12 Aug 2020
Balloting results is finally out today.  Apparently there is another day&#8217;s worth of online subscription aka. &#8220;online form&#8221; which we didn&#8217;t expect to be anything important since this year&#8217;s registration is all online, and boy, were we wrong!
A total of 100 (out of 186) schools were oversubscribed, with most requiring balloting and a few cut-offs.  These are highlighted in the table below.  Many of those schools required balloting for Singaporeans within 1km of the schools.
Princess Elizabeth Primary is the most oversubscribed at 595%.  It has blown past the consistent leader South View Primary which was lowered to 535% as some parents wisely withdrew from the crazy competition.  The schools below list schools oversubscribed by 300% and more:
<ul>
<li>Princess Elizabeth Primary (595%)</li>
<li>South View Primary (535%)</li>
<li>Nan Hua Primary (523%)</li>
<li>Rosyth (470%)</li>
<li>Northland Primary (439%)</li>
<li>Gongshang Primary (433%)</li>
<li>Nanyang Primary (390%)</li>
<li>Temasek Primary (379%)</li>
<li>Rulang Primary (370%)</li>
<li>Tao Nan (357%)</li>
<li>Radin Mas Primary (326%)</li>
<li>Pei Chun Public (324%)</li>
<li>Chongfu Primary (324%)</li>
<li>Ai Tong (320%)</li>
<li>Sengkang Green Primary (319%)</li>
<li>Nan Chiau Primary (313%)</li>
<li>Frontier (309%)</li>
<li>Pei Hwa Presbyterian Primary (300%)</li>
</ul>
Nearly all of these schools have no increase in their cohort this year.  It&#8217;s as if the Ministry is intentionally letting them go into balloting and taking care of those unlucky ones who got out-balloted in the final Phase 2C(S), since the remaining schools have large increases in their cohorts this year.  Perhaps this is smart since the competition for good schools will always be there, but it does make the earlier stages a lot more competitive as many parents would want to try their luck knowing that they will still have some chance down the road.
For those going for the balloting, best of luck!  Otherwise, let us continue in the next Phase 2C(S), which is also the last Phase where citizens and PRs have some autonomy before the Ministry steps in to make the decision.
5 Aug 2020
Today is the FINAL day of Phase 2C.  85 schools were oversubscribed and will not participate in the final Phase 2C(S).   Please look at the table at the bottom of this post for details.
Most schools followed last year&#8217;s in-take in terms of over subscription.  Some schools such as Fengshan Primary and Opera Estate Primary in Bedok escaped balloting but has only 1 place left for Phase 2C(S)!  A small group of parents have withdrawn from applying to some schools, which are noted by a decrease from Day 2 to Day 3, eg. Bukit Panjang Primary, which went from 89 to 87 applicants.  But, these are still too little to prevent the schools from being oversubscribed.
The following are schools with have been oversubscribed by at least 300%:
<ul>
<li>South View Primary (550%)</li>
<li>Nan Hua Primary (523%)</li>
<li>Rosyth (450%)</li>
<li>Northland Primary (431%)</li>
<li>Gongshang Primary (420%)</li>
<li>Temasek Primary (389%)</li>
<li>Princess Elizabeth Primary (368%)</li>
<li>Tao Nan (357%)</li>
<li>Rulang Primary (345%)</li>
<li>Radin Mas Primary (336%)</li>
<li>Pei Chun Public (324%)</li>
<li>Nanyang Primary (320%)</li>
<li>Sengkang Green Primary (314%)</li>
<li>St Hilda&#8217;s Primary (314%)</li>
<li>Chongfu Primary (307%)</li>
<li>Nan Chiau Primary (301%)</li>
<li>Frontier Primary (300%)</li>
</ul>
South View Primary is undoubtedly the hottest school in this year&#8217;s Phase 2C registration.  Most of the other schools are Tier-1 schools like Nan Hua Primary and Rosyth but it is refreshing to see a &#8220;neighborhood&#8221; school get this type of endorsement.  MOE seems to be making good progress in their every school a good school mantra.
What remains is the information on balloting.  But you can be sure that every school highlighted in pink will NO LONGER have any more vacancies for Phase 2C(S)!
4 Aug 2020
Today is the 2nd day of Phase 2C.  Thankfully, MOE has managed to update the numbers before 11pm :).
