2024 Best Schools Offering AP Courses in Monterey County

• Monterey, CA•

• Private School•

• 8-12

• •
  Rating 4.23 out of 5  69 reviews

Senior: York is an amazing school that not only delivers a high academic education, but creates a safe, fun and nurturing environment for students to succeed. The faculty and staff work with each student to help them achieve their goals. The senior year traditions where a wonderful way to celebrate a York Education!... Read 69 reviews

• grade A+

• Students 180

• Student-teacher ratio 6:1

• Monterey, CA•

• Private School•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 4.38 out of 5  97 reviews

Parent: I have three very different daughters who have all flourished with the incredible array of learning opportunities in the arts, STEM, music, theater, sports, etc. We feel truly blessed to be a part of this inclusive, nurturing, and enriching community. One of our daughters is dyslexic and the learning specialists and teachers have been fantastic catalysts to support her strengths and style of learning. The opportunities in the high school for the development of empowered young women is exceptional and inspiring to witness. Our sophomore has blossomed into an intelligent, resourceful, confident, and caring young woman who is able to pursue her passions for the theater, honors level learning, and the unique and extraordinary marine biology program. The leadership team is also exceptional and very approachable and accessible. It truly is a fabulous and unique school for learning and growth of the entire child.... Read 97 reviews

• grade A+

• Students 211

• Student-teacher ratio 6:1

• Pebble Beach, CA•

• Private School•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 4.13 out of 5  87 reviews

Alum: Going to Stevenson was the best decision of my life. Excellent faculty, environment, students, college prep, as well as everything else. I’ve formed many relationships that I know will last a lifetime.... Read 87 reviews

• grade A+

• Students 513

• Student-teacher ratio 10:1

• Carmel Unified School District, CA•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 3.99 out of 5  251 reviews

Senior: The best experience I had at Mt.Carmel high school is the school spirit! Many students at MC will always contribute to school clubs, sports events, and programs which makes the school more fun, and most teachers are also very helpful and friendly, and the clubs are great to join if you want to have the best times at MC and the school sports games and events! Such as football games, volleyball, and many others!... Read 251 reviews

• grade A+

• Students 842

• Student-teacher ratio 16:1

• Pacific Grove Unified School District, CA•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 3.92 out of 5  157 reviews

Senior: Pacifi Grove High School is located in a small town, creating a tight knit community. Almost everyone at the school has known each other since elementary school and everyone is kind to each other. While this is a nice experience, because the school is so small, is does create a lack in activities to do socially.... Read 157 reviews

• grade A+

• Students 570

• Student-teacher ratio 16:1

• Monterey Peninsula Unified School District, CA•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 3.33 out of 5  274 reviews

Senior: Monterey High School cultivates a diverse community, where many students apply themselves in different programs and communities. It is unique as the only high school in the Monterey Peninsula District to be an International Baccalaureate School and host the Middle Years Program and Diploma Program. From personal experience, all staff has been supportive, kind, and understanding. Likely due to COVID, Monterey High School has somewhat lacked in school spirit and unity on the students' part, but this does not bar student leaders from organizing fun school events.... Read 274 reviews

• grade A

• Students 1,356

• Student-teacher ratio 23:1

• Salinas, CA•

• Private School•

• 6-12

• •
  Rating 4 out of 5  85 reviews

Alum: My overall experience was very pleasant. I was able to engage in a rigorous course load surrounded by peers of similar academic aspirations. The teachers were all genuinely invested in my success and frequently made themselves available outside of school hours for additional help. However, the slight downside to being in a smaller school is that some classes may or may not be offered depending on the amount of students interested in that particular class in a given school year.... Read 85 reviews

• grade A minus

• Students 479

• Student-teacher ratio 20:1

• Salinas Union High School District, CA•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 3.75 out of 5  398 reviews

Senior: So far, I have lived going to Salinas High. I have been able to make great friends, and for the most part, my teachers have been great! At sports games, the energy is amazing, and football games are by far my favorite to attend. With that being said, I also am not a fan of how the bathrooms are. During lunch, many of the bathrooms are closed, which is very annoying, as most people actually use the bathrooms for their correct purpose. Also, not all of my teachers have been the greatest. But overall, Salinas High is a great school!... Read 398 reviews

