Pacific Coast Academy
Poway · CA · Pacific Coast Academy District · Public charter · K-12 combined
Similar nearby schools
Most similar nearby schools
Madison High → Del Lago Academy - Campus of Applied Science → Altus Schools Charter School of San Diego → Canyon Hills High → Preuss School UCSD → West Hills High → Santana High → Mt. Carmel High →At a glance
- 9 AP courses offered — Strong
- Dual-enrollment program (college credit while in HS)
- AP rigor: 56th percentile nationally
- SAT/ACT participation: Bottom 4% by test-taker volume
- 4-yr grad rate: 87% in 2019 (Bottom 39% of US high schools by 4-yr grad rate)
Composed from federal CRDC offerings, EDFacts graduation data, and other public data. Full breakdowns below.
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How Pacific Coast Academy compares for families
Solid mid-tier academic profile.
- ▸ StatewideAP rigor at the 56th percentile nationally with 9 AP courses.
- ▸ LocallyCA trails the US average on NAEP 8th-grade math (−4 points). Stronger local schools matter even more.
- ▸ vs Similar SchoolsThe closest comparables nearby: Madison High, Del Lago Academy - Campus of Applied Science, Altus Schools Charter School of San Diego and 5 more. See the sidebar to compare side-by-side.
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Academic rigor
AP + advanced-course offerings
Strong — solid AP program + advanced courses
56th percentile nationally
Source: federal Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC 2020-21). CRDC reports what's offered + enrolled — it doesn't collect AP exam pass rates (College Board owns that data and doesn't release it school-level).
SAT / ACT participation
CRDC federal data · 2020-21Bottom 4% by test-taker volume
Source: federal Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC 2020-21). Volume — not score — is what's reported here. A higher count means more students at this school are entering the college admissions pipeline. Note: 2020-21 was COVID-disrupted; some districts (especially those that stayed remote longer) report unusually low or zero takers.
4-year graduation rate · federal EDFacts
What % of students graduate on time?
Bottom 39% of US high schools by 4-yr grad rate
Source: federal EDFacts ACGR (Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate), 2019 vintage via Urban Institute. EDFacts publishes a range (low-high) to preserve privacy on small cohorts; we display the midpoint.
Federal Title I context
Title I Targeted Assistance eligible
35-39% FRPL — qualifies for Title I Targeted Assistance
35-39% of students qualify for free/reduced lunch. The school can receive Title I funds targeted to identified students (not schoolwide).
Source: NCES Common Core of Data, free/reduced-price lunch eligibility. The actual Title I designation is a district decision and may differ from eligibility — but the federal eligibility math is what we show here. We don't claim to assert whether the district formally chose to enroll this school in Title I.
Counselor capacity
Source: U.S. Department of Education, Civil Rights Data Collection 2020-2021. Counselor ratio = the school's most recent total enrollment ÷ counselor FTE. The American School Counselor Association (ASCA) recommends a 250:1 maximum; the US national median across schools with on-staff counselors is roughly 430:1.
Enrollment trend & projection
Total enrollment + grade 12, NCES Common Core of Data (2021–2024).
If the recent trend holds…
At its recent rate of +14.6%/year, projecting from 2024's 6,760 students:
An extrapolation of the recent trajectory, not a forecast of the school's plans; ignores one-off shocks.
Revenue upside
At $10,705 per student in district revenue, the 6,608 students projected to be gained by 2029 represent ≈ $70,738,640/year in additional funding.
District total revenue ÷ enrollment, NCES F-33. Public funding largely follows enrollment, so a shrinking class is a recurring budget hit.
Most similar nearby high schools
The schools most like this one — same type, blended on distance and size — and where their enrollment is heading. These are the schools families here weigh against each other.
| School | Type | Miles | HS enrollment | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Madison High San Diego |
Public | 11.2 | 780 | -14.2% |
| Del Lago Academy - Campus of Applied Science Escondido |
Public | 11.8 | 765 | -1.2% |
| Altus Schools Charter School of San Diego San Diego |
Public · charter | 9.3 | 1,162 | -4.4% |
| Canyon Hills High San Diego |
Public | 9.0 | 1,183 | -12.0% |
| Preuss School UCSD La Jolla |
Public · charter | 11.8 | 461 | -3.4% |
| West Hills High Santee |
Public | 6.4 | 1,624 | +0.4% |
| Santana High Santee |
Public | 6.7 | 1,620 | -7.6% |
| Mt. Carmel High San Diego |
Public | 5.6 | 1,800 | -3.1% |
At a glance
JSON · Using this page with an AI assistantPacific Coast Academy is a public high school in Poway, CA, enrolling 6,760 students in grades 9-12 in 2024.
Enrollment is up 52% from 2021 to 2024.
It offers 9 AP courses, a course-rigor profile stronger than 56% of U.S. high schools, and has a dual-enrollment program (federal Civil Rights Data Collection).
2 students took the SAT or ACT in the most recent federal count, a participation level above 4% of U.S. high schools.
Its federal four-year graduation rate was about 87% in the latest EDFacts release.
It has about 4,507 students per school counselor.
Sources: National Center for Education Statistics (enrollment), the federal Civil Rights Data Collection and EDFacts, state education agencies where named, and the school's own published documents where named.
Questions families ask
How many AP courses does Pacific Coast Academy offer? Pacific Coast Academy offers 9 AP courses, a course-rigor profile stronger than 56% of U.S. high schools, and has a dual-enrollment program (federal Civil Rights Data Collection).
What is Pacific Coast Academy's graduation rate? Pacific Coast Academy's federal four-year graduation rate was about 87% in the latest EDFacts release.
How many students attend Pacific Coast Academy? Pacific Coast Academy is a public high school in Poway, CA, enrolling 6,760 students in grades 9-12 in 2024.
Analysis: Test Prep Gurus (High School Reach, highschoolreach.com). These figures may be quoted with attribution to Test Prep Gurus.
What does AI tell parents about Pacific Coast Academy?
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