International Student Program (ISO) View Book 2025-26

Notre Dame Belmont Empowering Young Women for 100+ Years

Voted Best Private High School in SF Bay Area For Two Consecutive Years

Welcome to Notre Dame Belmont As the Director of the International Student Program since 2012, I’ve had the honor of mentoring students from around the world, and guiding them on their path for admission to many of the top 100 U.S universities. Our program is designed to provide personalized support and guidance to ensure each student not only excels academically, but also thrives personally and culturally during their education at Notre Dame.

Over the years, I have witnessed our students mature into confident, ambitious individuals contributing to the campus community a wealth of diversity and fresh perspectives. The young women representing multiple countries continue to impress us with their resilience, determination, and eagerness to succeed.

This viewbook offers a glimpse into life at NDB—where students are supported, challenged, and encouraged to reach their full potential. Our goal is not only to prepare them for academic success, but also to help them become compassionate, well-rounded leaders who are ready to take on the challenges of university life and career.

Please don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any questions. We’re here to support you every step of the way as you explore the opportunities that await you in our program.

With warmest regards,

Raena Mullan Director of International Student Program rmullan@ndhsb.org

Proclaim God's Goodness

Dignify All

The Hallmarks of an NDB Education

Empower Young Women to Act for Peace & Justice

Commit to Service

Create Community

Embrace Diversity

Learn for Life

Distinguished Academics

Voted Best Private High School in SF Bay Area for Two Consecutive Years SFGATE spotlights the top-tier businesses and schools that make our Bay Area community shine, and Notre Dame Belmont has won the public vote as Best Private High School for 2024 and 2025.

Named Best Private High School Near Santa Clara

AP Honor Roll Platinum Designation

AP Computer Science Female Diversity Award

SFGATE has named Notre Dame Belmont one of the best private high schools near Santa Clara.

Private high schools on this list have an A+ rating from Niche.com, a 4-star rating from a minimum of 60 combined reviews from Niche, Google and Private School Review.

The AP School Honor Roll offers four levels of distinction: Platinum, Gold, Silver and Bronze. NDB has been designated as Platinum this year, rising from Gold last year. In May of 2024, 209 students took 408 examinations in 21 subject areas.

From this total, 70% earned a score of 3 or higher.

NDB has earned the College Board's AP® Computer Science Female Diversity Award. NDB is one of only 834 schools to be recognized for achieving this important result in AP CSP.

NDB

At a Glance

Average Class Size

Founded

400 20

1851

by Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur

Students

Students

22

100% 25 College Acceptance

Co-ed Course Opportunities

College Merit Scholarships Earned

$12.6 30+ 16

Million

Clubs & Activities

Sports

AP Courses

17

Honors Courses

27

Visual & Performing Art Courses

29 85% Teams

Faculty/Staff with Advanced Degrees

ALL-GIRLS ADVANTAGE ALL ACTIVITIES ARE FEMALE-DRIVEN Whether it be participating on a student leadership board, starting a new club or leading a service learning project, students develop a tremendous amount of confidence in realizing that they, as women, are driving each of these school activities.

SELF-EXPRESSION BECOMES SECOND NATURE Research finds that it’s beneficial and powerful for girls “to see it in order to be it.” When students see their peers leading a club, excelling in student government or succeeding on the robotics team, they get the clear message that they too can excel in those areas. Expressing oneself, sharing their unique perspective and using their voice becomes second nature. This is the power of an NDB education.

100% 96%

BEING YOURSELF IS A SUPERPOWER

95%

Whether students are invited to speak their mind in class or sing chants of sisterhood at the top of their lungs at a rally, being oneself is a superpower. Being in an environment where every student is seen and appreciated for who they are inspires students to speak with confidence, develop leadership skills with prowess and ultimately create positive change.

93% 6x

"Who is to say what a woman can or cannot be — besides herself."

- Emily Wellman ‘19, Doctor of Psychology Student at University of San Francisco

STUDY LIKE A TIGER Academic Concentrations empower students to dive into the field of study that they are most interested in, preparing them for a successful college and professional career.

