2022 Best magnet schools in the Portland Area

• Beaverton School District, OR•

• 6-12

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  Rating 3.62 out of 5  148 reviews

Alum: The International School of Beaverton offers students a well-rounded education that promotes critical thinking skills that can be applied to other aspects of the student's life. In addition to this, students are welcomed into an environment that encourages their students to showcase their own cultures and identities while also promoting understanding between cultures. This is done with a lens of compassion and understanding. This is a great school for those students looking to find an environment of academic rigor, however, a downside to this is that most to all subjects are taught at a very fast rate, accompanied by a heavy workload which makes students feel overwhelmed. This results in many students leaving the school for another. However, in recent years the school has helped more students with this aspect of student's life by providing more mental health checks and options to mitigate stress and anxiety levels.... Read 148 reviews

• grade A+

• Students 847

• Student-teacher ratio 22:1

• Vancouver School District, WA•

• 6-12

• •
  Rating 4.01 out of 5  112 reviews

Senior: Vancouver School of Arts and Academics (VSAA) gives all types of students the opportunity to explore their passions in the arts unlike any other neighboring school, both middle and high schools. The student/teacher ratio gives the teachers the ability to be connected to their students and give a lot of individual help. The age range from 6th-12th grade is well implemented and connects every student to a different age group which creates an effectively diverse social environment. VSAA is growing and the faculty and staff are working hard to improve the school. For example, in the 22-23 school year: AP sciences will be available, part-time running start will be available to juniors and seniors, a new schedule will be implemented for students to explore the arts more freely. Some changes that I would like to see is more ethnic diversity, 1-2 more counselors, and a better P.E. program.... Read 112 reviews

• grade A

• Students 598

• Student-teacher ratio 21:1

• Beaverton School District, OR•

• 6-12

• •
  Rating 3.84 out of 5  94 reviews

Alum: The teachers here are strongly committed to their students. Pathways basically include a medical side, engineering, and computer science. The 2 biggest extracurriculars encompass these pathways: HOSA and Robotics. I followed the medical path, and my experience prepared me for college bio and chem. Close knit community of usually about 100-150 students per grade, often times you are around the same peers for 4 or 7 years.... Read 94 reviews

• grade A minus

• Students 705

• Student-teacher ratio 19:1

• Vancouver School District, WA•

• 6-12

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  Rating 4.08 out of 5  24 reviews

Junior: I am currently a student at iTech Preparatory and I love the program! We are a project-based and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) school built on collaboration and creativity. I love iTech because it encourages students to work outside of the box. We are also about to get our own building (since we have been staying in the Clark College building on WSUV campus). The building is phenomenal and has been built around who we are as a school. I would encourage students to join iTech because it is an experience you will never forget.... Read 24 reviews

• grade A minus

• Students 514

• Student-teacher ratio 21:1

• North Clackamas School District, OR•

• K-5

• grade A minus

• Students 159

• Student-teacher ratio 20:1

• Portland Public Schools, OR•

• PK, K-5

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  Rating 5 out of 5  1 review

• grade B+

• Students 627

• Student-teacher ratio 24:1

• Beaverton School District, OR•

• 6-12

• •
  Rating 3.61 out of 5  97 reviews

Alum: I am a recent graduate, and I think Arts and Communication Magnet Academy has fallen short on several occasions. Select teachers and directors are frankly not very good at teaching, the school offers few advanced placement classes, some arts programs revived uneven amounts of funding, the administrative and office workers are frequently rude, and I'd say the school is not very good at preparing students for college. All of that being said, some arts programs are excellent, the performance venues are wonderful spaces, and the school culture itself is very strong and unique.... Read 97 reviews

• grade B+

• Students 706

• Student-teacher ratio 21:1

• Portland Public Schools, OR•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 3.71 out of 5  201 reviews

Senior: Benson is an amazing school for STEM learning. I’m incredibly great full for all of the tech and building related skills and experiences I’ve had. As a polytechnic school, they have fantastic programs, majors almost like college, from dentistry to construction. I’ve been able to help build houses, 3D model and print, forge a screwdriver, cast rings, design robots, work on cars, and coded a website. However when it comes to arts and less hands-on subjects, it’s severely lacking. While it’s getting better, there still is only one foreign language option, no band classes, and few other art classes(though the digital media class is really cool). All in all, it’s a great school, mostly tailored to my interests, and the things it lacks it makes up for in amazing tech and practical programs.... Read 201 reviews