However, 71 schools have reached capacity and will most likely need to ballot or is cut off.  Also, a number of schools have reached demand over 4 times the available spaces in the schools!  The following schools are those that have been oversubscribed by at least 300%:
<ul>
<li>South View Primary (454%)</li>
<li>Nan Hua Primary (450%)</li>
<li>Rosyth (410%)</li>
<li>Northland Primary (404%)</li>
<li>Gongshang Primary (385%)</li>
<li>Temasek Primary (354%)</li>
<li>Tao Nan (333%)</li>
<li>Rulang Primary (325%)</li>
<li>Pei Chun Public (310%)</li>
</ul>
Southview Primary is continuing to dominate the situation, but the older Tier-1 schools like Nanhua Primary and Rosyth are still in very high demand.
Of interest is the 2020-2019 column in the table below.  It shows the difference between this year&#8217;s applicants versus last year&#8217;s.  A negative value means the uptake is lower this year compared to last year.  A positive value means the opposite, and that the demand will be higher this year.  For example, Temasek Primary in Bedok has 44 more applicants this year than last year, with no increase in cohort size.  That is very competitive indeed!
Tomorrow is the final day of Phase 2C registration.  Apparently, many families are betting on getting their kids into the supposedly excellent schools, thinking that there is still Phase 2C(S) to fall back on should they fail to secure a place in Phase 2C.  However, remember that there is STILL balloting in Phase 2C(S)!  It might be better to go for your 2nd choice now in Phase 2C instead of going through balloting in Phase 2C(S).
3 Aug 2020
Today is the first day of Phase 2C.  A number of schools have been oversubscribed already, even though there are 2 more days to the registration.
The following schools have been oversubscribed by over 200%.  They are listed in decreasing order:
<ul>
<li>South View Primary (285%)</li>
<li>Rosyth (260%)</li>
<li>Northland Primary (253%)</li>
<li>Rulang Primary (245%)</li>
<li>Gongshang Primary (235%)</li>
<li>Princess Elizabeth Primary (224%)</li>
<li>Nan Hua Primary (214%)</li>
</ul>
These schools are on dangerous territory because if most applicants are within 1km of the school, it would mean they will all have to ballot for a place in the school, so the over subscription rate would apply!
Other than Rosyth and Nanhua Primary, the traditionally high response to the tier-1 schools have been rather muted so far.  For example, CHIJ St Nicholas&#8217; Girls Primary is still open with a couple of places left, though not for long, I&#8217;m afraid.
The table has been updated with Day 1&#8217;s information.  It is good to see schools such as Hua Min Primary in Yishun receiving an increase in cohort of 70 vacancies so it might be able to escape balloting in Phase 2C this year.
We will continue to update the table as MOE updates the results tomorrow (at 11pm?!) and Wednesday.
30 July 2020
Phase 2C is almost about to begin!  It starts next Monday to Wednesday.  This is the practically free-for-all phase in this year&#8217;s P1 Registration Exercise, and based on the situation so far, it is likely to be a very competitive stage.  The intent of this post is to highlight the REAL difficulty of getting your child into some schools, so that you go in with your eyes wide open instead of just going for the school nearest to you and hoping for the best.
In the table below, we have placed last year&#8217;s (2019) intake for Phase 2C, along with this year&#8217;s (2020) remaining Vacancies.  Schools which had to ballot in last year&#8217;s Phase 2C are highlighted.  We just want to show you what to expect, come registration day.  Of course the outcome might be different, but based on our monitoring (over 10 years) so far, the numbers are generally predictable.
