You can make updates via your online application account to your address and telephone number. For the purposes of determining tiers, attendance/overlay boundaries, and proximity boundaries, address changes must be submitted no later than the application deadline. However, if your student is currently enrolled in a CPS school, you will need to update your address at the current school before the deadline in order for it to reflect on your application. If you are not able to make the change online, you must call the Office of Access and Enrollment at 773-553-2060 from a phone number on your account.

If your child plans to attend the designated neighborhood school for your home address, your child must still live at that address when they enroll in the school, and you must provide valid proof of address. If you change your home address before your child enrolls, they will forfeit that seat. If you change your address after the application deadline, and your child accepts an offer where your address was a selection factor (i.e., overlay, proximity, or tiers), you will be required to provide proof of both the address on the application, and the new address, at the time of your child’s registration.

If you change your address after the application deadline, and your child accepts an offer where your address was a selection factor, you will be required to provide proof of both the address on the application, and the new address, at the time of your child’s registration.

You can apply to magnet, magnet cluster, and open enrollment schools (Choice Schools), which select students through a computerized lottery, and you can apply to Selective Enrollment Schools, which select students through a testing process.

• Selective Enrollment Elementary Schools consist of four programs: Academic Centers, Classical Schools, Regional Gifted Centers, and Regional Gifted Center for English Learners.
• If you want to apply to charter elementary schools, you will need to directly contact the school(s) in which you are interested.

Yes, you have to live in Chicago to enroll and attend magnet, magnet cluster, open enrollment, and Selective Enrollment schools. You don't have to live in Chicago to apply, participate in the computerized lottery selection or testing process, and even be selected, but you have to provide proof of city of Chicago residency by July 1 of the enrolling school year.

You can apply to Choice Schools via the online application site or at an in-person application site. Identify the schools to which you want to apply and submit your application between the Fall and early winter. Students are selected via computerized lottery.

You can apply to up to 20 Choice Programs and up to 6 Selective Enrollment programs. You will rank your selective enrollment schools in the order of your preference.

No. You are not required to apply to the maximum allowed number of programs. You should only apply to schools/programs where you would accept an offer if your child receives one. If a school is too far from your home address, or if there is any other reason why you would not want your child to attend a school/program, you should not include that school/program on your application.

However, you should carefully research the available programs and apply to as many programs as you would accept an offer from. The more programs you apply to, the better your chances of receiving an offer.

No. The maximum number of elementary magnet, magnet cluster and elementary open enrollment schools to which you can apply is 20. You cannot submit a second application in order to apply to additional schools.

The Choice Elementary Schools application should be used for elementary magnet schools, magnet cluster schools, and elementary open enrollment schools.

Students applying to second grade or higher are not required to adhere to the September 1st guidelines. However, you should be aware that the Regional Gifted Centers and Classical Schools offer a highly rigorous and accelerated curriculum. Our goal is to match the program with the student and ensure that the student does not experience undue academic stress, thereby ensuring their success. As a result, you are encouraged to take your child’s age into account when applying for these programs for primary grades higher than first grade. Also note that a student is allowed to test for one grade level only.

Yes. You will be able to add your child to the rolling waitlist of any school that will be participating. Rolling waitlists will be offered in the spring. This process will consist of all Choice Schools as well as selective enrollment schools for students that tested during the initial application period.

As in previous years, students applying to classical schools will take the classical schools exam, and students applying to academic centers, regional gifted centers, and/or regional gifted centers for English learners will take the gifted admissions exam.

A minimum grade point average (GPA) eligibility requirement will be established for applying to academic centers, classical schools and regional gifted centers for grades 5-8.

This change will not have an impact on the selection processes for classical schools and regional gifted centers, which select students solely based on the score they receive on the admissions exam and the tier system, where applicable.
The only selection process that will be impacted is for the 7-8 grade academic centers. Currently, the selection process for the academic centers is based on a 900-point scale that is equally composed of the NWEA MAP scores, previous year’s grades, and the gifted admissions exam, with each of these areas worth a maximum of 300 points. Selection will be composed of the previous year’s grades and the universal exam, both worth a maximum of 450 points.

No. Elementary magnet, magnet cluster and open enrollment schools are designed for all students, and students are randomly selected through a computerized lottery. No testing is required.

