At a Glance
A fiercely selective Bronx middle-and-high school where applicants outnumber seats roughly a hundred to one
Best suited for
Families who value a small, STEM-focused 6-12 school with a calm climate and are willing to commit to tackling daily attendance and commute logistics head-on.
Overall Rating
Grades 3–8
Rating = average of NY State ELA + math proficiency, grades 3–8
High school
Rating = average of 4-year graduation, English Regents college-ready and Regents completion · DOE 2025 report
Bands are Motley's thresholds on a 0–100 scale, not New York State performance levels.
How this is scored→What stands out
- Last year 1,018 students applied for 10 seats — roughly a 1% offer rate, making it one of the most selective public schools in the Bronx by demand.
- Zero suspensions in the most recent reporting period, against a district average suspension rate above 0.4%, signaling a remarkably calm climate.
- Strong STEM identity with AP courses, accelerated honors tracks, and world languages including an unusual Cantonese offering alongside French and Spanish.
- Parent-teacher and parent-principal trust both at 95%, well above most peers, despite test scores that lag.
Things to consider
- Test scores remain well below the district average in both ELA and math, even with multi-year improvement.
- Chronic absenteeism at 46.5% means most students miss a meaningful chunk of the school year — a real concern for academic growth.
- Admissions is by education option, so families compete citywide; the commute to this part of the Bronx may be long for many.
- Subway access requires a long walk from any of the nearby lines, so a daily bus or car commute should be planned for.
Based on 2024-25 data
School SummaryDistrict 9
District 9 includes high-performing charters like Icahn and Success Academy that score in the 90s and 99s on peer rankings, making this school a middle-of-the-pack public option rather than a top-tested one. Within the non-charter district landscape, however, it pulls more applicant interest than almost any other school.
Academics
ELA proficiency of 27.6% and math proficiency of 28.5% both trail the district averages of roughly 45%, and the school's overall score of 1.12/4 sits below the district's 1.79. The trajectory is more encouraging than the snapshot: ELA has climbed from 17.8% in 2016, with a dip and rebound through the pandemic years, and math has recovered from a sharp low of 8.7% in 2022 back to near its earlier baseline. Performance is relatively even across grades 6-8, which suggests the school isn't just propping up any one cohort.
Culture
Parent satisfaction (94%), teacher-to-principal trust (96%), and teacher instructional quality (92%) are all at or above the district average — a strong signal that the people inside the building experience it as well-run. The headline warning sign is attendance: the 86.9% rate sits below the district's 90.1%, and 46.5% of students are chronically absent, meaning close to half miss enough school to be flagged. On the flip side, the discipline record is exceptionally clean — zero suspensions, well below the district rate.
Community
The student body is 71% Hispanic and 27% Black, drawn from a neighborhood where the median household income is just over $30,000 and the economic need index is 92.8 — one of the highest in the city. About 28% of students have IEPs, and the school provides ELL support in Spanish and Cantonese. The community is largely Latinx with deep roots in the Bronx, and the school functions as a draw for families willing to navigate the education-option admissions process from outside the immediate area.
Neighborhood
The Claremont Village-Claremont (East) neighborhood around the school is densely built out and family-rooted, with a poverty rate above 44% and a median household income well under the city median. Only about 10% of households include children, and homeownership is rare (under 3%) — most residents are renters, many in multi-family buildings. Just over 1 in 10 adults hold a bachelor's degree, which tracks with a community where many students would be first-generation college hopefuls.
The school is beyond easy subway range — the nearest stations (174-175 Sts, 170 St, and Tremont Av on the B and D lines) are each a 13- to 16-minute walk, so most families arrive by bus or car.
Academic Performance
ELA Proficiency
Students scoring proficient or above on the NY State ELA exam.
NYC DOE InfoHub · 2022-23
Math Proficiency
Students scoring proficient or above on the NY State Math exam.
