The Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) is the only way for students to get into eight of the top public high schools in New York City:
- Bronx High School of Science
- Brooklyn Latin School (newly designated)
- Brooklyn Technical High School
- High School of Mathematics, Science and Engineering at City College
- High School of American Studies at Lehman College
- Queens High School for the Sciences at York College
- Staten Island Technical High School (newly designated)
- Stuyvesant High School
Who needs SHSAT Test Prep?
Eighth and ninth graders who live in New York City may take the test.How well do I have to do to get in?
There isn't a cut off score to get into each school- it depends on how many students take the test each year, and how well they do. However, to give you a general idea, only about 15% of students who take the test are accepted to any of the schools. That percentage is considerably lower for the most prestigious of the specialized high schools. Also, because there are far fewer seats for tenth graders, the competition is tougher for ninth graders taking the test.When is the SHSAT offered?
It is normally offered in October and November. You will get the exact dates when you register with your guidance counselor.
What is on the SHSAT?
The format of the SHSAT is very predictable (which helps you prepare!). There are two sections � verbal and math. Some of the material is very straight forward but some of it may be unlike anything you have seen in school. It's a challenging test designed to identify students who will thrive in a rigorous academic setting.How should I prepare?
Because the test takes place so early in the school year, New York Academics strongly recommends preparation during the summer. All of our instruction is highly personalized, one-on-one tutoring, with lessons tailored to meet the needs of the individual student. We address all aspects of test preparation, including academic knowledge, test taking strategies and time management.Admission
Students must choose which schools they wish to apply to (up to 8) and indicate them in order of preference on the day of the exam. The test is offered to all eighth and ninth grade students residing within the 5 boroughs of New York City[4], however the majority of the applicants are eighth graders.The results of the SHSAT are ordered from the highest score to the lowest score. The list is processed in order by score, with each student being placed in their most-preferred school that still has open seats, and continuing until there are no remaining open seats at any school.[5]
The student's absolute score does not matter as long as it is higher than the cutoff score, which is found by the results of all the students who took that score that year. For example, if there are 500 seats available at Stuyvesant the top 500 students who put Stuyvesant as their first choice scores will be admitted. The lowest score admitted is the cut off score.