There are three types of Selective Enrollment exams: one test for the Academic Centers and Regional Gifted Centers; one test for the Classical Schools; and one test for the Regional Gifted Centers for English Learners. The number of tests your child takes depends on the programs to which you apply.

When you apply using the online application site, you will schedule your child’s admissions exam(s) yourself.

The test for the Classical Schools program is an achievement skills test that assesses the student's reading and mathematics abilities. (Calculators are not permissible unless noted otherwise through an IEP or 504 Plan.) The test for the Academic Centers and Regional Gifted Centers measures critical thinking skills, reasoning, problem solving, and mental control. Mental control is the ability to hold information in the short-term memory while performing a mental operation.

If you apply to Regional Gifted Centers AND Classical Schools, your child will take two separate tests. If your child is applying to kindergarten, both tests will be on the same day. If your child is applying to any other grade, the tests will be administered on two separate days.

No. Once your child has been exposed to the admissions exam, they cannot take the exam again for the coming school year. Retesting is typically only considered if, at the time of testing, the student had a public school IEP or 504 Plan that identified allowable district assessment standard accommodations, which were required to measure the academic achievement and functional performance relevant to a subject area on the admissions exam, and these accommodations were not provided to the candidate.

The following provides information on the requirements for each type of program, by grade:
Grades K-4: All age-appropriate students applying for kindergarten through grade 4 will be tested. Note that students must be able to separate from their parents to walk with the examiner to the assessment room. Parents are not allowed to accompany children into the assessment area.
Grades 5-8: Testing eligibility for students applying for grades 5-8 (except for the RGC-ELs) will be based on the student’s GPA from their previous school year.
Academic Centers In order to be eligible for testing, students must have a GPA of 2.5 or better.
Classical Schools In order to be eligible for testing, students applying for grades 5-8 must have a minimum GPA of 3.0.
Regional Gifted Center In order to be eligible for testing, students applying for grades 5-8 must have a minimum GPA of 3.0.
Regional Gifted Centers for English Learners Testing eligibility for students applying for grades 5-8 will be based on the student’s previous year’s reading and math final grades or the average of the grades from the first and second quarters, whichever is highest. Students must have no lower than a B on their grades in reading and math in order to be eligible.
Students with an IEP applying for grades 5-8 must have the same GPA minimum as the General Ed population.

Students with disabilities are required to take entrance tests at schools that require them unless the student is placed by the Office of Special Education and Supports into a low incidence program at the school. Applicable test accommodations described in Section 10 (c) of the student’s Individualized Education Program (IEP) or 504 Plan will be made available. For example, if a child has a fine motor impairment and cannot fill in the bubbles on the answer sheet, and their IEP requires that a scribe assist with completing the answer sheet, a person will be provided during the entrance exam to scribe for them. The goal is always to measure the student’s knowledge or ability, and not the disability. However, to be considered for any program for academically advanced students, all applicants need to earn a score that demonstrates they can compete and succeed in an accelerated program.

Students applying for grades K-4 do not have to pre-qualify. Testing eligibility for students applying to grades 5-8 is based on the student’s GPA from the previous year. Note: Students with a 504 Plan have the same minimum eligibility requirements as general education students. However, testing accommodations identified in students’ 504 Plans will be provided for the purposes of the Selective Enrollment Elementary Schools admissions exams.

Do not take your child to test if they are ill. You scheduled your child’s test via the online application site, return to that site and schedule your child for another test date. If you are not able to reschedule, contact the Office of Access and Enrollment at 773-553-2060 to make alternate arrangements. (The Office of Access and Enrollment can be reached Monday through Friday, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.)

All the details you need for testing will be emailed to you in a testing ticket approx 1-2 weeks before your scheduled exam.

All applicants will receive their test results in spring, when the application results are released.

Your child must be five years old on or before September 1st in order to apply for kindergarten enrollment for the upcoming school year.

Yes. You can apply for Early Entrance to Kindergarten. To be considered for Early Entrance to Kindergarten please go to https://www.cps.edu/gocps/about-gocps/accelerated-placement/.

Your child must be six years old on or before September 1st in order to apply for first grade enrollment for the upcoming school year.

Yes. You can apply for Early Entrance to First Grade (previously known as the First Grade Age Exception). To be considered for Early Entrance to First Grade please go to https://www.cps.edu/gocps/about-gocps/accelerated-placement/.

