LAUSD Choices 2027–28: Dates, Deadlines and How to Apply

LAUSD Choices takes on-time applications for 2027–28 from October 1 to November 6, 2026, online at apply.lausd.net, and one application can cover every Choices program you want. Applying doesn't promise a seat. What you control is whether the application counts and what priority it carries: the grade, a current home address, siblings linked in the same account, and the school you list first in each program. If you miss November 6, late applications open December 1, 2026 and join the end of each waiting list.

This page covers LAUSD's own programs: magnets, dual language, Schools for Advanced Studies (SAS), affiliated charters (charters LAUSD runs) and Permits With Transportation. Independent charters take applications on their own sites, and our charter guide walks through them. Once you've applied, your applications tracker keeps each school's dates in one list.

On this page▾

LAUSD Choices 2027–28: Dates, Deadlines and How to ApplyInteractive: Which door are you at?What is LAUSD Choices, and what does one application cover?When are the Choices dates for 2027–28?How does each program choose students?How do magnet points work?What should go on the application, and in what order?What if I made a mistake, or missed November 6?What happens after I apply?What doesn't Choices cover, and what about permits and Open Enrollment?Quick checklist

Most LA families apply through one of four doors, and each has its own rules and clock.

LAUSD Choices and independent charters, 2027–28

Which door are you at?

Pick the kind of school you want. Its door opens to where you apply, who decides, and the dates that matter.

What kind of school is it?

Our neighborhood schoolAn LAUSD affiliated charterA magnet or other Choices programAn independent charterNot sure

Neighborhood schoolLAUSD, by addressAffiliated charterAn LAUSD schoolMagnet or ChoicesAn LAUSD programIndependent charterIts own board

Tap a door to see how you get in. The table below shows all four side by side.

Do you live inside its attendance boundary?

YesNoI haven't checked

Show all four doors

Not sure which door it is?

The word "charter" in a name doesn't tell you which kind it is. Three places do: pages 63–66 of the 2027–28 Choices brochure, which list the affiliated charters by name; the directory and map from LAUSD's Charter Schools Division; or the school's office. Then look up your address at enroll.lausd.net.

Neighborhood schoolLAUSD, by address

Where you apply

Register at enroll.lausd.net or the school office. In a Zone of Choice, apply at apply.lausd.net. Zone applications for 2027–28 opened October 1, 2026 and close November 6, 2026.

Who decides

Your address. In a Zone of Choice, LAUSD assigns by your ranking and the space at each school.

Good to know

This is your backup door. Register early with proof of address and immunization records. For kindergarten or first grade, also bring proof of age, such as a birth record.

No lottery. Register for 2027–28 in the spring, or in a Zone of Choice, apply by November 6, 2026.

Affiliated charterAn LAUSD school

Not sure which side of the boundary you're on? Look up your address at enroll.lausd.net.

If you live inside its boundary

Where you apply

You don't apply. Enroll directly with the school at enroll.lausd.net. The 2027–28 brochure says boundary families "do not need to apply."

Who decides

Your address.

Inside the boundary: No Choices deadline. Register in the spring at enroll.lausd.net and call about space in your child's grade.

If you live outside it, or outside LAUSD

Where you apply

A Choices application at apply.lausd.net, on time by November 6, 2026. No permit is needed.

Who decides

If more children apply than there are seats, a public random drawing decides, in January 2027. You don't rank these schools, so apply to every affiliated charter you'd use.

Who goes first

1. 1Siblings of continuing students who live in LAUSD
2. 2All other students who live in LAUSD
3. 3Siblings of continuing students who live outside LAUSD
4. 4All other students who live outside LAUSD

If you don't get in

Waitlisted at every affiliated charter you applied to, until the end of the 2027–28 school year.

Outside it: The LAUSD Choices clock below: on time by November 6, 2026.

Magnet or ChoicesAn LAUSD program

Where you apply

One Choices application at apply.lausd.net covers up to six programs. On time by November 6, 2026.

