Best Philly-Area High Schools For College Prep: New Rankings

PHILADELPHIA, PA — Which local schools are the best at preparing students for college? That question was recently explored by analysts at Niche.com.

Niche's analysis reviewed public schools in the Philadelphia metro area to determine which ones prepare students best to excel in college.

The top school in the ranking is Julia R. Masterman Secondary School in Philadelphia. Others among the top ten include Conestoga High School, Radnor High School, and Lower Merion High School (list of top 50 below).

The Philadelphia metro area includes Eastern Pennsylvania, and portions of Delaware and New Jersey.

So how did Niche.com determine which schools are the best at preparing students for college?

According to Niche.com, the 2019 Best College Prep Public High Schools is based on "rigorous analysis" of data from the U.S. Department of Education along with test scores, college data, and ratings collected from millions of Niche users.

SAT scores, AP enrollment and test pass rate, graduation rate, college enrollment and other factors were used to determine the rankings. You can learn more about the methodology here.

The following Eastern Pennsylvania are among the top 50 college prep public high schools in the Philadelphia metro area, according to Niche.com:

• Julia R. Masterman Secondary School, Philadelphia (1st)
• Conestoga Senior High School, Berwyn (3rd)
• Radnor Senior High School, Radnor (4th)
• Downingtown STEM Academy, Downington (5th)
• Harriton Senior High School, Rosemont (6th)
• Lower Merion High School, Ardmore (7th)
• Strath Haven High School, Wallingford (8th)
• Great Valley High School, Malvern (9th)
• Unionville High School, Kennett Square (10th)
• Wissahickon Senior High School, Ambler (11th)
• Central High School, Philadelphia (12th)
• Central Bucks High School East, Doylestown (14th)
• Council Rock High School North, Newtown (15th)
• Upper Dublin High School, Fort Washington (18th)
• Central Bucks High School South, Warrington (19th)
• North Penn Senior High School, Lansdale (20th)
• Methacton High School, Eagleville (22nd)
• Central Bucks High School West, Doylestown (23rd)
• New Hope-Solebury High School, New Hope (24th)
• Haverford Senior High School, Havertown (25th)
• Upper Merion High School, King of Prussia (26th)
• Garnet Valley High School, Glen Mills (27th)
• Bayard Rustin High School, West Chester (28th)
• Council Rock High School South, Holland (29th)
• Henderson High School, West Chester (30th)
• Lower Moreland High School, Huntington Valley (31st)
• Spring-Ford Senior High School, Royersford (33rd)
• Penncrest High School, Media (34th)
• Pennsbury High School, Fairless Hills (35th)
• Kennett High School, Kennett Square (36th)
• Phoenixville Area High School, Phoenixville (37th)
• Downingtown High School East, Downingtown (38th)
• East High School, West Chester (39th)
• Perkiomen Valley High School, Collegeville (40th)
• Springfield Township High School, Erdenheim (41st)
• Jenkintown Middle/High School, Jenkintown (42nd)
• Cheltenham High School, Wyncote (43rd)
• Abington Senior High School, Abington (44th)
• Plymouth-Whitemarsh Senior High School, Plymouth meeting (45th)
• Avon Grove High School, West Grove (48th)
• Science Leadership Academy, Philadelphia (49th)
• Hatboro-Horsham High School, Horsham (50th)