Students have the option to choose a concentration at the end of their sophomore year.

STEM CONCENTRATION Women represent only thirty percent of the STEM workforce in the U.S. — and Notre Dame Belmont (NDB) is working to close the gender gap. NDB’s STEM Concentration immerses students in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics to prepare them for careers in AI, data science and more.

MASS COMMUNICATIONS CONCENTRATION The NDB Mass Communications Concentration prepares students to understand the ever-evolving power of media, media technologies and communications in daily life. Students learn to conduct complex quantitative social analyses, write clearly and engage others with compelling purpose.

Students conduct multimedia storytelling with a sense of curiosity, developing intellectual tools to find answers to questions both now and in the future.

SOCIAL JUSTICE CONCENTRATION The NDB Social Justice Concentration empowers students to examine some of the most complex issues related to race, gender, sexuality and more. Students learn critical skills to both be and lead the change to improve circumstances for marginalized communities. Teaching bold leadership skills, students prepare to effectively advocate for human rights in the context of our ever-changing world.

HUMANITIES CONCENTRATION The NDB Humanities Concentration engrosses students in the study of language, history, religion, literature and philosophy. Students explore elements of life that impact human beings and their cultures with analytic critical methods of inquiry.

Students are taught to understand the past, question the present and imagine the future while developing the power of their voice, both spoken and written. Well equipped in making evidence-based inferences, students learn to tailor their written and spoken word to each audience to achieve a specific purpose.

Students develop a deep appreciation for human values and the unique ability of the human spirit to express itself.

SPORTS MEDICINE & MANAGEMENT CONCENTRATION The NDB Sports Medicine and Management Concentration takes students behind the scenes of the sports and athletics industry, giving them an eye into sports medicine and business management — two critical areas that make the world of sports a success. Whether students are interested in training athletes, managing a sports team, marketing or managing the business side of the industry, the Sports Medicine and Management Concentration is a great place to start a professional career.

ARTS CONCENTRATION The NDB Arts Concentration immerses students in creative expression in the classroom, on the stage and in the studio. Students explore historical and cultural meanings of art to intensify visual perceptions. Students gain insight into the technical processes involved in the production of art while they learn how to both express and create something greater than themselves, in and out of the classroom.

Tigers

are spirited.

Aquacades

Rallies and Assemblies

Class Spirit

Students bring an 80+ year tradition to life as they perform swim, dance and cheer routines with cheering that raises the roof off the building every year.

Spirit rallies are held several times during the year to honor NDB sports teams, recognize achievements and celebrate NDB school spirit.

Each class has its own class color and mascot, which strengthens the bond of sisterhood. Classes engage in spirit competitions throughout the year.

Tigers

are athletic.

Year-round Athletics

16 Sports

29 Teams

JV/Varsity Cheer, Varsity Pom

Fall Athletics JV/Varsity Cross Country, Varsity Golf, JV/Varsity Tennis, JV/Varsity Water Polo, Frosh/JV/Varsity Volleyball, JV/Varsity Flag Football

Winter Athletics JV/Varsity Basketball, JV/Varsity Soccer, Varsity Wrestling

Spring Athletics JV/Varsity Beach Volleyball, JV/Varsity Lacrosse, Varsity Softball, JV/Varsity Swimming, JV/Varsity Track and Field Laura Gill Director of Athletics lgill@ndhsb.org

Tigers

express themselves.

Art has the potential to expand and transform every student in miraculous ways.

Many students share their artistic skills with their peers and have an opportunity to teach others. Some students arrive feeling as if they are not creative, only to find an opportunity to unleash a talent they had only imagined!

Students participate in a variety of visual and performing arts:

Theatre Arts

Photo & Video

Band & Choir

Visual Arts

Dance

Tigers

engage with their co-ed peers.

The Best of Both Worlds.

