The selective enrollment tests are fewer, and plainer, than the rumors.
Four kinds of selective elementary programs, two exams between them, one more for high school. CPS publishes what each exam measures, how long it runs, and exactly how a score becomes points. This page puts all of that in one place, with the source next to every fact.
Each selective program comes with one exam
Chicago Public Schools (CPS) runs two kinds of selective admissions. Selective Enrollment Elementary Schools (SEES) are the four kinds of test-in programs for kindergarten through grade 8: Classical, Regional Gifted Centers (RGC), Regional Gifted Centers for English Learners (EL RGC), and Academic Centers. Selective Enrollment High Schools (SEHS) are the grade 9 programs, and they use their own exam, the High School Admissions Test (HSAT). This page covers both, because most families meet the elementary exams first and the HSAT a few years later.
If you apply to a SEES program, your child will be required to take the admissions exam that goes with that type of program. Two exams may be required from a single application: Classical programs and Regional Gifted programs use different exams, so a list with both types means both exams. For kindergarten, CPS gives the two in one sitting; for grades 1 through 8 each exam is its own appointment. Magnet and other Choice programs have no test.
Which test goes with which program
| Program | Exam | Measures | Time | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Classical (K-8) | Classical exam | academic achievement in reading and math | about 1.5 to 1.75 hours (grades 1-8) | 300: reading 150 + math 150 |
| Regional Gifted Center (K-8) | Regional Gifted exam | reasoning skills: forming abstract concepts and solving problems with new information | about 2 hours (grades 1-8) | 300 from the composite |
| Regional Gifted for English Learners (K-8) | Regional Gifted exam for English Learners | reasoning skills, given in Spanish or Polish | about 30 to 60 minutes | 300 from the composite |
| Academic Center (grades 7-8) | Regional Gifted exam | reasoning skills: forming abstract concepts and solving problems with new information | about 2 hours (grades 1-8) | 600: exam 300 + last year's grades 300 |
| Selective Enrollment high school (grade 9) | High School Admissions Test (HSAT) | English, math, reading, and science | about 2.5 hours | 640 for students applying this fall (fall 2027 entry): HSAT composite x 10 (320) + 7th-grade GPA x 80 (320). Every published cutoff, through the offers made in spring 2026, is on the older 900 scale. |
Source: GoCPS, Admissions testing for Selective Enrollment K-8, and the SEES testing information sheet (Oct 2024). Verified 2026-09-02.
Two things surprise families most. The Academic Center exam is the Regional Gifted exam; there is no separate test. And the Classical exam is not a reasoning test: it checks reading and math your child has already learned, while the Regional Gifted exam asks them to work out new patterns and ideas.
Every K-8 applicant tests. Grades are a gate, not a substitute.
For grades 5 through 8, last year’s grade-point average decides whether your child can sit the exam at all: 3.0 for Classical and Regional Gifted, 2.5 for Academic Centers and EL Regional Gifted. The average is A 4, B 3, C 2, D 1, F 0 across reading, math, science and social science, divided by four.
Grades never replace the test. For Classical and Regional Gifted, points come from the exam alone. Only Academic Centers add a grades half. MAP and other classroom tests are not used for SEES points.
Source: GoCPS, Admissions testing for Selective Enrollment K-8. Verified 2026-09-02.
How kindergarten testing is different
Kindergarten applicants test one-on-one with an examiner, untimed, and the Classical and Regional Gifted exams happen in the same session. Your child goes with the examiner to another room while you wait. Grades 1 through 8 test in a group with a proctor, on paper, and each exam is its own appointment.
For kindergarten, the one thing CPS says families can prepare is the child being able to leave the parent and go with the examiner into a separate room.
Source: GoCPS, SEES admissions testing information (Oct 2024). Verified 2026-09-02.
The year, in order
- Early OctoberThe GoCPS application opens. Picking any selective program prompts you to book a test session inside the application; the booking is dropped if the application is not submitted within one hour.
- October to JanuaryTesting window. Kindergarten sessions run on weekdays; grades 1-8 mostly on weekends from late October; Academic Center sessions in mid to late January. Sessions fill first come, first served.
- Mid NovemberApplication deadline. You can still hold a December or January test date as long as it was booked before the deadline.
- SpringTest results arrive in the GoCPS portal on the same day as elementary offers.
No retakes. Once a child has seen an admissions exam, they cannot take it again for the coming school year. Test results are normed to the child’s age and grade at the time of testing, so CPS says an earlier date is not a disadvantage, and it leaves room to reschedule if your child is sick.
What a score turns into
CPS publishes the exact conversion. The portal shows the raw scores; the rubric turns them into points; points are what the tier cutoffs compare against. Try any score below and watch the arithmetic. It is hypothetical by default and saves nothing.
CPS reports one overall score for this exam and calls it the composite. It is a standard score on a scale where about 100 is average and 160 is the top, not a sum of section points. Points: 300 minus 2.5 for every point below 160. The verbal and nonverbal subscores only matter in a tie.
- Composite
- ... of 300
- Total
- ... of 300
Below 150 points, which is an overall (composite) score under 100, means no offer and no waitlist for Regional Gifted programs.
Source: GoCPS scoring rubrics for Selective Enrollment Elementary Schools, updated Aug 2024 (applying to K; applying to 1-8; Academic Centers). Verified 2026-09-02.
Placement arithmetic only. Nothing typed here is saved.
When two children have the same points, CPS breaks the tie in a fixed order. Classical (grades 1-8): total points, math plus reading standard score, math standard score, reading standard score, computerized lottery. Regional Gifted: total points, nonverbal score, verbal score, computerized lottery. Academic Centers: total points, composite score, nonverbal score, verbal score, computerized lottery.
What not to game: CPS’s own words on prep
“CPS does not recommend, endorse, or sponsor any test preparation courses, study guides, or sample questions for selective enrollment admission exams.”
CPS reports no direct correlation between acceptance rates and participation in test-preparation courses. CPS adds that it hears every year from families whose child took a prep course and got no offer. The exam scores are estimates for placement, not a verdict on a child, and the rubric sheet says plainly: children do not pass or fail it.
So what can a family honestly do? Handle the logistics well, keep test day calm, and, if your child would find it reassuring, get familiar with the format so nothing is a surprise. That is the whole list. Nothing changes your tier, and no amount of preparation guarantees an offer.
Source: CPS Office of Access and Enrollment, test preparation statement. Verified 2026-09-02.
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