<div>                  <a href="https://www.thelearninglab.com.sg/prepare-for-primary-1/?utm_source=partnerships_tll_20tlllgp1reg _banner__ksp_p1regarticle" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img onerror="kspReplaceCdn(this)" decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="alignnone wp-image-87255" src="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/files/u170058/TLL_p1reg2020_kspbanner.gif" alt="The Learning Lab" width="300" height="300" /></a>      <a href="https://www.mindchamps.org/enrichment/primary-1-registration?utm_source=ksp&amp;utm_medium=banner&amp;utm_campaign=p1_reg&amp;utm_content=banner_1" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img onerror="kspReplaceCdn(this)" decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="alignnone wp-image-87257 size-full" src="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/files/u170058/P1-2021-KSP-Ad-1.jpg" alt="Eye Level" width="250" height="250" /></a>                         </div>
For example in the first group of Ang Mo Kio schools, Anderson Primary was oversubscribed last year with 88 students.  This year, it has only 38 vacancies left.  Chance of over subscription this year is pretty high.  CHIJ St Nicholas Girls&#8217; is even worst.  There were 44 subscribers last year and this year, only 20 vacancies are available.  Teck Ghee Primary is better off this year, though.  It has 30 additional places added to its Cohort this year, so it might be able to stay available if the demand remains the same at 86.
If you wish to have a stress-free Exercise, our advice is for you to go for schools in your area that do NOT require balloting in Phase 2C.  Note that some of these schools are very likely to require balloting in the next and final Phase 2C(Supplementary).  So why not just get your child in by this Phase instead of going for another nail-biting Phase?
We will be continuously monitoring the Exercise, so stay tuned!
<img onerror="kspReplaceCdn(this)" decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-89846" src="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/files/u3/2020Phase2C-5-800x3817.png" alt="" width="800" height="3817" srcset="https://wp.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/files/u3/2020Phase2C-5-800x3817.png 800w, https://wp.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/files/u3/2020Phase2C-5-320x1527.png 320w, https://wp.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/files/u3/2020Phase2C-5-322x1536.png 322w, https://wp.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/files/u3/2020Phase2C-5-429x2048.png 429w, https://wp.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/files/u3/2020Phase2C-5.png 884w" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" />

Oversubscription in Phase 2C of the P1 registration Exercise for 2021 Intake

28 July 2020
MOE has finally released Phase 2B results.
Tao Nan remained the highest oversubscribed school at 265%.  It is amongst 13 schools that require balloting below 1km.   4 schools require balloting between 1-2km of the school, and 5 schools need balloting outside of 2km.  Kuo Chuan Presbyterian Primary applicants staying within 2km need not ballot, while CHIJ Primary (Toa Payoh) has only an exact number of places for those staying within 1km of the school.
So far, only Singapore citizens apply for this Phase.
Nan Hua Primary surprisingly did not require balloting this year, although it is very close to doing so (95%).  St Hilda&#8217;s Primary was also surprising this year, being way oversubscribed compared to last year.  Gongshang Primary and Radin Mas Primary applicants can breathe a sigh of relief as the applicants just matched the number of vacancies for this Phase!
<div>                  <a href="https://www.thelearninglab.com.sg/prepare-for-primary-1/?utm_source=partnerships_tll_20tlllgp1reg _banner__ksp_p1regarticle" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img onerror="kspReplaceCdn(this)" decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="alignnone wp-image-87255" src="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/files/u170058/TLL_p1reg2020_kspbanner.gif" alt="The Learning Lab" width="300" height="300" /></a>      <a href="https://www.mindchamps.org/enrichment/primary-1-registration?utm_source=ksp&amp;utm_medium=banner&amp;utm_campaign=p1_reg&amp;utm_content=banner_1" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img onerror="kspReplaceCdn(this)" decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="alignnone wp-image-87257 size-full" src="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/files/u170058/P1-2021-KSP-Ad-1.jpg" alt="Eye Level" width="250" height="250" /></a>                         </div>
<div> </div>
23 July 2020
Today marks the first day of Phase 2B, a Phase reserved for those with deep interest in the school or its affiliates.  It is also the final Phase before the &#8220;free-for-all&#8221; Phase 2C where everyone can vie for their schools of interest.  For those with no special relationship to the school, the best way to get into this Phase is to become a Parent Volunteer, or PV.  But that takes time &#8211; you have to register your interest a year ago and spend at least 40 hours doing &#8220;volunteering&#8221; tasks for the school &#8211; so it&#8217;s not for the faint-hearted.
From the experience of Phase 2A(2), it seems quite a number of parents hold back until the last day before registering, so do take this analysis with a pinch of salt.  However, it would seem that parents are ONLY waiting before they commit, so the final numbers are only going to be higher than what they are now.  If a school is oversubscribed now, it is a safe bet the competition will intensify tomorrow!
