PR and International Students in S1 Posting: Why Ties Go Against You and How to Choose
Secondary 1 posting admits students in order of PSLE score. When students have the same score and there are not enough places, MOE breaks the tie in this order:
- Citizenship: Singapore Citizen, then Permanent Resident (PR), then international student
- Choice order: students who ranked the school higher come first
- Computerised ballot
SAP schools compare Higher Chinese first; see SAP schools.
What this means for PR families
A cut-off point is the score of the last student admitted. If your score is exactly the cut-off, some students on that score got in and some did not, and the ones who did not are often PRs and international students.
So for PRs and international students:
- a school whose cut-off equals your score is a reach, not a match;
- a real match is a school whose cut-off is at least 1 point looser than your score;
- a safe choice should be at least 1 point looser in all three years.
How common is it
How many schools had a 2025 PG3 cut-off of exactly each score:
| Cut-off | Schools | Cut-off | Schools |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | 6 | 16 | 7 |
| 9 | 4 | 17 | 6 |
| 10 | 4 | 18 | 10 |
| 11 | 9 | 19 | 6 |
| 12 | 4 | 20 | 11 |
| 13 | 10 | 21 | 3 |
| 14 | 11 | 22 | 32 |
| 15 | 7 |
For example, a PR with a score of 20 faces 11 schools whose cut-off was exactly 20. For a citizen those are matches; for a PR they are reaches.
Filling in choices
- Count as match or safe only schools at least 1 point looser than your score;
- borderline schools can go in as reaches, in positions 1–2;
- choice order also affects ties, so put the borderline school you want most first.
Our personalised report adjusts for citizenship: the same borderline school shows as a match for a citizen and a reach for a PR or international student, with the reason.