Who decides

Magnets: priority points, racial balance and space. Dual language: a priority order with no points. Gifted magnets and SAS (Schools for Advanced Studies) check eligibility first and send letters on January 19, 2027.

How points add up

At a magnet, points from an on-time application add together:

1. 12 pointsFinishing a magnet's top grade and applying to continue at the next level (not added to waitlist points)
2. 4 a year pointsEach year on a valid on-time magnet waitlist, up to 12 for three years in a row
3. 4 pointsYour 2027–28 resident school is designated PHBAO (predominantly Hispanic, Black, Asian and other non-Anglo)
4. 4 pointsYour 2026–27 resident school is designated overcrowded
5. 3 pointsA brother or sister continuing at your first-choice magnet, living at the same address

If you don't get in

Magnets waitlist you at your first choice only. A seat can be offered up to week 4 of the first semester or week 2 of the second. Dual language waitlists last to the end of the school year. If you turn down a magnet placement while on a waitlist, you lose all your waitlist points.

The LAUSD Choices clock below: on time by November 6, 2026.

Independent charterIts own board

Where you apply

The school's own application, on its own site and deadline. LAUSD's Charter Schools Division lists schools and approved petitions but doesn't take applications.

Who decides

Everyone who applies gets in unless applicants outnumber seats. Then a public random drawing decides (Education Code § 47605(e)(2)).

Who goes first

• Students already enrolled keep their place. They aren't in the drawing.
• Preference by law for students who live in the district.
• Other preferences, such as siblings or staff children, only if the approved charter lists them. The charter petition sets the order.

A school that converted from a district school also prefers children from its old attendance area.

If you don't get in

Set by the school's own admissions policy. Ask how long its list lasts and when it stops making offers.

Its own date, on the independent lane below. Add it there.

Two clocks, October 2026 to March 2027

As of October 28, 2026, the on-time 2027–28 Choices window is open until November 6, 2026, 9 days away.

Oct 2026NovDecJan 2027FebMar

Clock one: LAUSD Choices, 2027–28

As of Oct 28

1. Oct 1–Nov 6October 1–November 6, 2026: On-time applicationsOnline only
2. Nov 6November 6, 2026: On-time deadline
3. Nov 30–Dec 18November 30–December 18, 2026: Confirmation and correction lettersCorrections due Dec 18
4. Dec 1December 1, 2026: Late applications openAdded to the end of the waitlist
5. JanuaryJanuary 2027: Affiliated charter drawingsSchools post their own dates
6. Jan 19January 19, 2027: Gifted and SAS eligibility lettersEligible is not selected
7. Feb 8–12February 8–12, 2027: Selection and waitlist letters
8. Mar 5March 5, 2027: Accept or decline initial offersNo response counts as a decline

Clock two: independent charters

Each independent charter sets its own deadline and lottery date. Keep your schools and their dates in the application tracker →

See the four doors as a table

Four ways into an LA public school for 2027–28: who runs it, where you apply, the deadline, who decides, who goes first and how long a waitlist lasts