A total of 21 schools are oversubscribed (marked in pink) with Tao Nan the most oversubscribed at 240%!  Nanyang Primary, Gongshang Primary and Chongfu Primary are fully subscribed at 100%, and are likely to get oversubscribed tomorrow.
We will update you as soon as MOE releases the information.
<img onerror="kspReplaceCdn(this)" decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-89430" src="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/files/u3/2020Phase2B-2.png" alt="" width="734" height="4201" srcset="https://wp.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/files/u3/2020Phase2B-2.png 734w, https://wp.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/files/u3/2020Phase2B-2-320x1831.png 320w, https://wp.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/files/u3/2020Phase2B-2-358x2048.png 358w" sizes="(max-width: 734px) 100vw, 734px" />

P1 Registration 2020 for 2021: Phase 2B

20 July 2020
MOE has released the Day 2 information, and the results is stunning.  There is a new lot of schools featuring balloting this year in Phase 2A(2) this year.  The consolation is that none of the schools require balloting within 1km of the school, and one even offers balloting for PRs.
Most of the schools have even more applicants in Day 2 compared with Day 1, with less than 5 having no change from Day 1 to Day 2.  Temasek Primary has 1 more applicant, having the highest Application rate (APP) of 346%, followed closely by Ai Tong at 322%.   As predicted earlier, Red Swastika and Westwood Primary was oversubscribed, but the surprise is that Yu Neng Primary, Princess Elizabeth Primary, Radin Mas Primary, Gongshang Primary, St Hilda&#8217;s Primary, and Pei Chun Public all required balloting for the first time in Phase 2A(2).
A couple of schools: Frontier Primary and Tao Nan managed to just fill their Phase 2A(2) vacancies without requiring balloting.
It looks like the P1 Registration this year is going to be nail biting!  For those looking at the table, check out those schools with a low Take Up Rate (TUR) if you wish to have a less competitive Exercise.  Schools with TURs of more than 80% will definitely require balloting in Phase 2C.
18 July 2020
The registration part of Phase 2A(2) is over.  MOE has not yet released Day 2 information for this Phase, but we already see some schools that need to ballot, as expected.  The four schools that were oversubscribed in Phase 2A(1) are not available for this Phase, but we have listed them in the table as grayed entries for completeness.  They are CHIJ St Nicholas Girls, Pei Hwa Presbyterian Primary, Nan Hua Primary, and Rosyth.
The schools that MAY need to ballot in Phase 2A(2) are listed in pink in the table.  We would caution that the data is still not yet confirmed and some schools may have last minute changes and we will update the information as it becomes available.
Off the cuff, it seemed like Temasek Primary, Ai Tong, Catholic High, Henry Park, and Rulang Primary are going to need balloting in Phase 2A(2).  Among these schools, Temasek Primary is the most oversubscribed at 338%.  This rather surprising piece of news is an indication that the school has finally come of age, being recognised for its excellent work on its students in the last few years.  The rest of the schools are traditional Tier-1 schools, which is actually rather muted this year in terms of Take Up Rate (TUR).  Maybe MOE&#8217;s effort in defusing interest in these schools is slowly paying off!
<div>                  <a href="https://www.thelearninglab.com.sg/prepare-for-primary-1/?utm_source=partnerships_tll_20tlllgp1reg _banner__ksp_p1regarticle" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img onerror="kspReplaceCdn(this)" decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="alignnone wp-image-87255" src="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/files/u170058/TLL_p1reg2020_kspbanner.gif" alt="The Learning Lab" width="300" height="300" /></a>      <a href="https://www.mindchamps.org/enrichment/primary-1-registration?utm_source=ksp&amp;utm_medium=banner&amp;utm_campaign=p1_reg&amp;utm_content=banner_1" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img onerror="kspReplaceCdn(this)" decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="alignnone wp-image-87257 size-full" src="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/files/u170058/P1-2021-KSP-Ad-1.jpg" alt="Eye Level" width="250" height="250" /></a>                         </div>
<div> </div>
It should also be noted that all these schools have maintained the same cohort numbers as last year.y  In the column 2020-2019, the number show the difference in demand.  A positive number means there are more applicants this year than last year.  A negative number can be roughly approximated to mean the take up rate this year is lower than last year.  For example, Anderson Primary has 30 more registrants this year compared to last year.  Its cohort has remained the same this year (0), so it is likely to be more competitive this year for the remainder of the Phases.
