Townsend Harris is a screened public high school in Flushing, Queens. Families applying for ninth grade in fall 2027 apply through MySchools, and the whole process runs on a handful of fixed dates. This guide lists them in the order you will meet them, with what the school and NYC Public Schools say about each step.
The short version
The MySchools application opens Tuesday, October 6, 2026. It closes Friday, December 4, 2026. That same day is the deadline to submit the additional materials that screened programs with an assessment require. Townsend Harris is one of those programs, so its essay and video are due by December 4 as well. Offers are released Wednesday, March 3, 2027, after 3pm.
Those four facts shape everything else. The essay and video are not a separate application with a later date. They go in through MySchools, under Additional Materials, and the school reads them after the application closes.
Key dates for fall 2027 entry
| Date | What happens | | --- | --- | | Thursday, November 5, 2026 | Open house for students with IEPs, 5 to 7pm, registration requested | | Tuesday, November 10, 2026 | In-person open house, 5 to 7:30pm, no advance registration | | Friday, December 4, 2026 | Application closes, and essay and video are due | | Wednesday, March 3, 2027 | Offers released after 3pm |
What the open house is for
The school holds an in-person open house on Tuesday, November 10, 2026, from 5 to 7:30pm. You do not need to register in advance. A separate open house for students with IEPs, run by the school's Instructional Support Services team, is Thursday, November 5, 2026, from 5 to 7pm. That one asks families to register.
If you can only attend one event, go to the November 10 open house with your student. Ask what a typical week looks like, and listen to how the staff describe the Ephebic Oath, which every student swears and which the admissions questions are built around. You will have a much better sense of whether the school fits before you spend a weekend on the essay.
Work backward from December 4
December 4 is the only deadline that matters for the Grade 9 application, so plan from it. Here is one way to space the work. Adjust it to your student's schedule.
- Early November. Read the school's 2026-27 assessment questions together. They are published on a school Google Doc linked from its admissions criteria page. Decide who will help with what, and agree that your student writes the essay.
- Mid November. Draft the essay. It is a humanities response of 250 to 500 words, so a first draft takes an afternoon and a revision takes another.
- Late November. Film the video. The limit is 2 minutes, and it has to include an introduction and an answer to the school's question. Record it more than once, and watch it back for sound.
- First days of December. Upload both in MySchools. NYC Public Schools publishes tips for troubleshooting uploads on its High School webpage, under Additional Requirements. Do not leave the upload for the last evening.
How grades fit in
Townsend Harris weighs average course grades at 60% of the Grade 9 assessment. The essay counts 20% and the video counts 20%. Grades are the largest piece, and they are already set by the time the application opens. That is one reason the essay and video deserve calm, steady effort. They are the part your student can still shape.
NYC Public Schools also places screened applicants into groups using the average of final 7th-grade core course grades in English, math, science and social studies. Families can see their child's group in MySchools under Edit profile while the application is open. The citywide minimum averages for fall 2027 are 94.67 for Group 1, 90.33 for Group 2, 84.00 for Group 3 and 77.25 for Group 4. To learn the averages at your child's own school, ask that school once the application period begins.
The pages we reviewed do not explain how the 60% grades component is calculated or how it combines with the group system. We would rather say that than guess. If it matters to your decision, ask the school directly.
The Diversity in Admissions Initiative
Townsend Harris takes part in the Diversity in Admissions Initiative. Applicants eligible for free or reduced-cost lunch are considered first for 50% of seats. For the remaining 50% of seats, all students are considered. There is nothing extra to submit for this. Eligibility is determined by NYC Public Schools.
If your student wants Grade 10
The school also admits students for tenth grade. Those applicants do not submit an essay or video. They are placed in groups by the average of their final 8th-grade core course grades, and offers go in group order. When a group has more applicants than seats, a random number assigned to each application decides.
After the deadline
Once the application closes, the school evaluates all essays and videos. Offers come out on March 3, 2027, after 3pm. There is nothing to do in between except keep your MySchools account in good order and check that your student's other choices are ranked the way you intend.
Where to look for updates
Dates can change. Check the school's admissions criteria page and the NYC Public Schools High School webpage before each step. NYC Public Schools also holds family information sessions, including one on Tuesday, November 10 from 6 to 7pm in Mandarin and one on Monday, November 23 from 5 to 6pm in English with interpretation.
If you would like help thinking through your own student's situation, the EduAvenues high school admissions page is a good place to start, and you can write to us through the contact page.
Sources
- Townsend Harris Admissions Criteria
- Townsend Harris Open House and Events
- NYC Public Schools: Screened Admissions
- NYC Public Schools: Assessments for Screened Schools
TownsendHarrisPrep by EduAvenues is an independent service, not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Townsend Harris High School.