Specialized High Schools Admissions Test

The Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT) is an examination administered to eighth and ninth grade students residing in New York City and used to determine admission to all but one of the city's nine Specialized High Schools. In 2008, about 29,000 students took the test, and 6108 students were offered admission to one of the high schools based on the results. On average, 30,000 students take this exam annually. The test is given each year in October and November, and students are informed of their results the following March. Those who receive offers decide by the middle of March whether to attend the school the following September. The test is independently produced and graded by American Guidance Service, a subsidiary of Pearson Education, under contract to the New York City Department of Education.

The SHSAT is used for admission to the following schools:

According to a New York State law known as the Hecht-Calandra Act, this is the only method that these schools may use to determine admission. Admission to the remaining specialized high school, Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts, is determined by audition rather than by examination.

The test is given in late October (8th grade) or early November (9th grade and 8th grade with IEP's, 504 plans, and ELL). The test is administered at testing centers located in each of the city's 5 boroughs. In recent years, students who reside in Manhattan take it at Stuyvesant High School, in the Bronx at Bronx High School of Science, in Brooklyn at Brooklyn Technical High School, in Queens at Long Island City High School or John Adams High School, and in Staten Island at Staten Island Technical High School.

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