Full Guide to The 2022 School Selection Program by GES
Congratulations on writing your BECE and bringing your Junior High School Education to completion! Senior High School awaits you. In this article, we will help you make a good understanding of the school selection system put together by the Ghana Education Service (GES).
What schools do you have in mind? The Ministry of Education, in collaboration with Ghana Education Service, Technical and Vocational Education, and Training Services has put together a comprehensive guideline to help you with your 2022 schools selection, and enlighten you about the placement process.
The government has included all Senior High Schools, Senior High Technical Schools, and Technical and Vocational Education and Training Services in a register to give you more understanding of the categories of schools you are to choose from.
These include Category A schools, otherwise known as overly subscribed schools, Category B schools or average subscribed schools, Category C or under-subscribed schools, and the new addition Category D or All Catchment Area Day Schools.
There are a total of nine hundred and eleven (911) public second-cycle institutions in the country. Below are how they are categorized;
Categories of Second Cycle Schools in Ghana
| Categories of Schools | Total Number of Schools | Senior High Schools | Senior High Technical Schools | Technical and Vocational Institutions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | 86 | 48 | 5 | 33 |
| B | 264 | 178 | 50 | 36 |
| C | 561 | 280 | 138 | 143 |
| Total | 911 | 506 | 193 | 212 |
Out of the nine hundred and eleven(911) schools, you will find in the register, there are four(4) categories of people that will be competing for a spot. They include;
- 2022 Basic Education Certificate Examination(BECE) Candidates
- 2022 Private BECE Candidates
- Foreign Students
- Re-entry Candidates
It is evident that there is quite the competition going on here for the school placement, however, the Ghana Education Service wants all candidates and students to know that selection is strictly based on merits, meaning no one is going to be cheating you by giving your spot to someone else. They even want you to know that there is a 30% Public Junior High School equity in Category A schools for candidates in public schools!
The Six(6) Subjects that Would Determine Your Fate
To benefit from this fair educational system, you must do very well in your examination because six(6) of your best scores will be used in selection and placement.
These will include your four core subjects and two (2) of your best electives. The compulsory core subjects include English Language, Mathematics, Integrated Science, and Social Studies. Out of Information and Communications Technology, Ghanaian Language, Basic Design and Technology, and Religious and Moral Education, two of your best will be selected to calculate your aggregates.
That is not all the Education Service works with to cumulate your final or raw score. Your examination percentage is also taken. Thus, the total of your examination scores while you were in school.
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Mode For School Selection
Read the following carefully so that you can follow the right procedure in selecting your schools.
- Unlike a few years back when we used to select only four schools for placement, candidates are now allowed to choose six(6) schools. You must choose from your first to the sixth choice.
- Select programmes and accommodations for each school. Be sure to properly look through the available programs for every school and choose the one you know will favor you.
- Per the criteria, you must choose a compulsory day school as the sixth choice from the Catchment Area Schools in your register or choose a boarding school from the list in Appendix 3.
- You must indicate “Yes” or “No” to accept or decline to opt for a cluster.
Cluster-based schools are also a new addition to the process. These are a group of schools that belong to the same category which you can comfortably select as alternatives should you miss your initial choices. In simple terms, should you not get any of the schools you choose in a certain category, they can be replaced for you. But only for that category.
You can accept this offer or decline it. It is not compulsory for all candidates.
- You must not indicate any cluster for the sixth choice.
- Candidates who wish to offer purely Technical and Vocational Education Training programmes must select all six (6) TVET schools from categories A, B, and C as Day or Boarding.
- You cannot select more than one school from Category A
- You cannot select more than two schools from Category B
- But you may select five(5) choices from Category C alone and one(1) from Category D or special Boarding.
After selecting the schools you want, all while following the guidelines above with the help of your teachers and guardians, your school authorities will take it from there.
Mode of Submission of School Selection
- The school selections made by candidates are sent to the District Education Offices through their Junior High School Heads.
- Private Candidates, on the other hand, must select their school choices online and submit via https://www.waecinternetsolution.org
- Foreign students must purchase an application form online, carefully and correctly fill and submit it to the CSSPS/FreeSHS/TVET Secretariat.
What to do after selecting your schools
Next, you will wait to be placed in any of the second-cycle institutions you chose based on your final score after marking. It is important to do all these, especially the programme selection with your teachers and guardians to make sure the lineup will favour your strengths. In other words, select programs with subjects you think you can be good at.
Assess your academic performance with the help of your teachers before you make any choices. No school is a bad school, it all depends on the program you will like to read. It is evident that many of the category A schools focus on Mathematics and Science. Majority of them, not all. So if that is where your strength is, you are likely to be placed there.
Research has shown that young people your age value the opinions of their peers to their parents and teachers, this is not the kind of situation that requires the advice of your peers. Do not be forced to select the same schools as them, because their strengths are different from yours. Your teachers and guardians know best. For once, lean on them.
Other Important Information/ Frequently Asked Questions
What if my score ties in with someone else’s?
In event of a tie between student scores, your examination score comes to play. It is added to your grades to break the tie so that each of you can be placed at respective schools.
What if I’m not placed?
Parents no longer have to go through the hustle and bustle of getting schools for their wards if they are not placed anywhere. You the candidate can place yourself in the list of schools with vacancies at the end of it all, and to use this self-placement module, you must visit the CSSPS portal via www.cssps.gov.gh, enter details of your index number and PIN, choose from the available schools with vacancies. Print out your placement form after submission and wait.
Which subjects are used to calculate the raw score?
Last year, the raw score used was based only on four core subjects, but this year, it looks like it could be based on all six subjects.
From what the Government has announced, there is an introduction of cluster-based schools, as we explained as alternatives to a miss on initial choices, there is an absorption of two hundred and twelve (212) Technical Institutions, the inclusion of five (5) newly built Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Schools and the opportunity for students to select low enrollment schools as boarding in the sixth choice.
Conclusion
With the new comprehensive school selection and placement program for the BECE, parents and students get a better understanding at what they are to do and expect. With good aggregates in six(6) subjects, they can carefully select six(6) schools, together with clusters and be placed after scoring and evaluation.
Candidates who may not be placed can also now place themselves at schools with vacancies. No student will be left at home if parents, students and teachers better understand this scope. Share this article to help someone today.
