High School Resources

Video Resources

Scoring Resources

Types of CPS High Schools

Results Timeline Overview

Understanding GoCPS Results

UPDATE: The 26-27 GoCPS Application is now open!

Important Upcoming Dates

SEPTEMBER 23RD, 2025 @ 10AM - GoCPS High School Application Opens

OCTOBER 8TH, 2025 - High School Admissions Exam Taken at Peterson (English) *October 9th - Alternative Date*

OCTOBER 15TH, 2025 - High School Admissions Exam Taken at Peterson (Alternative Languages)

NOVEMBER 14th, 2025 @ 5PM - GoCPS High School Application Closes

MID-FEBRUARY 2026 - High School Results Released

3 WEEKS LATER - All High School Offers Have to be Accepted & Rolling Waitlist Opens

Video Resources

GoCPS High School Applications Content Crash Course: Platform Navigation

Click HERE for presentation slides

25-26 High School Introduction Slides

Click HERE for presentation slides

Additional GoCPS Videos

Can be found HERE

Understanding Selections and Offers

Can be found HERE

Scoring Resources

Types of CPS High Schools

Neighborhood schools

- Students who live within the school's boundary are required to enroll. General education programs that give priority to the students that live within the attendance boundaries. Non-attendance area students must apply.
  - Some Nearby Programs: Mather HS, Amundsen HS, Chicago Academy HS, Roosevelt HS

Selective schools

- Students must apply and are not guaranteed a seat based on where they live.
  - Some Nearby Programs: Northside College Prep, Lane Tech, Jones College Prep, Walter Payton, Whitney Young

Magnet schools

- Students within the school's boundary have a better chance of getting in, but nearby students are not guaranteed a seat.
  - Some Nearby Programs: Disney II Magnet, Von Steuben Magnet- STEM College Prep

Charter schools

- Schools that set their own enrollment policies. They are independently operated schools that are authorized by the Chicago Board of Education, governed by a Boards of Directors, and can exercise autonomy over many student-related policies. GoCPS application is required.
  - Some Nearby Programs: CICS-Northtown HS, ASPIRA Business and Finance High School, ASPIRA Charter School - Early College High School

Career academies

- Schools that offer a college-preparatory curriculum and career-focused education.
  - Some Nearby Programs: Mather, Von Steuben, Roosevelt, Senn

Military academies

- Schools that use a military model to develop leadership and team-building skills.
  - Some Nearby Programs: Rickover Military High School

International Baccalaureate (IB) programs

- Programs that aim to develop self-directed thinkers and reflective problem solvers, providing a rigorous, internationally recognized curriculum across various grade levels, with many CPS high schools and elementary schools participating in this program
  - Some Nearby Programs: Amundsen High School IB, Senn High School IB

CTE programs

- Programs that offer hands-on training in an industry with an opportunity to earn college credit, certifications, and participate in job shadows and internships. GoCPS application is required.
  - Some Nearby Programs: Mather High School CTE, Alcott High School CTE

Choice School Process

Students are selected for open seats via a random computerized lottery system or a points-based system and can receive a single best offer in the Choice category. Use the School Search Tool to find location, eligibility, admission, priority preference, selection system, and tier information.

Each applicant can apply for up to 20 programs on the application and must rank each program in the order of preference from most desired (1) to least desired.
Some programs may have eligibility requirements, including minimum GPA, admissions testing, auditions, etc...
Priority preferences (sibling, staff, proximity) may apply. Learn more and check the school profile page for details.
Assigned address tiers may apply.
If your child is currently in 9th grade and looking to transfer to another school for the current school year, they will need to complete the GoCPS application and enroll during the designated enrollment windows. Your child will not be transferred without participating in the GoCPS application and selection process.

Selective Enrollment School Process

Students are selected via a points system based on HSAT results and final grades from their seventh grade report cards.
The CPS High School Admissions Test (HSAT) is the only test required.
There are NO priority preferences (sibling, staff, proximity).
Assigned address tiers apply. Find your tier by typing in your address or learn more about tiers.
Each student can apply for up to 6 selective enrollment programs and must rank in order of preference.

