Lowell Admissions Overview
Lowell admissions, step by step.
Residency decides who can apply, so start there. Then check how Lowell fits with your other SFUSD choices.
Checked against Lowell's published admissions pages on November 5, 2026.
Who can apply
Who can apply.
Confirm every rule before planning anything else.
- Who can apply
- Applicants must live in San Francisco with a parent or legal guardian when they apply and must keep living in San Francisco while attending Lowell.
- Grade
- For Grade 9 entry the applicant must be an 8th grade student. SFUSD and non-SFUSD 8th graders may both apply.
- Permits
- Interdistrict permits are not allowed for admission to Lowell.
- Documents
- Current SFUSD students need no new address proof unless their address recently changed. Non-SFUSD and SFUSD charter students submit a picture ID of the parent or guardian, proof of birthdate and one proof of address with the application.
- How Lowell admits
- Lowell admits students on merit for 2027-28, using the three-band system. Older guides that describe a lottery are out of date. The SFUSD Band Summary says its band data comes from merit-based admission.
- 01
Check the SFUSD Lowell page for the current policy year before reading any older guide.
- 02
If your address changed recently, gather the proof of address documents now.
The application
How the application works.
- Where to apply
- Apply by listing Lowell as a choice on the 2027-28 SFUSD Online Enrollment Application in ParentVUE. Paper applicants submit the general Enrollment Application plus the Lowell Supplemental Application to the Enrollment Center, by email to enrollinschool@sfusd.edu, or through their current SFUSD middle school.
- Other choices
- Families can list any number of other SFUSD high schools, and Lowell does not need to be the first choice.
- How Lowell fits the Main Round
- Lowell applications are reviewed in the winter, before the March Main Round assignment run. A student who qualifies and ranks Lowell first receives the Lowell offer. A student who qualifies but ranks other schools higher is assigned to those first and gets Lowell only if no higher choice has space. Students who do not qualify are not harmed in the other schools' assignments.
- Changing your other choices
- After applying to Lowell, families can add or re-order their other choices by the Main Round deadline of February 1, 2027, using the 2027-28 Application Revision form, because the online application no longer offers Lowell.
- Waitlist and appeals
- There is no waitlist or appeal process for Lowell, no sibling tiebreaker, and the regular high school tiebreakers do not apply. All students must meet the admissions criteria to enroll.