N.J. has 400+ of the nation’s top high schools, U.S. News says

By
Emily Bader
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Some of the best high schools hail from New Jersey, according to U.S. News & World Report, which released its 2020 rankings of the Best High Schools on Wednesday.

The publication considered data on more than 24,000 public high schools in 50 states and the District of Columbia, ranking nearly 18,000 schools on six factors, based on their performance on state assessments and how well they prepare students for the future.

More than 400 New Jersey schools made the rankings, with seven in the Top 100 overall and one crowned the best STEM school in the nation.

Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Alexandria, Virginia, was the No. 1 overall school on the list.

Here are the Best New Jersey High Schools:

  1. Middlesex County Academy for Science, Mathematics and Engineering Technologies, Edison, No. 33 overall;
  2. Bergen County Academies, Hackensack, No. 46;
  3. High Technology High School, Lincroft, No. 57;
  4. Ronald E. McNair High School, Jersey City, No. 63;
  5. Middlesex County Academy for Allied Health, Woodbridge, No. 70;
  6. Biotechnology High School, Freehold, No. 85;
  7. Bergen County Technical High School, Teterboro, No. 93;
  8. Academy for Information Technology, Scotch Plains, No. 130;
  9. Union County Magnet High School, Scotch Plains, No. 131;
  10. Academy for Allied Health Sciences, Scotch Plains, No. 207;
  11. Infinity Institute, Jersey City, No. 216;
  12. Elizabeth High School, Elizabeth, No. 257;
  13. Academy of Allied Health and Science, Neptune, No. 273;
  14. West Windsor-Plainsboro High School North, Plainsboro, No. 302;
  15. Princeton High School, Princeton, No. 356;
  16. Millburn High School, Millburn, No. 366;
  17. Marine Academy of Science and Technology, Highlands, No. 391;
  18. Glen Ridge High School, Glen Ridge, No. 396;
  19. Summit Senior High School, Summit, No. 448;
  20. West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South, West Windsor, No. 456;
  21. Ridge High School, Basking Ridge, No. 472.

U.S. News also created subcategory rankings of the top charter, magnet and STEM high schools.

New Jersey fared well in the STEM category, with High Technology High School in Lincroft taking the No. 1 spot overall on the list, followed by Middlesex County Academy for Science, Mathematics and Engineering Technologies in Edison at No. 2 and Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Alexandria, Virginia, third.

Bergen Arts and Sciences Charter School in Garfield was the top New Jersey charter school, coming in at No. 185. The state had no schools listed in the magnet rankings.

To see the full rankings and methodology, click here.