Red Swastika has an application rate (APP) of 95%, Frontier has 90%, and Westwood Primary has 94% after Day 1 of Phase 2A(2) registration.  Even if they may escape balloting for this phase, it is clear parents should be careful when considering these schools in the rest of the phases.
Good luck to parents going for this Phase or subsequent phases.
<img onerror="kspReplaceCdn(this)" decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-89072" src="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/files/u3/2020Phase2A2-1.png" alt="" width="776" height="4207" srcset="https://wp.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/files/u3/2020Phase2A2-1.png 776w, https://wp.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/files/u3/2020Phase2A2-1-320x1735.png 320w, https://wp.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/files/u3/2020Phase2A2-1-378x2048.png 378w" sizes="(max-width: 776px) 100vw, 776px" />

P1 Registration 2020 for 2021: Phase 2A(2)

P1 Registration 2020 for 2021: Phase 2A(1)

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<?xml encoding="UTF-8"><html><body><div id="attachment_88678" style="width: 2570px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-88678" onerror="kspReplaceCdn(this)" decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="wp-image-88678 size-full" src="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/files/u170058/learning-schooling-text-54597-scaled.jpg" alt="" width="2560" height="1653">Photo by <a href="https://www.pexels.com/photo/learning-schooling-text-54597/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Pixabay</a> on <a href="https://www.pexels.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Pexels</a></div>A typical parent, when researching primary schools in Singapore, would probably begin by asking for recommendations on the &ldquo;best,&rdquo; &ldquo;top,&rdquo; or &ldquo;most popular&rdquo; primary schools. But if you can only register your child for Primary 1 under <a href="https://beta.moe.gov.sg/primary/p1-registration/registration-phases-key-dates/?pt=2C" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Phase 2C and 2C Supplementary</a>, you may want to adopt a different approach.&nbsp;
Phases 2C and 2C Supplementary are for Singaporean citizens and permanent residents (PRs) who have not registered at any primary school, i.e. those who were ineligible or did not secure a place during the earlier phases.&nbsp;
According to Ministry of Education (MOE) regulations, 20 places are <a href="https://beta.moe.gov.sg/primary/p1-registration/understand-balloting/">reserved</a> in all schools for Phase 2C, to ensure that there is still access to schools at this late stage of the registration. [Apart from this, if there are remaining places at the end of Phase 2A(2), they will be split equally between Phases 2B and 2C. If there are vacancies left at the end of Phase 2B, these will be carried forward to Phase 2C.]
What&rsquo;s new in 2020 is that a cap on PR intake has been introduced to prevent the &ldquo;concentration of PR children&rdquo; in selected schools, which might have become more popular within the PR community.&nbsp;
For instance, one mother has <a href="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/article/p1-registration-when-plans-fall-through/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">shared</a> with us that her sons&rsquo; neighbourhood school is culturally diverse, and at school-based events, she has &ldquo;met parents who are Spanish, Australian, Indian, Korean, Vietnamese, and PRC nationals.&rdquo; This might have been a plus point for some local and PR parents, but with the new rule in place, PR families may have to consider a wider spread of schools.
With the cap, PR admissions will be limited to about 25% to 30% of the affected schools&rsquo; planned Primary 1 intake &mdash; this cap will only be applied in Phases 2C and 2C Supplementary.
