Sacred Heart Preparatory School

Atherton · San Mateo County · Catholic religious-affiliated

Private San Mateo County ~154 seniors CDS 4169062…

Data Year

Compare with peers

Other schools in San Mateo County, closest in size

The Nueva School → Junipero Serra High School → Menlo School → Silicon Valley International School → Woodside Priory School → Compare all similar →

33 UC Reach Score · Above average 25 AP courses 6 National Merit Semifinalists

A parent's read

The UC pipeline here is real. 51 admissions to the top six UC campuses for a class of 154 seniors puts this school in roughly the top 24% of California high schools.
6 National Merit Semifinalists in one class. That's roughly 1 in 26 seniors reaching the top ~1% of the PSAT nationally — a density few schools anywhere can match.
Elite admits are rare — here and everywhere. Berkeley and UCLA admitted 15 of this class's 344 UC applications. The strong middle campuses — San Diego, Santa Barbara, Irvine, Davis — are where most real UC outcomes happen.
One question for any counselor: who should still test? Plenty of strong students skip the SAT/ACT now — but merit scholarships at dozens of colleges still key off scores. Ask how the school decides who should still sit for one.

Composed from this page's data — every claim is backed by a number in the sections below.

At a glance

Programs & features

25 AP courses offered (school profile)
6 National Merit Semifinalists (2024)

Academic signals

ACT 25-75: 29–34
AP exam pass rate 91%

Composed from the school's own published profile (2024), and other public data. Full breakdowns below.

Where grads go — and what it costs & pays

UC Reach Score

Above average top 25% in California

Top-6 UC admits per 100 seniors in the Class of 2025 — counts each campus admit, so a student admitted to several UCs counts more than once (which is why a strong school can score over 100).

UC admits by campus · Class of 2025

UCB

9 admitted

Net $13,481/yr avg

Grads earn $92,446 @10yr

UCLA

6 admitted

Net $12,548/yr avg

Grads earn $82,511 @10yr

UCSD

9 admitted

Net $12,470/yr avg

Grads earn $84,943 @10yr

UCSB

19 admitted

4 enrolled

Net $16,109/yr avg

Grads earn $74,915 @10yr

UCD

8 admitted

Net $14,741/yr avg

Grads earn $80,838 @10yr

Getting in is step one. The cost above is the average aid-receiving family's net price — yours depends on whether you qualify for aid — and your child's odds depend on their GPA + scores. See your family's real numbers at these campuses:

Get my child's odds + our real costs →

Sources: UC Office of the President (admits); IPEDS net price + College Scorecard 10-yr earnings (cost & payoff). Full campus-by-campus breakdown below.

You've seen Sacred Heart Preparatory School. What are your child's real college odds? Check any college in 10 seconds — no email needed — then get the free Family Decision Report: Reach / Competitive / Match / Likely + the real cost range for every college on their list. Check odds →

How Sacred Heart Preparatory School compares for families

Above-average college outcomes statewide.

▸ Nationally91% AP pass rate (US average: ~60%) · 6 National Merit Semifinalists last year (NMSF is the top 1% of US PSAT scorers).
▸ StatewideUC Reach Score of 33 — 14 points above the California median of 19. Ahead of 76% of California high schools.
▸ vs Similar SchoolsOther schools in the county, closest in size: The Nueva School, Junipero Serra High School, Menlo School and 2 more. See the sidebar to compare side-by-side.

For Parents

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Objective, government-grade data — no school pays us for placement.

Their published college acceptances

College acceptances, Class of 2023

Sacred Heart Preparatory publishes the colleges that admitted its graduates. What follows is copied from that document — 225 colleges, in the document's own order.