	Neighborhood school	Affiliated charter	Magnet or Choices	Independent charter
Who runs it	LAUSD	LAUSD: “public schools operated by the district”	LAUSD	Its own board
Where you apply	enroll.lausd.net or the school office; in a Zone of Choice, apply.lausd.net	Inside the boundary: enroll directly at enroll.lausd.net. Outside: Choices at apply.lausd.net	Choices at apply.lausd.net, up to six programs on one application	The school's own application
2027–28 deadline	No lottery deadline; register early. Zone of Choice: November 6, 2026	Outside the boundary: November 6, 2026	November 6, 2026	Set by the school
Who decides	Your address, or your ranking and the space at each school in a Zone of Choice	Inside the boundary: your address. Outside: a drawing in January 2027, only if applicants outnumber seats	Magnets: priority points, racial balance and space. Dual language: priority order, no points	Everyone who applies gets in unless applicants outnumber seats; then a public random drawing
Who goes first	Your address	1. Siblings of continuing students who live in LAUSD 2. All other students who live in LAUSD 3. Siblings of continuing students who live outside LAUSD 4. All other students who live outside LAUSD	12 points: Finishing a magnet's top grade and applying to continue at the next level (not added to waitlist points) 4 a year points: Each year on a valid on-time magnet waitlist, up to 12 for three years in a row 4 points: Your 2027–28 resident school is designated PHBAO (predominantly Hispanic, Black, Asian and other non-Anglo) 4 points: Your 2026–27 resident school is designated overcrowded 3 points: A brother or sister continuing at your first-choice magnet, living at the same address	• Students already enrolled keep their place. They aren't in the drawing. • Preference by law for students who live in the district. • Other preferences, such as siblings or staff children, only if the approved charter lists them. The charter petition sets the order. A school that converted from a district school also prefers children from its old attendance area.
Waitlist lasts	Enrolling at your assigned school takes no lottery. Confirm space in your child's grade, and register early.	Waitlisted at every affiliated charter you applied to, until the end of the 2027–28 school year.	Magnets waitlist you at your first choice only. A seat can be offered up to week 4 of the first semester or week 2 of the second. Dual language waitlists last to the end of the school year.	Set by the school's own admissions policy. Ask how long its list lasts and when it stops making offers.
Getting there	Ask the school	Transportation “may be available” for students who live inside LAUSD	Magnets: district-paid buses may be provided beyond 1 mile for elementary, 2 miles for grades 6–12 (1 mile at listed span schools)	Ask the school
Tuition	None	None	None	None

What is LAUSD Choices, and what does one application cover?

Choices is LAUSD's online application for schools and programs your address doesn't assign you. The district's 2027–28 brochure sorts them into six programs: magnets (programs built around a theme such as science or the arts), Permits With Transportation (PWT, a bused integration program for some middle and high school students), Multilingual Multicultural Programs, which include dual language classes taught in English and a second language, SAS (campuses designated for gifted and advanced learners), early and middle colleges (programs on community-college campuses that blend high school and college coursework) and affiliated charters. One application can hold several programs, with more than one school under each. Older district notices call it eChoices; a 2024 event at Portola Middle School was titled "Unified Enrollment - eChoices Window Opens."

A child already in a Choices program who wants to stay doesn't apply again. Moving up a level, such as elementary to middle school, or trying again after a year on a waiting list takes a new application. You don't apply through Choices to your resident school, the one your address is assigned to. You register there, and it's your backup. (Zones of Choice work differently; the section on what Choices doesn't cover explains how.)

Most of the calendar is shared by every program, so the dates come first.

When are the Choices dates for 2027–28?

These dates are for the 2027–28 school year. They come from LAUSD's brochure and the district's published timeline, which we read on October 26 and 27, 2026. Pages written for last year show different dates, so look for "2027–28" before you trust one.

The brochure itself prints the November 6, December 1 and December 18 dates. The letter dates and March 5 come from the district's timeline as a school site republishes it, and LAist reported the same March 5 date on October 1. If your own letter shows a different deadline, follow the letter.

Most of these dates apply to every program. The gifted and SAS notices and the affiliated-charter drawings apply only to those programs, and each program picks its students in its own way.

How does each program choose students?

Each program has its own selection rule, and the magnet points system doesn't apply to most of them.

Points count only at magnets. Dual language, SAS, affiliated charters and PWT use none, so a family that has learned the magnet points system shouldn't expect it to help anywhere else.

Magnets come in three kinds, and the kind decides whether your address earns a local priority. A residential magnet gives priority to children who live in its attendance boundary. A non-residential magnet has no boundary and gives no priority for where you live. A third kind is non-residential but gives its kindergarten priority to children who live in its attendance boundary and are enrolled in its TK.