If your child does not satisfy the requirements, or if the qualifying documentation is not provided upon enrollment, any 1st-grade seat awarded through the GoCPS application process may be forfeited. Your child will not be automatically entitled to receive a Kindergarten offer to the program at which a seat was forfeit.

Yes. Through the Accelerated Placement policy, students can apply for Whole-Grade Acceleration (also known as grade skipping) for grades 4-6 in the school in which they are currently enrolled, or Single-Subject Acceleration in reading or math for grades 4-6 in the school in which they are currently enrolled. Students must submit a Grade Acceleration Application on the GoCPS website during the posted application window, in order to be considered for the applying school year. To access the application and information on the pre-qualifications and the assessment process for Whole-Grade Acceleration or Single-Subject Acceleration, visit https://www.cps.edu/gocps/about-gocps/accelerated-placement/ or contact the Office of Access and Enrollment at 773-553-2060 or gocps@cps.edu.

No – this is not permitted under CPS policy.

The Selective Enrollment Elementary Schools application is used to apply to Academic Centers, Classical Schools, Regional Gifted Centers, and Regional Gifted Centers for English Learners.

You can apply via the online application site. Identify the schools to which you want to apply and submit your application between Fall and early winter. Testing is required. Students applying to kindergarten through fourth grade are tested as long as they are age-appropriate for the grade to which they are applying.

Yes. For students applying to the Academic Centers, CPS will look at the grades from the previous school year. CPS will use the final (cumulative) grades in reading, math, science, and social studies for the entire school year.

All students with disabilities are eligible to apply to magnet schools and programs. Appropriate services within these programs will be provided to meet the student’s individual needs as delineated on the Individualized Education Program (IEP). If a student with a mobility impairment is selected by lottery for a magnet school or program that is not accessible, transportation will be provided to a comparable magnet program at an accessible school.

Yes. All ELs are eligible to apply to magnet schools and programs.

Information from a child’s IEP, 504 Plan, or Service Plan is only needed if you are applying for the Selective Enrollment Elementary Schools. If your child attends a Chicago public, charter, or contract school, CPS will obtain their IEP or 504 Plan from the CPS Student Information System. CPS can also access the IEPs/504 Plans of non-CPS students who have had their IEP/504 Plans developed by the Chicago Public Schools.
If your child attends a non-CPS school, and their IEP or 504 Plan was developed by a public school system outside of Chicago, please submit the most recent version of your child’s IEP or 504 Plan to the Office of Access and Enrollment at oaetestingteam@cps.edu. If your non-CPS student has an IEP or 504 Plan that was not developed by a public school system, or if your child has a Service Plan, your child’s documentation will be reviewed by the testing team to determine if it meets CPS guidelines for acceptance. Please submit the most recent version of your child’s documentation to the Office of Access and Enrollment at oaetestingteam@cps.edu.

Students with disabilities are required to take entrance tests at schools that require them unless the student is placed by the Office of Special Education and Supports into a low incidence program at the school. Applicable test accommodations described in Section 10 (c) of the student’s Individualized Education Program (IEP) or 504 Plan will be made available. For example, if a child has a fine motor impairment and cannot fill in the bubbles on the answer sheet, and their IEP requires that a scribe assist with completing the answer sheet, a person will be provided during the entrance exam to scribe for them. The goal is always to measure the student’s knowledge or ability, and not the disability. However, to be considered for any program for academically advanced students, all applicants need to earn a score that demonstrates they can compete and succeed in an accelerated program.

Students applying for grades K-4 do not have to pre-qualify. Testing eligibility for students applying to grades 5-8 is based on the student’s GPA from the previous year Note: Students with a 504 Plan have the same minimum eligibility requirements as general education students. However, testing accommodations identified in students’ 504 Plans will be provided for the purposes of the Selective Enrollment Elementary Schools admissions exams.

The sibling policy applies only to applicants to magnet, magnet cluster, or open enrollment schools if you already have a child currently enrolled in the school to which you are applying (and if that child will remain enrolled in that school for the school year for which you are applying). If you are applying for more than one child, and you do not have another child currently enrolled in the school to which you are applying, the sibling policy does not apply. If your children are twins, triplets, or other multiples, they will be linked in the selection process (see following question). NOTE that you must submit a separate application for each student.

Yes. You must submit an application to any school outside of your designated neighborhood school if you want your child to be considered for enrollment, even if you already have a child enrolled.

