High school admissions can be confusing. We’re here to help! We’ve created a bite-sized guide to navigating the NYC high school admissions process.
Our guide is broken up into four sections:
Overview of the public school admissions process.
Generalized public school admissions calendar.
Overview of the private school admissions process.
Generalized private school admissions calendar.
PUBLIC SCHOOLS
New York City students can apply to several categories of public schools simultaneously. This means a student can prospectively choose between a Specialized High School, a Screened School, an Audition Based School, and a Charter School*.
*Charters are not technically public, but we feel they fit into this run-down of non-private HS options
THE Specialized High Schools
These are the specialized high schools:
Stuyvesant
Bx Science
Bk Tech
Bk Latin
HS of Math
Science & Engineering
HS of American Studies @ Lehman College
Queens HS for the Sciences @ York College
Staten Island Tech
How To Apply:
Admission to Specialized HS’s begins with a MySchool profile.
Parents register their children for the SHSAT via MySchools.
Admission to New York’s Specialized High Schools is based entirely on the student’s SHSAT score
To give you a sense of the possible time-line, last cycle, the exam was administered on November 17th, 19th, & 20th, as well as Dec 11th & Dec 17th.
We typically recommend students begin preparing no later than the spring of their 7th grade year.
Submissions-Based Schools
These high schools require additional materials (eg. essays, letters or personal statement videos) in addition to evaluating a student’s grades.
Admission to submissions-based schools begins with a MySchool profile
These schools, like the next category, go on your MySchools list of 12 schools, ranked in order of preference
A few HS’s listed below have their own entrance exam - some only proctored (in-person) offered after the HS app is due
Academic submissions are typically due on the date the MySchools app is due, which is usually in early December of a student’s 8th grade year.
A lot has changed in the last two cycles. There are more schools than ever asking for essays and videos. Here are a few examples of schools asking for academic submissions:
CONSORTIUM SCHOOLS: Beacon High School, School of the Future, East Side Community HS, Institute of Collaborative Education and University Heights Secondary School are all accepting the same submissions, (student completes 1 submission that will apply to all schools in this category):
Here is where you can find the prompts on the NYCDOE website
Bard HSEC, Townsend Harris, Nest+m, & the Baccalaureate HS for Global Ed:
Here is where you can learn more and read the prompts. The answers to the writing prompts are to be submitted through MySchools.
Bard used to proctored its own in-person admissions exam. This process shifted online and has remained this way since 2020 due to the pandemic.
Frank McCourt HS: Conducting in-person essays and interviews
Brooklyn College Academy: requires the completion of an entrance exam
Medgar Evers College Prep Academy: requires the completion of an entrance exam
Science, Technology and Research ECHS, (STAR HS): requires the completion of an entrance exam
Academic submissions are typically due on date the MySchools app is due, which is usually in early December of a student’s 8th grade year.*
ACADEMIC SCREENED SCHOOLS
Admission to screened schools begins with a MySchool profile. This is the DOE application where you rank 12 schools in order of the child’s preference. The screened schools that require academic submissions also go on this list.
Last cycle, the MySchools app was due in 12/8
Screened schools (Midwood, Millennium Manhattan & Bk, Eleanor Roosevelt and The Clinton School) evaluate students who meet the minimum grade and/or standardized testing requirements.
NYS common core test scores have been eliminated since 2020
Last cycle, the HS’s looked at final 7th grade grades
The cycle before last looked at the best of final 7th gr grades + 1st semester 8th gr grades
Pre-2020 screened schools considered attendance. Due to COVID-19, this criterion was eliminated. We mention this in case it returns
AUDITION & PORTFOLIO BASED
Audition based arts or performing arts high schools are a great option if your child has a special talent or interest:
Schools such as LaGuardia, Bayside HS, Frank Sinatra, Professional Performing Arts HS, Edward R. Murrow, Fort Hamilton High School, Gramercy HS for the Arts, Fordham HS for the Arts, Art & Design HS, & the Fashion Industries HS boast strong academics in addition to engaging arts curricula
These schools will require an arts portfolio submission, and/or an audition. Students can apply to more than 1 program at any one school should they choose.
Depending on a student's plan, we recommend using the summer between 7th & 8th grade to hone their craft and / or work towards a completed arts portfolio.
