Seven days! That’s all the time you have to decide where your child will spend the next four years of secondary school. The S1 posting process is not as complicated as we think. Here are some tips I’ve learned to help you choose the right secondary school for your child.
Just as we are catching our breath from the PSLE exam stress, our emotions will be tested again with the upcoming S1 Posting exercise. PSLE results will be released on 25 November 2025 and we have just seven days to choose six schools where our children will spend the next four (or five) years of their lives. Then, comes the wait for the posting results, which will be announced on 18 or 19 December 2025. Just before Christmas!
By now, your child has probably attended a few secondary school introduction talks. And you may have already visited several open houses. But faced with all the choices and a new system, how do you choose the right secondary school for your child? For starters, understanding how it works will help you make better choices.
As a mom who’s been there, done that, I’m sharing my top tips to help you navigate and ace the S1 Posting exercise.
Key dates to note:
PSLE results: 25 November 2025
S1 posting portal opens: 25 November 2025, 11.30am
S1 posting portal close: 1 December 2025, 4.30pm
Results to S1 posting: 18 or 19 December 2025
The S1 posting process explained
PSLE results will be released on 25 November 2025 at 11am. After students collect their results slips from their primary schools, it’s the parents’ job to submit the school choices online. Parents can do so via the S1 portal from MOE’s Secondary 1 (S1) posting website, using their Singpass. Only one parent needs to log in to make the selection. The portal will only be opened from 11.30am on 25 November 2025 to 4.30pm on 1 December 2025.
So parents, you only have these seven days to submit your selection. And if you need assistance with the online submission, contact your child’s primary school for help before the closing date.
The S1 posting results will be released on either 18 or 19 December 2025 and parents will receive an SMS notification (if you’ve added it during the application process). Otherwise, the results will be available on MOE’s S1 posting website and at your child’s primary school. The S1 posting results will include the secondary school as well as the posting group your child is posted to. This is to facilitate the new Subject-Based Banding system.
How posting works
The Singapore education system has always been a merit-based one, so it is no surprise that the PSLE AL score is one of the first criterion in S1 posting. It will determine your child’s Posting Group, or the indicative level of subject difficulty. Besides PSLE results, students will be posted to secondary schools based on choice order, as well as vacancies in the schools.
What about the secondary school’s Cut-off points (COP)? You can find that out from MOE’s School Finder but always bear in mind that COP or PSLE AL score range is a reflection of the scores of the last year’s students. It can vary depending on school demand and cohort performance. Use it as a reference to guide your choosing process.
Understanding Posting Groups
With the full Subject-Based Banding (SBB) system, the traditional Express, Normal (Academic), and Normal (Technical) streams have been replaced by Posting Groups (PGs). This will facilitate entry into secondary school and the initial subject levels that your child will take. Parents, take note, if your child has in-between AL scores, you’ll get to choose which PG your child gets posted to. The system defaults to the more demanding Posting Group if you do not make a choice.
The tie-breakers you have to know
With the PSLE AL scoring system, many students may share the same PSLE AL score. MOE applies a strict sequence of tie-breakers you have to know about to be strategic in your secondary school selection. Tie-breakers will be applied in this order:
- Citizenship: Priority will be given to Singapore Citizens, Permanent Residents (PR), then International students
- Choice order of school: The student who listed the school higher in their list will be selected.
- Computerised balloting: This is the final resort if the tie cannot be broken after citizenship and choice order.
What this means is that choice order of school is more important under this new system than before. The tie-breaker sequence recognises families who prioritise schools based on non-academic qualities, i.e not just looking solely at the AL scores.
Our top tips for choosing a secondary school for your child with the S1 posting process
1. Don’t just look at grades, aim for a holistic fit
Grades are important but finding that optimal environment where your child can thrive holistically is just as important. Focus on non-academic qualities such as the school’s culture and programmes, CCA offerings, and logistics, because these things matter a lot!
Our priority was school culture, so I made sure to visit the school’s open house to see and feel the space for myself. I spoke with teachers and students, observed their interaction, and even got to tour the facilities.
We also considered the schools’ unique programmes such as Applied Learning Programmes or Learning for Life Programmes, which can offer lessons in STEM, business, visual arts and design, youth leadership and more. Don’t skip looking at the CCAs because that’s what got my child really excited to apply for his secondary school. More than another thing to do in school, CCAs can be a strong motivation and are essential for character development and holistic growth.
To some families, distance is not a problem, because we live in Singapore and it only takes about an hour to get across the island. But if you’re like us who prefer the ease of proximity, you can search for secondary schools near you on MOE’s School Finder. Daily commutes will impact your child’s energy levels, and time for relaxation and revision. Plan for a manageable travel time to reduce stress and maximise time for other activities.
2. Use Secondary school Cut-Off Points (COP) as a filter
The COP is the “PSLE score of the last student admitted to a school for a specific Posting Group in the previous year.” They are not fixed and can fluctuate every year. Use this as a reference point to filter and shortlist schools, it does not guarantee admission even if your child’s PSLE AL score meets the COP.
3. Don’t underestimate the importance of school choice order
Now that the school choice order will be used in tie-breakers, we have to balance the six choices with caution and realistic ambition. When choosing a secondary school for my child, here’s what we did:
- First and second choices: ‘Dream’ schools where his PSLE grades marginally or almost met the COP.
- Third and fourth choices: Schools that we liked, and definitely met the COP.
- Fifth and sixth choices: ‘Safe’ school choices where my child’s PSLE grades were much better than the school’s COP.
Other pathways to secondary school in the S1 posting process
DSA
If your child is extremely passionate for sports, arts, or STEM, and has a portfolio or scorecard to show, you might consider the Direct School Admission (DSA) pathway to secondary school. Application usually begins in May – June, with outcomes announced in September. Parents have to accept (or reject) the Confirmed Offer (CO) by October. Although it allows early admission, the PSLE AL score still matters because it qualifies students for the Posting Group offered by the school. One important thing to note is that once the CO is accepted, the student must honour the commitment. They do not have to go through the S1 posting process and they cannot transfer to another school after their results are out.
Does school affiliation have an added advantage?
School affiliation does have an added advantage only if the school is listed as the first choice. However, it’s still not a guarantee and is subject to the student’s AL score and available vacancies. At least 20% of vacancies in each posting group must be kept for non-affiliated students to ensure diversity.
Post-S1 posting: Appeals and ‘unposted’ students
Making an appeal to schools
If your child doesn’t get into the school of choice, there is the option to appeal. Appeals come in two forms — medical and non-medical. You can make a medical appeals if the posted school cannot effectively accommodate the health conditions of your child. The appeal must be done in person at the posted secondary school by 12pm the next day after receiving posting results, with supporting documents and medical reports. This will then be handled by MOE.
For non-medical appeals, you’ll have to apply at the preferred school directly, after making sure that the AL score meets the current COP. Results of non-medical appeals are only released in mid-January, after the school year has started. Regardless of medical or non-medical appeal, all students will have to report to the posted secondary school on the official Secondary One Registration Day.
Will there be unposted students?
If any student fails to secure a place in any of the six chosen secondary schools, they will be posted by the system to schools with remaining vacancies nearest to their registered home address, based on their PSLE score and Posting Group eligibility. This is why it is crucial to plan the six choices wisely.
Now it’s your turn at the S1 posting process. Choose wisely! Let us know what you think about the new system. Love it? Hate it?