American University Arizona State Univ Art Center College Auburn University Azusa Pacific Univ Babson College Baylor University Bentley University Berklee Coll of Music Biola University Boise State University Boston College Boston University Brandeis University Brown University Bucknell University Butler University Canada College Cal Poly Humboldt Cal Lutheran U Cal Poly U SLO Cal Poly U Pomona CSU Channel Islands CSU Chico CSU East Bay CSU Fresno CSU Fullerton CSU Long Beach CSU Monterey Bay CSU Northridge

and 195 more

CSU Sacramento CSU San Marcos Carleton College Carnegie Mellon U Case Western Reserve Catholic University Chapman University Claremont McKenna Clemson University Colby College Colgate University College of Charleston Coll of San Mateo Coll of the Holy Cross Colorado College Connecticut College Dartmouth College Denison University DePaul University DePauw University Drake University Drexel University Duke University Durham University Elon University Emerson College Emory University Fairfield University Florida State U Foothill College Fordham University Franklin & Marshall George Washington Georgetown Univ GA Institute of Tech Gettysburg College Gonzaga University Grinnell College Harvard University High Point University Howard University Illinois Tech Indiana University Iona University Ithaca College James Madison Univ King's Coll London Lehigh University Lewis & Clark London C of Fashion Louisiana State Univ Loyola Marymount Loyola U Chicago Luther College Macalester College Mhtn Coll of Music Marquette University McGill University McMaster University Menlo College Miami U (Oxford) Michigan State Univ Montana State Univ New York Univ Northeastern Univ Northwestern Univ Oberlin College Occidental College Oregon State Univ Parsons Sch of Design Penn State University Pepperdine Univ Pitzer College Point Loma Nazarene Univ Pomona College Portland State Univ Princeton University Purdue University Queen Mary London Queens' University Reed College Regis University Rice University Royal Holloway Royal Vet College Saint Joseph's Univ St Mary's Coll of CA St Mary's Coll (IN) San Diego State San Francisco State San Jose State Santa Clara Univ Santa Monica Coll Sarah Lawrence Art Inst of Chicago School of Visual Arts Scripps College Seattle University Siena College Skidmore College Sonoma State Southern Methodist Spelman College St. John's University St. Olaf College Stanford University SUNY at Purchase Swarthmore College Syracuse University Temple University Texas A&M Univ Texas Christian The Am School Paris The Evergreen St Coll The New School Trinity College Dublin Trinity University Tufts University Tulane University Union College US Naval Academy University Coll Dublin Univ of Arizona University of Bristol U of British Columbia UC Berkeley UC Davis UC Irvine UC Los Angeles UC Merced UC Riverside UC San Diego UC Santa Barbara UC Santa Cruz Univ of Cambridge Univ of Chicago Univ of Cincinnati Univ of CO Boulder Univ of Connecticut Univ of Delaware Univ of Denver Univ of Florida Univ of Edinburgh University of Georgia University of Glasgow Univ of HI, Manoa Univ of IL, U-C University of Iowa University of Kansas University of LaVerne Univ of Manchester Univ of Maryland Univ of Mass, Lowell University of Miami Univ of Michigan Univ of Nevada Reno Univ of Notre Dame Univ of Oklahoma University of Oregon University of Dunedin University of Oxford University of Pennsylvania University of Pittsburgh University of Puget Sound University of Redlands University of Rhode Island University of Rochester University of San Diego University of San Francisco Univ of South Carolina Univ of Southern Calif University of St Andrews University of the Pacific Univ of Tennessee Univ of Texas, Austin University of Toronto University of Utah University of Vermont University of Virginia University of Washington University of Waterloo University of Wisconsin Valparaiso University Villanova University Virginia Polytechnic Institute Wake Forest University Washington State Univ Washington U in St. Louis Wesleyan University William & Mary Whitman College Willamette University Williams College Xavier University Yale University

These graduates were admitted to the colleges above.

Check your kid's odds at these colleges →

We'll load 10 from the list above — add your name, email and your child's numbers and we'll see where your child lands at each.

Independently verified As published by Sacred Heart Preparatory — School Profile (undated PDF; data captioned Class of 2023) ↗. Found at: p.4, 'COLLEGE ACCEPTANCES FOR 2023 SACRED HEART GRADUATES': 'Graduates from the Class of 2023 were accepted to the following institutions. Bold type indicates m.

No SBAC data for private schools — and that's not the metric you want anyway

California's Smarter Balanced (CAASPP) assessment is administered by the state, by statute, to public & charter schools only. Private schools don't sit for it. That's why the SBAC card is missing on this profile — not a data gap on our side, a deliberate scope of the state's testing program.

