Entry: audition in Canada, the US, Australia or New Zealand, virtually or by video; full-year acceptance at the three-week Summer Intensive or through an early-acceptance audition

Alberta Ballet School asks every student from out of town to live in residence, which takes one decision off the table. Tuition plus residence comes to $35,900 a year for an Alberta student and $43,100 for an international one, against $47,750 and $66,500 at NBS (whose fee also covers July Summer School). US and international families are pointed to the early-acceptance audition because study permits take time.

Best for: Western Canadian and international families who want a clear published price. Official page, checked 7 Oct 2026.

4. Quinte Ballet School of Canada, Belleville, Ontario

• Grades: 7 to 12 in the Professional Training Program
• Academics: in partnership with the Hastings Prince Edward District School Board
• Cost (CAD, year not printed on the page): boarding student tuition $18,110 (Levels A and B1) or $18,725 (B2 and C); day $9,110 or $9,725
• Entry: audition ($50) for the Summer Dance Intensive, then three weeks of assessment at the intensive

Quinte is the smallest school here and the least expensive in Canada on paper. Its fee page lists a separate boarding rate, but it does not describe where boarding students live, so ask about housing and supervision before you audition. The school recommends at least two years of ballet first, and pointe experience helps for dancers 14 and over. Tuition bursaries are decided each August once a place is confirmed.

Best for: Ontario families looking for a smaller, lower-cost start. Official page, checked 7 Oct 2026.

A standing split held on a single-foot spring board at home, one hand on the rail.

United States: Ballet Schools With a Residence

In the US, the big company schools mostly train dancers by day and leave academics to the family. Three run a supervised residence for full-time students, and each handles academic school differently.

5. School of American Ballet, New York

• Ages: residence for students 14 to 18 who live outside the New York area
• Academics: none at SAB; students attend a separate public or private school
• Residence: in the Rose Building at Lincoln Center, the same building as the studios, about 64 students, staff living on site, 20 meals a week
• Cost 2026-27: room and board $25,340, technology $170, laundry $100, $300 deposit; ballet tuition on top, from $12,080 for the senior levels to $15,020 for Intermediate and Advanced Men
• Entry: most residence places go to dancers invited from the five-week Summer Course (video auditions for international dancers November to January); the separate Winter Term audition for 2026-27 has already been held

SAB is the official school of New York City Ballet. The part parents often miss is that academic school is a third cost, after ballet tuition and the dorm. SAB's financial aid can cover residence, travel and academic high school tuition as well as ballet. Housing priority goes to returning students and summer students, so the summer audition (video from November to January for international dancers) is the real door.

Best for: advanced 14 to 18-year-olds aiming at a Balanchine company. Official page, checked 7 Oct 2026.

6. The Rock School for Dance Education, Philadelphia

• Ages: the school lists no minimum age for boarding
• Academics: required for Professional Division students who have not finished high school, through an online school with Rock Academics support
• Residence: one floor of the Marine Club building across the street, 16 loft-style apartments, residence managers living on the floor
• Cost: room and board $2,360 per installment, nine installments; ballet tuition separate
• Entry: through the Professional Division; ask the school about current audition dates

The Rock is an independent school, not attached to one company. Meals are not provided on Saturday evenings or Sundays, which matters for a younger boarder. Its residence page still listed 2024-25 payment dates when we checked, so confirm the 2026-27 figure before you budget.

Best for: dancers who want an independent school not tied to one company. Official page, checked 7 Oct 2026.

7. The HARID Conservatory, Boca Raton, Florida

• Ages: high school, a four-year curriculum
• Academics: on campus, four supervised hours each weekday morning through Florida Virtual School; high school diploma
• Cost: tuition free for every student; fees for room and board, academic administration, dance supplies and local transport, amounts not published online
• Entry: the Summer Intensive (21 June–16 July 2027) is the extended audition; summer auditions in US cities in January and February 2027 for Grades 8–11, $40, or by video

HARID was founded in 1987 to train dancers for ballet companies, and its curriculum includes pointe, variations, partnering, character, Spanish dance and Pilates. Its admissions page is unusually frank about the criteria, including physique, prior training and academic record, which helps a family judge fit before travelling to an audition.

Best for: talented high-school dancers for whom tuition is the barrier. Official page, checked 7 Oct 2026.

