Admissions

Admission to CGS is open to all students in participating Fairfield County districts. If there are more applicants than guaranteed seats from any town, a lottery will be held.  All students who are entered into the lottery receive a number based on their home district and language selection. Students are entered into the waitlist according to those random numbers. 

CGS holds two lottery sessions — one for incoming 9th graders and one for incoming 10th-12th graders. The criteria and procedures for both lotteries are the same.

The application on this website is for students who are interested in attending the Center for Global Studies in Norwalk, CT during the 2027-28 school year.

Apply Here!

Time Table

• The application is due on January 10, 2027.
• The lottery for grade 9 occurs within 1-2 weeks after the application deadline.
• Students are notified in writing of being accepted or waitlisted within 1 month after the lottery. 
• Late applications will be accepted from January 11 to September 15. Students submitting late applications will be placed at the end of the waiting list.

The Lottery

The goal of the lottery is to create a student body that is committed to the mission of the Center for Global Studies and representative of the diverse population of Fairfield County. The lottery, therefore, will admit students who:

• Have completed all parts of the application process.
• Have proven themselves to be committed to studying the curriculum of CGS and able to participate in all aspects of the CGS program. 
• Live in towns and cities throughout Fairfield County to create a balanced representation of the county.

Lottery Guidelines

The goal of the lottery is to create a freshman class of 80 students. Lottery will be run by district and preferred language.

1. No more than sixty percent of CGS will be students who reside in Norwalk.  
2. Any student who has taken Japanese or Chinese at Roton MS and fulfills the first two requirements above will be admitted prior to any lottery. Should the number of applicants exceed 30% of an incoming class’s population, a lottery will be held for this pathway. Students not admitted through the Pathways lottery will be entered into the regular lottery for Norwalk students.
3. Up to 3 students per year who have parents/guardians employed at CGS or BMHS will receive preference.  If the number of applicants exceeds 3, then a lottery will be held for those students. Students of staff who are not given admission priority will then be entered into the regular lottery for their home district. 
4. Students who are not admitted through the lottery will remain on a waiting list for seats for their home district and the language they selected.
5. Sibling Priority: CGS offers a limited sibling priority to eligible applicants who have a sibling currently enrolled at CGS and expected to remain enrolled during the applicant’s first year of attendance. Eligible sibling applicants must complete all parts of the application process by the published deadline. CGS will verify sibling status before the lottery. Sibling priority is not a guarantee of admission. Placement depends on seat availability within the applicant’s home district, selected language, and grade-level lottery pool. No more than 20% of a district’s available lottery seats may be filled through sibling priority in a given admissions cycle. If the number of eligible sibling applicants from a district exceeds the sibling priority cap, a lottery shall be held among those sibling applicants. Sibling applicants not admitted through sibling priority shall remain eligible for the regular lottery for their home district and selected language.

Our lottery for 2027-28 will be held virtually mid-January 2027. Please contact Ms Parham at parhamj@norwalkps.org for more information, or call CGS at 203-852-9488 ext 11006.