With their picturesque urban environments, pleasant year-round weather, and culturally diverse student body, San Diego schools offer the ideal learning experience for any student. It only makes sense that the top San Diego schools are some of the best schools in the nation. Consider the following schools serving North San Diego County depending on your child’s educational level.
Best elementary school: Skyline Elementary School
Part of the Solana Beach School District, Skyline Elementary is a California Distinguished School. It has a demanding academic program that focuses on delivering a positive and supportive environment using transparent and consistent educational standards.
Considered as one of the best elementary schools in San Diego, Skyline has around 500 students per school year assigned to 20 classrooms. Facilities include an art room, music room, library/media center, multipurpose room/theater, computer lab, and STREAM (Science, Technology, Religion, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics) lab.
- Full-time teachers: 23
- Percentage of certified full-time teachers: 100%
- Student-teacher ratio: 20:1
- Reading performance: Well above expectations
- Math performance: Somewhat above expectations
Best middle school: Lincoln Middle School
The Lincoln Middle School is a large suburban public high school belonging to Oceanside Unified School District. With an average annual student population of over 750, Lincoln Middle School is known for providing grade 6 to 8 students with an exceptional special education program designed to properly equip them for high school and beyond.
Part of the reason that Lincoln Middle is widely touted as one of the best public schools in San Diego is its commitment to student wellbeing. Two full time school counselors are available to assist students with challenges in school and their personal lives.
- Full-time teachers: 32
- Percentage of certified full-time teachers: 100%
- Student-teacher ratio: 24:1
- Reading performance: Meets expectations
- Math performance: Meets expectations
Best high school: Classical Academy High School
The Classical Academy belongs to an organization of tuition-free California public schools offering a personalized educational system that combines the best of innovative and traditional teaching techniques. With an average class size of 25-30 students, CAHS follows a quarter system requiring learners to take three to four courses within a period.
As one of the best high schools in San Diego, Classical Academy encourages participation in extracurriculars that foster passion and perseverance like art, sports, choir, musical theater, and more.
- Full-time equivalent teachers: 55
- Student-teacher ratio: 24:1
- Math proficiency: 53%
- Reading proficiency: 62%
- Science proficiency: 39%
- Graduation rate: 96%
Best private K-12 school: Grauer School
Grauer School is a private college preparatory day school owned by the nonprofit Grauer Foundation for Education. The school operates on the tenet of empowering children’s voices and allowing them to develop the necessary skills to thrive in a fast-changing world. It’s easily one of the best private schools in San Diego and the only school in the locale associated with UNESCO.
- Student-teacher ratio: 5:1
- Acceptance rate to the top two colleges of choice: 96%
- Student body participation in team sports: 70%
Best college: University of California–San Diego
As a public institution founded in 1960, University of California–San Diego has ensconced itself firmly as among the top colleges in San Diego and the US. Around 31,000 to 32,000 students follow a quarter-based academic calendar and receive a wide variety of inter- and multi-disciplinary training regardless of major.
UC San Diego maintains a 2,751-square-foot experimental aquarium with 12 trays and 30 tanks. It’s also got the world’s largest outdoor earthquake simulator weighing 300,000 pounds. It measures the strength and rigidity of an actual-size structure built on top of the simulator’s platform by subjecting it to multi-dimensional earthquake motions. The experiments have led to the retrofitting of 6,000 San Francisco wood-frame buildings.
- Median starting salary of alumni: $60,200
- Student-faculty ratio: 19:1
- Selectivity: Most selective
- 4-year graduation rate: 68%
Do you have any questions about North San Diego County? Ask me, Realtor Michael Jacobo, about anything prior to your move. Take advantage of my unparalleled experience and knowledge of the San Diego real estate market to your advantage. Don’t hesitate to call 760.632.8900 or contact me here.