Middle school admissions calendar set

Many parents with 5th graders in tow have already begun to tour middle schools around the city and now all 5th grade families can mark their calendars with admissions dates recently posted by the Department of Education.

Applying to middle school has long been an inconsistent experience across New York City. In some districts parents have a choice of schools; in others most children simply attend their neighborhood school. Application deadlines across the city used to vary dramatically. But for the first time last year, the timeline for middle school admissions was standardized across the city and a single entrance exam was given in the districts that require testing for selective programs.

The standardized admissions timeline was meant to streamline the process across the city, but parents complained about the long wait to find out where their kids would be going to middle school. The first decision letters weren't mailed until May 30, with some special education students not receiving their placement until the end of June, after they had already graduated from elementary school. As parents seethed, the director of middle school enrollment at the Department of Education, Sandy Ferguson, promised that while a standardized timeline would remain, deadlines and notification would come earlier this year.

The calendar for the 2008-2009 process does have earlier deadlines than last year: fairs will be held from Dec. 2-11, rather than in January and early February, and applications are due Jan. 9, a month earlier than last year's due date. Parents can expect decision letters in "early May," Ferguson said. Last year the DOE said to expect notification in May and parents didn't hear anything until June.

"Students are getting their directories and applications earlier so that they can look at them over [Christmas and New Years] break," Ferguson said.

Testing for selective schools

Students in districts 17, 18, 20, 22, 24 and 30 who are interested in selective middle school programs must take the Otis-Lennon School Ability Test (OLSAT), the same exam that elementary school students take when applying to elementary school gifted and talented programs. To sign-up, students should return a "Request for Testing" form to their elementary schools by Nov. 19. The test will be given during the weekends of Jan. 24-25 and Jan. 31-Feb. 1.

The central office of student enrollment at the Department of Education will distribute directories and applications in early December to students in districts with middle school choice. Each district that offers a choice of middle schools will hold a fair for families to learn more about the schools. There is no fair for city-wide and unzoned middle schools, so parents should contact those schools directly.

Need more information?

Looking for in-depth information about some of the best middle schools in New York City? Pick up a copy of New York City's Best Public Middle Schools, written by Clara Hemphill and the Insideschools.org staff.

If you would like a preview of what the process entails, read parent Liz Willen's account, Middle School Muddle, published on our blog. Check our open house page for postings, and sign up for our e-mail alerts to get updates throughout the year.

If you have specific questions about the middle school application process, you may call the DOE's middle school enrollment office at 212-374-4944 or email them at MS_Enrollment@schools.nyc.gov. The timetable for middle school choice is available on the DOE website.

Lindsey Whitton Christ, October 21, 2008