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In the dog-eat-dog world of New York City high school admissions, some eighth graders have figured out ways to get a leg up when it comes to the essays coveted schools require.
Some students turn to ChatGPT. Some hire writing tutors. Some have help from their parents.
Now, at least one school is trying to fight back against this tide: Manhattan’s Beacon High School tweaked its admissions process this year to require that applicants complete their essays in person rather than at home.
Beacon, which last year saw 4,210 applicants vie for 282 seats, is making the move due to concerns that students have been getting help on their essays from several sources, whether artificial intelligence, families, or paid tutors, educators at the school said.
“It became disheartening to see in the past couple of years, we’re reading things that don’t feel authentic,” said a Beacon teacher, who was not authorized to speak publicly about the change. The school’s teachers grade the application essays and increasingly found examples of “excellent” writing that garnered high scores under their grading system, but didn’t feel like they were written by 12- or 13-year-olds, the educator said.
The school posted a note about the shift on its website this weekend, and is expecting to soon share “several dates” in November for eighth graders to come to its campus to complete two 500-word essays. The school has already shared the essay prompts, along with the rubric on how the writing will be graded.
The high school application process runs from Oct. 7 through Dec. 5. Offers are expected to be sent March 5, 2026. Last year, the Education Department tweaked the process to allow students to rank an unlimited number of schools, which may have increased the number of students applying to Beacon.
Though the school didn’t yet mention how much time students will get, it mentioned that students with disabilities will receive extra time if they are entitled to such accommodations.
The school’s educators said the principal informed them of the change at a staff meeting last week. Beacon’s principal did not respond for comment.
The changes sent “shockwaves” through families of prospective high school applicants, said Elissa Stein, who runs High School 411, which aims to help families navigate the admissions process.
“While I always tell families that schools want to hear from kids in their own voices, no doubt some worked with tutors or coaches or had parent input in essay writing,” Stein said. “Having the essay take place in person can certainly cause anxiety for both parents and students, both from a content point of view but also it introduces performance stress.”
Requiring students to come in person can bring additional challenges, whether because of distance or availability — though it could help families understand the realities of the commute to the school.
Beacon also changed how much weight the essay carries for the application. The essay will now count for 50% of the application, with the rest based on grades from seventh grade core classes. Previously, the essay counted for 80%, Stein said.
“For students who didn’t have a strong random number, having an essay count for the majority of a rubric opened opportunities up to a wider range of students,” she said. “This is closing that door a bit.”
Beacon is not the first school to have in-person assessments. Pre-pandemic, the school conducted in-person interviews along with a pre-written essay for admissions, Stein said. Last year, the schools run by Bard Early College went back to in-person assessments.
Out of New York City’s roughly 700 programs at 400 public high schools, roughly two dozen use some criteria, such as essays, on top of students’ scores from seventh grade core classes. Nearly 24 schools have programs that require students to audition. And eight schools base admissions on the Specialized High School Admissions Test.
Last school year, multiple schools that require auditions or essays — including Beacon — emailed applicants asking them to resend materials, raising concerns that technical snafus may have prevented schools from viewing materials submitted by hundreds of students.
Amy Zimmer is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat New York. Contact Amy atazimmer@chalkbeat.org.
