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Your September Checklist

Have an 8th grader? The NYC high school application opens October 6. This is the one page to get through before then.

What's on the page

  • Five things to do before the application opens.
  • The five dates that actually matter this fall.
  • A section for IEP and 504 families: what to check now, including how NYCPS uses the more-than-20% threshold to set the GE/SWD seat group.

Written by a current NYC public school teacher. No school names, no rankings, nothing to buy.

Send me the checklist

The checklist opens on the next page. You'll also get the October and November guides as they're ready. Unsubscribe anytime.

Why this exists

Most of what trips families up in September isn't complicated.

It's just never clearly explained. You're not applying to schools, you're applying to programs. A building can hold several, each with its own admissions method and its own odds. And an IEP on its own doesn't decide which seat group your child is in. The checklist walks you through the parts that matter before October 6.

Read the glossary →