Across all Houston ISD (HISD) magnet schools, all applicants had about a 60% chance of winning admission to a magnet school during the first round lottery. Chances improved dramatically for qualified applicants to 78%. Qualified applicants are those who satisfy all conditions for admission to a chosen school such as gifted and talented testing and auditions. Approximately 25% of applicants do not satisfy the prerequisites to attend their chosen school.
Among the most desirable schools - those with yield rates higher than 36% - an applicant's chance of admission is only around 27% during the first round lottery. Note that a rejection first round could lead to an acceptance later on as seats become available for various reasons. Most Competitive HISD Magnet Schools Overall
Qualified applicants have about a 6% chance of getting into HISD's most competitive magnet schools, which happen to all be elementary schools. Elementary schools are the most competitive because they have the smallest classes, and families tend to focus only on the 15 to 20 best known schools.
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| Rank | School Name | # Seats | # Apps (T) | % Qualified | % Offered | % Yield |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lovett Elementary | 20 | 1,015 | 99% | 2% | 155% |
| 2 | T.H. Rogers K-8 | 81 | 3,297 | 66% | 2% | 95% |
| 3 | Twain Elementary | 27 | 892 | 99% | 3% | 44% |
| 4 | River Oaks Elementary | 57 | 1,804 | 53% | 3% | 104% |
| 5 | Travis Elementary | 27 | 659 | 48% | 4% | 167% |
| 6 | Poe Elementary | 29 | 694 | 98% | 4% | 34% |
| 7 | Herod Elementary | 30 | 672 | 52% | 4% | 93% |
| 8 | Oak Forest Elementary | 40 | 823 | 45% | 5% | 90% |
| 9 | Garden Oaks PK3-8 | 50 | 918 | 86% | 5% | 86% |
| 10 | Harvard Elementary | 63 | 971 | 100% | 6% | 73% |
Most Competitive HISD Middle Schools
With 25 schools to choose from, competitiveness for HISD magnet middle schools drops quickly. Qualified applicants have a 17% chance across the top 10 but just a 8% chance for the top 5. Had you only applied to all ten of these schools as a qualified applicant, you would of had an 82% chance of getting into at least one of the schools.
| Rank | School Name | # Seats | # Apps (T) | % Qualified | % Offered | % Yield |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | T.H. Rogers K-8 | 81 | 3,297 | 66% | 2% | 95% |
| 2 | Garden Oaks PK3-8 | 50 | 918 | 86% | 5% | 86% |
| 3 | Pin Oak Middle School | 138 | 2,500 | 81% | 6% | 66% |
| 4 | The Rice School K-8 | 196 | 2,538 | 86% | 8% | 64% |
| 5 | Wilson PK3-8 | 89 | 786 | 90% | 11% | 62% |
| 6 | Wharton Dual Language Academy K-8 | 86 | 747 | 78% | 12% | 62% |
| 7 | Lanier Middle School | 290 | 1,948 | 73% | 15% | 96% |
| 8 | Pershing Middle School | 208 | 1,349 | 35% | 15% | 50% |
| 9 | Mandarin Chinese Language Immersion M | 106 | 676 | 77% | 16% | 58% |
| 10 | Baylor College of Medicine @ Ryan | 330 | 1,247 | 100% | 26% | 61% |
Most Competitive HISD HIgh Schools
Qualified applicants have a 29% chance of getting into one of the top ten high schools listed below. Chances significantly improve for the middle ten schools (not listed) to 47% and students are nearly guaranteed admission to the bottom ten (not listed). Had you only applied to all ten of these schools as a qualified applicant, you would of had a 91% chance of getting into at least one of the schools.
| Rank | School Name | # Seats | # Apps (T) | % Qualified | % Offered | % Yield |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bellaire High School | 141 | 1,822 | 51% | 8% | 76% |
| 2 | Carnegie Vanguard High School | 200 | 1,545 | 75% | 13% | 74% |
| 3 | Reagan High School | 195 | 1,466 | 69% | 13% | 68% |
| 4 | Westside High School | 210 | 1,527 | 71% | 14% | 73% |
| 5 | Challenge Early College High School | 150 | 1,000 | 78% | 15% | 54% |
| 6 | DeBakey High School | 300 | 1,824 | 79% | 16% | 69% |
| 7 | Lamar High School | 400 | 2,386 | 71% | 17% | 55% |
| 8 | Houston Academy for International Studies | 162 | 961 | 78% | 17% | 31% |
| 9 | High School for the Performing and Visual | 237 | 1,196 | 20% | 20% | 82% |
| 10 | North Early College High School | 117 | 507 | 75% | 23% | 74% |
General Findings
17,464 students submitted 53,723 applications in the 2016 - 2017 lottery.
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Most Popular
An average of 2,119 students applied to HISD's most popular magnet schools.
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Most Coveted
About 96% of admitted students accepted their offers at HISD's most coveted schools.
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Highest Achieving
Nearly 22% of students aced the STAAR tests at HISD's highest achieving schools.
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Article last updated on May 18, 2016.
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