The academic program at Holderness is geared to providing a strong preparation for all colleges and universities. Throughout the curriculum, we emphasize reading with comprehension and writing with clarity. In mathematics and the physical sciences, as well as the social sciences and languages, we focus on clear, consistent thinking and applying the principles of logic.

In the Holderness classroom each student is in the front row; classes average thirteen students in size. The School operates on a two semester basis, but most courses are year-long. Students usually carry five courses, and preparation time for each class period averages between forty-five minutes and an hour.

Unless assigned to a faculty-supervised study hall for academic reasons, a student may study in his or her own room or go to the Barbara Lawrence Alfond Library. Open until 10:00 PM every day, the library is staffed by a professional librarian, and contains over 12,000 volumes and 75 periodicals on fiche or in print. From any of the library's 24 computer work stations, students can also explore sources from a nationwide inter-library loan system, the World Wide Web, or several electronic databases.