• grade B+

• Students 2,668

• Student-teacher ratio 22:1

• Monterey, CA•

• Private School•

• 6-12

• •
  Rating 4.08 out of 5  24 reviews

Senior: Very good school overall great teachers and small class sizes make it so teachers are able to help each student to their benefits the only con to the small classes and student body, is that the electives that would normally have a-lot of people tend to have very little for example preforming arts which has only been able to do a review of multiple scenes in the past few years... Read 24 reviews

• grade B

• Students 112

• Student-teacher ratio 6:1

• Monterey Peninsula Unified School District, CA•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 3.43 out of 5  166 reviews

Alum: My experience at Marina High School was impactful. Although I experienced many challenges, the support I got from my teachers and fellow peers really helped me out. Throughout the 4 years that I attended there, I was able to find out what I was passionate enough to do as a future career and that is being an Accountant. Taking the Statistics at the school impacted me in wanting to know more about the subject and the different careers that involved Statistics. My Statistics teacher played a big role in forming my passion and interest for the class. I am grateful and happy to have attended such a great school with great people!... Read 166 reviews

• grade B

• Students 672

• Student-teacher ratio 20:1

• Salinas Union High School District, CA•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 3.78 out of 5  465 reviews

Junior: I believe my experience at Alisal so far has been great. The thing I love the most about Alisal high school are the school spirit and how everyone is connected for being a Trojan. There are also a lot of educational opportunities that I have taken advantage at Alisal like the MESA club, Jumpstart to College program, and AP classes which have really helped me try to make myself appear better to colleges and just overall find what I enjoy doing the most for my Major. Some experiences that are the worsts have to be the workload which doesn’t seem high, but with helping my dad with carpentry work and doing volleyball as an extracurricular activity it is a lot of stress on a person. Although, my workload seems easier with good time management skills and having good people around me to keep me motivated.... Read 465 reviews

• grade B

• Students 3,008

• Student-teacher ratio 24:1

• Salinas Union High School District, CA•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 3.56 out of 5  387 reviews

Senior: I’ve always been told that North High was a “bad school”. I didn’t know why at the time but I soon realized it was because some kids would often misbehave. So, obviously starting high school was scary for me; I didn’t know what would be waiting for me at a new school. Let me just tell you, North High exceeded my expectations. No school is perfect of course but my experience was the best here. I loved meeting new friends and teachers, I definitely created life long memories!... Read 387 reviews

• grade B minus

• Students 2,104

• Student-teacher ratio 22:1

• Monterey Peninsula Unified School District, CA•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 3.65 out of 5  383 reviews

Senior: It's a very specific experience here in Seaside High as the facility is above average and has various strengths and weaknesses that affect its attendees. Some greater strengths involve the College and Career centers that offer college propulsion and resources such as ETS and EAOP, necessary for the students throughout their four high school years. Engagement from students comes more naturally than forced in Seaside High seen voluntary engagement between the students and the new leadership team. On the other hand, the weaknesses do impact the experience with more specific topics such as the restroom maintanice, food and the long schedule, that exhausts its students and the ideology that is an idolized high school experience. Overall, the school is an example of a solid school in need of polishment with everyday assets, and solid for students to obtain success expanding from college readiness to immersive counseling.... Read 383 reviews

• grade B minus

• Students 1,065

• Student-teacher ratio 22:1

• South Monterey County Joint Union High School District, CA•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 3.29 out of 5  70 reviews

Senior: My personal experience while still attending KCHS I would like to say how all the Teachers I’ve had or that I just have reached out to are very helpful and care about me especially if I ask for help and not just in that certain subject but if they can help me in other subjects they will try. The best part is making new friends having great teachers and a safe place to study. The worst part might just be having to wait in long lines for lunch lines and restroom daily and some students getting into commotion with certain problems they have within each other. What I would like to see change is the size of the school and add more restrooms, more nutritious food and better school equipment like better desks and tables. My experience, a King City High School is both good in bed. It has been good because teachers and faculty members help students by making meetings for students in the cafeteria to celebrate our excellence, talent, and accomplishments, and provide delicious food for us to have... Read 70 reviews

