Chicago Selective Enrollment Admissions Report

The SELECTIVE Path

Decoding Chicago's High School Admissions

Admission to Chicago's elite Selective Enrollment High Schools (SEHS) is a highly competitive journey. Each year, thousands of students compete for a limited number of seats, with their fate decided by a rigorous 900-point system based on 7th-grade grades and the High School Admissions Test (HSAT). This infographic explores the data behind the decisions, revealing the trends, disparities, and what it truly takes to earn a spot.

900

Maximum Score

11

Selective Schools

2

Primary Factors

(7th Grade Grades & HSAT)

Understanding the Tiers: A System of Equity

The CPS admissions process uses a tier system to promote socioeconomic diversity. Students are assigned to one of four tiers based on their home address. A portion of seats are filled by students with the highest scores city-wide (Rank), while the rest are allocated across the four tiers, creating different score requirements for admission.

Student Application

Score out of 900

↓

Rank Admission

Competes against all students city-wide

Tier Admission

Competes against students in the same socioeconomic tier

The Tier Gap: A Tale of Two Benchmarks

For the most competitive schools, the minimum score for admission can differ dramatically between students from the lowest socioeconomic tier (Tier 1) and the highest (Tier 4). This chart visualizes the cut-off scores for the top 5 schools in 2022-2023, highlighting the significant gap.

School Rankings by Minimum Score (2022-2023)

The Summit: Tier 4 Cut-Offs

This chart ranks schools by the minimum score required for students in the highest socioeconomic tier, showing the highest bars of entry.

The Access Point: Tier 1 Cut-Offs

This chart shows the minimum scores for students in the lowest socioeconomic tier, offering a different perspective on accessibility.

A Look Back: 2018-2019 Average Scores

Admissions scores are not static. This chart shows the average admission scores for the 2018-2019 school year, providing a historical baseline for comparison and showing how the competitive landscape has evolved.

Key Takeaways

  • ✓

    Hierarchy is Clear: A distinct group of "Top-Tier" schools (Payton, Northside, Jones, Young, Lane) consistently requires the highest scores.

  • ✓

    The Tier Gap is Real: There is a substantial difference—often over 100 points—between the cut-off scores for Tier 1 and Tier 4 students at top schools, underscoring the role of the tier system in admissions.

  • ✓

    Perfection is Expected: For students in Tier 4 or competing for Rank admission at top schools like Payton and Northside, a perfect score of 900 is often the minimum requirement, not just an aspiration.

  • ✓

    Scores Fluctuate: Changes to the admissions formula, like the introduction of different standardized tests, can cause significant shifts in average scores from year to year.

Data based on publicly available reports for the 2022-2023 and 2018-2019 admission cycles. For the most current information, please consult the official CPS GoCPS website.