The New York Specialized High School Institute is a free program run by Staten Island Technical High School and Stuyvesant High School for middle school students with high test scores on city-wide tests. The program's original intent was to expand the population of Black and Hispanic students by offering them test-taking tips and extra lessons, however anyone can apply. As of 2006, 3,781 students are enrolled at 17 locations. They spend 16 months, starting in the summer after sixth grade, preparing for the test.
Certain applicants who have scores just below the cut-off score and are recommended by their guidance counselor may qualify for the Summer Discovery Program. Successful completion of this program allows the students to gain admission to a specialized high school.
The students must:
1. have scored close to the admission cut-off score on the SHSAT; and
2. be certified as disadvantaged by their middle school according to any one of the following criteria:
a. attend a Title 1 school and be from a family whose total income is documented as meeting federal income eligibility guidelines established for school food services by the NYS Department of Agriculture; or
b. be receiving assistance from the Human Resources Administration; or
c. be a member of a family whose income is documented as being equivalent to or below Department of Social Services standards; or
d. be a foster child or ward of the state; or
e. initially have entered the United States within the last four years and live in a home in which the language customarily spoken is not English; and
3. be recommended by their local school as having high potential for the special high school program.