• grade B minus

• Students 1,238

• Student-teacher ratio 23:1

• Salinas Union High School District, CA•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 3.65 out of 5  560 reviews

Junior: My junior year was definitely challenging but also very active and fun. From arguing Jefferson and Hamilton's ideas in AP US History to the many engaging labs in AP Biology (the electrophoresis and rat dissection labs being my absolute favorite). I even had the interesting realization that I like making art! I pay my gratitude to the teachers. I could feel their dedication to teaching the subjects every single time I enter the classroom. It was highlighted that whatever we were doing that day was of value. Not even once did I feel like I was wasting my time. Consequently, I never thought I could learn as much as I did. In addition, I never felt limited with my resources. Every help for students was definitely there as long as you ask. Junior year reminded me why I enjoyed going to school. It was a great academic experience with a community that showed how much they truly support you.... Read 560 reviews

• grade B minus

• Students 2,113

• Student-teacher ratio 22:1

• North Monterey County Unified School District, CA•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 3.46 out of 5  224 reviews

Sophomore: Starting with the classes; I am a sophomore who is graduating in 2026 and my opinion in these classes so far are mixed. It's a batch of good and amazing classes with classes you want to avoid with teachers who don't make it any better. I was stuck without a history teacher for a week and a half and the one I have right now isn't making any strides at all to really do much other than repeat what's In front of his screen; most of the teachers have soul though, thank God. The students are a huge mole on this school, at least 50-60% are disrespectful, dont care about the school or the class and make things worse for others and act like their tough and in gangs. The rest are absolutely amazing though, you'll never regret to meet them. The school itself is hard to say, its physical part is being torn apart left and right, its support systems are lacking but the things you can do here are wide and the potential to spread yourself further is something to be proud of. 7.5/10 for me.... Read 224 reviews

• grade B minus

• Students 1,255

• Student-teacher ratio 18:1

• Soledad Unified School District, CA•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 3.32 out of 5  238 reviews

Senior: I have had an overall great experience at Soledad High school. My teachers have always shown effort in their teaching and making sure kids who want to learn, can. That is the one requirement I’ve see, however. You get what you put into the class. I always show up to class ready to learn and participate in class and in turn, teachers engage with me as well and really help me understand material when I need it. The best part is definitely how engaging some teachers are because it gives us more confidence and motivation to learn. The worst part of my experience is when student mess around a lot and disrupt the class. Some teachers are too nice or lenient and it affects students in the class a who actually want to learn.... Read 238 reviews

• grade C+

• Students 1,625

• Student-teacher ratio 22:1

• South Monterey County Joint Union High School District, CA•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 3.62 out of 5  105 reviews

Alum: My experience at Greenfield high school was great! I loved all the teachers they gave me. I don’t think there was a teacher I didn’t like. Only when it came to the substitutes there were problems. They have their own rules and everything. Other than that I really had a great experience! It’s only that so many of the amazing teachers have retired or have left the school since I graduated! Hopefully, students who are going there or just entered, get teachers that were as great as those that I had or have.... Read 105 reviews

• grade C

• Students 1,396

• Student-teacher ratio 24:1

• Gonzales Unified School District, CA•

• 9-12

• •
  Rating 3.21 out of 5  134 reviews

Alum: There were bad and good experiences. The best experience was the connection with the teachers. Of course there were a few "bad" teacher, when I say bad I mean that there wasn't enough passion or motivation towards the students, making the students feel like the class was pointless and unbearable to be at. However, there are some teachers that make school and learning great, making me feel, as a student motivated to go forward with my education. What I would like to see change is the amount of resources the school has. There is very few and limited resources the school has compared to other schools in the valley.... Read 134 reviews

• grade C

• Students 850

• Student-teacher ratio 22:1

• Big Sur Unified School District, CA•

• K-12

• •
  Rating 4 out of 5  1 review

Junior: Pacific Valley offers a very unique learning experience. This school's small student body creates a community in which students and teachers are able to interact with each other as peers, friends, and mentors alike. If a student is dedicated to their education, Pacific Valley offers incredible academic opportunities that facilitate success.... Read 1 review

• grade unavailable

• Students 17

• Student-teacher ratio 6:1