By · Published June 20, 2026

DC School Lottery Results 2026-27 — Applications Down 6.5%, Match Rates Near a 12-Year High

The Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE) released the results of the My School DC common lottery for the 2026-27 school year on March 27, 2026. The headline: fewer DC families applied than in any year since the pandemic, and most of those who did got the seat they wanted.

This is a data reference for the latest cycle — the numbers, the eight-year trend behind them, which grades drew the most demand, and what the decline signals about DC enrollment. For how the lottery actually works, see our DC School Lottery Guide and the broader DC School Lottery Statistics 2026.

The 2026-27 results at a glance

Eight years of lottery applications

The decline is real, but it follows a recovery and a pandemic dip. Here is the full trend from the official My School DC data file:

Lottery yearTotal applicantsMatchedMatch rate
2018-1924,99616,08964%
2019-2025,58816,68365%
2020-2125,19816,90967%
2021-2219,92613,67769%
2022-2322,21116,25873%
2023-2422,91216,84574%
2024-2523,31216,81672%
2025-2622,44316,82875%
2026-2720,98715,62174%

Two things stand out. First, applications fell sharply in 2021 (the COVID year), recovered through 2024, and have now slipped two years running — from 23,312 in 2024-25 to 20,987 in 2026-27. Second, as demand softened, match rates climbed: the share of applicants offered a seat went from 64% in 2018 to the mid-70s in recent years. Fewer applicants chasing a similar number of seats means better odds for the families who apply.

Which grades families compete for

Demand is concentrated at the entry points. Per the My School DC applicants-by-grade file, the most-applied-for grades in 2026-27 were PK3, PK4, 6th, and 9th — the natural transition years into pre-K, middle school, and high school.

The single largest grades by applicant volume:

By contrast, the upper high-school grades draw few lottery applicants (11th grade: 418, 12th grade: 186) — most students are already placed by then.

Why applications are falling: the pre-K signal

The lottery decline tracks a broader enrollment story. According to the D.C. Policy Center, DC public enrollment edged down about 0.1% in 2025-26 — roughly 100 fewer students — after three years of growth, and the softness is concentrated in the youngest grades. Pre-K enrollment fell about 3% (356 fewer children), with PK4 down 4.1% and PK3 down 1.5%.

The lottery data points the same way. The Policy Center found PK3 lottery applications declined about 8% for 2026-27, with the largest drops in Wards 2 and 3, followed by Wards 1 and 4 — the higher-cost, higher-income parts of the city. Fewer young families with pre-K-age children is the demographic pressure underneath the headline number.

What it means for families

For parents weighing whether to enter the lottery, the practical read is encouraging: odds of a match are near their best in over a decade, and the great majority of matched families get a top-three school. The competition that remains is concentrated at PK3, 9th grade, and a handful of sought-after schools, where waitlists still move slowly. Per-school seat and waitlist data is published in the My School DC data dashboard.

When the next lottery opens

The 2027-28 application window has not been posted yet, but historically My School DC opens applications in early November, with separate deadlines for high school (earlier) and PK3-grade 8 (later). For the 2026-27 cycle, grades 9-12 closed February 2 and PK3-grade 8 closed March 2 (OSSE). Check myschooldc.org in the fall for exact 2027-28 dates.

Sources

Published June 20, 2026.