Admission FAQs

In most cases, you must be a student at one of the following high schools or live in their district: Bow, Concord, Hillsboro-Deering, Hopkinton, John Stark, Kearsarge, Merrimack Valley, Pittsfield, or Pembroke Academy. Students from other parts of the state may attend, but the process is a bit more complex. If you are interested in out-of-district enrollment, please call the CRTC office at: 603-717-7654.

• Establish or review your educational plans and goals by talking to parents, guardians, guidance counselors, teachers and peers.
• Read our brochure.
• Review our multimedia website.
• Review the application form.
• Come to a CRTC open house

• Schedule a class visitation.
• Schedule a meeting with an instructor or the director.
• Email the CRTC for more information: CRTC@sau8.org

You can find our online application here. Be sure to check our home page for more details about recruitment events and application deadlines. Our office is available to help in any manner possible. During the summer, communicate directly with the CRTC office by calling (603) 717-7654, or by writing to CRTC@sau8.org.

We urge you to take advantage of the many opportunities we offer to learn about the CRTC. The actual application does not involve references. Your school will submit additional data including grades and attendance to supplement your application.

Tell us a little something about yourself, your background, your interests and your passions. If there is something you are proud of, or something you are not as proud of – both are Ok to share. For some students, grades may be a source of pride; for others it is not grades, but outside activities. Likewise some students may have hobbies and background related to their chosen program – those stories are worth sharing. Of note, previous experience related to your chosen program is NOT required! Most statements are no more than one typed page.

Come visit us on one of our classroom visitation days in late February. We can also arrange for one of our teachers to contact you. Please get in touch with your guidance counselor or our office.

Yes, you can apply to the CRTC through the end of the school year. Most people sign up by early March, however, as popular programs fill up quickly. (A limited number of space-available applications are accepted until August 30.)

The simple answer is yes, but seats are frequently swapped. For example, one district may have more Auto Tech students and fewer Health Science students. So we work to find a balance.

A student can only take one program at a time.
It is best to prepare yourself with a mindset to expect to do two years of one program. Our obligation is to accept juniors committed to finishing two full years in one program before considering any student who wants to switch programs in their senior year. However, every year we accept a few year one seniors.

We look through all applicants and try to make the best and fairest selections possible. Historically we are at 97-100% capacity by February vacation. At that time, about half of our programs have more eligible students applying than we have available slots; some by just a few, some by considerably more (Health Science). So wait lists are established.

Students are asked to list their desired program by priority on the application. “#1” is for the most desired; if it is the only acceptable option, then nothing more should be listed. Students open to more than one program should also list their “#2” and “#3” choices on the application.

Our target is to notify students just before April vacation. We have an early evening event in May to bring all new students and their families together. Accepted and wait-listed students are invited.

This is tough for us to predict, but many wait-listed students do get offered a slot. Unfortunately the drop that opens a slot may come late, for example in July. In those cases, we would notify you during the summer.

We look at grades, the personal reflective statements on your application, school references, attendance, and behavior choices as part of the admission process. Attendance is very important to us as we view the world through the lens of our industry partners who demand good attendance at the workplace. Also, the CRTC’s mix of students is designed to reflect a similar profile of students from ALL nine of our sending schools. Most of all – we seek students who are doing well and/or showing improvement (a bad 9th grade year does not disqualify a student who is doing well in 10th grade), demonstrating a positive attitude, and showing curiosity to learn about their selected CRTC program. Of note, Health Science in particular gets a tremendous number of applicants, and often we need to place some very strong candidates on a wait list.

Tuition is over $5,500 per year, however, 100% is covered by the State of NH and local school districts. The only expenses you may have are personal and program based. In most programs, it is a matter of paying for specialized apparel or miscellaneous items amounting to less than $30 a year. Three exceptions to this are: Cosmetology (a kit that you own for $90); Culinary (uniform that you own for $55) and year two of Health Science (paying some costs related to earning an LNA – $300 for scrubs, license, background check – of note: an LNA earned outside of the CRTC would cost $1,500 to $2,000).

The only other major expense category is paying for dual enrollment classes, which cost $90 to $150 per class. This, however, is the best bargain at the CRTC. These college credit courses, if taken on a Community College or SNHU campus, would cost students $1,000 or more. Your payment goes directly to the college and, if you meet grade criteria, you get a transcript directly from that institution. We don’t touch these funds.

We offer financial assistance and/or payment plans for any CRTC related expense. In some cases, we also offer loaner equipment (for example in Cosmetology). In any case, money should NEVER be a factor in your decision to apply for the CRTC. We help students who need help. Our Principal jokes that you can pay us back 10 years from now when you are a successful career professional.

Simply put there are two criteria: (1) you need to want to come back for year two, and (2) we need to want to have you back for year two. We have high performance expectations, and year one is a chance for you to demonstrate what you can do. Through our quarterly one-on-one meetings with teachers (called SPUR conferences), we will let you know if there are areas you need to improve upon. You are expected to respond.

We approach the process with an open mind, taking each student on individual merit. We look at concrete performance elements such as grades, attendance and behavior choices. We also look at a student’s potential as demonstrated through work done outside of school. Oftentimes a student’s short application essay tells a powerful story of their passions outside of the classroom. The ideal CRTC student does not fit one mold; EXCEPT for one item in common – a true desire to be here.

To be candid, our program generally involve less daily homework, but may involve doing an internship, training, or job shadow outside of school on your own time. Our attendance policies are also considerably more strict than in any high school we serve. Once a student reaches their sixth absence (not counting field trips or other school activities) in a single semester, he/she loses their credits and must make up time to earn them back. Attendance is very important for us. Cutting a CRTC class is simply unacceptable. Expect the worst consequence.

The CRTC is competency driven. Our competencies are created with heavy input from both industry and postsecondary schools. They involve both theoretical knowledge (understanding the science behind the brake system) and practical skills (doing a brake job). Students present their performance each quarter to their teacher in a private 15 minute meeting. This is where the grade is determined. We use a model called “rolling grades” that only uses the MOST CURRENT grade to report your performance; thus in the case when you do poorly on a competency in quarter two and then improve considerably in quarter four, only quarter four will count in the final grade; quarter two will have ZERO effect.

There are many ways – visit us, talk to current students or teachers, or read through our brochure.

The word program reflects a much wider scope – our instructors support your college planning, get you into work-based experiences, introduce you to industry professionals and much more. A program, in this case, also reflects a longer commitment . If all goes well, you will be doing eight quarters of double time with us.

CRTC classes typically are 1.5 hours long, starting at 7:45; 9:30 or 11:05 am. The exact time depends on your school, whether you are a first- or second-year student, and your particular program. For example, Fire Science and EMT, unlike all the other programs, is 3.0 hours per day for one semester (EMT in Semester I, FireFighter in Semester II); Computer Engineering and Criminal Justice mix year one and two students, so times are more flexible. All other programs have distinct year one and year two level classes.

The answer is NO. However, we do have some special events where driving can be required. For those you will need to complete our driving permission form.