So I see your high school application has been submitted. Now you’re just waiting to see what schools accept you (This happens March 6, 2025). While you’re waiting you could plan for which high school you want to go instead of lying around (I’ve done this many times). To start, think about which high school you REALLY want to go to, kinda like your dream high school. If you don’t know what your dream high school is out of the 12 (or less) that you’ve chosen, below are some things to think about.

Distance

When choosing a school, you want to be mindful of the distance. Think to yourself, “Am I willing to go this far for the school?”. Looking up the start time can help you know when you have to be up and if you can make it in time. Let’s be honest none of us wants to wake up at the crack of dawn just to hopefully make it on time.

Environment

Is the area safe? You want to choose a school in which you feel safe and comfortable. This involves searching the neighborhood around the school to make sure it’s safe. It’s also important to look at the NYC DOE website to check on safety stats about the school and google maps to see the layout of the neighborhood.

School Type

When looking for the high school that’s best for you, think about it, “Will it be a public school, charter school, specialized school, or a catholic school?”. Looking at the school type may help you know what school you would like to attend.

Does it suit you?

Another important question to think about is whether the school suits you. This is because each school has a variety of clubs, classes, and sports in which you can apply to. So when choosing the school you want to attend, you can look over the clubs each school offers.

Career

Does it support your career? This question can really help you when choosing the high school you’d like to attend since some focus on career topics such as computer science or engineering. You could look over the high schools you chose to see if any have programs that may help your career.

My Schools (myschools.nyc)

You could use MySchools to help you follow the thoughts in mind above since the website has information on all high schools across NYC. It has information about schools that include safety, education and extracurriculars. Also it’s the ONLY website in which you can actually see the offers you got from the high schools you chose.

Conclusion

These are some of the many topics that you have to think about when choosing the high school you want to attend. I hope that these tips helped you in choosing the high school you want to go to.