How many students applied for DSA in 2026?

A record 16,900 Primary 6 students applied for Direct School Admission in 2026, up 7.6% from 15,700 in 2025. It is the highest number since DSA began in 2004. They submitted about 45,000 applications in total.

What percentage of students apply for DSA?

About 41% of the Primary 6 cohort applied for DSA in 2026 — roughly four in ten students. That share has held steady at around 39%–41% over the past three years even as the raw number of applicants changed.

Why are there more DSA applications than applicants?

Each child can list up to three schools, so 16,900 applicants produced about 45,000 applications in 2026 — a little under three choices each. The application count looks larger than the number of distinct students competing for any one place.

Which talents are most popular for DSA?

In 2026, about 40% of DSA applications were through sport, with STEM and performing arts each around 20%. The rest were spread across leadership and uniformed groups, entrepreneurship and innovation, languages and humanities, visual arts, and design and media.

How many secondary schools offer DSA, and how many seats do they fill this way?

143 schools ran DSA in 2026. The 16 Integrated Programme schools may admit 30%–35% of their intake via DSA, non-IP schools up to 20%, and the four specialised independent schools (NUS High, SOTA, Singapore Sports School, and SST) fill 100% of places through DSA.

DSA by the Numbers: How Competitive Is DSA in 2026?

A record 16,900 P6 students applied for Direct School Admission in 2026, up 7.6%. We break down the DSA numbers: applicants, applications, IP vs non-IP schools, and which talents are most popular.

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DSA by the Numbers: How Competitive Is DSA in 2026?

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