Post primary admissions Northern Ireland, that’s what we are going to be talking about today. By now if your child sat the transfer test in 2023, they have got their results. Now it’s time for the next step in the transfer test process, which is applying for ‘big school!’ If this is your first time making a secondary school application, don’t worry, I’m here to lay it out for you in an easy, step-by-step way. If this isn’t your first rodeo, I’ll be here anyway. I’ll make sure you have all the details you need about the 2024 application process. Applying for your little one’s secondary school can be scary, emotional, and exciting. You will probably feel all the emotions as this process begins. It’s the next step of their educational journey. I’m here so you can have all the information you need in one place.
Do you have a child who’s in Primary 6, just about to start their transfer test journey? If so, here is a little bonus treat for you to get started. My FREE SEAG Practice Paper and Teaching Guide is designed so you can take ownership of your child’s transfer test preparation. Use the step-by-step teaching guide to work through those tricky questions with your child without having to ‘Google’ how to find the answers! Click here to download!
What happens next with post primary admissions Northern Ireland?
Your child has received their results and it’s time to talk about schools! Let’s talk through the next steps of the transfer test process which is choosing a secondary school. If your child got the result they expected, remember this does not guarantee a place in their favourite school. Although, fingers crossed it does! If your child is disappointed with their result, don’t worry. There are plenty of schools out there where they can be happy. If you are still a bit confused about what your child’s transfer rest result means, check out my blog post, ‘Your child’s transfer test results explained. What does your child’s result mean?’ Here are my top 5 tips for completing your child’s post primary admissions Northern Ireland.
School Open Events
By now your child may have been to some secondary school open days or nights. They may have even gone to a few in Primary 6, which I highly recommend. My top tip for school open events is to go and see everywhere! You never know which school your child will take a liking to. It’s best to keep their options open. Just think of all the teas, coffees and shortbreads you will get from attending all of these events! You can check out a list of school open days and nights for 2024 here.
What happens at school open events?
If you have never been to a school open event before, well it’s much more than just free tea, coffee and shortbread! The school is showing you the best of their school. This may look like their sports facilities, home economics department, art department or outdoor areas. There will be a room or area set up for each curricular area. Some rooms will even have demonstrations which your child can take part in. I will never forget making slime in the science rooms and keyrings in the technology and design department when I went to school open events. The school principal usually gives a talk about the school as well. Open events are designed to give your child a wee taster of what it would be like to go to school there.
Your child’s result isn’t enough for their favourite school
If your child had their heart set on a particular school and you don’t think their transfer test result will get them a place, go and see other schools that you think may accept their results. Whenever I was in Primary 7, I had my heart set on Friends School. I didn’t want to see anywhere else because this was going to be my school. My mum insisted I went to see Hunterhouse because her friend from work was serving the tea and coffee there. So dragging my heels and huffing, I went along to see the school. Of course, what happened? I absolutely loved the school and ended up putting it as my first choice!
If your child’s result doesn’t get them a place in a grammar school, this isn’t a reason to panic or think they “won’t do as well.” Just read my blog post, Is the Transfer Test NI the Best Path for Your Child’s Education? Here I talk about my grammar school journey vs my brother’s secondary school journey. Spoiler alert, we both ended up with Postgraduate degrees!
Make a list and check it twice!
Before applying for a school, check each school’s admissions criteria. The same goes for discarding a school from your child’s application because you think they might not get in. Check, check and check it again. My top tip for this is to make a list of all your child’s favourite schools and match up your child’s results and other factors such as position in the family or if another child goes to the school. Remember, schools will only use this admissions criteria if the school is oversubscribed. So they may still be in with a chance. To make your life a little bit easier, I have made a checklist for you! You just need to add the school details to it! Sign up here to get the checklist sent straight to your inbox!
Post primary admissions date: When do the applications for post-primary open and close?
