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Down High School: SEAG score and admissions criteria

Downpatrick · controlled co-educational grammar · September 2026 entry

This page shows exactly how Down High School used SEAG results to allocate Year 8 places,
taken from the school’s own published admissions criteria. It is one of the
63 school evidence cards in our SEAG admissions guide.

Allocation pattern

Score rank order

Places go in strict SEAG score order, highest first, until the school is full. When scores tie at the cut-off, published tie-break criteria decide the final places.

How places were allocated for September 2026

  1. 135 places (the admissions number was 128 in the years shown below). Places are awarded on SEAG Total Standardised Age Score (TSAS) in strict rank order, highest first, up to the admissions number.
  2. Where pupils tie on the same score for the final place(s), sub-criteria apply in order: a sibling enrolled in 2025–26 → the eldest or only child of the family eligible to transfer.
  3. Any remaining tie is broken by surname initial (a randomised order) → date of birth (older first).
  4. As a controlled school, no capital fee is charged.
Places go by score rank alone. The sibling and eldest-child criteria only separate pupils tied on the exact TSAS for the last place. The Band is not used.

Recent admissions history

Entry year Places Applications (all prefs) Admitted
2023/24 128 187 138*
2024/25 128 176 136*
2025/26 128 143 133**

*Includes a temporary variation to the admissions number. **2025/26 also includes pupils with a Statement of Special Educational Needs and/or attending SPiMS, as stated by the school. The admissions number for September 2026 entry is 135.

Worth asking at the open day

How often is the surname tie-break reached? · What was the lowest TSAS admitted recently?

Source — School-published · September 2026 entry · Verified 9 July 2026

Admissions Criteria 2026-2027 (PDF) →  ·  School website →

These figures describe past cycles. Always read the school’s current published
criteria in full before listing it — criteria can change year to year.

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