NDB students engage with their peers at Serra High School and Mercy High School through a variety of activities:

CO-ED ACTIVITIES Serra Frosh Splash NDB Frosh Dance Serra Tri-School Dance Winter Formal Prom Retreats Community Service

CO-ED ATHLETICS NDB students cheer on the Padres at Serra athletic games and Homecoming.

NDB Spirit Team cheers at Serra games.

Co-ed track meets Serra Aquatic Center is home for water polo and swim meets.

CO-ED CLASSES American Sign Language I Anatomy and Physiology Anatomy and Physiology Honors AP Art History AP Chinese Language and Culture AP Psychology Concert Band Creative Solutions for the Global Good Dance: Partnering and Performance Drama I, II, III, IV Mandarin I, II, III, IV Philosophy Philosophy Honors Sports Management Sports Medicine Symphonic Band Jazz Band Video Production

Tigers

are faithful.

Spirituality is a lived experience that each of us embodies. We are a Catholic school and believe in the holiness and wholeness of each person. With 50 percent of the students being Catholic, 50 percent represent virtually every other faith tradition.

By studying all world religions, NDB students embody acceptance, openmindedness, respect, social awareness and intellectual curiosity.

Spiritual Life Classes NDB empowers each student on her personal faith journey of social, emotional and spiritual growth.

Students of all faith backgrounds are welcome, as they engage with their peers through the lens of their personal faith traditions.

Tigers

are leaders.

NDB students are positive, articulate and confident leaders. More than 185 members of the student body hold leadership positions and roles: On Leadership Boards: On the Field: Ambassador Leadership Board Athletic Team Captains of Associated Student Body 16 Sports and 29 Teams California Scholarship Federation Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and On the Stage: Belonging Board Tri-School Productions Hallmarks in Action Board Tri-School Chorus and Orchestra Link Crew Board National Honor Society In the Classroom: Student Council/Homeroom Presidents 22 AP and 17 Honors Courses On Academic Teams: Tigerbots Robotics Team Math Team Mock Trial

On 30+ Clubs: Club Presidents

Tigers

are ready for the world.

NDB graduates are thoughtful, collaborative leaders.

NDB graduates are prepared for careers not yet imagined because success comes from an ability to: Take initiative Practice intellectual curiosity Remain open-minded Be resilient Take responsibility Practice self-awareness Be socially aware Engage in teamwork

Top University Acceptances

American University Auburn University Bates College Baylor University Boise State University Boston College Boston University Brandeis University Bucknell University Cal Poly Pomona Cal Poly SLO Cal State Long Beach College of the Holy Cross College of William & Mary Chapman University Clemson University Cornell University Dartmouth College Emerson College Emory University Fashion Institute of Tech.

Fordham University

George Washington Univ.

Georgetown University Gonzaga University Indiana Univ. Bloomington Kenyon College Lafayette College Loyola Marymount Univ.

Loyola Univ. - Chicago Marine Corps Michigan State University Middlebury College New York University Northeastern University Occidental College Ohio State University University of Oregon Parsons School of Design Pennsylvania State Univ.

Pepperdine University Pitzer College Pomona College Purdue University

San Diego State University Santa Clara University Sarah Lawrence College Skidmore College Smith College Southern Methodist Univ.

Stanford University St. Lawrence University Syracuse University The New School University of Tennessee Texas A&M University Texas Christian University The Univ. of Texas, Austin Tufts University Tulane University Vanderbilt University Union College Univ. of CA, Berkeley Univ. of CA, Davis Univ. of CA, Irvine Univ. of CA, Los Angeles

University of CA, Riverside University of CA, San Diego University of CA, Santa Barbara University of CA, Santa Cruz University of CO, Boulder University of Georgia University of MA, Amherst University of Miami University of Michigan University of Pennsylvania University of San Diego University of San Francisco University of Southern CA Univ. of St. Andrews, Scotland University of Tampa University of Utah University of Washington University of Waterloo University of Wisconsin Villanova University Wake Forest University

1540 Ralston Ave, Belmont, CA 94002 | 650.595.1913 | ndhsb.org | @ndbtigers