FAQs

Neither K0 nor K1 classrooms are present in every school and there is no guarantee that every child who applies for BPS pre-K will receive a school assignment. BPS currently offers more than 2,400 K1 seats and is expanding the number of K1 classrooms. K0 classrooms are far more limited, and most seats are reserved for students with disabilities.

All K2 students have a guaranteed seat, although not necessarily at one of your initial school choices, and, only if you agree to receive an administrative assignment if we cannot match you to a school of your choosing. If BPS cannot assign a child to a K2 school their parent/guardian(s) chose and the parent/guardian does not wish to be administratively assigned, s/he will be 'unassigned' and placed on waitlists for the schools they ranked.

No. There are no waivers or exceptions to our minimum age requirement for Grade 1, regardless of a child's previous school experience. Any child who will be five years old by September 1 may apply for a K2 assignment.

BPS strongly encourages families to rank all the schools that appear on their choice list. We suggest ranking them in your true order of preference. Choosing more schools, especially schools at which your child has a sibling priority, means a greater possibility of assignment.

If you would like to make changes after you've received your assignment notice, you may return to a Welcome Center to make new school choices even if your child was assigned to a school you ranked. However, we cannot guarantee that the new school(s) you choose will have available seats. A photo ID will be needed for this transaction.

No school assignments are made until the close of each registration round, so a family that registers on the first day of their registration period has no advantage over a family that registers on the last day of the same period just because they registered earlier.

Only students applying for Kindergarten (K0-K2), Grade 6, and Grade 9 who registered during the first registration period will be assigned at the close of that round even if their siblings applying for other grades registered at the same time. From the second registration period onward, all students who register in a round will be assigned following the close of that period.

At the close of every registration period, our assignment computer program (algorithm) matches students to seats based on their priorities (if applicable), their random number, and the number of seats available in the grade desired at each school in the order they were ranked on that student's application. There are fewer open seats after each passing period, so families should try their best to register children during the first available registration period for their grade.

New-to-Boston families may register for BPS at any time for a current school year assignment. Please visit a Welcome Center with 1) your child's original birth certificate, 2) your child's up-to-date immunization record, 3) Parent/Guardian photo identification, and two proofs of Boston residency from the list below, and a Registration Specialist will be happy to help you.

If you change addresses, please inform a Welcome Center as soon as possible so that important information such as your child's school assignment, or any new bus route, can reach you. To update your address with BPS, please return to a Welcome Center with at least two proofs (from our list) of your new Boston address and a photo ID. If your new address is in a different assignment area, you will be asked to make new school choices unless you are willing to transport your child to and from a school in your old assignment area on your own.

Families who move out of the City of Boston are not eligible for BPS.

BPS only assigns K0, K1, and K2 registrants to schools chosen on their assignment application. If there are no available seats for an applicant at their chosen schools, s/he will not be administratively assigned to another school unless, for K2 only, a parent requests an administrative assignment. The only exception to this policy is for K2 applicants who will be six years old by December 31.

Registrants who meet the age requirement for Grade 1 or higher are required by state law to attend school. If BPS is unable to assign these applicants to one of their school choices, BPS will administratively assign students to the school that is closest to their home that has available seats in their grade level. Administratively assigned students and students who are assigned to one of their school choices but not their top choice will be placed on a waitlist(s) for their ranked choices.

Assignments are typically mailed six weeks after the close of a registration period. Once assignment information is available, parent/guardian(s) may also contact any Welcome Center to find out their child's waitlist(s). Families who register during the priority registration rounds, will be added to the waitlist for each school ranked higher than the school they have been assigned to.

As seats become available in schools, waitlists will be processed automatically, allowing students to move into their higher-ranked schools. In early August, waitlist selections are reduced to one selection, the family's highest ranked school. After that date, BPS will contact families about availability off the waitlist by email and phone. If you are content with your child’s assigned school and wish to prevent an automatic transfer, please contact a Welcome Center to have your child’s name removed from a waitlist, or email welcomeservices@bostonpublicschools.org.

BPS students who are in the final grade of their school and are moving on to Grade 6, Grade 7, or Grade 9 will receive school choice forms in January to take home from their school. School choice forms will also be sent out via email. 

Students that are in the final grade of their current school and will be moving up to any other grade will receive their school choice form in February.  These will also be sent out via email and paper versions sent home from school. 

Parents/guardians should rank the schools on this application and complete the school choice form online or return the completed paper choice form to their student's school.