For Choice Elementary Schools and all district high schools that select students through a computerized lottery, two seats will be allocated at the entry level grade for children of teachers or staff members currently employed at that school. If there are more than two children who qualify and apply for these seats, a lottery will be held and seats will be filled by computerized lottery. (The availability of these seats is based on space.) For the purposes of this policy, the term "children" means natural children, stepchildren, foster children and adopted children, as evidenced by documentation required by the CEO or designee. If there are minimum criteria for a school, the student must meet eligibility requirements in order to qualify. You must be staffed at a school in order to apply for staff preference at that school. After the 2 staff seats have been accepted all others in the staff preference queue will move to the end of the general queue.

Sibling applicants to elementary magnet, magnet cluster, or elementary open enrollment schools will be offered seats to the extent that space is available. If a school receives more applications from siblings than there are seats available, a computerized lottery will be conducted to fill the seats. Siblings can be placed on a sibling waitlist if there is no immediate availability. In order to be eligible, the enrolled sibling and the sibling applicant must live in the same household and must be attending the same school for the enrolling school year. (The term “sibling” means natural siblings, step siblings, foster siblings and adopted siblings.) Your child cannot be considered as a sibling in the selection process if the enrolled sibling is currently in a Chicago Early Learning or tuition-based prekindergarten, or if the enrolled sibling graduates or transfers to another school. If the enrolled sibling graduates or transfers to another school, your child’s offer will be rescinded and they will be placed in the general applicant queue. If you do not submit an application, or if you do not provide identifying sibling information on your child’s application, your child will not be given sibling preference in the selection process.

For applications to magnet, magnet cluster, or open enrollment schools, parents of twins, triplets and other higher order multiple births have the option of linking their applications together so that the students are either admitted together or placed next to each other on the waitlist. If you choose not to indicate on the application that your children are multiples, their applications will be independently processed in the lottery and their applications will not be linked. (The admission policy adopts the traditional meaning of twins and multiples, meaning siblings produced in the same pregnancy. Under this policy, the terms twins and multiples do not include siblings adopted during the same year, adopted siblings born during the same 12-month period, biological siblings born during the same 12-month period, or any other circumstance in which siblings are close in age.) Twins, triplets, and other multiples do not have preference or consideration when applying to Selective Enrollment Elementary Schools.

No. Programs that require testing do not have sibling preference.

Yes. You must submit an application to any school outside of your designated neighborhood school if you want your child to be considered for a seat. This includes a school where you are employed. If you do not submit an application, your child cannot be considered.

No. You can only apply for the staff preference lottery at a school where you are staffed.

No. Your child can only be included in the staff preference lottery at one school. You will have to choose the school for which you are applying for staff preference as long as you meet the requirements for staff preference.

No. At the time that you submit your application, you will have to decide under which category you are applying. You cannot reapply under a different category if your child is not selected for one of the two staff preference seats. Your child will be on the staff preference waitlist if your child is not selected for a staff preference seat.

The computerized lotteries for each school on the Choice Elementary Application are conducted independently from each other. Therefore, your child can be selected for any number of magnet, magnet cluster, and/or open enrollment schools, depending on the number of schools to which you apply.

No. Only one parent can open a GoCPS account. We recommend that the GoCPS applications be opened by the student’s primary parent/guardian. If a student’s parents are separated and there is a dispute over which parent is the primary parent/guardian, or who should have primary access to the GoCPS application file, CPS must receive a parental agreement which indicates the parent who has educational decision-making authority, or the parents must go to court to obtain this documentation. If the court document indicates that parents have joint educational decision-making, parents must share the GoCPS login.

In the case of a student’s parents not agreeing about how to use the GoCPS account, the parents will need to provide us with a court order that states which parent has the educational decision making authority so that we can determine who should have primary access to the GoCPS application file.

If you share joint custody and your child sleeps at night at only one residence the majority of the time, that is the child's primary address, and that is the address that must be entered on the application. In cases of joint custody where a child's residence is equally divided between two addresses, either address may be used. Note that the address of only ONE parent can be used; your child cannot be considered for schools by using more than one address, and your child cannot submit applications with different addresses. The address that is used for the application and selection process must be the same, single address. If your child submits applications with more than one address, they will be considered for the selection process using the address on the first application that is processed by the Office of Access and Enrollment.

