Two out of three students struck out in this year’s magnet lottery, as competition remained fierce for the city’s 29 schools of choice.
A total of 8,110 students applied for 2,400 open seats in the city’s 29 magnet and charter schools, according to schools spokeswoman Abbe Smith. The lottery took place Wednesday at 54 Meadow St.
Parents who showed up to the lottery learned their children’s fate on the spot. The rest will learn the news through letters sent home, or by calling the magnet registration office.
This was the first year that the schools used a new sibling policy that makes it easier for younger siblings to join brothers or sisters at a given school. It was also the first year that parents didn’t go into the lottery blind — they had some information about their odds of admission at a given school.
Demand was down over the prior year, when 9,333 students applied for 2,677 seats, an admissions rate of 29 percent.