2023 Best Public Schools in Newport Coast

• Irvine Unified School District, CA•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 3.87 out of 5  508 reviews

Sophomore: I've had a pretty amazing experience at University High School in Irvine, California. They have provided me with so many opportunities for rigorous learning and opportunities to be involved in so many unique clubs, activities, and classes. Students at University High are really passionate and love to collaborate with each other. Teachers also really care about their students and I've had so many meaningful interactions in their classes. Classes are interesting and engaging and we often have interesting discussions. Also, no matter what question I have or if I want to learn more about something, there is always someone willing to help me -- teachers, counselors, students, anyone! I've had a chance to really foster my love for learning by taking honors classes. The only downside I would reflect on is how competitive the environment can be, which makes you feel a bit pressured at times to be high achieving. But competitiveness has also encouraged me as well!... Read 508 reviews

• grade A+

• Students 1,708

• Student-teacher ratio 26:1

• Newport-Mesa Unified School District, CA•

• 7-12

• •
  Rating 3.86 out of 5  290 reviews

Parent: Has many opportunities for AP classes. Great PTA, Foundation, and Boosters Club. Has funding and events like a private school, even though it is a public school. Terrible counseling department- actually, not only worthless , but detrimental. Will not help students in signing up for best classes to take. Students/parents have to figure out from outside sources for the ideal classes to take for college resume. Need outside college advice!... Read 290 reviews

• grade A+

• Students 2,169

• Student-teacher ratio 24:1

• Irvine Unified School District, CA•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 4.32 out of 5  71 reviews

Sophomore: Personally my experience at Portola had been wonderful, they provide multiple resources to help learn my career options and help me pursue them. Additionally I have seen the input teacher put towards helping the students excel in their classes. Although the school had multiple good qualities, some of them are hard to find. One example would be ROP classes, I wasn’t able to take any ROP classes during freshman year. I am taking them now and think it is very beneficial for my career path. I was able to obtain multiple connections with talented and hard-working people! I specifically was able to be taught by a lawyer and a police officer for a while which helped me learn so much about the law helping to pursue my career. Additionally there are multiple opportunities the school gives to help students get jobs to earn income and the support given to those families of lower income. Including the environment around us was so friendly and welcoming truly creating a great learning experience!... Read 71 reviews

• grade A+

• Students 1,539

• Student-teacher ratio 25:1

• Irvine Unified School District, CA•

• K-8

• •
  Rating 4 out of 5  5 reviews

Middle School Student: GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB! GOOD JOB!... Read 5 reviews

• grade A+

• Students 462

• Student-teacher ratio 22:1

• Irvine Unified School District, CA•

• 7-8

• •
  Rating 4.67 out of 5  3 reviews

Junior: Rancho Middle School had an amazing learning environment with teacher who really cared about their students and helped make classes fun and engaging. Although, like every middle school, there was a lot of drama and complaining, the teachers and staff really made sure that students learned important life lessons and gave ample opportunity for students to express themselves through music, art, and academics.... Read 3 reviews

• grade A+

• Students 452

• Student-teacher ratio 25:1

• Lake Forest, CA•

• Public School•

• PK, K-8

• •
  Rating 4.7 out of 5  20 reviews

Parent: Since we began school in the middle of a pandemic, the staff and administration have been super communicative helpful and supportive! They are organized, and when something is not working, they make adjustments. It is a learning curve for everyone, and they have been great.... Read 20 reviews

• grade A+

• Students 646

• Student-teacher ratio 20:1

• Irvine Unified School District, CA•

• K-8

• •
  Rating 3 out of 5  1 review

• grade A+

• Students 507

• Student-teacher ratio 22:1

• Irvine Unified School District, CA•

• K-8

• grade A+

• Students 490

• Student-teacher ratio 25:1

• Newport-Mesa Unified School District, CA•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 3.95 out of 5  141 reviews

Niche User: This school is amazing! It has no sports, very few clubs, music, and arts, but it is still great. All the teachers and students here are so nice. I feel so comfortable with all of them. The school is small and there is about 50 people in my grade which I like because you can get to know everybody. ECHS has good academics and good people and the people make the experience make the high school journey so much better. Literally everyone is so nice I can not stress that enough and I just love it there. This place is like a safe place for people who did not fit in or were bullied at other schools. Cons: No sports and not many clubs, the school food is not the greatest, challenging academics for some. Pros: Prepares for college excellently, very nice people, mean people are socially unaccepted, lots of college resources, great school counselor who will help you through confusing college stuff, lots of internships, scholarships, and programs to help you on your college journey.... Read 141 reviews

• grade A

• Students 214

• Student-teacher ratio 24:1

• Newport-Mesa Unified School District, CA•

• K-6

• •
  Rating 4 out of 5  2 reviews

Niche User: This School has changed...Newport Coast is not as bad. The people have changed, I moved, and first coming to this school, I was worried that no one would treat me wrong. This school's lunch is horrible, I recommend getting your own. This school can get very overprotective, which can make recces a little boring. With my Fourth grade teacher, Ms.Colich...really is a great teacher in teaching academics. She really helped. I really think in the past future of this school, was amazingly fun. Now it's okay. The end of the year is always the most fun. I might recommend a different school, maybe in the future, it could get better. I almost rated it three stars, but I think I'm going to put it to 4.... Read 2 reviews