For 2020, the following schools will need to <a href="https://beta.moe.gov.sg/primary/p1-registration/cap-on-pr-intake/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">cap their PR intake</a>:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400"><a href="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/school/bukit-timah-primary-school/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Bukit Timah Primary School</a> (Bukit Timah, 210 vacancies in total, up 30 from last year)</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400"><a href="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/school/bukit-view-primary-school/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Bukit View Primary School</a> (Bukit Batok, 240 vacancies in total, up 60 from last year)</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400"><a href="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/school/changkat-primary-school/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Changkat Primary School</a> (Tampines, 210 vacancies in total, up 60 from last year)</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400"><a href="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/school/greendale-primary-school/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Greendale Primary School</a> (Punggol, 280 vacancies in total, no change from last year)</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400"><a href="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/school/marymount-convent-school/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Marymount Convent School</a> (Toa Payoh, 240 vacancies in total, up 30 from last year)</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400"><a href="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/school/north-spring-primary-school/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">North Spring Primary School</a> (Seng Kang, 240 vacancies in total, up 30 from last year)</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400"><a href="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/school/opera-estate-primary-school/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Opera Estate Primary School</a> (Bedok, 150 vacancies in total, no change from last year)</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400"><a href="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/school/pioneer-primary-school/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Pioneer Primary School</a> (Jurong West, 150 vacancies in total, down 30 from last year)</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400"><a href="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/school/tanjong-katong-primary-school/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Tanjong Katong Primary School</a> (Marine Parade, 200 vacancies in total, no change from last year)</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400"><a href="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/school/xingnan-primary-school/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Xingnan Primary School</a> (Jurong West, 210 vacancies in total, up 60 from last year)</li>
</ul>
At the start of Phases 2C and 2C Supplementary, MOE will publish the number of school vacancies &mdash; including the maximum number of vacancies available to PR children for the above schools &mdash; on its <a href="https://beta.moe.gov.sg/primary/p1-registration/vacancies-and-balloting" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">vacancies and balloting updates</a> page.
It&rsquo;s not hard to see why Phase 2C has been regarded as the most stressful phase of P1 registration, because it is, in a sense, the final chance to get your child into a preferred school. Of course, there is still Phase 2C Supplementary, but selections will be limited at that point. If your child cannot secure a place at Phase 2C Supplementary, the MOE will post your child to a school with an available vacancy.
Even if you&rsquo;re not particularly fussed about schools or trust that &ldquo;<a href="https://mothership.sg/2018/07/every-school-a-good-school/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">every school is a good school</a>,&rdquo; you don&rsquo;t want to be caught in a situation where your child is assigned a school that is an hour away by public transport. PR families in particular will want to avoid this, as <a href="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/article/clueless-about-school-transfers-our-ksp-community-is-here-to-help/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">school transfer opportunities</a> may be few and far between.
Is it possible to secure a place in a &ldquo;good&rdquo; school at Phase 2C and 2C Supplementary? We certainly think that if parents can adjust their mindsets about schools, they can make a choice that they&rsquo;re happy with. Also, in the <a href="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/article/2019-p1-registration-phase-2c-analysis/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">wise words</a> of KSP&rsquo;s Chief Kiasu, it is better to &ldquo;stop worrying about getting into a school, and start working on making sure your child is ready to excel in any school!&rdquo;
For first-timer parents, please read on for our survival guide to Phase 2C and 2C Supplementary.
<h4>Understand The Order Of Admissions &amp; How Balloting Works</h4>
For parents registering in the 2C phases, you should bookmark MOE&rsquo;s<a href="https://beta.moe.gov.sg/primary/p1-registration/vacancies-and-balloting/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> school vacancies and balloting updates</a> page for the latest information.
Balloting is conducted when the number of registrants exceeds the school vacancies, and this can happen in any phase from 2A(1) to 2C Supplementary.
In 2020, computerised balloting will be conducted centrally by the MOE HQ. As in previous years, all registrants who are required to ballot are assured of an equal chance for admission into the school.
When it comes to admissions, this is the order in which places are allocated:
<ol>
<li style="font-weight: 400">Singapore citizens living within 1km of the school.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400">Singapore citizens living between 1km and 2km of the school.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400">Singapore citizens living outside 2km of the school.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400">PRs living within 1km of the school.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400">PRs living between 1km and 2km of the school.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400">PRs living outside 2km of the school.</li>
</ol>
To better understand the process, visit the MOE website for <a href="https://beta.moe.gov.sg/primary/p1-registration/understand-balloting/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">balloting scenarios</a>.
<h4>Why Not Make Your Safety School The Top Choice?</h4>
If you don&rsquo;t mind having to ballot in Phase 2C for a popular school, but at the same time, have chosen your child&rsquo;s safety/standby school with care, why not save yourself some <a href="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/article/p1-registration-when-plans-fall-through/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">stress and heartache</a> by going for the school with ample vacancies instead?
