Middle School Application Process

Happening Now! Apply to Middle School by Tuesday, March 1, 2022

The middle school application is open, and the deadline to apply is March 1, 2022!

How to Apply

1. Log in to your MySchools (Open external link) account to access your child's personalized search and application––learn how to create or access your account in this video tutorial (Open external link)

2. Explore your school options. Your customized search in MySchools includes all the programs your child can apply to. Each school's MySchools page links to its own website, and many schools offer resources like open house calendars or virtual tours. You can also contact schools directly to ask questions.

   • Save programs to your Favorites list in by clicking the stars next to their names.

   • Learn about 2022 admissions updates, including a new priority for siblings!

   • Add up to 12 favorite programs to your child's application, and place them in your true order of preference, with your top choice as #1.

3. Apply by the March 1 deadline! You can submit your application one of three ways:

   • Online with MySchools (Open external link) We recommend this option! Watch this video to learn how to apply through MySchools. (Open external link)

   • Through your current school counselor (for current public school families)

   • Through a Family Welcome Center (for private and parochial school families)

Get Support

• Need help accessing or using MySchools? In December, welcome letters became available for middle school applicants and were mailed to public school fifth graders. This letter includes a unique access code for your MySchools.nyc (Open external link) account to add your child and access their middle school application. 

  • Public DOE and charter school families can request a copy of your welcome letter from your current school counselor. 

  • Private and parochial school families can request your child’s welcome letter from a Family Welcome Center.

• Other questions? Talk to your school counselor, contact a Family Welcome Center, or call us at 718-935-2009.

Learn More

• Sign up for our middle school admissions email list: we'll send you updates, such as when the application opens, as well as key date reminders and admissions event invitations.

• Watch our admissions video series above and read this page to learn how to participate in middle school admissions.

New to NYC public schools and need a middle school for your child now? Learn what to do on our New Students page.

2022 Middle School Admissions Updates

The DOE will continue to pause screening (using students’ academic records in admissions) for students entering middle school in fall 2022. If middle school programs have more applicants than seats, offers will continue to be made using admissions priorities and random selection––learn more about how admissions works.

NEW! Auditions

This year, arts-based middle school programs will resume holding auditions and make offers based on these auditions. Learn more, including the required components for specific programs, on the Middle School Auditions page.

NEW! Sibling Priority

We are excited to announce that, starting with Fall 2022 admissions, the DOE will phase in a sibling priority for middle school applicants citywide. This means:

• This year, students entering middle school in fall 2022 who have a sibling in sixth grade during the 2021-2022 school year have a priority to attend the same school as that sibling if they apply to it.

• Next year,  students entering middle school in fall 2023 who have a sibling in sixth or seventh grade during the 2022-2023 school year will have a priority to attend the same school as that sibling if they apply to it.

This priority includes any full-siblings, half-siblings, step-siblings, and/or foster siblings who live in the same household as the applicant.

• Applicants will keep the same priority to attend their sixth-grade sibling’s school whether you list it first or last on their application. When submitting your child's middle school application, you will be asked if the applicant has a sibling in sixth grade at a DOE middle school. If the answer is yes, you will be prompted to provide the sibling’s name and school. This information will then be verified with the middle school. 

• Select programs that are admitting students through the audition or language: criteria admissions methods would not have a sibling priority, as those programs have distinct criteria for admission.

• Remember to list programs on your child's application in your true order of preference. For instance, if you list your child's sibling’s school second and the applicant does not get into their first-choice school, they will still have a priority to attend their sibling’s school.

NEW! Multiples Priority

If you have more than one child the same age applying to middle school (ie., twins), you may choose to submit identical applications for both children so they receive an offer to the same program:

• If you have more than one middle school applicant connected to your MySchools account and want them to attend the same program, you only need to add choices to one application. Before submitting that application, you will be asked by MySchools if you'd like to add the same application choices to the other child’s (or children’s) application(s). 

• If you include an audition or language: criteria program on your children's identical applications, and only one child is accepted to that program, then the children may receive separate offers.

Explore Middle Schools and Programs

There are a few different ways you can use MySchools (Open external link) to find programs for your child's application:

• Search for specific schools. Type any school's name in the search box to learn more about it.

• Search for schools based on your own criteria. Consider what matters most to your child and family. You can search for schools by features or offerings: try typing "debate" or "band" in the search box.

• Filter to narrow your search. Use the filter buttons below the search box to narrow your search results based on what is important to you, such as accessibility, location near a specific subway line, sports offered, and more.

• Learn about your zoned school, if you have one. Many middle school students in New York City attend their zoned school. If you have any zoned schools, your child has a priority to attend them.

  • During the application period, log in to MySchools to learn if your child has a zoned school or schools. Your account will also show the district(s) where your child can attend district middle school programs (their middle school district and, if different, the district where they attend elementary school).

  • Any time of year, learn about your child's zoned middle school(s) and middle school district by entering your address here or calling 311.

• Read on to better understand how students get middle school offers and what this means when you choose programs for your child's application. You can also enter a school's name at schoolsearch.schools.nyc Open external link) to read its School Quality Snapshot, School Quality Guide, and other reports.

More Middle School Options

• Alternative middle schools. Learn about programs for students older than 13 who have not yet completed eighth grade.

• Charter schools. These public schools have a separate admissions process. Learn more at schools.nyc.gov/Charters, and contact charter schools directly to learn how to apply.