The post primary admissions date that you must add to your diary are the open and close dates for the applications. It is extremely important to get your child’s application in on time. The Education Authority (EA) is very clear that applications received after the closing date will be marked late. So save the following graphic on your phone, put it as your screensaver and set alarms so you aren’t a late applicant.
Post-Primary Applications Open Date
The post-primary applications open on Tuesday the 30th of January 2024 at noon. Applications will be made via an online portal on the EA website. If this is your first time making a secondary school, make sure you submit all of the information and supporting documents that the schools ask for. If this isn’t your first time making a secondary school application, still read all of the information carefully in case anything has changed. You would be so annoyed with yourself if your child’s application is rejected due to information or documents being missing or input incorrectly.
Post-Primary Applications Closing Date
The online applications will close on Thursday the 22nd of February 2024 at noon. This means the application portal is open for 23 days only. You have 23 days to get your documents in order and the application completed. It may sound like a lot of time, but time goes fast. Check you have all the documents you need well in advance. Do not leave it until the night before. You don’t want to be running around looking for your child’s birth certificate at one in the morning! As I said above the EA are very strict about this deadline and applications after this date will be marked as late.
I’m late, I’m late for a very important date!
I didn’t want to include this section because I don’t want any of you to have a late application. However, I understand that things happen in life and if you have a genuine reason for your application being late because of family issues or illness, for example, contact the EA first before submitting a late application. You can contact the EA via this email address [email protected] or give them a call on 028 9598 5595.
If you are submitting a late application because you forgot about it, well, not to be rude but that’s your fault. Take ownership of your mistake and don’t dwell on it too much. But please set a reminder on your phone to stop this happening. If your child’s application is received after the 22nd of February but before the 4th of March, their application will be marked as late. Some schools will give applicants who applied on time priority, even if your child got a higher result than them. You can check each school’s criteria for late applications on their post primary school admissions criteria Northern Ireland.
If your application does not get sent by Monday the 4th of March 2024, their application won’t be looked at until the end of the application process which is Saturday the 18th of May. This is the date when all of your child’s friends will be finding out which school they got into. So get those applications in on time!
Post Primary Admissions Northern Ireland: How to apply
Now that you’ve got those dates added to your diary, set as alarms on your phone and have post-it notes stuck on your fridge it’s time to talk about how you make the application. Your child’s primary school should have sent out a ‘Applying for a Year 8 Post Primary Place.’ But if they haven’t you can download the leaflet here. I will also list the steps for you below. Remember, even if your child did not sit the transfer test, you still need to apply for their post-primary place.
Step 1: Register or Login
The first thing you need to do is click the ‘Apply Now’ button on the EA website which will take you to EA Connect. Here you will need to register if this is your first application or log in if you have made an application previously for another child. If you can’t remember your password just click the reset password link. Don’t worry we’ve all been there! After you register or log in you may have to verify yourself with a link sent to the email address you have registered with.
Step 2: Data Protection Statement
Once you have successfully logged in you must accept the Data Protection Statement which will appear on your screen. To move forward with the application you will need to click the ‘Admissions’ button which should appear after you have accepted the Data Protection Statement.
Step 3: Add your Child’s Details
The first piece of information you will add here is your child’s details which will include their name, date of birth and current address. To do this, you will need to click the ‘Add Child’ button. Once you have added your child’s details you must click the ‘Apply Now’ button to proceed with the rest of the application. If you move house during the application process, you must let EA know. Do not put a child’s minder’s or family member’s address. It must be the address where your child is currently living.
Step 4: Add School Details & Choices
Before you add your child’s post-primary choices, you need to add their current primary school details. Next, you will add your child’s post primary choices. You will need to add information that each school asks for in their admissions criteria. This is where the checklist you made will come in handy. EA recommends that you add at least four schools in the choices section and at least one non-grammar school choice. Just in case!
When you are inserting your child’s post-primary choices, there will be a section where you can indicate if a sibling already attends the school. If this is the case you must list the name or names of the siblings that attend.