Some <a href="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/article/strategies-for-phase-2c/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">advice</a> proffered by our Chief Kiasu nearly a decade ago is still valid today: if you decide to test your luck in Phase 2C by registering for a popular school, with the odds stacked against you (e.g. you live outside 2km of the school), there is a chance that you might be balloting again in Phase 2C Supplementary. Of course, everyone differs in their risk assessment and you may feel that the gamble is worthwhile. But it would be a pity if luck doesn&rsquo;t swing your way, and you find that your second-choice school is suddenly much sought after in Phase 2C Supplementary.&nbsp;
To get a better sense of the demand for school places, do read our <a href="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/article/2019-p1-registration-phase-2c-analysis/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Phase 2C</a> and <a href="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/article/2019-p1-registration-phase-2cs-analysis/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Phase 2C Supplementary</a> analysis pieces from 2019, or check our <a href="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/article/2020-p1-registration-for-2021-intake-balloting-probability/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">school balloting probability guide</a> for 2020 registrations.
<h4>Good Culture Over Good Grades</h4>
We know it&rsquo;s particularly challenging to pick a school this year, with Open House events shuttered due to Covid-19. Although some schools have put up &ldquo;e-Open House&rdquo; mini sites, you&rsquo;ll still have to employ your online sleuthing skills to assess your shortlisted schools.
Wondering what you should be looking out for? The popular primary schools in Singapore tend to be established brands with an academic track record. However, the practice of comparing or ranking schools based on grades has been highly discouraged for several years. Even if you were interested, information on a school&rsquo;s Primary School Leaving Examination results is harder to come by now &mdash; also, is this really the most important factor in choosing a school?&nbsp;&nbsp;
Instead, we suggest focusing on finding a school with a healthy <a href="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/article/curious-if-a-school-has-a-good-culture-weve-got-useful-tips-for-you/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">culture or climate</a>, where students can experience the following:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400">Safety: The school should have a strong anti-bullying stance to ensure not just physical safety within the school, but emotional security as well. Teachers should also respect the emotional well-being of their students.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400">Support: The academic environment must be conducive for all students to learn and grow.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400">Connection: There should be a steady flow of positive interactions between students, teachers, and other relevant groups.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400">Belonging: Students should have a sense of pride about their school.</li>
</ul>
For a start, you can google the schools that you are interested in, to see what the most recent publicity surrounding these schools has been like. You can also use search terms like &ldquo;bullying singapore&rdquo; to see which local schools have been in the spotlight for bullying issues, and how they have dealt with it.&nbsp;
Next, run a search on the principals and vice principals of the schools you are interested in, to see if you can get more information about their career trajectories. Look at the tone of the Welcome Message on the school&rsquo;s web site, and if the school&rsquo;s educators have been interviewed, see if their quotes resonate with you. You can also find educator interviews on <a href="https://www.schoolbag.sg/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Schoolbag.sg</a>.
Finally, you can visit KSP&rsquo;s <a href="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/schools/primary/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">School Database</a>, search for the school you are interested in, and click on &ldquo;Parents&rsquo; Network&rdquo; to get to the discussion thread for the school. There, you can post your questions and concerns.
Alternatively, check the schools&rsquo; social media accounts and observe the interactions. Searching for posts via social media hashtags might also let you peek into some of the daily happenings at a school, from the perspective of students and parents.
If your friends&rsquo; children happen to be studying in these schools, don&rsquo;t hesitate to call them or schedule a quick video chat to ask them a few questions, such as:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400">What classes do you like or not like? Why?</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400">Do you have favourite teachers in school, and what do you like about them?</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400">Do you enjoy your CCA? Why do you like it?</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400">Do you enjoy attending school? Why or why not?</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400">How much free time do you have every day? What do you do in your free time?</li>
</ul>
Still doubtful if your shortlisted school can <a href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2018/09/why-schools-should-teach-the-curriculum-of-the-future-not-the-past/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">prepare your child well for the future</a>? Look out for schools that emphasise problem solving, creative thinking, collaboration, and digital skills &mdash; not simply how to create a document or presentation, but how to create technology. If the school that you&rsquo;re looking at checks some or all of these boxes, you know you&rsquo;ve got a real winner!
Need more guidance on choosing primary schools? Read our P1 Registration FAQs <a href="https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/article/choosing-a-primary-school-frequently-asked-questions-by-parents/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">here</a>.
&nbsp;
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