School Choice & Lottery Data
Charter school lottery applications, waitlists, and enrollment choices -- the revealed preference data that shows which schools parents actually want.
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Find Me This Data →Overview
What Is School Choice & Lottery Data?
School choice lottery data captures the revealed preferences of families applying to charter schools, magnet schools, and other choice programs within public school districts. This dataset includes lottery applications, waitlist compositions, and actual enrollment decisions—the clearest signal of which schools parents genuinely prefer. Over the last two decades, US public school districts have rapidly expanded school choice options such as magnet schools, dual-language programs, and theme-based academies to combat educational disparities and respond to competitive pressure from charter schools. When schools receive more applications than available seats, lotteries are used to fairly resolve priority ties and determine admissions. The resulting data reveals neighborhood effects, demographic patterns, and which school characteristics drive family demand.
Market Data
45 states
States with charter school lotteries
Source: ResearchGate
150 largest districts
US school districts analyzed for choice system design
Source: Becker Friedman Institute
Nearly two-thirds grade level per year
Performance gap between lowest and highest performing schools
Source: Becker Friedman Institute
Who Uses This Data
What AI models do with it.do with it.
School district policymakers
Design and evaluate school choice systems; understand which programs attract demand and identify equity gaps in enrollment patterns
Educational researchers
Analyze how lottery mechanisms, information transparency, and constrained preference lists affect student placements and segregation patterns
School administration and admissions teams
Forecast demand, manage waitlists, and optimize enrollment based on revealed family preferences and demographic trends
Policy advocates and equity organizations
Examine whether choice systems serve disadvantaged communities equitably and whether information provision influences outcomes
What Can You Earn?
What it's worth.worth.
Research and policy reports
Varies
Academic institutions, think tanks, and government agencies license datasets for research and policy analysis
Platform and software integrations
Varies
School choice application platforms (e.g., NYC's MySchools) and enrollment management systems license data for decision support features
Custom analysis and consulting
Varies
Districts and organizations commission analysis of lottery outcomes, preference patterns, and equity impacts
What Buyers Expect
What makes it valuable.valuable.
Complete lottery application records
Full lists of student applications, preference rankings, lottery numbers assigned, and enrollment outcomes
Demographic and geographic information
Student neighborhood/address, demographic characteristics, and priority classifications to enable stratified analysis
Waitlist and placement data
Waitlist positions, acceptance/rejection outcomes, and final enrollment confirmation to understand true demand and matches
Longitudinal and time-series consistency
Multi-year datasets that allow analysis of preference stability, cutoff lottery numbers, and trend identification
Transparency and reproducibility
Clear documentation of lottery mechanisms, tie-breaking rules, and priority criteria so analysts can replicate findings and audit fairness
Companies Active Here
Who's buying.buying.
Operates MySchools platform for centralized school choice admissions; uses lottery and preference data to inform transparency features and help students estimate acceptance chances
Collect and analyze choice system data to design enrollment policies, evaluate program demand, and monitor equity outcomes across neighborhoods
Analyze lottery mechanisms, information provision effects, and student decision-making using application and enrollment datasets to test policy reforms
FAQ
Common questions.questions.
What makes school choice lottery data valuable?
It reveals actual family preferences through revealed behavior (applications and enrollment) rather than stated preferences alone. This data shows which schools families truly want, neighborhood bias effects, how lottery transparency influences choices, and whether choice systems equitably serve all communities.
How do lotteries work in school choice systems?
When schools receive more applications than available seats, lotteries are used to fairly resolve priority ties. Each student receives a random lottery number. Schools use these numbers to break ties among students with the same priority level (e.g., same neighborhood). Traditionally, students submitted preferences without knowing their lottery numbers; recent research and platforms like NYC's MySchools now reveal lottery outcomes or estimated acceptance chances to help students make better decisions.
What does lottery revelation tell us about student decision-making?
Studies show students often overestimate their admission chances and face high non-placement risk when they lack lottery information. When lottery outcomes or estimated acceptance probabilities are revealed, students respond by expanding their preference lists, adding less popular but more achievable schools. This reduces risk and improves overall placement outcomes, particularly for disadvantaged families.
How can districts and researchers access this data?
School choice lottery data typically comes from centralized admissions platforms operated by districts or municipalities. Researchers can access anonymized datasets through district partnerships, public records requests, or academic collaborations. Platforms like NYC's MySchools generate rich transaction-level data on applications, preferences, lottery assignments, and outcomes that inform both policy and research.
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