• grade B+

• Students 1,052

• Student-teacher ratio 16:1

• Portland Public Schools, OR•

• K-8

• •
  Rating 4.6 out of 5  5 reviews

Parent: Love the constructivist focus, the close knit community, and parent involvement. The teachers know the kids really well and strive to create a safe and accepting learning environment. My child loves his school and is passionate about his work in the classroom. He has learned empathy and patience from his teachers and peers. We love this school.... Read 5 reviews

• grade B

• Students 468

• Student-teacher ratio 20:1

• North Clackamas School District, OR•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 3.85 out of 5  72 reviews

Sophomore: MAA is the charter school for Milwaukie High School, and don’t be fooled, you can still take classes at Milwaukie (in fact you will have to for many classes). I’m currently heading into my sophomore year and think the connections between MAA and MHS students are lovely and they clash well, with MAA core classes being MAA only and things like health and PE being mixed. Arts lab, an exploration into college level skills, is the only MAA exclusive class. There’s a great diversity of LGBT+ students, though I struggled because a lot of friend groups are closed off at the beginning. The theater program is fantastic and I highly recommend participating!... Read 72 reviews

• grade B

• Students 294

• Student-teacher ratio 294:1

• Portland Public Schools, OR•

• 6-8

• •
  Rating 3 out of 5  1 review

• grade B minus

• Students 450

• Student-teacher ratio 20:1

• Portland Public Schools, OR•

• K-12

• •
  Rating 3.73 out of 5  22 reviews

Senior: Metropolitan learning center is a great school for academics, its a CREC school as well as a IB school( International Baccalaureate). Since it is a IB school students have the option to participate in the full diploma program to learn another IB diploma. MLC offers winter, fall and spring sports, but since the school is small the sports teams are relatively small as well. MLC offers many clubs such as green team which revolves round nature, many diversity clubs, many dance and music related clubs and many clubs in which LGBTQ+ kids have the option to join for somewhere to feel safe and to talk. This school is also extremely diverse and welcoming to all races and ethnic backgrounds as we have the option for foreign exchange students.... Read 22 reviews

• grade B minus

• Students 390

• Student-teacher ratio 16:1

• Portland Public Schools, OR•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 3.85 out of 5  94 reviews

Senior: Jefferson High School is a very welcoming, fun environment. With a tight-knit community, the staff and faculty are always looking out for the students and there is good report between most students and teachers. One of my favorite things about Jefferson High School is that most of the classes - History, English, Science, etc - are taught with diversity and social justice in mind. Our history classes taught real history, not whitewashed history textbooks. Our English classes always have some sort of social justice take, whether we are researching James Baldwin or writing an essay on where we see injustice in our lives (and what we have done about it), the class always allows me to view things from angles I wouldn't have originally. Even the science classes include racial justice and systemic oppression in their curriculum - this semester our Research and Medicine class read The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks and created a code of conduct for medical professionals and researchers.... Read 94 reviews

• grade B minus

• Students 639

• Student-teacher ratio 15:1

• Beaverton School District, OR•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 3.5 out of 5  4 reviews

Niche User: This school was by far the best high school I could have attended. The classrooms were the perfect size(~10 students per class). The teachers always had personal time for all of their students. We didn't have to go to school on Monday but if you needed one on one time with one of your teachers, they were there for you. It had the high school vibe but in a smaller, more relaxed way. I would definitely chose this school again. I got the high school experience but in a calmer way. No extra unneeded stress.... Read 4 reviews

• grade B minus

• Students 127

• Student-teacher ratio 6:1

• Portland Public Schools, OR•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 4.8 out of 5  41 reviews

Senior: It is a good school that really helps you get on track for graduation. Not only do they help you while you're in school, but they help you with your future such as grants, scholarships, and jobs.... Read 41 reviews

• grade C+

• Students 213

• Student-teacher ratio 8:1

• Portland Public Schools, OR•

• K-8

• grade C

• Students 476

• Student-teacher ratio 14:1

• Canby School District, OR•

• K-6

• •
  Rating 5 out of 5  1 review

Parent: Fantastic staff! They are so nice and very helpful, the music teacher I especially wonderful. The bilingual education gave my child a much more extensive mind and the teachers helped him find a more fun way to learn!... Read 1 review

• grade C

• Students 407

• Student-teacher ratio 15:1

• Vancouver School District, WA•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 2.67 out of 5  3 reviews

• grade C minus

• Students 77

• Student-teacher ratio 10:1