A child who attends a private school, an independent charter or another non-LAUSD school needs one extra step for a gifted magnet or SAS. The child's school, not the parent, emails the signed eligibility form by November 20, 2026, in addition to your application by November 6. The brochure says late forms aren't accepted for on-time selection. A child taught at home, or a kindergarten SAS applicant not yet in preschool or TK, has an alternate process: the parent emails GATE@lausd.net with the subject line "Verification Process" by the same date.

Magnets are the only program with a points system, so they get their own section.

How do magnet points work?

For 2027–28, LAUSD picks magnet students using a points system, its racial-balance goals and the space available. The district's FAQ says students "are randomly accepted into magnet programs based on the number of priority points they accrue." We found no published cutoff and no explanation of how racial balance changes a draw. A higher total helps, but we can't turn it into a percentage chance.

Matriculation and waiting-list points never combine. Adding the rest, the most any applicant can hold is 23; that total is our arithmetic, since the brochure prints no maximum. The brochure gives a few exceptions for matriculation, such as magnets that serve several levels, so a family in one of those should read the footnote on page 18.

Points come only from on-time, valid applications. In the brochure's words, "There are no points given for submitting an invalid (residing outside the District, applying to an incorrect grade level, etc.) or late application." The PHBAO and overcrowded points depend on your resident school's designation, so if you're unsure whether yours has one, call the Choices Support Line at (213) 241-4177.

Should we bank magnet waitlist points?

The waiting-list row invites a strategy: applying to a heavily oversubscribed magnet you don't expect to get, staying on its waiting list and collecting 4 points a year toward a magnet you want later. It has three costs:

• The long shot can pick you: a decoy sometimes comes through. Then you send your child to a school you listed as a decoy, or you decline, and the brochure says: "If an applicant on a waiting list declines magnet placement, ALL waiting list points are removed."
• A safe second choice ends the year's points. If any of your magnet choices selects your child, they come off the waiting list that earns points.
• A child already in a magnet risks the seat. If they're selected at another magnet, LAUSD drops them from the current one whether or not they accept.

We'd bank points only when you genuinely want a magnet at a later level, your child isn't already in one, and every school you list is one you'd accept.

What should go on the application, and in what order?

Within each program, put your real first choice first. If you apply to more than one school in a program and aren't selected, LAUSD waitlists your child only at the first one. Affiliated charters are the exception: there's no ranking, and a child who isn't drawn is waitlisted at every affiliated charter on the application for one school year. List each one you'd accept.

For magnets, the second and third choices are optional. If any one of your magnet choices selects your child, they come off the waiting lists for the other magnets, so list only schools you would attend. Sibling points count only toward the first-choice magnet.

Programs are separate tracks, so you can add dual language, SAS and magnets to the same application, each with its own eligibility rules. You can accept only one Choices placement, and accepting it keeps your waitlist spots in the other programs.

Four details can invalidate an application or cost you points:

• The grade your child will be in for 2027–28. TK is for children turning 4 by September 1, kindergarten for children turning 5 by then, and first grade for children turning 6. Not every Choices elementary program offers TK.
• Your current home address, with no P.O. boxes for magnets or PWT. Magnets require living inside LAUSD. For sibling points, the siblings must be in the same parent's Apply account and share an address, and that address must be the one in the district's system at their current school, so fix it there before the deadline.
• One federally identified race or ethnicity category for magnets and PWT. LAUSD won't process the application without it.
• One application per child. If a family submits more than one, only the first is considered, so edit the one you filed instead of starting another. Twins and triplets at the same address submit separate applications to the same program, first choice only, to be placed consecutively.

To decide which schools get those slots, Compare puts up to four schools side by side at the same level. Judge each campus, not its label: a magnet or a charter can sit anywhere from near the top of the state to near the bottom.

What if I made a mistake, or missed November 6?

Until November 6 you can fix an application yourself online. After that, email ApplyForSchools@lausd.net or mail Choices, P.O. Box 513307, Los Angeles, CA 90051, by December 18, 2026. The same deadline covers a withdrawal. Between November 30 and December 18, LAUSD sends confirmation or correction letters. The district says to check the email account you applied with, then log into your Apply portal and look under "My Messages." Check the grade first: an application for the wrong grade earns no points.