United States: Arts Boarding High Schools With Ballet

These are full boarding high schools with a pre-professional dance major. They suit a dancer who wants serious daily ballet and a complete academic high school, with college as a real option at 18.

8. Walnut Hill School for the Arts, Natick, Massachusetts

• Grades: 9 to 12, plus a postgraduate year
• Dance: Boston Ballet School's Professional Division at Walnut Hill
• Cost 2026-27: boarding $87,320, day $68,525; no separate dance fee is listed; about 41% of students receive affordability grants
• Deadlines for 2027-28: early decision 1 December 2026, regular 10 February 2027, late 3 May 2027

Seniors in the program are evaluated for Boston Ballet School's Graduate Program and can audition for Boston Ballet II. That gives Walnut Hill a direct line to a company, which most arts high schools do not have.

Best for: classical dancers who want a company pathway and a full prep school. Official page, checked 7 Oct 2026.

9. Interlochen Arts Academy, Michigan

• Grades: 9 to 12
• Cost: $84,000 boarding for 2027-28 (the year now posted), plus $200–700 arts major costs and about $600 for books
• Deadlines: early action 15 November 2026, regular decision 15 January 2027; $65 application fee

The Dance Division is ballet-based, with contemporary alongside, and dancers perform two fully produced ballets a year with live orchestra, including a full-length narrative ballet at the holidays. Interlochen reports $20 million in aid a year, and applying by early action gives priority for aid.

Best for: dancers who also want orchestra-backed performance and a large arts campus. Official page, checked 7 Oct 2026.

10. UNCSA High School, Winston-Salem, North Carolina

• Grades: ballet from Grade 9; contemporary from Grade 11
• Cost 2026-27: free tuition for North Carolina residents, with an estimated direct cost of about $3,564 for a residential student; out-of-state tuition $15,078, plus a $6,302 double room, a $5,030 meal plan and a $420 dance fee

The University of North Carolina School of the Arts runs a residential high school on a university campus, with up to half the day in academic classes. For North Carolina families it is the lowest-cost boarding option in this guide by far, and even out-of-state it costs a fraction of a private arts school.

Best for: North Carolina dancers, and budget-conscious families anywhere. Official page, checked 7 Oct 2026.

11. Idyllwild Arts Academy, California

• Grades: high school; transcripts are requested from Grade 8, minimum 3.0 GPA
• Cost 2026-27: boarding $70,500 (California), $79,500 (other US), $81,500 (international); aided families pay $35,000–$65,000 on average
• Deadlines: priority 10 November 2026, early decision 1 December 2026, regular 15 January 2027

The dance program is built around the American Ballet Theatre National Training Curriculum and also covers modern, contemporary, jazz, commercial dance and hip-hop. That breadth suits a dancer who is not yet sure ballet will be the whole career.

Best for: versatile dancers on the West Coast. Official page, checked 7 Oct 2026.

Deadlines for 2027-28 Entry

• 10 November 2026: Idyllwild Arts priority deadline
• 15 November 2026: Interlochen early action (priority for aid)
• 1 December 2026: Walnut Hill and Idyllwild early decision
• November 2026 to January 2027: SAB Summer Course video auditions for international dancers
• 15 January 2027: Interlochen and Idyllwild regular deadline
• January and February 2027: HARID Summer Intensive auditions (cities posted in the fall)
• 10 February 2027: Walnut Hill regular decision
• 1 June 2027: last day for a Royal Winnipeg Ballet School video audition
• Summer 2027: NBS, Alberta Ballet School, Quinte, HARID and SAB all use their summer program to decide on full-year places

The pattern is worth knowing. For the ballet schools, the summer intensive is effectively the audition for the school year, so the winter audition tour for summer matters more than any application form. Our guide to the winter ballet intensives lists short programs that give a dancer a week of daily class before that tour.

Getting Ready for a Boarding School Audition

Most of these schools decide in a ballet class: barre, centre, adage, turns and jumps, often with photos of first arabesque or tendu à la seconde. Teachers look at potential, but they also look at control, and control comes from strong feet and ankles and a steady centre. The months before an audition are where that is built.

