These Are The Best Public High Schools in NJ, According to New Study

The latest rankings of public high schools are out from US News & World Report. The site reviewed nearly 25,000 U.S. public high schools and 399 New Jersey schools made its rankings, with STEM-focused schools topping the list.

No. 1 on the New Jersey list, Union County Magnet High School in Scotch Plains, is one of five high schools that are part of the Union County Vocational-Technical School District. It received an overall score of 99.85 out of 100. The AP participation rate is 97 percent and the overall graduation rate is 100 percent.

Union County Magnet High is No. 1 in NJ and No. 26 nationally, in addition to being No. 3 in the New York NY Metro Area High Schools list and No. 21 on the list of STEM high schools.

No. 2 on the New Jersey list, Middlesex County Academy for Science, Math and Engineering, in Edison, is one of six schools that are part of the Middlesex County Vocational and Technical School District. The AP participation rate and graduation rate are both 100 percent. The school is No. 39 in the national rankings, plus No. 6 on a list of New York NJ Metro Area High Schools and No. 12 for STEM high schools.

No. 3 on the list, High Technology High in Lincroft, is No. 3 in NJ. The curriculum at this Monmouth County Vocational School District Career Academy is mostly focused on engineering, with courses offered in civil engineering and architecture, computer-integrated manufacturing and digital electronics. Students who are enrolled can earn college credit for core coursework at Rochester Institute of Technology, Georgian Court University and Brookdale Community College.

The graduation rate is 100 percent, and 99 percent of students take at least one AP exam. High Tech High comes in at No. 1 on the list of STEM high schools, No. 11 on the New York NY Metro Area High School list, and No. 64 in the National Rankings.

The top 20 public high schools in New Jersey, according to U.S. News & World Report, are:
1. Union County Magnet High School, Scotch Plains – No. 26 in the country
2. Middlesex County Academy for Science, Mathematics and Technologies, Edison – No. 39 in the country
3. High Technology High School, Lincroft – No. 64 in the country
4. Middlesex County Academy for Allied Health, Woodbridge – No. 65 in the country
5. Biotechnology High School, Freehold – No. 72 in the country
6. Dr. Ronald E. McNair High School, Jersey City – No. 77 in the country
7. Bergen County Academies, Hackensack – No. 78 in the country
8. Bergen County Technical High School, Teterboro – No. 88 in the country
9. Academy for Information Technology, Scotch Plains – No. 122 in the country
10. Academy for Allied Health Sciences, Scotch Plains – No. 230 in the country
11. Monmouth County Academy of Allied Health and Science, Neptune – No. 248 in the country
12. Elizabeth High School, Elizabeth – No. 278 in the country
13. Glen Ridge High School, Glen Ridge – No. 311 in the country
14. Marine Academy of Science and Technology, Highlands – No. 316 in the country
15. Infinity Institute, Jersey City – No. 374 in the country
16. Northern Valley Regional High School at Demarest, Demarest – No. 391 in the country
17. West Windsor-Plainsboro High School North, Plainsboro – No. 441 in the country
18. Livingston High School, Livingston – No. 456 in the country
19. Millburn High School, Millburn – No. 457 in the country
20. West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South, West Windsor – No. 469 in the country

Click here to see the rest of New Jersey’s top public high schools.

US News & World Report’s school rankings are based on state-required test performance, graduation rates and how well students are prepared for college. The ranks were partially based on the math, English language arts and science scores from New Jersey Student Learning Assessments. Students in NJ are also required to study a world language as well as visual and performing arts in order to graduate, according to the New Jersey Department of Education.

New Jersey has 476 public high schools in its 336 school districts. There are more than 36,000 teachers enrolled full-time who are teaching over 449,000 students. A total of 399 public high schools in New Jersey made the list.