In most cases, school bus transportation is provided to K-8 students attending elementary magnet schools who live more than 1.5 miles but less than 6 miles from the school. Students attending Disney II, Drummond, Gallistel, Kanoon, LaSalle II, Mayer, Randolph, and Smyth do not receive busing. For Disney II, LaSalle II, and Mayer, Student Transportation Services provides Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) fare cards or travel reimbursements for parents and guardians of students at these schools who qualify for transportation. Transportation is not provided for preschool students.

• Magnet schools: In most cases, school bus transportation is provided to students attending elementary magnet schools who live more than 1.5 miles but less than 6 miles from the school. The only magnet schools that do not provide school bus transportation are Disney II, Drummond, Gallistel, Kanoon, LaSalle II, Mayer, Randolph, and Smyth. However, CPS Student Transportation Services provides Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) fare cards or travel reimbursements for parents and guardians of students at Disney II, LaSalle II and Mayer who qualify for transportation.
• Magnet cluster school/open enrollment schools: Transportation is not provided for students in magnet cluster schools or open enrollment schools.
• Transportation is provided to students with disabilities if the IEP or 504 Plan requires it; for information, contact the Office of Diverse Learner Supports and Services at (773) 553-1800. Transportation may also be provided to homeless students upon enrollment; for information, contact the Office of Educational Support for Students in Temporary Living Situations at (773) 553-2242.
* Please note: The Board of Education will be reviewing all transportation policies to determine its ability to fund ongoing programs including those related to magnet, gifted, and selective enrollment programs as well as many others throughout the District for the 2022-2023 school year. When making choices about school applications for your child, please keep in mind that current transportation policies and guidelines could be subject to change. If our transportation policy should change, updated information will be available on go.cps.edu.

Yes, you can apply to up to 20 schools, in any combination of magnet, magnet cluster, and open enrollment schools.

No. All schools on the Choice Elementary Schools application are considered equally in separate lotteries. As a result, you can receive an offer from more than one magnet, magnet cluster, and/or open enrollment school. If you are applying for Selective Enrollment schools, you will need to rank them in order of preference.

The GoCPS programs at all CPS elementary schools begin at the kindergarten level, not the preschool level. The application process for all preschools for the upcoming school year will take place in spring. Visit chicagoearlylearning.org for more information. NOTE: If your child turned three years old by September 1, and they are not enrolled in a preschool program but you are interested in immediate placement, visit www.chicagoearlylearning.org. In addition, if you are interested in Tuition-Based Preschool for the school year, contact the Office of Early Childhood Education at 773-553-2010.

Students who are currently enrolled in a Chicago public school, charter school, or contract school have a CPS identification number. You can find this number on your child’s report card or the Parent Portal (https://parent.cps. k12.il.us/pc/default.aspx). If you do not have a CPS ID number, you will receive one later in the application process.

No. This is for informational purposes only. The student’s racial/ethnic category is not used as part of the selection process. Please identify whether or not your child is Hispanic/Latino and complete the racial category information.

Your primary address is defined as your child’s regular, fixed nighttime residence. You cannot use the address of a property that you own or rent if your child does not sleep there at night. If you live outside of the city of Chicago, you must use that address on your application. You cannot use the address of a residence that you plan to move to AFTER the application deadline. The address that you enter on your application MUST be the primary address at the time that you submit your application. If you move after you submit your application, you must update this address BEFORE the application deadline.

In order for your child to be considered for a different magnet school, you will have to submit an application, during the application period, and your child will have to participate in the selection process for the school in which you are interested. You cannot transfer your child without participating in the application process.

In order for your child to be considered for a different selective enrollment school or program, you will have to submit an application, during the application period, and your child will have to participate in the testing process for the school in which you are interested. You cannot transfer your child to another Selective Enrollment Elementary School without participating in the application and selection process.

No. Applications to magnet, magnet cluster and open enrollment schools are considered equally in separate lotteries. They are not ranked in any kind of order. As a result, it is possible for your child to receive an offer from more than one school.

Elementary magnet schools, magnet cluster schools, and open enrollment schools are designed for all students, and students are randomly selected through a computerized lottery. No testing is required.
Testing is required for Academic Centers, Classical, Regional Gifted and EL Regional Gifted Schools. Please see the section on testing for details.