• Keep regular class. Nothing replaces it. Extra work at home only adds to it.
• Work the feet and ankles. Slow rises, held relevés and passé balances on one leg build the stamina for an audition class done on pointe.
• Practise the photos early. Several schools ask for a tendu à la seconde or arabesque photo. Take them in good light weeks before, not the night before.
• Plan for life away from home. A boarder trains in the evening and on weekends without a parent driving them to an extra class. A small routine they can do alone helps.

A spring balance board is one way to build that routine. Our spring balance boards move under the foot, so a held relevé or passé has to be controlled, not just placed. Start with short holds next to a barre or counter. Handcrafted in Canada by five sisters who danced their entire lives.

Feet in relevé on a spring board: the same rise an audition class asks for, on a surface that moves.

How to Choose by Age, Level and Budget

• Age 11 to 13: only the Canadian schools board this young (NBS and RWB from Grade 6, Alberta and Quinte from Grade 7). Ask about staff ratios, phone rules and how often children go home.
• Age 14 to 18, aiming at a company: SAB, HARID, the Rock and Walnut Hill's Boston Ballet School program are built for that.
• Wants college as a real option: the arts high schools (Walnut Hill, Interlochen, UNCSA, Idyllwild) give a full academic diploma alongside dance.
• Budget first: HARID (no tuition), UNCSA (no tuition for NC residents) and the Canadian schools cost less than the private arts schools. Apply for aid everywhere: NBS says most full-time families receive a package, about 41% of Walnut Hill students get grants, and SAB and Interlochen both run large aid programs.

Before you commit, ask each school three things: who is in the building overnight, where academic classes happen and how long the walk or ride is, and what happens if a student is injured or not re-invited after a year. A good school answers all three without hesitation.

The Bottom Line

A ballet boarding school is a big decision for a young dancer and a family. Start from the dancer's age: before Grade 9, the Canadian schools are the main option; from Grade 9, the US ballet schools and arts high schools open up. Then decide whether ballet or academics comes first, and compare the full cost after aid, not the listed price. Mark the November and December deadlines now, and plan the summer audition tour, because most of these schools choose their full-year students in July. For summer options beyond these schools, see our guide to the best dance summer intensives.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the best ballet boarding schools in North America?

The ballet schools that board students are Canada's National Ballet School, the Royal Winnipeg Ballet School, Alberta Ballet School and Quinte Ballet School in Canada, and the School of American Ballet, the Rock School and the HARID Conservatory in the US. Walnut Hill (home of Boston Ballet School's Professional Division), Interlochen, UNCSA and Idyllwild Arts are boarding high schools with ballet-based dance majors. The best fit depends on the dancer's age, whether ballet or academics comes first, and the family's budget after financial aid.

At what age can a dancer go to a ballet boarding school?

In Canada, boarding starts earliest. Canada's National Ballet School and the Royal Winnipeg Ballet School take students from Grade 6, and Alberta Ballet School and Quinte Ballet School from Grade 7. In the US, the School of American Ballet houses students from age 14, and HARID, Walnut Hill, Interlochen, UNCSA and Idyllwild Arts are high schools, so most students start in Grade 9. The Rock School lists no minimum age for boarding, so ask the school directly.

How much does a ballet boarding school cost?

Published costs for one boarding year range from tuition free at HARID (families pay room and board) and about $3,564 for North Carolina families at UNCSA, to $87,320 at Walnut Hill. In Canada, Alberta Ballet School costs 35,900 to 43,100 Canadian dollars with residence, and Canada's National Ballet School 47,750 Canadian dollars for a Canadian boarder. Many schools give large needs-based aid, so the price a family pays is often much lower than the listed fee.

Do ballet boarding schools include academic classes?

Most do, in different ways. Canada's National Ballet School and Alberta Ballet School include academics in tuition, and HARID runs supervised online classes on campus. The Royal Winnipeg Ballet School uses two partner private schools. The School of American Ballet offers no academics at all, so students attend a separate school at extra cost. The arts boarding high schools, such as Walnut Hill and Interlochen, are full academic high schools first, with dance as a major.

How do you get into a ballet boarding school?

For the ballet schools, the usual route is an audition on the winter tour or by video, followed by a summer intensive that works as an extended audition for the school year. NBS, Alberta Ballet School, Quinte, HARID and SAB all decide many full-year places this way. Arts high schools such as Walnut Hill, Interlochen and Idyllwild use an application with a dance audition, with deadlines from 10 November 2026 to February 2027 for 2027-28 entry.

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