Selective Enrollment Selection Process

How It Works

The entry year for elementary school is generally kindergarten unless otherwise noted. For Academic Centers the entry grade is 7th grade. All program selections happen simultaneously. Selections for each program type run separately, so applicants can possibly receive an offer in each category: Academic Centers, Classical and Regional Gifted Centers combined, and Regional Gifted Centers for English Learners.

• Admission test scores are converted into points. Academic Centers also use the prior year’s grades
• Qualifying applicants are placed in line for every program on their GoCPS application and lined up in descending points total.
• The first 30% of available seats are offered to students with the highest number of points, regardless of assigned tier.
• The remaining 70% of seats are then equally distributed among the four tiers and all applicants are lined up by point total from highest to lowest in each tier group.
• When an applicant matches with the highest-ranked program on their GoCPS application, they are taken out of line for all programs ranked lower on their applications.
• Applicants can get a single best offer in each program type (up to three).
• Waitlists: If a student receives a selective enrollment offer, they will not be placed on the waitlist for any program within the same selective enrollment program category. If no selective enrollment program offer is received, a student will be placed on waitlists for all of the selective enrollment programs they applied to and for which they qualified.