• grade A

• Students 371

• Student-teacher ratio 20:1

• Newport-Mesa Unified School District, CA•

• K-6

• grade A

• Students 275

• Student-teacher ratio 17:1

• Huntington Beach, CA•

• Public School•

• K-8

• grade A

• Students 278

• Student-teacher ratio 20:1

• Newport-Mesa Unified School District, CA•

• K-6

• grade A

• Students 456

• Student-teacher ratio 22:1

• Irvine Unified School District, CA•

• K-6

• grade A

• Students 282

• Student-teacher ratio 24:1

• Orange County Department of Education, CA•

• K-12

• •
  Rating 3.31 out of 5  16 reviews

Senior: Pacific Coast is an independent study high school. Most of the classes are taken online, but some of the classes are either on-campus or hybrid. PCHS offers a huge amount of flexibility—not being tied to campus all day, every day means that students are provided time to develop interests, whether it be for recreation or academia. PCHS also has great people. Unique students, attracted by PCHS’ flexibility, bring diversity. The student body includes athletes, artists, and entrepreneurs. In addition to the student population, the school has great faculty. Overall, the teachers genuinely care for their students. They always, always make themselves available via email, phone, or campus visits when students are in need of help. Since PCHS is primarily online-based, the school’s campus space is very limited. There is a lack of extracurricular classes, activities, and clubs, and it would be nice to see more effort to increase the options for students.... Read 16 reviews

• grade A minus

• Students 560

• Student-teacher ratio 31:1

• Santa Ana, CA•

• Public School•

• 7-12

• •
  Rating 4.27 out of 5  71 reviews

Senior: Samueli Academy is a very unique school that teaches students the fundamentals of either design or engineering and gives them unique experiences, such as collaborations with companies such as the Anaheim Ducks and Vans. The staff knows every student and does not hesitate to connect with each and every one of them. This school thoroughly prepares students for college and life after high school. In fact, having an internship is a graduation requirement. Even after graduation, the school stays in contact with alumni, and provides events and support for them. Even though I was only at the school for a few years, I can say I truly found my family and faith in my own ability at this school.... Read 71 reviews

• grade B+

• Students 675

• Student-teacher ratio 20:1

• Santa Ana, CA•

• Public School•

• K-12

• •
  Rating 3.64 out of 5  11 reviews

Senior: I have been attending MSASA for 5 years now. It has been an amazing journey, I have meet new friends and lost some along the way. Since I have been assisting that school for a while I have seen changes too. I have witnessed how the school has grown physically and academically. When I started attending MSASA it was just from 7th grade to 12th but when we moved location it was from k-12. I enjoyed that they included all grades especially in the community we were in. MSASA's goal was always to put the students and there community first and that is what they have been doing. They are many positive thing about MSASA but something that I would like to change is to give the upper grades like high school more attention instead on focusing more on elementary.... Read 11 reviews

• grade B+

• Students 544

• Student-teacher ratio 19:1

• Santa Ana, CA•

• Public School•

• K-8

• grade B+

• Students 504

• Student-teacher ratio 19:1

• Laguna Niguel, CA•

• Public School•

• K-8

• grade B+

• Students 281

• Student-teacher ratio 28:1

• Newport-Mesa Unified School District, CA•

• K-12

• •
  Rating 3.5 out of 5  2 reviews

High School Senior: For what it is, it is a great program. It is not a traditional high school, and it doesn't try to be. It is a great resource for students like myself who have external struggles, and need to have an independent form of education.... Read 2 reviews

• grade B

• Students 1,731

• Student-teacher ratio 23:1

• Irvine Unified School District, CA•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 5 out of 5  1 review

Niche User: I really love this School because they helped me reach my goals which was graduating a year early. And it's a great school to go to when you are behind.... Read 1 review

• grade B

• Students 84

• Student-teacher ratio 12:1

• Santa Ana Unified School District, CA•

• 3-12

• •
  Rating 5 out of 5  3 reviews

Senior: Great School I go to this school and its the best Highschool I could have ever gone to. Teachers, Staff everyone is so accepting and flexible with their students it almost feels like we break the teacher student relationship and have a person to person relationship will all the teachers.... Read 3 reviews

• grade B minus

• Students 354

• Student-teacher ratio 14:1

• Santa Ana, CA•

• Public School•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 4.07 out of 5  29 reviews

Senior: Not the typical high school experience that's for sure! Nothing like the musical or movies but, it felt quite like home. Friendly staff, interesting peers. As an artist though, I wish there were more opportunities in ways I could have expressed myself. I enjoyed my 4 years here and honestly, I don't think I can imagine myself anywhere else. Even if we spent 2 years in quarantine. Lots of ups and downs, but the memories and friends made are definitely memorable. I have learned a lot about my culture as well, a big breath of fresh air. This school has prepared me for college in ways I didn't know were possible. Grateful for the opportunity, I can now attend my dream school! I'm excited for the future, this school has given me a reason to. I can't wait to start the next new chapter of my life. Thank you Legacy!... Read 29 reviews

• grade B minus

• Students 336

• Student-teacher ratio 22:1

• Newport-Mesa Unified School District, CA•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 2.5 out of 5  2 reviews

• grade C+

• Students 127

• Student-teacher ratio 9:1

• Orange County Department of Education, CA•

• K-12

• •
  Rating 5 out of 5  1 review

Niche User: I am grateful for what they have done for me because they helped me with a lot they helped me pick up my grades and supported me when I was going through a rough time with pseudo seizures... Read 1 review

• grade C

• Students 1,440

• Student-teacher ratio 20:1