NYC High School Admissions Process Generates Parental Concerns

As New York City‘s complex high school admissions process officially begins, many families are anxiously refreshing their MySchools accounts to access their children’s randomly assigned numbers, often referred to as “lottery” numbers. This assignment marks a critical step in the application process for both middle and high school applicants, influencing their chances of securing spots in sought-after educational institutions.

The high school application deadline is set for December 4, while middle school applications must be submitted by December 13. This timeline is set against the backdrop of a challenging task for numerous eighth-grade students who must narrow down from over 700 programs across more than 400 schools citywide, using the lottery number as one navigational tool.

This year introduces several new components aimed at increasing transparency, including access to admission probability metrics in MySchools, based on random numbers, home borough, and course grades. Additionally, high school applicants are provided with greater flexibility in their choices, though this has raised concerns about increasing pressures on families.

For the first time, middle school candidates are allowed to apply across the city instead of being limited to their local districts, although priority continues to be given to applicants residing within the respective zones. Elissa Stein, who operates the admissions consultancy High School 411, commends the city’s efforts towards transparency but insists that earlier access to information would alleviate parents’ stress).

“Seeing a school and thinking it’s perfect, only to later discover low chances of enrollment, is a preventable disappointment,” Stein remarked, emphasizing the importance of early accessibility to grades, screening criteria, and lottery numbers.

The lottery number, a 32-character alphanumeric string, acts as a decisive factor in admissions. The sequence’s initial digits determine a student’s priority—those starting with ‘0’ indicate higher priority, while those beginning with ‘F’ suggest lower priority in tie-breaking scenarios when demand exceeds available seats.

Schools adopt various methodologies for evaluating applicants. Selective institutions categorize applicants into priority groups based on grade point averages in key seventh-grade subjects, while others prioritize lottery numbers. Additional requirements for some schools include essays or auditions, and a certain number of seats may be reserved for low-income students, English language learners, or those residing in temporary housing.

Certain high schools, namely the city’s specialized ones such as Stuyvesant and Bronx Science, which require entrance tests, alongside LaGuardia High School of Music & Art, operate independently of this general admissions process. Conversely, open schools or those with educational option admissions heavily depend on lottery numbers to promote diversity, setting aside spots for students of varying academic levels.

In screened institutions, where grades or other criteria take precedence, lottery numbers are a deciding factor only among students otherwise holding equal priority.