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Applying to high school in New York City is daunting: Eighth graders can choose from 700 programs in 400 schools across the five boroughs.
Last year, of roughly 68,000 eighth graders who submitted applications, 58% of those were offered a seat in their top choice; 82% received one of their top three choices.
There’s still time left to build your list — and you add as many schools as you’d like. Applications are due Dec. 4, with offers expected to be sent after 3 p.m. on March 3, 2027.
Some families have already spent months researching their options. Others might not know where to begin.
Here’s a guide to help with the basics. (And here are tips on how to dive into a school’s data.)
NYC high schools broken down by the numbers
Even though the application process is citywide, there are still roughly 20 large comprehensive high schools that guarantee spots for students who live within a certain geographic zone around their campuses. Another six give priority to students living in their zone. (You can find out if you are zoned for any schools through the city’s MySchools platform.)
That said, New York City schools have a larger share of selective schools than other districts across the nation. Nearly 130 programs screen students based on seventh grade GPAs in core subjects. Another 30 also use essays and interviews.
Screened schools sort students into groups for priority, with those in group 1 earning a GPA in the top 15% of their class or an average of at least 94.67 in their core courses last year.
More than 75 programs require auditions or art portfolios. Nearly 50 programs have a specific language requirement.
About 80 schools are open enrollment, meaning they have no priorities and are just based on your lottery number. (See below about lottery numbers.)
The vast majority of programs — about 400 — use the Education Option, or Ed. Opt., admissions method to create balanced classes, targeting a third of its seats for those in the high category (with a seventh grade average of 89.24 or higher), the middle category (78.67 to 89.24), and the low category (an average below 78.67).
Eight schools base admissions solely on the Specialized High School Admissions Test, or SHSAT, and the application process for these schools, along with the audition process for LaGuardia High School of Music and Art and Performing Arts, is completely separate from the rest of the application process. And if you get into one of these schools, you will also get an offer to another school through the regular admissions process.
Finding your lottery number
Before you build your application, you should know your Education Department-assigned random number, or lottery number. You can find it by signing into your NYC MySchools account, which is the portal through which you will submit your application.
When you click “edit profile,” you can scroll down to find the 32-character hexadecimal string of numbers and letters. The first two digits or letters are the most helpful, with priority moving from 0-9 and then from A-F.
A random number beginning with 0 means an applicant will have a relatively high priority; an applicant whose random number starts with an F will have the lowest priority.
The random number is essentially used as a tiebreaker when there are more applicants per seat in a given priority group.
If you don’t know how to log in to MySchools, reach out to your child’s guidance counselor.
Some students have higher priority at certain schools
Nearly 60 schools — 35 of which are screened programs — are part of the city’s “Diversity in Admissions” program, setting aside a portion of seats for students from low-income families, English language learners, or other underrepresented groups. When you find your lottery number in MySchools, it should also tell you whether you are eligible for these seats.
Schools also set aside a certain number of seats for students with disabilities. That means that applications from students with individualized education programs, or IEPs, who spend at least 20% of their week receiving special education instruction, are considered in a different pool than general education students.
How to understand your chances of getting into a particular school
MySchools includes last year’s applicant-to-offer ratio for general education students as well as for students with disabilities. For example, Eleanor Roosevelt High School, a coveted school on the Upper East Side that gives priority to families living in Manhattan, had 30 applications per seat for general education students and four applications per seat for students with disabilities.
MySchools also has a helpful tool illustrating your odds: Once your MySchools account is active — and shows your “tiered” groups for screened schools, ED Opt group, random number, and any other priority designations — you will be able to search schools and see a graphic with three bars, showing whether you have a high, medium, or low chance of getting into a particular program.
A parent-created search platform called NYC-SIFT, the Search Information Finder Tool, can also show your chances once you input your information. The SIFT tool includes a trove of other data and school tour information.
(You will not, however, be able to see your chances for schools that require essays, exams, or other additional measures.)
Make sure to create a balanced list
Education Department officials advise students to rank schools in order of preference.
You can list an unlimited number of schools on your application, but make sure your list is balanced with not only “reach” schools, where your odds might be slim, but also with some schools that you have a higher likelihood of getting a seat. In fact, before you submit your application, the Education Department will flag your application if you only include screened schools.
About 3% of last year’s applicants were placed in schools that were not on their list, according to Education Department data.
Also, if you don’t get your top choice through the regular admissions process, you will be on the waiting list for all of the schools you listed above the school where you received an offer.
What else to consider
It helps to decide what it’s important to your eighth grader. Is a short commute or a one-seat subway ride important? Is access to certain academics important, such as advanced math or theater? Do you want a school with a more traditional approach to academics or one that focuses more on project-based learning? What about clubs and sports teams? How important is homework load? Do you want a large school that has an array of courses and extracurricular activities or a smaller one that might have more personalized attention but not have a full array of activities?
Some of these questions can only be answered by touring a school. While it can be challenging to make time for tours — some are during the school day, some are at night or on weekends — it’s important to see at least some of your top choices and get a feel for the building, commute, and neighborhood.
What’s so special about the specialized high schools?
For the city’s eight schools that require the specialized high school admission test, or SHSAT, students must register to take the exam by Oct. 30. The test will be administered in middle schools and K-8 schools during the school day on Nov. 18. Other students can take the exam at central Education Department locations on Nov. 14 or Nov. 15.
Last year, about 26,100 eighth graders took the SHSAT, and about 4,000 test takers received offers.
Because the eight schools — often seen as a ticket to elite universities and a way into the middle class — admit relatively few Black and Latino students, many integration advocates have pushed for changes to the admissions process.
But research reveals some of the effects of attending these schools might be overblown. One study, looking at specialized high school graduates between 1994 and 2013, found no evidence that those students were more likely to enroll in college, complete college, or attend an especially elite institution than comparable students from other high schools. Another study found that students who just made the cutoff for Brooklyn Tech were actually 2 percentage points less likely to graduate from a four-year college.
Amy Zimmer is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat New York. Contact Amy at azimmer@chalkbeat.org. Chalkbeat is a nonprofit news site covering educational change in public schools.
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The post The High School Hunt: A Guide to NYC’s Complex Admissions Process appeared first on The City Reporter.
