Want a spot at a competitive Baltimore high school? Start planning in fourth grade.

Emily Megnin still remembers the bumpy road she took to get her son, David, into middle school three years ago.

She researched every public Baltimore middle school and attended several open houses in the fall of his fifth grade year. Without the guidance of her son’s elementary school principal, the process would have been “really confusing” — even before an administrative glitch waitlisted David at all his preferred schools that winter.

Fortunately, David ended up in a middle school with an advanced STEM program, where he’s earned good grades and test scores, Megnin said.

Now she’s ready for another roller coaster as her eighth grader eyes some of the city’s most selective high schools. In December, they’ll receive the number that determines whether he can apply: his composite score.

Baltimore City Public Schools is the only district in Maryland to offer universal school choice, beginning in sixth grade. The district uses a complex equation to combine grades, test scores and course difficulty into a single number similar to class rank. That high-stakes calculation determines which students go to sought-after middle schools and, by extension, competitive high schools.

In effect, a student’s fourth grade performance sets the trajectory of the rest of their academic career.

“You start stressing out about it like a year and a half before it’s actually going to happen,” Megnin said.

Here’s how it works.

What is a composite score, and how is it calculated?

When they apply to middle or high school, students earn a score out of 800 or 860, respectively, based on grades and test scores.

Most of the composite score — 75% — is based on the prior year’s final grades and the first quarter grades from the current year. For a fifth grader, that means three-quarters of the composite score is based on how they did in fourth grade and in the first quarter of fifth grade.

The remaining 25% is based on the English and math state test scores from the prior spring. So an eighth grader’s composite score would use seventh grade test scores.

Adding another layer of complexity, the district assigns students’ test scores a percentile rank, “comparing each student’s assessment score with all other students in the district who took the same test,” according to Baltimore City Public Schools.

This calculator does the complicated math for you.

Can I opt out of this process?

Only in certain situations.

If a student attends their neighborhood elementary/middle school and wants to stay there, they can. Similarly, if their neighborhood elementary school feeds into a middle school, they can skip the choice process. That applies to about 76% of district students, said Baltimore City Public Schools spokesperson Sherry Christian.

There are about 1,300 students who live somewhere without a designated middle school, Christian said, and they’ll need to pick one.

All rising ninth graders must rank their top five schools on the city’s school choice form ― except those attending combined middle and high schools, who can choose to remain there.

Keep in mind: Baltimore’s roughly 30 charter schools have their own admissions processes, and most don’t use the choice form. Their students will need to apply separately and won’t use composite scores.

How do I up my score?

The simplest way is to take honors classes in English, math, science and social studies. The classes are harder but carry more weight in composite scores. For example, if a student gets a 78 in an honors course, it’ll count as an 88 in the formula, according to the district. The 10-point advantage applies even if it takes the score over 100.

While students can take honors classes at many schools, there are some that offer “advanced academics,” meaning accepted students are placed in honors courses for all four core subjects. There’s also the Ingenuity Project available at select schools for students interested in even more rigorous math and science. That program calculates admissions scores differently and requires a direct application.

What score do I need to get into a competitive school?

Fifth graders interested in middle schools with advanced academics need at least a 610. The same goes for eighth graders looking to apply to the district’s four academically competitive high schools: Baltimore City College, Baltimore Polytechnic Institute, Paul Laurence Dunbar High School and the all-girls Western High School.

But the score you need to be accepted depends on how you rank among your classmates and which schools they prefer. Students rank up to their top five choices, and the highest-ranked students are admitted until schools are full. The next 50 highest-qualified students are placed on a waitlist.

Last year, the average composite score of a student accepted into an advanced academics middle school was 746, according to Christian. The average score across all fifth graders was 594.

Eighth graders scored an average of 590.

The average scores for students admitted to the most academically competitive high schools:

• Baltimore City College: 746
• Baltimore Polytechnic Institute: 790
• Paul Laurence Dunbar High School: 671
• Western High School: 670

What are the key dates?

Applications are expected to open Dec. 1, Christian said. The annual school choice fair, where parents can see all their options in one place, is planned for Dec. 12 at the Baltimore Convention Center.

The expected application deadline is Jan. 15. Families will receive their offers in late February.

Specialized schools, like the Baltimore Design School and Baltimore School for the Arts, have additional requirements, like portfolios and auditions. You should visit those schools’ websites for more information and deadlines.

Schools tend to host open houses in the fall ahead of the school choice fair and post them on their online school calendars. This school choice guide includes all the middle and high schools students can apply to.

About the Education Hub

This reporting is part of The Banner’s Education Hub, community-funded journalism that provides parents with resources they need to make decisions about how their children learn. Read more.