U.S. News & World Report released its rankings of the best high schools in the country this week, and 9 New Jersey schools are among the top 100 for the 2025-26 school year.
Almost all of the NJ schools on the list are specialized magnet high schools, known for their academic rigor, competitive admissions and high expectations of students. The other NJ high school on the list has its own competitive admissions process, too. And the top New Jersey school is also the No. 1 school for STEM in the country.
That’s pretty significant, considering the report looked at data for more than 24,000 public high schools in all 50 states plus Washington, D.C. The study gives rankings to 18,000 schools based on six factors, including state test scores and how well a school prepares its students for college. U.S. News worked with North Carolina-based RTI International, a global nonprofit social science research firm.
The first New Jersey high school on the list, High Technology High School, is part of the Monmouth County Vocational School District. The school is located on the campus of Brookdale Community College in Lincroft. It’s a four-year career academy that provides students with a pre-engineering curriculum, and is repeatedly recognized as a Blue Ribbon School and in rankings of the nation’s top high schools, according to information from the school. It’s also the No. 1 STEM school in the country, according to the same analysis.
- No. 27 in National Rankings
- No. 1 in New Jersey High Schools
- No. 3 in New York, NY Metro Area High Schools
- No. 1 in Monmouth County Vocational School District High Schools
- No. 1 in STEM High Schools
- 284 students enrolled in grades 9 to 12
- Total scorecard of 99.85
- Math proficiency is 98 percent; reading is 99 percent
- Score of 100 for college readiness
- AP participation rate is 100 percent; 100 percent passed at least one AP exam
- 100 percent graduation rate
- 13-to-1 student-to-teacher ratio
Bergen County Academies is a free public career technical high school open to all Bergen County residents, located on the Dr. John Grieco Campus in Hackensack. Part of the Bergen County Vocational Technical School District, BCA offers seven specialized programs in math and science, engineering and design, medical science, business and finance, culinary arts and hospitality administration, visual and performing arts, and technology and computer science.
- No. 41 in National Rankings
- No. 2 in New Jersey High Schools
- No. 5 in New York, NY Metro Area High Schools
- No. 1 in Bergen County Vocational Technical School District High Schools
- No. 14 in STEM High Schools
- 1,116 students enrolled in grades 9 to 12
- Total minority enrollment is 69 percent
- 5 percent of students are economically disadvantaged
- Total scorecard of 99.77
- Math proficiency is 99 percent; reading is 100 percent; science is 98 percent
- Score of 96.8 for college readiness
- AP participation rate is 98 percent; 95 percent passed at least one AP exam
- 100 percent graduation rate
Edison Academy Magnet School is part of the Middlesex County Vocational and Technical School District, located in Edison. It is modeled as a small school, but offers a core curriculum plus coursework in the selected career field, all having technology integrated into each program. Students have the opportunity to earn college credits through the Middlesex College High School Scholars program, as well as from Rutgers University and other post-secondary institutions.
- No. 59 in National Rankings
- No. 3 in New Jersey High Schools
- No. 8 in New York, NY Metro Area High Schools
- No. 1 in Middlesex County Vocational Technical School District High Schools
- No. 6 in STEM High Schools
- 175 students enrolled in grades 9 to 12
- Total minority enrollment is 95 percent
- 2 percent of students are economically disadvantaged
- Total scorecard of 99.67
- Math proficiency is 100 percent
- Score of 100 for college readiness
- AP participation rate is 100 percent; 100 percent passed at least one AP exam
- 100 percent graduation rate
- 17-to-1 student-to-teacher ratio
Dr. Ronald E. McNair High School is part of the Jersey City public school district. The mission is to provide a challenging college preparatory curriculum within an ethnically and racially diverse environment, according to the website. The school was ranked No. 1 in New Jersey in 2018, was a National Blue Ribbon School in 2018, is the No. 4 most diverse public high school in New Jersey, and is the first Jersey City public school to offer varsity fencing.
- No. 77 in National Rankings
- No. 4 in New Jersey High Schools
- No. 12 in New York, NY Metro Area High Schools
- No. 1 in Jersey City Public Schools
- No. 483 in STEM High Schools
- 698 students enrolled in grades 9 to 12
- Total minority enrollment is 81 percent
- 34 percent of students are economically disadvantaged
- Total scorecard of 99.57
- Math proficiency is 97 percent, reading is 100 percent, science is 86 percent
- Score of 90.1 for college readiness
- AP participation rate is 96 percent; 88 percent passed at least one AP exam
- 99 percent graduation rate
- 17-to-1 student-to-teacher ratio
Union County Magnet High School for Science, Mathematics and Technology, is part of the Union County Vocational-Technical School District, located in Scotch Plains. The school enrolls more than 2,000 students each year from across Union County. The school has 200 business and industry connections so that students can be placed in internships; in addition to 100 percent participation in AP and college-level courses, plus a 100 percent graduation rate.
