Joining Our School

Our Open Evening will take place on Thursday, October 1st from 5:30pm to 7:30pm. We can not facilitate any school visits outside of this time.

Applications for First Year will be accepted online from October 1st, 2026. The school will cease accepting applications for admission to First Year 2027 on October 22nd at 5pm. Please note that the date and time an application is submitted during this period will not affect how the application is processed or prioritised. All applications received within the application period will be processed in accordance with the school’s Admission Policy.

Please note applications for First Year 2027 should only be completed for students who are currently in Sixth Class or equivalent.

Click here to read our Annual Admissions Notice for 2027/28 school year.

Click here to read our Admissions Policy.

If your child needs a place in our Autism Class for September 2027, you must notify the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) by September 1st  and apply for a letter of eligibility. Without it, we cannot offer a place.

Complete the ‘Parents Notify’ online form on the NCSE website by September 1st 2026 and submit all required documents by September 15th 2026 (or as soon as possible after). Visit the NCSE website for full details here: Parents Notify – Special Class/Special School Placement – NCSE

If you have recently located to Dublin and require a place in our school for your child please contact the office at office@goatstownetss.ie

The school will commence accepting applications for entry to Second to Sixth Year on Tuesday, February 2nd, 2027

You can read our Transfer and Repeat Policy here.

Please contact the office at office@goatstownetss.ie for further information.

FAQs - Joining our School

Parents are advised to read the school Admissions Policy and Notice as well as the answers to the following FAQs.

How many places are there available?

For 2027/2028 school year, there will be a maximum of 72 places in First Year.

The Board of Management decides each year on the number of places available in First Year.

Who decides who gets a place?

The order of priorities in allocating places has been determined by our patron, Educate Together.

Priority One offers are made to siblings of existing students of Goatstown ETSS. If there are more sibling applications than the total number of places available, then the names in this priority group are randomised numerically to determine who is allocated a place. If there are places remaining after the allocation of places in this priority group, then the process moves to the next priority.

Priority Two offers are made to students who live in the school catchment area as determined by the Department of Education. If there are more Priority Two applications than places, then these names are randomised to determine who is allocated a place. If there are places remaining after Priority Two then the process moves to Priority Three. 

Priority Three offers are made to students who live outside the school catchment area. The randomising process is followed again if there are more applicants than places.  

When all of the places are allocated the remaining applicants are placed on a waiting list. This waiting list is used to allocate places if any family rescinds their place or does not return their completed enrolment papers on time. When the waiting list is exhausted, the process moves to late applications received.

Are there feeder schools?

No. The concept of automatic admission to a child from any named school is not in our Admissions Policy.

Do you have a waiting list?

Children who are not offered a place in the first round will remain on the waiting list for that academic year only. If a family no longer wishes for their child to attend the school then the place will be offered to the next person on the waiting list as identified by the original random selection process.

When do I apply for a place for my child?

Applications are accepted when your child is in Sixth Class (or its international equivalent). The window for applying runs from early October for a three week period. (See Admissions Notice for relevant year)

Is there anything I can do to improve my chances of getting a place?

No. Places are offered according to the specific criteria identified in the Admissions Policy.

What happens if I accept places in a number of schools?

We understand that parents may apply to a number of schools. However, once you have accepted a place, we ask that you promptly release any other place you have accepted. This is important to ensure that places can be offered as quickly as possible to children on waiting lists.

If you accept a place for your child in more than one school, we will be notified through the Department of Education’s Post-Primary Online Database (PPOD). We will then contact you and ask you to confirm which school your child will be attending.

Please note that a student cannot hold an accepted place in two schools at the same time.