2023 Best Magnet High Schools in the San Francisco Bay Area

• San Francisco Unified School District, CA•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 3.8 out of 5  1,065 reviews

Senior: Lowell overall is a great high school for those looking to take competitive, rigorous courses. With the rigorous and challenging courses (29 APs, 11 honors), however, it is not uncommon for students to report high levels of stress and lack of sleep. The teachers, in my opinion, are just as good as teachers anywhere else. The main difference comes from the students. All the students are motivated to do well leading to a class environment that fosters learning with minimal disruptions. Aside from academics, there over a hundred of student started clubs that anyone can join; from cultural clubs such as La Raza and Fil-Am to Model-UN and Forensics to Robotics and LSRP (which offers a great unique to Lowell UCSF internship opportunity), all students can find clubs that suit their interests. Overall, I would recommend Lowell to those that do well under high-stress and are good at time management. Juniors and seniors usually end up with 4 hours of homework a night and over 10 on a weekend.... Read 1,065 reviews

• grade A+

• Students 2,786

• Student-teacher ratio 25:1

• San Jose, CA•

• Public School•

• 7-12

• •
  Rating 3.81 out of 5  185 reviews

Senior: UPA has been an excellent learning environment throughout my 5 years as a student. The small class sizes allows for teachers, counsellors and staff to truly connect with students and accommodate their needs. Readily available office hours and quick turn around time for emails has helped me reach out to teachers whenever I needed help in their class. In terms of student life, UPA has a strong sense of community on campus. Most events are inclusive to all grades and many electives have a diverse range of grade levels in them. Programs such as Web and Link, as well as clubs, make UPA an environment that balances both school and personal interests. As someone involved in multiple clubs (President of Girl Up!, PR manager of both Film Club and Acts of Random Kindness club), I can vouch that UPA truly allows students to run their organizations. UPA's Theater Department, although low in funding, harbors immense talent and dedication, in which I've seen in my experience as a stage manager... Read 185 reviews

• grade A+

• Students 702

• Student-teacher ratio 21:1

• Fremont Unified School District, CA•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 3.45 out of 5  423 reviews

Senior: I loved the hard-working nature of students and teachers' investment in student success. I do wish that the study culture was not so toxic. There is an extremely competitive environment between both students. However, if you're looking to challenge yourself, it's a great school! It's a majority Asian school, so it's not exactly "diverse" per-se. The funding is slightly twisted-- the school manages its money poorly, and thus highly sought-out programs, such as the school marching band, are severely underfunded.... Read 423 reviews

• grade A+

• Students 2,544

• Student-teacher ratio 25:1

• Alameda Unified School District, CA•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 3.96 out of 5  80 reviews

Senior: I loved having the freedom to take what I was interested in! I thought that the school has changed a bit since I started going there. When I went, it was hard work, but I learned a lot. I would recommend this school if you are a self starter, who will challenge yourself to learn. My favorite aspect was that it was a small school so I got to know all of my peers better.... Read 80 reviews

• grade A+

• Students 170

• Student-teacher ratio 28:1

• San Francisco Unified School District, CA•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 3.59 out of 5  160 reviews

Senior: I loved the structure of the school's non-traditional classrooms and hyper-focus on the arts. The school has lots of strong support programs from mental health counseling to academic support. As a student with an IEP, SOTA was very helpful in making sure I had the support I needed through teachers that would fight for me and made me feel very welcome and supported. However, the school environment had a severe lack of structure, and most of the administration and many teachers were new and didn't have the proper experience to support the student body as a whole.... Read 160 reviews

• grade A

• Students 776

• Student-teacher ratio 21:1

• Oakland, CA•

• Public School•

• 6-12

• •
  Rating 3.8 out of 5  152 reviews

Alum: Oakland School for the Arts is an amazing community for young artists, and one I'm super grateful to have been a part of. It's definitely made for artsy kids though, rather than those looking for a lot of academic rigor. There is a lot of academic teacher turnover, but the arts teachers for the most part stay consistent and are truly the glue holding the whole operation together! Despite sort of average stats, I give OSA a high rating because of everything I gained from such an arts-friendly and supportive learning environment. The shift to online arts classes seems to be doing alright.... Read 152 reviews

• grade A

• Students 801

• Student-teacher ratio 22:1

• Sequoia Union High School District, CA•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 3.79 out of 5  227 reviews

Sophomore: Overall I have loved my experience at Woodside High school! Transitioning from middle school to high school brought me great fear and worries but with the help of the kind and caring staff, I was able to make the best of the many resources offered on campus! I wake up every morning and look forward to school, and am proud to say woodside high school will be the high school i will be graduating from in 2023. They offer a variety of clubs and sports, fit for people of all cultures and beliefs. Teachers do an amazing job of making all classes enjoyable and as a whole an amazing learning experience. The environment is comfortable, accepting, kind and I feel as though everyone is supportive of one another.... Read 227 reviews

• grade A

• Students 1,909

• Student-teacher ratio 17:1

• Oakland Unified School District, CA•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 4.2 out of 5  40 reviews

Niche User: What do I like about MetWest High School? MetWest encourages you, pushes you, and helps you towards your goals! Through MetWest I have met such caring people who will stick with me. They have provided their feedback in times of need, which helped me realize in what areas as a student I can work on. I have received great support through my college application process, with checkins 2-3 times a week. College writing, reviewing financial aid, college decisions and much more! With the help of EBC staff at MetWest it was definitely a smooth Senior Year for me, as I am sure it was for the other students as well. Thank you to the advisors who has always asked us what they can support us with, for your checkins and Monday circles, it was something I always looked toward to! I am glad I’ve met such caring people.... Read 40 reviews

• grade B minus

• Students 247

• Student-teacher ratio 16:1

• Vallejo City Unified School District, CA•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 2.77 out of 5  263 reviews

Senior: My experience at Vallejo High School was pretty good. I take pride in my school even if it is not perfect and it has this bad reputation. I would say that meeting people from the programs, extracurricular classes, and school events really highlighted my high school experience. It made me want to encourage others to do more than just go to school, What I would like to see change is the students energy during an event the school plans for them, it is their effort to welcome new students and it's important they also one day are proud to call Vallejo High their home.... Read 263 reviews

• grade C minus

• Students 1,534

• Student-teacher ratio 27:1

• California School for the Blind, CA•

• K-12

• grade unavailable

• Students 58

• Student-teacher ratio 5:1