Before PSLE

Secondary Schools' Open House

Some schools, particularly IP schools, hold their open houses between April and May to give students considering DSA the opportunity to explore their options. Even if you are not applying for DSA, attending these events can be beneficial. Visiting different schools provides valuable exposure and insight, even if they are not among your child's final six choices. It helps them understand what to look for in a school, assess its culture and environment, and may even serve as motivation to work harder for their PSLE.

If you're reading this and your child is still younger than Primary 6, I strongly encourage you to visit secondary schools' open houses as early as possible. The reason is that these open houses typically fall on the same few Saturdays, and there may not be enough time to visit all the schools you're interested in. Planning ahead will help you make the most of the opportunities.


After PSLE

Secondary Schools' Open House

After receiving prelim results and completing the PSLE, you and your child will have a better sense of their potential outcome. Take this opportunity to visit the open houses of your child’s dream school and schools near your home.

If you don’t plan to drive your child to school in the morning, consider taking public transport to the school to experience the actual commute. Note the route, travel time, and directions. Before heading out, you can also use apps like Google Maps or Citymapper to plan the journey in advance.


Things to know

It’s best to have a clear understanding of the following before selecting a secondary school:

  • Posting Groups 1-3 (similar to the former NT, NA, and Express streams).
  • Full Subject-Based Banding (FSBB): Students can take subjects at different standards —G1 (former NT standard), G2 (former NA standard), and G3 (former Express standard).
  • Differences between the Integrated Programme (IP) and O-Level Programme: IP leads to A-Levels or the IB, while the O-Level Programme prepares students for the O-Level exams.
  • SAP (Special Assistance Plan) Schools: What does it mean to be in a school that emphasize Chinese language and culture.
  • Your child’s interests and CCAs: Check if your shortlisted schools offer CCAs that align with your child's passions.

Having clarity on these factors will help ensure a well-informed and strategic choice.


Choosing Secondary School

PSLE Results Release Day can be both nerve-wracking and memorable. Before receiving the results, reassure your child that your love and support remain unchanged, no matter the outcome. Celebrate their results, regardless of whether they meet your expectations—it is a reflection of their hard work, and they will appreciate having their efforts recognized. Once the results are out, focus on carefully selecting the six school choices together.

2024 was a Dragon Year, and many schools saw their cut-off points drop by 1-3 points. While I somewhat expected this, it was still surprising. Many parents did not include a safety net school, resulting in their child being posted to a school outside their six choices.

It is risky not to have at least one school with a cut-off point at least three points above your child's PSLE score. While the Dragon Year was highly competitive, complacency should be avoided in the following years. Always include a safety net school—otherwise, if your child is posted to a school outside their choices, it may end up being one that is far from home.

Note:

Cut-off points fluctuate every year, and a common misconception is that they are determined by the schools themselves. In reality, schools have no control over their cut-off points. The cut-off points we see are based on the previous year's admissions and are provided only as a reference.

The actual cut-off for the current year is unknown until all students have been posted to their secondary schools, and will only be officially released on MOE website between late February - March. A cut-off point simply reflects the PSLE score of the last student admitted to a school. In some cases, if a school reaches full capacity at a specific score, balloting may occur. This means that even if the cut-off is, for example, 10 points, some students with the same score may not secure a place, even if they listed the school as their first choice.

Here’s a recommended strategy for selecting the six school choices. This is just a reference, not a fixed rule, but it’s important to be strategic.

Avoid placing schools with low cut-off points in the 5th or 6th slots. Some students list schools with cut-off points of 6-8 as their last two choices, which is ineffective and wastes valuable options. I strongly believe that the 5th and 6th choices should serve as safety net schools to ensure your child is not allocated to a leftover school outside their preferences.

Choice 1 School Cut-off point = PSLE Score -1 (If you have a dream school, take a shot)

Choice 2 School Cut-off point = PSLE Score

Choice 3 School Cut-off point = PSLE Score

Choice 4 School Cut-off point = PSLE Score + 1

Choice 5 School Cut-off point = PSLE Score + 2

Choice 6 School Cut-off point = PSLE Score + 3

Parents, I have seen children selecting and submitting their school choices without any strategy or careful consideration. I even came across a child who scored exceptionally well in the PSLE but was unaware that his dream school had dual tracks. He mistakenly entered the wrong school code, choosing the O-Level Programme instead of the Integrated Programme (IP), and only realized it when it was too late.

There have also been cases where children selected the wrong school code because the school names were similar. To avoid such mistakes, sit beside your child during the selection process and double-check that they have entered the correct school codes.