List of Selective Enrollment Schools:

Results Timeline Overview

Applicants who applied by the fall deadline will receive their results in the spring via their GoCPS account.

Receive Your Results
- When initial offers are released in the spring, all families who completed a GoCPS application will be notified that results are available in their GoCPS account. HS applicants can receive up to one offer in each program category (Choice & Selective Enrollment).
Accept or Decline Offers
- Applicants who receive an offer will need to accept or decline their offer through the GoCPS online account by the posted deadline. Offers will expire after this date. Only one offer can be accepted but decisions can be changed up until the accept/decline deadline. Accepting an offer will automatically decline all other offers that are open or previously accepted. Learn more about how to accept or decline offers.
View the Rolling Waitlist
- After the initial round of offers are released in the spring once the accept/decline deadline has passed, the rolling waitlists for all programs will open. At this time, schools start to make offers to those already on the waitlist based on capacity. Students who did not submit an application in the fall can submit a new application. Students who applied in the fall can also add additional programs to their application. Offers will be sent out to students on the waitlist until all seats are filled/the program reaches capacity. Because schools extend waitlist offers based on capacity, receiving a waitlist offer is not guaranteed. Learn more about the rolling waitlist.

Understanding GoCPS Results

Accepting and Declining Offers, Rolling Waitlist, Choice Program Selection Process, and Selective Enrollment Program Selection Process

Copy of GoCPS Acceptance Lesson SY25

Accepting and Declining Offers

For offers extended during the initial selections round, applicants will need to make a decision to accept or decline their offer through the GoCPS online account by the posted deadline known as the Accept/Decline Deadline. Offers will expire after this date.

How It Works:

When initial offers are released in the spring, all families/students who completed a GoCPS application by the fall deadline will be notified that results are available in their GoCPS account.
If you receive an offer for either a Choice or Selective Enrollment program, you must choose to accept or decline the offers by the deadline. Only one offer can be accepted, automatically declining any other offers. If no decision is made, the offer will expire and go to the next student on the waitlist.
During the initial selections window, families/students will have three weeks to make a decision on whether to accept or decline their offers. Applicants can change their mind WITHIN this three-week period as many times as they need by simply logging into their GoCPS online account and updating their decision.
At the end of the three weeks, once the accept/decline deadline passes, families can choose to decline a previously accepted offer. If a family DECLINES an offer after the accept/decline deadline has passed, they cannot go back and change that decision once submitted. If they decide they want that offer back, they will need to rejoin the waitlist when it opens.

Steps to Accept or Decline an Offer:

Log into your GoCPS account before the posted deadline.

Click “Accept” or “Decline”
Click “Submit” to finalize.
Once an offer is accepted, the student will have a seat in the program. The school that the family has accepted will reach out with next steps and the enrollment process will begin.
If the offer is declined, the seat is offered to the next student on the Rolling Waitlist.
Applicants can view the confirmation page on their GoCPS account after they submit their decision. Print this page or save it as PDF.

✅Accepting Offers✅

Only one offer can be accepted. Accepting an offer will automatically decline all other offers that are open or previously accepted. If you accept an offer for a Choice program, any offers for Selective Enrollment programs will automatically be declined and vice versa.
Accepting an offer does not affect the student’s waitlist status for any CHOICE program. You can accept an offer, and if you later receive an offer from a school where your child was waitlisted, you can accept that offer instead.
Accepting a Selective Enrollment offer means you will be removed from the waitlist of any other Selective Enrollment program you had been waitlisted for, even if ranked higher. Applicants will remain on the waitlist for programs in Choice categories.
If an offer is accepted and later you want to decline it, you can do so, but no previously declined or expired offers will be reinstated.
If you accept an offer from another school and later want to stay in your current school, contact OAE for next steps.

❌Declining/Expired Offers❌

If an applicant declines an offer after the Accept/Decline Deadline, they cannot go back and change that decision after the deadline.
If an offer is accidentally declined, the family should contact the GoCPS Hotline as soon as possible.
If an offer is declined, in most cases, it has already gone to the next student on the waitlist and will no longer be available to that student so think carefully before submitting your decision. Families should immediately rejoin the waitlist in case the action can not be reversed.

Rolling Waitlist

The GoCPS rolling waitlist gives applicants who have not received any offers or who are waitlisted for higher ranked programs than the offer received during the initial selection window another chance at an open seat. It also lets families who did not originally apply in the fall application window or who want to add additional programs to their application the opportunity to be considered.

How It Works:
- Applicants accept or decline waitlist offers via their GoCPS account. Make sure all contact information is up to date on the GoCPS account in order to be notified of waitlist offers.

Waitlist seats are only offered if the program has not met its capacity.
The amount of time you are on a waitlist will vary by program and waitlist number.
Applicants can withdraw from the waitlist if they no longer wish to be considered. Once withdrawn, the decision is final and cannot be reversed. If an applicant later decides to rejoin the waitlist, they will NOT get their old waitlist place back.
Once a waitlist offer has been accepted, any previously accepted offer will be automatically declined and offered to the next applicant in line.

Choice Programs

If an applicant received a Choice offer, when the waitlist opens, they will be automatically added to the waitlists of programs that were ranked higher than the program to which they received an offer.
If an applicant did not receive a Choice offer, they will be automatically waitlisted for all programs on their application for which they meet the eligibility requirements.
Waitlist seats are offered based on the priority preference groups, if applicable. For instance, if a seat is declined by a student in a program’s proximity category, that seat will be offered to the student who is first in line on the proximity waitlist.
When students join the Rolling Waitlist, they are joining the end of the existing Choice waitlist.
Choice waitlists will remain active until the beginning of the following January.

Selective Enrollment Programs

Applicants who received a SEHS offer in the initial round of selections will NOT be waitlisted to any other Selective Enrollment programs. If an applicant's Selective Enrollment offer expires or is declined, they will need to manually join the waitlist once the Rolling Waitlist opens.
Eligible applicants who do not receive a SEHS offer are automatically placed on the waitlist for any program they qualify for and included on the application. Applicants can also add additional programs to their application as long as they don’t exceed the category limit of 6 programs.
Waitlists for all SEHS programs are sorted in descending total point order. Applicants are re-sorted as new students join the waitlists. This means that waitlist numbers for SEHS programs can go up and down depending on who joins the waitlist.
If an applicant receives a SEHS offer but would like to join the waitlist for another program, they will need to first decline the offer in order to join the waitlist for any other program.
SEHS waitlists will remain active until the 20th day of school. After that time, there are no transfers into SEHS programs for the rest of that school year.

NOTE: SEHS programs do not make many waitlist offers so make sure to think carefully before declining any offers.

Getting a Waitlist Offer:

Make sure the contact information in your application is up to date.

If the program has a seat available, and the student’s number on the waitlist is reached, the person on the contact list will be contacted by our office. You may also receive a phone call or email from the school making the offer, but this is not guaranteed.
All waitlist offers will go live at 8 a.m. Once an offer is live, applicants have two business days to accept or decline the offer before it expires and goes to the next student on the waitlist.
Log into your GoCPS account to see your waitlist offer. All waitlist offers expire at 8 a.m. after two business days. A business day does not include Saturdays, Sundays, or holidays. For example, an offer extended on a Friday at 8 a.m. would not expire until the following Tuesday at 8 a.m.
Expired offers cannot be re-offered. If you allow an offer to expire or decline that offer, you will need to re-join the waitlist to be considered for that program again.
If an applicant accepts a waitlist offer, they will remain on the waitlist for any CHOICE program on their application that is ranked higher than the program from which they received the offer.
If a student receives a SEHS waitlist offer, they will be automatically removed from all other SEHS waitlists they are on. It is advisable to only remain on waitlists that you would accept if given an offer.

Adding New Programs to Application:

If applicants are not satisfied with the selection results or did not receive an initial offer, they can still select additional programs to apply to once the rolling waitlist process opens.

Log into the GoCPS online portal.
These programs will be sorted by proximity to the applicant’s primary address.
Add additional programs to your existing application.

Choice Program Selection Process

High School Choice programs use one of two selection processes: lottery or points. The selection system used for each GoCPS program can be found on the school’s profile page using the School Search Tool. The selection process is designed to match each student with an open seat in their highest-ranked program.

