Advantages of Attending a Specialized High School
Attending New York City’s Specialized High Schools provides students with exceptional academics and educational opportunities at little to no cost. Known for their academic rigor, notable teachers, motivated students, diverse course offerings and extracurricular activities, the Specialized High Schools pave the way for students from all socioeconomic backgrounds to gain access to and achieve academic successes, which have oftentimes been left only for those who could afford it.
Most students that attend Khan’s Tutorial’s renowned SHSAT program come from low income households and school systems in the outer boroughs that fail to adequately prepare students for high school, college and beyond. Our program is an opportunity for these students to transform the trajectory of their academic and career successes by having them experience schools that challenge them mentally and encourage them to excel. Approximately 15–20% of incoming freshman students to Stuyvesant and Bronx Science come from our SHSAT program alone.
The SHSAT is the sole criteria for admissions into the 9 Specialized High Schools. Currently, in NYC, there are approximately 415 high schools, and the Specialized high Schools consistently rank in the upper echelon of all NYC high schools. Out of the 30, 000 8th grade students who take the exam, only 6,000 are accepted each year. Accepted students gain access to rigorous academics and access to the most competitive colleges and universities in the nation. The alumni of the Bronx High School for Science, for instance, boast 8 Nobel prize laureates.
For the actual SHSAT exam, students receive a raw score, which is then converted to a scaled score out of 800.
Below are the cutoff scores for the 2022 SHSATs:
- Stuyvesant High School – 563
- Bronx High School of Science – 524
- Brooklyn Technical High School – 506
- The Brooklyn Latin School – 497
- HSMSE at CCNY – 532
- HSAS at Lehman College – 516
- Queens Science at York College – 523
- Staten Island Technical High School – 527
Stuyvesant High School
Although Stuyvesant is recognized for its strength in STEM instruction, the school also has a diverse humanities program as well as educational opportunities outside of the classroom.
Stuyvesant offers advanced courses in many disciplines, including Multivariate Calculus, Software Development, Vertebrate Zoology, Organic Chemistry, Engineering, Genetics, Science Fiction, and Music.Competitions for Speech and Debate, Math, Writing, Science Olympiad, Robotics, Siemens, and Regeneron Science Talent Search.
Bronx High School of Science
The Bronx High School of Science educates an academically gifted community of learners through a rigorous STEM curriculum.
Bronx Science has 8 Nobel Prize winners amongst their alumni.
Drawing upon a long tradition of academic success, The Bronx High School of Science prepares students to flourish in the best colleges and universities, creating leaders and visionaries of the future.
Brooklyn Technical High School
Brooklyn Technical High School is the nation’s largest selective high school. The school is a national model for excellence and has a stimulating environment that fosters transformative learning and personal growth.
Through their STEM partners, the classrooms and labs are on par with university and industry standards. The Brooklyn Tech Alumni foundation is an incubator for student and faculty initiatives and new school programs.
The New Specialized High Schools
The New Specialized High Schools provide students with advanced curriculum with smaller class sizes stimulating students through rigorous STEM and Liberal Arts course work.
The schools that fall into this category are:
- The Brooklyn Latin School (Brooklyn)
- HSMSE at City College of New York (Harlem NYC)
- High School of American Studies at Lehman College (Bronx)
- Queens High School for the Sciences at York College (Jamaica Queens)
- Staten Island Technical High School (Staten Island)
Below is a chart of the number of Khan’s Tutorial SHSAT accepted students every year:
