Frequently Asked Questions

SFUSD uses school choice as a way to help create diverse learning environments and give each family the opportunity to apply to schools anywhere in the city. Each applicant submits a ranked list of their preferred choices. If there are no space limitations, students are assigned to their highest ranked choice. If more students request a particular school than there are seats available, then the assignment process uses a series of preferences, called tiebreakers, and random numbers to assign students to the limited number of openings.

View this video for a detailed overview of the student assignment system.

Find more information at the SFUSD Student Assignment Policy webpage.

The Main Round application window for the 2025-26 school year is October 18, 2024 through January 31, 2025. Submit your application by January 31, 2025 to give your student the best chance possible of getting into your preferred schools. View the important dates in the enrollment timeline here.

Visit sfusd.edu/apply for a complete overview of the application process.

Submit your application

Select one of the following ways to submit your SY 2025-26 application. 

1. Create or use your ParentVUE account to apply online. Visit sfusd.edu/onlineapp to get started.
2. Complete a paper application in an Enrollment Center office. 
3. Download, fill out, and email a PDF application to enrollinschool@sfusd.edu. English | Español | 中文 | Tagalog | العربي | Tiếng Việt | Gagana Sāmoa

Required documents

All new applicants must provide copies of their required documents when the application is submitted. 

• Parent or guardian picture ID
• Proof of address in San Francisco
• Proof of birth for the student

Current SFUSD students only need to provide a copy of the Parent or Guardian ID when the application is submitted.

Applicants who submit their application by the Main Round deadline of January 31, 2025 will receive their school assignment the week of March 17, 2025. School assignments will be mailed to each applicant's, and posted in ParentVUE under the Documents section. The Enrollment Center will send text and email messages to notify you when school assignments are viewable.

If you do not apply before the Main Round deadline, you will be able to submit a Wait List application beginning February 1, 2025. Seats will be offered to students on waitlists beginning April 21, 2025, based on which spaces are available at that time. Open Enrollment also begins on April 21 — families can enroll immediately into any school that has open seats and no waitlists.

• You can view your school assignment letter online through ParentVUE, in the Documents tab, beginning March 17, 2025.
• You were also mailed a school assignment letter on or around March 17, 2025 via USPS mail.
• ParentVUE will update in July 2025 to reflect your student's school enrollment for the 2025-26 school year.

Your assignment letter will include instructions about whether you need to Accept or Decline, and how you can do so.

Starting with the 2025-26 school year, applicants only need to apply ONCE, by January 31, 2025, listing their preferred schools in order. (We used to have a series of applications and deadlines called "Rounds," which we will not have anymore.) When assignments are shared in March, applicants who did not receive their top choice school will be automatically placed onto the waitlists for their top-choice schools, up to 5 schools, without having to re-apply. Applicants will be able to wait on several schools’ waitlists (rather than having to pick just one waitlist choice like they did in the past). 

Late applicants who do not apply by January 31 will be allowed to join the end of waitlists. We will collect those applications starting February 1. While late applicants are behind on-time applicants on Wait Lists, they will be placed into a school with open space starting in April 2025.

As soon as seats become available at schools — based on other students declining, withdrawing, or transferring away — we will offer open seats to students on the waitlist, moving from top to bottom. 

Families who cannot attend their assigned school due to unique hardships such as medical or family situations may file for a Medical or Hardship Appeal. Appeals are considered only for cases where the student’s needs cannot be met at the assigned school.

Interdistrict transfer applications are due on January 31, 2025. Interdistrict permits may be submitted until 2/17/2025. Interdistrict students who submit their documents on time are eligible to receive a school assignment as early as March 2025.

Interdistrict students with applications or permits submitted later will be processed in late-June. Families will receive an assignment letter in the mail on a rolling basis after their documents are processed.

New students can enroll into any SFUSD school that has an open seat and no pending transfer requests from current SFUSD students.

To enroll a new student during the school year, we recommend coming in-person to the Enrollment Center office. You need to complete the application to provide the student and parent/guardian information; and you need to submit the required documents before enrolling. 

Alternatively, you can complete the Current Year Enrollment application using the Online Forms Portal within ParentVUE. In order to select a school that has openings for your student, you will need to call 415-241-6085 to speak with an enrollment counselor. Or, we will call you after processing your submitted application.

IMPORTANT: Ruth Asawa School of the Arts (SOTA) and Lowell High School have different application processes and deadlines. The deadline to apply to Lowell High School General Education, or to Ruth Asawa SOTA for 2024-25 has passed, and those schools are not available for current year enrollment.

To promote stability and continuity for students and teachers, there are restrictions on when students can transfer schools during the school year. Typically, students can only transfer during Open Enrollment, which is a period of about two weeks at the start of the school year and in the middle of the school year (around Winter Break). Additionally, students can submit a Spring Transfer application by the November deadline to request a transfer to a new school beginning after Winter Break. Check the Key Enrollment Dates for specific deadlines.   

Students can also be eligible for transfer outside of regular transfer windows if they meet one of the conditions for transfer eligibility.

The Enrollment Center Main Office is open from Monday through Friday, 8:00 am to 4:30 pm. 

Enrollment Center (EC) Main Office
555 Franklin Street, Room 100
San Francisco, CA 94102

The EC Southeast Office is only open on Thursday, 8:00 am to 4:30 pm. 

Enrollment Center (EC) Southeast 
1520 Oakdale Avenue, Room 13
San Francisco, CA 94124

The Enrollment Center phone line is open from Monday through Friday, 8:00 am to 4:30 pm: 415-241-6085. We are reachable by email at enrollinschool@sfusd.edu.

Both offices and the phone line will be closed one Thursday each month from 8:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. for staff professional development training. See the schedule of office closures on the Contact Us page.

You can change your:

• Home Address, 
• Student Name or Parent/Guardian Name, 
• Race/Ethnicity, or
• Phone Numbers

by completing this online Change of Information Form. You can also download the form from our Applications and Forms page and mail it with required proof. Any changes made to your address requires proof. Please see here for a list of acceptable proofs of home address.

Updating your contact information in Family Portal (ParentVUE) ensures that you get school phone, email and text notifications; it's also a way to view, accept, and decline your school assignment. 

Please see this page on how to update your information in Family Portal (ParentVUE).

You can also watch a video on how to update your information. The videos is available in English, Espanol, 中文.

If you need more help, call us at 415-241-6085 or email enrollinschool@sfusd.edu.

ParentVUE is SFUSD's family portal, which offers secure, private access to your student's school information, including grades, attendance, and communications from the school and district. 

• ParentVUE can be accessed at sfusd.edu/onlineapp. You can learn more about ParentVUE here.
• Help Videos: HERE
• For help accessing your ParentVUE account, call 415-340-1716 or email familylink@sfusd.edu.