How to Pick a School

1. Think about your child. What interests them? What are they great at? What is a challenge for them? Having the answers to these questions will help you better understand what you might be looking for in a school.
2. Identify what is most important to you & your student in a school. No school is perfect, & every school offers many different things. Think about the 2-3 things you care about the most when looking for a school & only consider schools that have those things. We encourage you to use the How to Pick a School Guide to help identify what is most important.
3. See what all your school options are & see which ones may be a fit. We believe that the Minneapolis School Finder is the place to start! Put your address into the search bar & select the grades you are looking for to see all school options for your child. You can then look at schools’ profiles to see which ones offer what is most important to you.
4. Visit and/or talk to a few schools. Nothing tells you more about a school than being in their building & talking to their staff. We encourage you to visit the schools you are most interested in, & at a minimum, talk to each school you are considering for your child. A great place to do this is at the annual Minneapolis School Finder Fair, which happens every January at Minneapolis College & has over 80% of Minneapolis Schools in attendance.
5. Apply to a few schools & enroll in one! It is always smart to apply to more than one school. We recommend applying to at least 2-3 schools to ensure your child has a seat in a school you are excited about next fall. On each school’s profile, in the ‘About’ section, there is a section called ‘How to enroll’. Follow the links to be brought to each school's application & enrollment instructions. After you are accepted to schools, decide which one you want your child to attend & only enroll your student in that one.

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