Computerized lotteries randomly select students to fill the spaces in each grade. There are four types of lotteries, conducted in the following order:

• Sibling lottery: conducted only for students who have a brother or sister in the same household who already attends the school to which the student is applying, and who will still be enrolled in that school in the school year for which you are applying. The sibling lottery applies to Choice Schools only.
• Staff preference lottery: conducted only for students who are applying for the entry grade level to a school where their parent/guardian is on the staff. There are two seats available for staff preference applicants. The staff preference lottery applies to Choice Schools only.
• Proximity lottery: conducted only for students who are applying for the entry grade level (usually kindergarten) at magnet schools only. This lottery is for applicants who live within a 1.5 mile radius of the elementary magnet school; or a 2.5 mile radius at Sor Juana Elementary School.
• General lottery: conducted for all students not included in the sibling, staff preference, or proximity lotteries.

A student can only be included in the selection process in one lottery category. For instance, a student cannot be in both the sibling lottery and the staff preference lottery.

Students who are not selected for a seat through the computerized lottery are assigned a number on a waitlist.

Your child can only keep the seat at their current school if the seat has not been filled. Please contact the Office of Access and Enrollment at 773-553-2060 or gocps@cps.edu for space confirmation and next steps.

Notification letters will be released in the spring. You will be able to access your results via your online application account.

Yes. After the seats at each school are filled, the eligible non-selected students will remain in an applicant pool and placed on a waiting list, where students are assigned numbers – students are ranked by score in the applicant pool. Students who decline a SEES offer or allow a SEES offer to expire will not automatically be placed on any SEES waitlists but can add themselves to the waitlists after the offer is declined or expired.

Applicants for the Regional Gifted Centers and Classical Schools are selected based on their admissions exam score, and applicants for the Academic Centers are selected based on a point system. Students who earn a score below 115 may not be considered potential candidates for a Regional Gifted Center seat. Students who earn a score below the 75th percentile in either reading or mathematics or both may not be considered potential candidates for a Classical Schools seat. Selection for all applicants is in accordance with the admissions policy for magnet, selective enrollment and other GoCPS programs.

The selection process for the Academic Centers is based on a point system, with a maximum of 600 points. The final point score balances the admissions exam results with final classroom grades. The score consists of:

• The admissions exam (50% or 300 points)
• Prior year’s reading, math, science and social studies grades (50% or 300 points)

A rubric showing how the points are allotted for each of these areas can be found at go.cps.edu. Click ‘Elementary School’ and ‘Resources’ or contact the Office of Access and Enrollment at (773) 553-2060.

No. There is no sibling preference or consideration for applicants to schools that require testing.

All applicants to grades K-8 will receive their initial-round results in the spring via their online GoCPS account. (Note that the application process for all preschools is managed by the city of Chicago, not CPS. Visit chicagoearlylearning.org for information on that process.)

Students can apply to up to 20 Choice Schools (magnet, magnet cluster and open enrollment), which select students via computerized lottery. Students can receive anywhere between zero Choice offers and the maximum number to which they applied. If a student does not receive an offer to a Choice School, the student will be waitlisted for that school.

Students can apply to up to six Classical Schools/Regional Gifted Centers, up to six Academic Centers (grades 7-8 only), and up to three Regional Gifted Centers for English Learners. Within each of those three program categories, students can receive, at most, only one offer in each category, for the highest-ranked program in the category for which they qualify, if any.

There is no guarantee that students will receive either a Choice offer or a Selective Enrollment offer. All students who entered a city of Chicago address on their application are guaranteed a seat in the general education program of the designated neighborhood school for their home address.

No. Accepting an offer from a school where your child is selected does not affect your child’s waitlist status. You can accept an offer and, if you later receive an offer from a school where your child was waitlisted, you can accept that offer instead, if you wish. In addition, accepting an offer from a magnet, magnet cluster, or open enrollment school does not affect your child’s status in the applicant pool for the Selective Enrollment Elementary Schools selection process. Should you choose to accept a later offer, you will be responsible for notifying the first school of your child’s change in status.

Applicants will accept or decline offers via their online GoCPS account. The deadline to accept or decline offers will be posted on the GoCPS website.

No. Families can only accept one offer.