Last cycle the NYCDOE Arts were due on 12/8
CHARTER SCHOOLS
Admission to charter schools is typically conducted by lottery:
These lotteries are known to give preference to students who are located in the same district as the school or who have a sibling who attends.
Each charter school will have its own registration form on its website.
Brooklyn Prospect Charter, Uncommon Charter HS, Broome St Academy Charter, University Prep Charter, Innovative Charter New Visions Charter Network, Kipp Charter Network
PUBLIC ADMISSIONS CALENDAR
March - June of 7th Grade Year: Initial NYS test prep and or practice, SHSAT prep, Essay Writing workshops, Portfolio work, Spring / Summer tours:
Students should be preparing for 7th Grade NYS Common Core Tests
Note: these did not impact admissions these last two cycles but they have in the past
Students should engage in an introduction to their fall tests and essays before the beginning of the summer, so they have idea of their weaknesses and know their score potential
Students interested in applying to submission based schools might as well get their essays and submissions started ahead of time
Students should be mindful of retaining graded pieces of writing from late 7th grade for possible writing sample submissions (Beacon used to require this, for example, and we have no way to know if this will come back in the future)
If you are able to attend school tours in the spring or summer, they will be far less crowded than the fall
Late August onward: Test Prep for SHSAT
Weekly appointments targeting all components of their tests
Practice test sections and full practice tests beginning 6 weeks before test day
Academic submission tasks scheduled - after Labor Day
Sign up for Open Houses online
Early October: Portfolio and Academic Submission Preparation
Academic submissions should be wrapping up
Any admissions essay or assessment practice should be wrapping up
Month of October: Open Houses and School Visits
Most schools space out their Open Houses from Late September to Late October
Month of November and early December: Interviews, Applications and Auditions
Students should begin finalizing their high school choices and rankings for their MySchools DOE application.
Log into MySchools and update list
Schedule IRL audition/portfolio reviews if required
SHSAT is typically within this time period
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Visual Arts Common Audition Resources (LaG, A+D HS),
DOE Academic Submissions details page (Bard, Townsend, Nest, Bacc Sch of Global Ed, Consortium HS’s, etc…)
PRIVATE SCHOOLS
Most private schools accept applications through the Ravenna Portal.
Schools typically ask for:
General student essay, (4 prompt options)
Student surveys and/or short form supplementary questions
Writing samples
Letters of recommendation
Transcripts from 6th and 7th grade, including standardized test scores from 6th and/or 7th grade (NYS Common Core or CTP-5’s) as well as
Parent statements
Student & Parent Interviews
Students have historically been required to submit Upper Level ISEE or SSAT scores for evaluation in the holistic admissions process.*
Students have historically been required to submit Upper Level ISEE or SSAT scores for evaluation in the holistic admissions process.*
Some independent schools have adopted test optional policies due to COVID-19
We recommend that students who will be taking the ISEE or SSAT begin preparing no later than the spring of 7th grade.
Most independent school applications are due in January of 8th grade. Please note, different schools will request different materials at different times. Each school has their own set of rolling due dates.
PRIVATE ADMISSIONS CALENDAR
March - June of 7th Grade Year: Initial Test Prep lessons
Students should be preparing for 7th Grade standardized exams, (CTP-5’s, Terra Nova’s, MAP tests)
Students should engage in an introduction to their fall admissions tests (ISEE or SSAT) before the beginning of the summer, so they have idea of their weaknesses and know their score potential
Begin collecting extracurricular activities if not already
Parents should be researching their list of target schools
Late August through Labor Day
SSAT and/or ISEE registration begins in August
Weekly appointments targeting all components of ISEE/SSAT
Set up Ravenna, the online platform used by most private schools
Begin signing up for Open Houses through Ravenna or school websites (Tuesday after Labor Day is most often the first day of registration)
Practice test sections and full practice tests beginning 6 weeks before test day
Early October: Prepare essays and begin preliminary applications
Begin drafting parent and student essays
Submit preliminary applications to all target schools
Collect writing or work samples to submit by early January
Month of October: Open Houses and School Visits
Most schools space out their Open Houses throughout the month of October and November
Request recommendations from English and Math teachers
Month of November and early December: Interviews, Submit Applications, Testing
Finalize parent and student essays
Upload parent and student essays to Ravenna
Request transcripts from school registrar
ISEE/SSAT Testing