For private schools, UC Reach is the stronger academic signal anyway. SBAC measures grade-11 inputs (proficiency on a state standard); UC Reach measures outputs (who actually got into the most selective UCs). For private-school families weighing tuition against college outcomes, the outputs are the relevant signal.

Scroll up to the UC Reach card for Sacred Heart Preparatory School's 2025 number, statewide percentile, and 5-year trend.

Enrollment trend & projection

Total enrollment (9–12)

1,109 (2020) → 1,125 (2025)

+1.4%

Grade 12 (graduating class)

154 (2020) → 154 (2025)

+0.0%

If this trend holds (+0.4%/yr, Total enrollment)

At tuition of $ / student:

Horizon	Projected Total enrollment	Change	Tuition impact / yr
1 yr (2026)	~1,129	+4	$0
3 yr (2028)	~1,137	+12	$0
5 yr (2030)	~1,146	+21	$0

Straight-line extrapolation of the recent annual rate — a what-if, not a forecast of intent. Default = a typical CA Catholic high school ($10k–18k). Edit the figure to match your school.

Diocesan context — Archdiocese of San Francisco

Archdiocese

Counties covered

San Francisco, San Mateo, Marin

Schools operated (K–12)

~78

approx; from diocesan reports

Other Catholic HS tracked

in this diocese, on this site

Archdiocese of San Francisco is the canonical governance body for Catholic schools in this region — board policy, tuition guidance, and shared services typically originate here. Visit the diocesan website →

Financial figures aren't shown because Catholic (arch)dioceses don't file IRS Form 990 — they're covered by the USCCB Group Ruling (GEN 0928), which exempts dioceses, parishes, and parochial schools from individual filing. School counts above are hand-compiled from each diocese's published schools-department information.

Key takeaway · Class of 2025

Sacred Heart Preparatory School sent 344 applications to the six most selective University of California campuses and 14.8% were admitted, producing a UC Reach Score of 33 (top-6 UC admits per 100 seniors, counting a student at each campus that admitted them) — 14 points above the California median of 19, higher than 76% of California high schools. The school produces 9.7 UCLA + UC Berkeley admits per 100 seniors.

UC Reach Score 33 ⓘ 51 admits (counted at each UC) / 154 seniors methodology

Where this sits on the California curve

CA median
19

Top 10%
53

This school
33

050100

CA median 19 Top 10% ≥ 53 This school 33

Higher than 76% of California high schools (1107 ranked, ≥50 seniors)

What this number means

Sacred Heart Preparatory School's UC Reach Score of 33 is in the top quartile statewide (median 19; top 25% bar 33) — but it's still below the top-10% bar of 53.

For context, the elite tier (top 1%) clears 95 — a gap of 62 pp from where this school sits.

Overall, Sacred Heart Preparatory School's UC Reach is higher than 76% of California high schools (1107 ranked).

UC Application Reach Score ⓘ

223

344 applications

Strong UC pursuit. The typical senior is applying to about 2 top-6 UC campuses — a signal of a college-driven student body.

In context: CA median 81 · Top 10% statewide ≥ 240 · San Mateo Co. Top 10% ≥ 332 · higher than 88% of CA HS.

UC Admit Rate ⓘ

14.8%

51 / 344 applications

In context: CA median 26.0% · Top 10% statewide ≥ 40.4% · higher than 1% of CA HS.

UC Yield Rate ⓘ

7.8%

4 enrolled of 51 admitted

Yield vs. Enrollment Reach: Yield answers "of UC admits, what % chose UC?" — denominator is just the admits. A small admitted cohort can post a low yield even when the school sends a healthy share of its class to UC.

UC Enrollment Reach Score ⓘ

4 enrollees / 154 seniors

Enrollment Reach vs. Yield: Reach answers "of the whole senior class, what share ended up at UC?" — denominator is everyone. High Yield with low Enrollment Reach is common at elite privates: most admits matriculate, but the school sends most of its class to non-UC selective colleges.

UC 6-Yr Grad Rate ⓘ

Kids from here finish what they start: 90% of its UC entrants earn the degree within six years — above the norm for CA schools.

