What score do you need to get into Whitney M. Young Magnet High School?

In the last HSAT-era cycles (through 2025-26), approximate cutoffs on the 900-point composite were 813 (Tier 1), 838 (Tier 2), 858 (Tier 3), 870 (Tier 4), and 880 for the rank-all pool. Cutoffs shift year to year — treat these as historical reference, not a guarantee.

Has CPS published PreACT 9 cutoff scores for Whitney Young?

No. The PreACT 9 Secure replaced the HSAT starting with the October 2026 administration, and the 2027-28 cycle is scored on a new 640-point system (the English/Reading/Math composite × 10 + 7th-grade GPA × 80) instead of the old 900. The historical cutoffs above are on the retired 900 scale and cannot be converted into a PreACT target. CPS will publish the first 640-scale cutoffs for Whitney Young after February 2027 results.

Why does the Whitney Young cutoff differ by tier?

CPS assigns every Chicago address a socioeconomic Tier (1-4). The top 30% of seats at Whitney Young go to the highest scorers citywide, and the remaining 70% are split equally across the four tiers — so students compete primarily within their own tier, and each tier has its own cutoff.

What test do 8th-graders take to apply to Whitney Young?

The CPS admissions test — officially still called "the CPS HSAT" — is now the PreACT 9 Secure by ACT: four sections (English 44 questions/35 min, Math 34/45 with calculator allowed, Reading 33/40, Science 32/35 with no calculator), taken online in a single sitting in October of 8th grade, in English only. Only English, Reading and Math feed the admissions composite.

← All schools

CPS Selective Enrollment High School

Whitney M Young Magnet High School

Near West Side · 2,208 students · grades 7-12

By the numbers

Graduate in 4 years

96%

district 86% (+10)

Enroll in college

89%

district 65% (+23)

CPS status

Good Standing

district accountability

CPS publishes no school ranking — it retired its 1+/1/2+ levels — so these sit beside the district average rather than a position in a list.

Admission cutoff scores

Approximate published cutoffs from HSAT-era cycles (through 2025-26) on the 900-point composite (retired; the 2027-28 cycle is scored out of 640 = the English/Reading/Math composite × 10 + 7th-grade GPA × 80). CPS won't publish 640-scale cutoffs until after February 2027 results — treat these as historical reference.

Tier 1

813

lowest socioeconomic group

Tier 2

838

Tier 3

858

Tier 4

870

highest socioeconomic group

Rank-all

880

top 30% across all tiers

About Whitney Young

Largest of the top SEHS programs.
Strong arts, academic decathlon, and athletics.

211 S LAFLIN ST, Chicago, IL 60607 · 7735347500

Official school website →

Programs you can apply to here

You apply to a program, not just to a school — and several of these take no admissions test.

Visit it

Oct 18Selective Enrollment Open House · 12:30

What to look for when you go →

How to prep for the Whitney Young cutoff

Whitney Young requires near-perfect performance to clear the rank-all (top 30%) cutoff. Focus on:

Strong 7th-grade core grades — a 4.0 GPA in English, Math, Science, Social Studies is worth the full 320 grade points (GPA × 80).
Test prep: the English/Reading/Math composite counts × 10, so every composite point is 10 admissions points out of 320. Historical HSAT cutoffs cannot be converted into a PreACT target; the first 640-scale cutoffs arrive after February 2027.
Multiple full-length timed mocks under real-test conditions before the October test.
Vocabulary mastery — the Reading section relies on academic vocabulary heavily.
Mental-math fluency — a calculator is allowed in Math, but speed without it wins time.

Start with the diagnostic →·Build a 12-week plan →·Read the test day guide →

Frequently asked questions

What score do you need to get into Whitney M. Young Magnet High School?: In the last HSAT-era cycles (through 2025-26), approximate cutoffs on the 900-point composite were 813 (Tier 1), 838 (Tier 2), 858 (Tier 3), 870 (Tier 4), and 880 for the rank-all pool. Cutoffs shift year to year — treat these as historical reference, not a guarantee.
Has CPS published PreACT 9 cutoff scores for Whitney Young?: No. The PreACT 9 Secure replaced the HSAT starting with the October 2026 administration, and the 2027-28 cycle is scored on a new 640-point system (the English/Reading/Math composite × 10 + 7th-grade GPA × 80) instead of the old 900. The historical cutoffs above are on the retired 900 scale and cannot be converted into a PreACT target. CPS will publish the first 640-scale cutoffs for Whitney Young after February 2027 results.
Why does the Whitney Young cutoff differ by tier?: CPS assigns every Chicago address a socioeconomic Tier (1-4). The top 30% of seats at Whitney Young go to the highest scorers citywide, and the remaining 70% are split equally across the four tiers — so students compete primarily within their own tier, and each tier has its own cutoff.
What test do 8th-graders take to apply to Whitney Young?: The CPS admissions test — officially still called "the CPS HSAT" — is now the PreACT 9 Secure by ACT: four sections (English 44 questions/35 min, Math 34/45 with calculator allowed, Reading 33/40, Science 32/35 with no calculator), taken online in a single sitting in October of 8th grade, in English only. Only English, Reading and Math feed the admissions composite.

Closest other high schools

Noble - Chicago Bulls College Prep · 0.7 mi
Noble - Rauner College Prep · 1.0 mi
Richard T Crane Medical Preparatory HS · 1.0 mi
Simpson Academy HS for Young Women · 1.0 mi
Ogden International High School · 1.1 mi
Noble - UIC College Prep · 1.1 mi

Other CPS Selective Enrollment schools

School facts, graduation and college-enrollment rates come from the City of Chicago open data portal, refreshed 2026-09-12. Cutoff data is approximate and changes year to year — treat it as a target, not a guarantee. The official source of truth for admissions is cps.edu/gocps.

Loading…