NYC DOE InfoHub · 2022-23
Historical Trends
The dashed line marks 2023, when New York changed its grades 3–8 state tests. Scores before and after it aren’t directly comparable.
2020–2021 data unavailable due to COVID-19
Source: NYC DOE School Quality Reports
Survey Results
NYC School Survey (2025) · 122 families responded (24% rate)
Programs & Activities
Admissions Demand
AMS provides a comprehensive, college-preparatory education focusing on rich and engaging classroom activities. Our school welcomes applicants from all neighborhoods, and does not screen applicants based on test scores, disability, or language status.
Racial & Ethnic Diversity
NYC DOE InfoHub · 2022-23
Discipline
NYSED Student & Educator Database
Economic Need & Special Populations
How to get in, step by step
Middle school (6th grade)
Middle school is one citywide application, made in 5th grade. Urban Assembly School for Applied Math and Science, The admits through one program, and each one has its own admissions method:
- The Urban Assembly School for Applied Math and ScienceUnscreened73 seats
Middle school application
- Opened
- Wed, Oct 14
- Closes
- Fri, Dec 11
- Offers
- Wed, Apr 7
The DOE’s published dates.
- 1Apply on MySchools during the middle school application, in 5th grade.
- 2Unscreened programs fill by random lottery among the families who rank them.
- 3Rank programs in true preference order — the match places your child in the highest-ranked one that offers a seat.
High school (9th grade)
High school is one citywide application, made in 8th grade. Urban Assembly School for Applied Math and Science, The admits through one program, and each one has its own admissions method:
- Urban Assembly School for Applied Math and ScienceEd. Opt.
High school application
- Opened
- Tue, Oct 6
- Closes
- Fri, Dec 4
- Offers
- Wed, Mar 3
The DOE’s published dates.
- 1Apply on MySchools during the high school application, in 8th grade.
- 2Educational Option programs fill in equal shares across three reading levels, half by the school's ranking and half by lottery.
- 3Rank programs in true preference order — the match places your child in the highest-ranked one that offers a seat.
ASD Horizon
Urban Assembly School for Applied Math and Science, The runs an ASD Horizon program (Y29Y), listed in the DOE high school directory.
ASD Nest and ASD Horizon are special education programs inside regular district schools, for some students whose IEP carries an autism classification. Both teach the same New York State standards as every other public school.
ASD Horizon runs a special class of at most eight autistic students, with one special education teacher and one paraprofessional (8:1+1), plus weekly group sessions on social communication.
Program descriptions: NYC Public Schools' Autism Family Resource Guide (last updated January 9, 2025).
A seat starts with your child's IEP team: ask them whether a program fits and how to apply.
Open houses and tours
Open house
Thu, Nov 5, · 4:30 PM · In person
From the MySchools admissions calendar, checked weekly.
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Frequently Asked Questions
- Is Urban Assembly School for Applied Math and Science, The a good school?
- On Motley, Urban Assembly School for Applied Math and Science, The earns an overall rating of 28/100 — the average of the school's New York State ELA and math proficiency, grades 3–8, shown out of 100. Its state test results run below the District 9 average. Its high school grades have their own rating, 54/100, from graduation and Regents results.
- What grades does Urban Assembly School for Applied Math and Science, The serve?
- Urban Assembly School for Applied Math and Science, The serves grades 6 to 12.
- How do students get into Urban Assembly School for Applied Math and Science, The?
- Urban Assembly School for Applied Math and Science, The uses the Educational Option (Ed-Opt) method, ranking applicants across performance levels so seats go to a mix of abilities.
- Is Urban Assembly School for Applied Math and Science, The public, charter, or private?
- Urban Assembly School for Applied Math and Science, The is a public school in NYC Community School District 9.
- What neighborhood is Urban Assembly School for Applied Math and Science, The in?
- Urban Assembly School for Applied Math and Science, The is in Claremont Village-Claremont (East), Bronx.