Helpful HIGH SCHOOL facts for everyone
For support in navigating this challenging season of public high school applications, admissions and enrollment in New York City, including Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, the Bronx, and Staten Island here are some helpful tidbits, FAQs, and more to help parents, students, and families navigating the process, including the creation of lists and more! This is also somewhat shameless SEO optimization.
Some quick NYC public high school facts:
NYC has the largest public school system in the country
Close to 80,000 applicants apply to NYC public high schools
There are 400 plus high schools with over 700 plus programs
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How is the NYC public high school admissions process set up?
A: NYC public high schools are separated into 2 groups: main round and specialized.
Q: What is the main round?
A: The main round contains every program/school in the NYC public high school system except the 9 specialized high schools (see below).
every 8th grade student must submit a main round application
students list up to 12 programs on their application
there are three main round admissions methods: screened, ED OPT (educational opportunity) and open (more info below)
applications are submitted at MySchools
students receive ONE main round offer
if a student isn’t matched with a school they listed, the DOE will assign them to a school
Q: What are the specialized high schools?
A: There are 8 test-in specialized high schools who use the SHSAT (see below) as their sole admissions methods:
Bronx Science
Brooklyn Latin
Brooklyn Tech
High School for Math, Science and Engineering (HSMSE)
High School for American Studies at Lehman College
Queens High School for the Sciences at York College
Staten Island Tech
Stuyvesant
LaGuardia is also a specialized high school and has its own admissions method based on grades and audition/portfolio submission.
Keep in mind that these specialized schools do NOT go on your main application list of 12 programs and that there are no waitlists for the specialized high schools. Click here for more information about NYC’s specialized high schools.
Note: specialized high schools are optional.
Q: What is the SHSAT?
A: The Specialized High School Admissions Test (SHSAT) is the sole admissions method of the 8 test in specialized high schools. The 3 hour test consists of 114 questions: half math, half ELA (English Language arts). 10 questions in each half are field test questions and don’t count toward final scores. Offers are made based on ranking and score. Date, time and location of SHSAT exam are determined annually by the DOE and posted on their website when registration opens. Click here for more information about the SHSAT and for practice tests.
Q: What are the different admissions methods for NYC public high schools?
A: There are several different admissions methods for NYC public schools. You can find out each program/school’s admissions method at MySchools:
SCREENED schools/programs—historically these use a combination of grades, state test scores, and attendance to rank students. Some schools ask for additional input like essays, online activities, interviews, school specific testing, auditions, etc. The past two seasons test scores and attendance were not considered. Last season a random lottery number was used to determine screened school ranks. For more info: https://www.schools.nyc.gov/enrollment/enroll-grade-by-grade/high-school/screened-admissions
ED OPT (educational opportunity)—these programs/schools fill classrooms with ranges of learners with students placed into low, middle and high categories. The DOE did not release what criteria was considered last season.
OPEN—these programs use a lottery to rank students.
AUDITION—these fall under the screened school category and look at portfolios/auditions to rank students.
TEST IN—the eight specialized high schools that use only the SHSAT for admission.
Q: What is NYC public high school timeline?
A: The DOE has not released the timeline for the 2022/23 high school season.
Q: What should I look for in a high school? How do I find the school that will be the right fit for my child? What should I consider in my high school application strategy?
There are many things to consider when considering high schools including:
academics, college placement, courses offered, AP exams, SAT/ACT prep classes or competitive standardized test scores, Amount of time spent on homework, Academic expectations
location, neighborhoods with a reasonable commute from your home
facilities, extracurricular activities, course offerings, academic outcomes
size, student population, diversity
support for freshmen and for the college process
graduation and attendance rates, college readiness
Q: What is MySchools?
A: MySchools is the NYC DOE’s portal where you can research information about all NYC public high schools and high school programs, including:
admissions methodology for screened, open / lottery and educational opportunity aka EdOpt Schools
school locations
courses and extracurriculars offered
contact info
graduation rates / attendance rates and more
MySchools is also where you register for SHSAT, LaGuardia auditions, and can submit your main round application. Families will receive a creation code that gives access to their student’s specific information in the fall of 8th grade.
Q: How do I create an account and log into MySchools?
A: To create a MySchools account you will need both an OSIS number (DOE Student ID number) and a creation code number.
Public school families will receive a creation code from the DOE or a guidance counselor in the fall of 8th grade.
Private / charter school families need to contact a DOE Family Welcome Center to obtain an OSIS (DOE Student ID number) for their student and also a MySchools creation code to access their child’s specific information. Creation codes are available fall of 8th grade.
Q: How do I rank schools on my main round application program list in the NYC Department of Education's MySchools portal?
A: Rank in order of preference taking into consideration individual school’s admissions methods, applications per seat, and priority groups.
Q: What are waitlists?
A: After public high school offers are made, students are automatically placed on waitlists above the offer they received—it they were matched with their 4th choice school, then they are put on the waitlists of their 3rd, 2nd, and 1st choice schools. Students can also choose to add themselves to waitlists at other schools as well. Waitlist placement is posted in MySchools. If a spot opens up high school will be in touch. Students have a week to decided between their current and new offer. For more information about waitlists click here.
There are no waitlists for specialized high schools.
Q: How do I learn more about public high schools?
A: This season some schools are hosting in person open houses/tours and others are hosting virtual Info sessions, Open Houses, and Question & Answer sessions. Some need pre-registration / RSVP online.
Check individual school websites for more information.
You can research individual schools at MySchools. Another terrific resource is InsideSchools for great school write ups.
Q: Who can apply to NYC public high schools?
A: New York City residents in 8th and 9th grade can participate in the NYC public high school process. Private / charter school families need to contact a DOE Family Welcome Center to obtain an OSIS (DOE Student ID number) for their student and also a MySchools creation code to access their child’s specific information. Creation codes are available fall of 8th grade.
Q: Where can I go for more information?
A: Check out the DOE’s high school section on their website and the informational videos they produced about the public high school process. Their video about the matching system is also helpful to watch.
Q: Does High School 411 provide information about private schools? Charters?
A: High School 411 covers only NYC public high schools. Click here for a complete list.
Looking for additional support? Click here for more info / to schedule a one on one consult. And should you have any questions, please be in touch: elissa@highschool411nyc.com