Admissions Criteria | St. Cecilias College

Admissions Criteria

Admissions Criteria - 2024/2025

During the admissions procedure when applying the criteria, punctual applications will be considered before late applications are considered. The application procedure opens on 30 January 2024 at 12 noon (GMT) and an application submitted by the closing date of 22 February 2024 at 12 noon (GMT) will be treated as a punctual application. An application received after 12 noon (GMT) on 22 February 2024 and up to 4pm on 4 March 2024 will be treated as a late application.

As currently required by the law, priority will be given to pupils normally resident in Northern Ireland, before children who normally reside elsewhere. In the event of over-subscription, the following criteria, which was drawn up by the Board of Governors of St Cecilia’s College, will be applied in the order set down, to select pupils for Year 8 entry in 2024/25.

1. Pupils whose sister(s), half-sister(s), step sister(s) or foster sister(s) are presently or were formerly enrolled at the school and who have chosen St Cecilia’s College as their first preference school.

Please note that for criterion 1 you are required to provide in the Admissions Criteria Notes section of your online / written application the full name and date of birth of the sister(s) or equivalent (as defined above) whether referring to a present or past pupil(s). If the sister(s) or equivalent is currently at St Cecilia’s College, you are asked to indicate “yes” at the “Sister at School” option.

2. Pupils who presently reside in the following parishes (in no particular order) who have chosen St Cecilia’s College as their first preference school.

Ardmore

Claudy

Culmore

Faughanvale and Lower Cumber

Glendermott/Waterside: (St. Columb’s-Chapel Road, Immaculate Conception-Trench Road, St Mary’s- Newbuildings)

Holy Family (Ballymagroarty)

Our Lady of Lourdes (Steelstown)

St Mary’s (Creggan)

Strathfoyle: StrathFoyle/Enagh Lough

Templemore (St Eugene’s, St Columba’s, Long Tower)

Three Patrons (St Patrick’s- Pennyburn, St Brigid’s - Carnhill, St Joseph’s -Galliagh)

Please note that for criterion 2 you are required to provide in Admissions Criteria Notes Section of your online application the name of the parish that the applicant resides in from the list provided above.

3. Pupils presently resident in the above named parishes (in no particular order) who have chosen St Cecilia’s College as their first preference non-selective school.

Please note that for criterion 3 you are required to provide in the Admissions Criteria Notes section of your online / written application the name(s) of the selective / grammar school(s) chosen ahead of St Cecilia’s College to validate your eligibility for this criterion. Please also provide the name of the parish the applicant resides in.

4. Pupils presently resident in the above named parishes (in no particular order) and who have placed at least one non-selective school ahead of St Cecilia’s College.

Please note that for criterion 4 you are required to provide in the Admissions Criteria Notes section of your online / written application the name(s) of the selective / grammar school(s) chosen ahead of St Cecilia’s College to validate your eligibility for this criterion. Please also provide the name of the parish the applicant resides in.

5. Pupils who are presently resident in other parishes in Northern Ireland

Please note that for criterion 5 you are required to provide in the Admissions Criteria Notes section of your online / written application the name of the parish the applicant resides in.

The permitted admission number for Year 8 as determined by the Department of Education for the academic year 2024/25 is 129.

In the event that the school would exceed its permitted admission number by accepting all applicants qualifying for selection using the final criterion so required, then selection for all places remaining in this category will be on the basis of initial letter of the surname (as appears on the birth certificate), in the order set out below:

L E Q D N U Y R C M Mc H Ní W Mac F O’ K T S B V Z I O X G P J A

The order was determined by a random selection of letters, witnessed by the Board of Governors. In the event of surnames beginning with the same initial letter, the subsequent letters of the surnames will be used in alphabetical order. In the event of 2 identical surnames, the alphabetical order of the initials of the forenames will be used.