If you missed November 6, late applications are accepted starting December 1, 2026. Late applications work like waitlist spots: they join the end of the list, and the school contacts you only if a seat opens and your child is next. You can apply late to as many programs as you like, but each choice is its own application, and applying late to more schools doesn't affect an on-time application you already filed. A late gifted magnet or SAS applicant is checked for eligibility at the school itself. LAUSD also encourages families who land on a waiting list to apply late to other programs.

Once the application is in and the December letter checks out, the next dates that matter come in January and February.

What happens after I apply?

In early February LAUSD emails every on-time applicant with an eligible choice a status for each one, selected or waitlist, and the district's timeline puts the emails on February 8 to 12, 2027. A waitlist status needs no action; the school contacts you if a seat opens. A selected status needs an answer, online or through the school, by the deadline in your letter, which the timeline lists as March 5, 2027. No response counts as a decline, and every decline is final.

A few rules change what you should accept:

• You can accept only one Choices placement. Accepting a seat leaves your waitlist spots elsewhere alone, and the FAQ says a later offer can be accepted, which changes the earlier placement to declined.
• A child already in a magnet who is selected at another magnet loses the current seat whether or not they accept. A child in PWT who is selected at a magnet loses PWT the same way.
• A waitlist seat can be offered until the fourth week of the first semester or the second week of the second semester. Affiliated charter and dual language waitlists stay open to the end of the school year.

We haven't found seats or applicant counts per grade published for LAUSD programs. The four questions in our California charter guide work for a magnet or dual language school too, and the answers are the nearest thing to odds.

What doesn't Choices cover, and what about permits and Open Enrollment?

Independent charters sit outside Choices, and so does registering at your resident school. Look up your resident school at enroll.lausd.net: it's your backup, and the lookup also tells you whether you live inside an affiliated charter's boundary. Some neighborhoods are Zones of Choice instead, a separate LAUSD program where families rank the zone's schools on apply.lausd.net by the same November 6 deadline.

K-12 Open Enrollment is a separate state-mandated route that lets students anywhere in LAUSD apply to any regular, grade-appropriate LAUSD school with designated open seats. Its on-time window last spring ran April 13 to May 4, 2026, with late applications through September 11, 2026. The district's page showed no 2027 dates when we looked on October 27, and the brochure says applications usually open in the spring. If more students apply than there are seats, a random computer drawing decides, and the district doesn't guarantee transportation. If the pattern holds, Open Enrollment opens after your Choices answer is due, so a family without a Choices seat gets a second try in the spring, at schools that still have room. Check k12openenrollment.lausd.org for the dates.

If you live outside LAUSD, you can apply to an affiliated charter with no permit. Magnets require living inside LAUSD, apart from a limited number of ninth-grade seats at King-Drew Magnet High School of Medicine and Science that are open only to Compton Unified residents. Most SAS programs also require living inside LAUSD, except the single-gender academies and individualized honors programs. Dual language lists families who need an inter-district permit last.

Quick checklist

• Pick your programs and put your real first choice first in each. Affiliated charters aren't ranked, so list every one you'd accept.
• Apply at apply.lausd.net for your child's 2027–28 grade by November 6, 2026.
• Gifted magnet or SAS from a non-LAUSD school: the school emails the eligibility form by November 20, 2026.
• Read the confirmation letter in your Apply portal (November 30 to December 18) and send any correction by December 18, 2026.
• Missed the deadline: apply late from December 1, 2026.
• Answer every offer. Letters come February 8 to 12, 2027, and the timeline's accept-or-decline date is March 5, 2027.
• Add each school and date to your applications tracker, and keep your resident school registered as the backup.

Rules come from LAUSD's 2027–28 Choices brochure and FAQ, its Open Enrollment page and a school-site copy of the district's Choices timeline, all read October 26 and 27, 2026. Confirm dates at choices.lausd.net before you apply.