- No. 79 in National Rankings
- No. 5 in New Jersey High Schools
- No. 13 in New York, NY Metro Area High Schools
- No. 1 in Union County Vocational-Technical School District High Schools
- No. 78 in STEM High Schools
- 311 students enrolled in grades 9 to 12
- Total minority enrollment is 71 percent
- 6 percent of students are economically disadvantaged
- Total scorecard of 99.56
- Math proficiency is 96 percent, reading is 99 percent, science is 99 percent
- Score of 86.8 for college readiness
- AP participation rate is 91 percent; 85 percent passed at least one AP exam
- 100 percent graduation rate
- 21-to-1 student-to-teacher ratio
Biotechnology High School in Freehold is an International Baccalaureate (IB) World School that falls under the Monmouth County Vocational School District. There’s an emphasis on laboratory science, research, math and tech through classes like genetics, environmental, biomedical and agricultural biotechnology, along with BioEngineering and BioBusiness. BTHS is the only high school in New Jersey at which 100 percent of the students are IB Diploma Candidates.
- No. 80 in National Rankings
- No. 6 in New Jersey High Schools
- No. 14 in New York, NY Metro Area High Schools
- No. 2 in Monmouth County Vocational School District High Schools
- No. 10 in STEM High Schools
- 320 students enrolled in grades 9 to 12
- Total minority enrollment is 65 percent
- 9 percent of students are economically disadvantaged
- Total scorecard of 99.55
- Math proficiency is 94 percent; reading is 98 percent; science is 100 percent
- Score of 99.4 for college readiness
- IB Exam participation rate is 100 percent; 100 percent passed at least one IB exam
- 100 percent graduation rate
- 12-to-1 student-to-teacher ratio
Bergen County Technical High School, part of the Bergen County Vocational Technical School District, is located in Teterboro. The school district was founded in 1942, and the vo-tech was the first full-time school of its kind in New Jersey when it opened in 1952. Now, it offers a full-time program with nine technical concentrations.
- No. 82 in National Rankings
- No. 7 in New Jersey High Schools
- No. 15 in New York, NY Metro Area High Schools
- No. 2 in Bergen County Vocational Technical School District High Schools
- No. 164 in STEM High Schools
- 676 students enrolled in grades 9 to 12
- Total minority enrollment is 65 percent
- 9 percent of students are economically disadvantaged
- Total scorecard of 99.54
- Math proficiency is 93 percent; reading is 96 percent; science is 96 percent
- Score of 97.6 for college readiness
- AP participation rate is 99 percent; 97 percent passed at least one AP exam
- 100 percent graduation rate
- 10-to-1 student-to-teacher ratio
Woodbridge Academy Magnet School, part of the Middlesex County Vocational and Technical School District, is located in Woodbridge. The New Jersey Department of Education named it the No. 1 High School in New Jersey in 2024. It has received the National Blue Ribbon Award for more than 30 years. In 2018, the school was awarded Best STEM School in New Jersey by the Health Institute of New Jersey.
- No. 90 in National Rankings
- No. 8 in New Jersey High Schools
- No. 16 in New York, NY Metro Area High Schools
- No. 2 in Monmouth County Vocational and Technical School District High Schools
- 285 students enrolled in grades 9 to 12
- Total minority enrollment is 94 percent
- 4 percent of students are economically disadvantaged
- Total scorecard of 99.5
- Math proficiency is 96 percent; science is 97 percent
- Score of 95.5 for college readiness
- AP participation rate is 99 percent; 95 percent passed at least one AP exam
- 100 percent graduation rate
- 10-to-1 student-to-teacher ratio
Academy for Information Technology, part of the Union County Vocational-Technical School District, is a small, four-year career academy located in Scotch Plains. The program focuses on the development and application of technology in the business environment through classes in productivity software, operating systems, database design and development, and computer programming. AIT students benefit from a partnership with the Oracle Corporation and the school has been designated as an Oracle Academy.
- No. 94 in National Rankings
- No. 9 in New Jersey High Schools
- No. 17 in New York, NY Metro Area High Schools
- No. 2 in Union County Vocational-Technical School District High Schools
- No. 66 in STEM High Schools
- 303 students enrolled in grades 9 to 12
- Total minority enrollment is 70 percent
- 7 percent of students are economically disadvantaged
- Total scorecard of 99.48
- Math proficiency is 65 percent; reading is 99 percent; science is 91 percent
- Score of 93.7 for college readiness
- AP participation rate is 99 percent; 92 percent passed at least one AP exam
- 100 percent graduation rate
- 20-to-1 student-to-teacher ratio
These are the top New Jersey high schools in the country for 2025-26, according to U.S. News & World Report:
- 27. High Technology High School, Lincroft
- 41. Bergen County Academies, Hackensack
- 59. Edison Academy Magnet School, Edison
- 77. Dr. Ronald E. McNair High School, Jersey City
- 79. Union County Magnet High School, Scotch Plains
- 80. Biotechnology High School, Freehold
- 82. Bergen County Technical High School, Teterboro
- 90. Woodbridge Academy Magnet School, Woodbridge
- 94. Academy for Information Technology, Scotch Plains
These are the top high schools in the country for 2025-26, according to U.S. News & World Report:
- BASIS Tucson North, Tucson, Arizona
- Signature School, Evansville, Indiana
- Central Magnet School, Murfreesboro, Tennessee
- Davidson Academy, Reno, Nevada
- Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, Alexandria, Virginia
- Albuquerque Institute of Math and Science, Albuquerque, New Mexico
- Haas Hall Bentonville, Bentonville, Arkansas
- Julia R. Masterman Secondary School, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- The School for the Talented and Gifted, Dallas, Texas
- Aiken Scholars Academy, Aiken, South Carolina
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