When applying to Choice Programs on your GoCPS application, your student(s) will be included in the selection processes. The selection process is designed to match each student with an open seat in their highest-ranked program.

Lottery Selections:

Programs that use a randomized computer lottery system to fill seats consider a combination of the following:

The applicant’s randomly assigned lottery number.
The number of available seats for each program.
How the programs are ranked on the applicant’s GoCPS application.
Whether the program gives preference for certain priority groups.

How It Works:
- All program selections run simultaneously, and applicants are placed in line for every program on their GoCPS application at the same time according to any priority groups that the program offers and are included and verified on the student’s GoCPS application. Students are placed in the single highest priority group in the following order (Sibling, Staff, Proximity, Tier, General). Applicants who don’t qualify for any priority group are placed in the General group.

Sibling: If more siblings apply than there are seats available, a computerized sibling lottery will be conducted to fill the available spaces.
Staff: Up to two seats only.
Proximity: Students who live within a certain radius of the school are included in this priority group.
Tiers: Seats are distributed evenly among the four address tiers, and the seats are filled by computerized lottery.
General: Includes all applicants who do not qualify into any of the above priority groups.
- Note: Not all programs consider every priority queue. See the school profile pages to see which priorities each program includes.

A random computerized lottery system assigns a random number to each applicant. Applicants are lined up accordingly from lowest number to highest number.
- When an applicant matches with the highest-ranked program on their GoCPS application, they are taken out of line for all lower ranked programs.
- Students are placed on a waitlist for all programs they ranked higher than the offer they received. Applicants will not be waitlisted for programs ranked lower than the offer received.
- Tiebreakers are not needed for lottery-based selections.

Lower-Ranked Programs:

If an applicant has received an offer, they will not get any additional offers to lower-ranked programs and will not be placed on any waitlists for lower-ranked programs. If an applicant later decides that they would like to be added to a lower-ranked waitlist, they will need to manually add that program again after the Rolling Waitlist opens in the spring.

Points-Based Selections:

The selection process may consider a combination of the following. (Please see the specific programs to see what is included in that specific selections process. Selective Enrollment programs run a separate selection process.)

The applicant’s total points
The number of available seats for each program
How programs are ranked on the GoCPS application
Address Tiers for magnet programs

How It Works:
- All program selections run simultaneously.

HSAT scores and grades are converted into points.
Certain IB Programs add 50 bonus points to students living in the attendance areas’ point total.
Qualifying applicants are placed in line for every program on their GoCPS application and lined up in descending point order.
Applicants are offered available seats in descending points total.
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.
Students will be placed on the waitlist for all programs that they are eligible for and are ranked higher than the offer that is received. If no offers are received, the applicant will be placed on the waitlist for all programs they applied to and are eligible for.
Tiebreakers: A random computerized lottery will be used for all tiebreakers.

Selective Enrollment Program Selection Process

Selective Enrollment High School (SEHS) programs use a points system to place students. The selection process is designed to match each student with an open seat in their highest-ranked program.

Points-Based System Selections:

Point-based selections consider a combination of the following:

Applicant’s total points (HSAT + 7th Grade Marks)
Number of available seats for each program
How programs are ranked on the GoCPS application
Address Tier

How It Works:
- All program selections run simultaneously. Choice programs run a separate selection process.

HSAT test scores and grades are converted into points.
Qualifying applicants are placed in line for every program on their GoCPS application and lined up in descending total points.
The first 30% of available seats are offered to students with the highest number of points, regardless of assigned tier. Applicants are then lined up in descending total point order in their tier groups. The remaining 70% of seats are then equally distributed among the four tiers with seats going to students with the highest number of points in each tier group.
When applicants match with the highest-ranked program on their GoCPS application, they are taken out of line for all lower-ranked programs.
Applicants can receive up to one single best selective enrollment offer.
If a student receives a selective enrollment offer, they will not be placed on the waitlist for any other selective enrollment program even those ranked higher than the offer received. If no selective enrollment program is offered, students will be waitlisted for all programs they applied to and are eligible for.
All tiebreakers for selective enrollment will be run in the following order:
1. HSAT Math Standard Score
2. HSAT Reading Standard Score
3. Random Computerized Lottery

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