If your child is an only child or is the eldest child in the family, you must also tick the relevant box to highlight this information. Twins that are applying can be marked as joint eldest.
Step 5: Upload Supporting Documents
This is a very important step! You will need to upload your child’s birth certificate and any other documents that the schools you have applied for ask for in their criteria. Remember you can check each post primary school admissions criteria Northern Ireland here.
Step 6: Check all details
Once you have completed your child’s application, make sure you check all details on the Application Summary. Here you can edit or change any information if needed. Triple-check that you have added all the relevant information that a school has asked for and added all the supporting documents. If this is not fully completed, this can result in the school not offering your child a place.
Step 7: Submit your application
Once you are 100% happy with your child’s application, click ‘Continue’. You will be asked to confirm the Terms and Conditions and then click ‘Submit.’ Once you have applied you will receive an email confirmation of the submission.
After your child’s application is submitted, you can view or edit their application up until the closing date which is Thursday the 22nd of February 2024.
Special Circumstances and Provisions
Special circumstances refer to any medical or other issues which may have affected your child’s performance in the SEAG tests. If this applies to your child, there will be a list of what supporting documentation must be uploaded. You need to check with each school to see what they accept as supporting documentation for this.
Special provisions apply to pupils who have moved from another country to Northern Ireland. If more than half of their education took place outside Northern Ireland, they will need to contact each post primary school they apply to about this.
When do you find out what post-primary school your child got into?
An email will be sent out confirming which post-primary school your child got a place in on Saturday the 18th of May 2024. This information will also be available online via EA Connect. Make sure you check your spam folders just in case any emails go there on that date. Some post-primary schools will also send a letter out on that day welcoming the new student to the school and give brief details about Year 8.
What should you do if your child does not get into the school they wanted?
If your child did not get into the school that they hoped to, unfortunately, there is not much you can do. If your child received the result that should have gotten them into the school, chances are that the school was oversubscribed for that particular year. In the case that a school is oversubscribed, it will need to move on to the next point in its admissions criteria. If this is something that will niggle away at your mind, you can get in contact with the school to see which post primary school admissions criteria Northern Ireland, used.
Your child may be disappointed and you might as well, but your child will get into the school that they are meant to go to. I am a great believer in the saying, “We are all right where we are meant to be.” Not to get too preachy here but it’s true! At first, a situation can make you feel upset or you might be wondering why something didn’t work out the way you wanted to. But everything works out in the end.
Don’t worry, your child will be amazing!
A few years ago, I was working in a school where I just didn’t fit in. I dreaded going in but I kept thinking, “Hey it’s a full-time job Kerry, just deal with it.” When I was told to move on from that job and work in another school, I was so upset, nervous and completely out of my comfort zone. What happened? Long story short, I worked with someone who became one of my best friends!
If I hadn’t been told there was no work anymore for me in that first school, I would never have met this new person in my life who brings me so much joy and laughter. I tell you this story to say, your child will do amazing no matter what school they go to. At first, it might not be how you or your child thought it was going to turn out. But they will meet great friends, learn new skills, make memories and have fun along the way.
Post Primary Appeals Process
If you are unhappy about your child’s school placement, you can start an appeals process. To begin this process, you will need to access the appeals form for post-primary on the EA website.
More Information on Post Primary Admissions
Is the Transfer Test NI the Best Path for Your Child’s Education?
Applying for a Post Primary Year 8 Place
Transfer to a post-primary school
I hope I have helped explain the post-primary applications process for you. Remember, get your applications and supporting evidence uploaded nice and early. You don’t want to miss any deadlines or feel stressed as the deadline approaches. Use my checklist to note down the admissions criteria and what supporting documentation is needed by each school. This may take a bit of time now, but when it comes to sitting down and submitting the application, this will be a game changer! Good luck with your post primary admissions Northern Ireland.