If a family ACCEPTS an offer and later decides that they want to decline it, they can do so. If a family DECLINES an offer, they cannot go back and change that decision after the deadline. If an offer is accidentally declined, the family should contact the Office of Access and Enrollment at 773-553-2060, weekdays between 8:30 am and 4:30 pm, or gocps@cps.edu, before the designated deadline to accept or decline offers. Offer declines cannot be reversed by the Office of Access and Enrollment after this deadline.

No. Families will see a confirmation page online after they submit their decision. For their records, they should either print this page or save it to PDF.

No. Once a family accepts a Selective Enrollment offer, the student is removed from the applicant pool for all other Selective Enrollment schools/programs. However, the student would remain on any Choice School waitlists that they are on.

After the available spaces in each grade are filled through the computerized lottery, waitlist numbers are randomly assigned, beginning with number 1, to the remaining students in each category. Parents of students who are selected in the lottery are given approximately two weeks to accept an offer. After the deadline for accepting an offer, principals must fill any remaining spaces through the waiting list, beginning with number 1 and selecting students based on their category. For example, if a student was selected in the proximity lottery and the parent does not accept the space, the school will contact the parent of the first student on the proximity waiting list for that grade to offer him/her the available space. If this student declines the offer, the principal will contact the second student on the proximity waiting list for that grade, and so on. Schools are not allowed to contact students outside of the waiting list order, and offers must be made to replace students in the same category. For instance, a school cannot offer a space to the student who is number 1 on a waiting list and then skip the next five students to offer a space to the student who is number 6 on the list. As another example, a school cannot attempt to fill a space declined by a student from the sibling category by offering the space to a student on the general waiting list, unless the sibling waitlist has been exhausted. (Note that when parents of waitlisted students are contacted, they will be given 48 business hours to accept or decline a seat. Be sure to include at least one telephone number on your application where you can be reached at all times.)
NOTE: If your child is currently on a waitlist from last year’s application process, and has not received an offer for the current school year, you will need to reapply this fall for the next school year if you want to be considered for that year. Waitlists expire in February and are not maintained from year to year.

The first-round waitlist process will open after the Accept/Decline deadline. When the waitlist process opens, schools can begin filling seats in Choice Schools by contacting waitlisted students, beginning with the waitlist number of 1 and continuing in numerical order. Note that waitlist seats are offered based on the selection category, if applicable. For instance, if a seat is declined by a student in a program's proximity category, that seat will be offered to the student who is number 1 on the proximity waitlist. This process can continue until next February.

If a student is waitlisted, the family has the option of withdrawing from the waitlist if they no longer wish to be considered, or remaining on the waitlist if they are still interested in the program. If the student remains on the waitlist, there is no action to take. If the school has a seat available, and the student’s number on the waitlist is reached, the parent will be contacted by the school. The following morning, the offer will appear on the family’s online account and the family will receive a communication from the Office of Access and Enrollment stating that there has been a change to the student’s waitlist status. From that point, families have 48 business hours to accept or decline. Online applicants will accept or decline waitlist offers via their online application account. Families need to ensure that their contact information is up to date on their GoCPS account.

The meaning of 48 business hours is similar to that of two business days. We do not say two business days, however, because there is a specific time factor involved. For example, an offer extended on a Friday would not expire until the following Tuesday at 8 am.

If a family accepts a Choice offer, they will remain on any waitlists they are on, unless they withdraw from the waitlist. A student who has not received or accepted any Selective Enrollment school offers and has been placed on the waitlist for their Selective Enrollment schools will remain on that waitlist until an offer is received. Once an offer from a selective enrollment elementary school is received, the student will be removed from all other Selective Enrollment waitlists. Accepting a Selective Enrollment offer does not have any effect on the Choice school waitlists.

No. Once a family withdraws a student from a waitlist, they cannot go back and change that decision. However, if the family does not initially withdraw a student from a waitlist, and they later decide that they want to withdraw, they can do so.

If a family accepts a first-round offer, and later receives an offer from a school where the student is waitlisted, the family can accept the waitlist offer. This will automatically decline the first-round offer they accepted. If the family does not prefer the seat in the waitlisted program, they will decline the waitlist offer and keep the first-round offer they previously accepted.

The online accounts will be updated once a week to show any changes in waitlist status.

Schools are directed to try to reach families through any available contact phone numbers on their GoCPS account. They are not required to email unless there is no phone number on the account, and they will not be expected to make multiple attempts.