Prospective families
ICS was built on the philosophy of deep and consistent collaboration with parents and families throughout our students’ educational journeys. Make your family part of the ICS family today.
Admissions
The ICS admissions process fosters inclusion, equal opportunity and engagement from students across Philadelphia’s over 40 zip codes. While space is limited to 825 students, we strive to provide opportunities for as many students as possible to reap the benefits of our rich and robust global learning opportunities.
The Lottery Process:
ICS enrolls students through an annual lottery process to make the process fair and equitable to all interested students and parents. Any student living in Philadelphia and entering grades K-8 is eligible to enter the lottery.
Application Process
For a student to be eligible to attend kindergarten in for the upcoming year, they must turn five by September 1st. All applications received by the lottery application deadline each year are entered into a drawing. Available spaces at the school are then filled in the order that the names are drawn in the lottery.
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- Application window: Apply Today until Tuesday, January 20, 2026.
- Lottery Date: Friday, February 6, 2026
- Notification Date: Friday, February 6, 2026
- Acceptance Date: Friday, February 20, 2026
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Important Guidelines
- All information must be complete and accurate.
- You must submit a separate application for each child.
- Only one application per child will be valid.
- It is your responsibility to notify us if your contact information changes.
- It is your responsibility to ensure that you have received an email receipt and save it for your records.
- The waiting list does not carry over from year to year.
- If you live outside of Philadelphia, you are not eligible to enter the lottery drawing. You will be added to the end of the waiting list after the lottery drawing.
Sibling Preference
ICS gives lottery preference to new students who already have a sibling enrolled in the school. Siblings must live in the same household and have the same legal parent/guardian. Families must submit a valid lottery application by the deadline to be eligible for sibling preference.
Additional Enrollment and Application Policies
If you would like to learn more about our school services, policies, and procedures before applying, please refer to our Policies page.
High Schools ICS Students Attend After Graduation
If you want to learn more about our ICS students’ graduation plans before applying, please refer to our High School page.
Take A Tour
The relationship between ICS faculty and prospective parents very often starts with touring our school and getting better acquainted with our teaching philosophy, resources and aspirations for our students. Contact our admissions representatives below to see if ICS is the right fit for your child. We look forward to meeting you!
PLANNING YOUR VISIT
ICS is accessible via the following SEPTA Routes: Broad Street Line (Lombard-South), Bus (2, 40) Regional Rail: Suburban Station.
This Year’s Applications
Kindergarten Lottery Application
In Kindergarten, we typically accept 92 students each year. Start your child down the ICS path by completing the application process today.
1st through 8th Grade Application Process
On average, we can accept about 20 total new students per year from the waiting lists in 1st-8th grades (approximately two or three new students per grade).
Opening Worlds of Opportunity
CONTACT US
215-238-8000, ext. 2222
215-238-8000, ext. 2228 (Para español)
215-238-1998
1600 Lombard St.
Philadelphia, PA 19146