90%

57% finished in 4 yrs · N=21 entered 2010

In context: CA median 87.0% · +3.5 pp above.

Selective UC Reach (UCB, UCLA, UCSD, UCSB, UCI — incl. the Elite two) ⓘ

27.9

per 100 seniors · campus-level total

In context: CA median 15.9 · Top 10% statewide ≥ 42.2 · higher than 76% of CA HS.

Elite UC Reach (UCB + UCLA) ⓘ

9.7

per 100 seniors · campus-level total

In context: CA median 3.4 · Top 10% statewide ≥ 10.2 · higher than 89% of CA HS.

Senior Class Size ⓘ

154

Private School Affidavit

Total School Enrollment ⓘ

1,125

All grades · Private School Affidavit

Private-school figures come from the California Private School Affidavit. Per CDE, inclusion in private-school data is not an evaluation, approval, or endorsement of a school.

Avg. Applicant GPA · top-6 UCs ⓘ

4.09

Avg. Admitted GPA · top-6 UCs ⓘ

4.21

GPA figures reflect 2024 — UC has not yet released applicant/admit GPA for 2025.

UC funnel — which kids are getting in at what GPA

Combining the school's applicant pool GPA, admit pool GPA, actual admit rate, and statewide CA admit rates by individual GPA band, we can read which GPA tiers tend to get in — and which don't.

Who's actually getting into UC from Sacred Heart Preparatory School

Campus	4.00+ GPA	3.70–3.99 GPA	3.30–3.69 GPA	< 3.30 GPA
UC Berkeley	Real shot	Long odds	Filtered out	Filtered out
UCLA	Real shot	Long odds	Filtered out	Filtered out
UC San Diego	Strong shot	Real shot	Long odds	Filtered out
UC Santa Barbara	Strong shot	Moderate	Long odds	Filtered out
UC Irvine	Strong shot	Real shot	Long odds	Filtered out
UC Davis	Strong shot	Real shot	Moderate	Filtered out

Strong shot = ≥30% statewide admit rate at this band · Real shot = 10–29% · Moderate = 5–9% · Long odds = 1–4% · Filtered out = under 1%. Tiers map this school's likely outcomes by GPA tier using statewide CA admit rates from UCOP 2024.

The numbers behind it

Campus	Applicant GPA	Admit GPA	Lift ⓘ	Admit rate	vs peer schools @ same GPA ⓘ
UC Berkeley	4.10	4.20	+0.10	27.0%	Peers +0.18 · wider
UCLA	4.09	4.27	+0.17	10.7%	Peers +0.21 · wider
UC San Diego	4.08	4.24	+0.15	27.5%	Peers +0.21 · wider
UC Santa Barbara	4.09	4.23	+0.14	40.0%	Peers +0.20 · wider
UC Irvine	4.07	4.18	+0.11	24.1%	Peers +0.17 · wider
UC Davis	4.06	4.11	+0.05	24.4%	Peers +0.18 · wider

Statewide CA admit rates by individual GPA band, 2024 (for reference)

GPA band	UCB	UCLA	UCSD	UCSB	UCI	UCD
4.00+	17.1%	14.4%	43.5%	57.3%	46.0%	64.1%
3.70–3.99	2.8%	1.5%	11.2%	9.2%	16.5%	27.5%
3.30–3.69	0.8%	0.9%	1.4%	2.3%	3.4%	9.1%
3.00–3.29	0.5%	0.4%	0.1%	0.5%	0.4%	2.1%
< 3.00	0.6%	0.2%	0.2%	0.5%	0.3%	0.6%

How we infer the tier labels: Each tier comes from the statewide CA admit rate at that GPA band at that UC. The "vs peers" column compares this school's lift (admit GPA − applicant GPA) to the average lift at ~100–300 other CA schools with similar applicant pool GPA. What this isn't: a guarantee. UC comprehensive review weighs essays, course rigor, demographics, and context-of-opportunity beyond GPA. A 3.9 with strong context can land an admit; a 4.0 with weak essays can be denied. Use as a baseline expectation, not a verdict. Per-campus year is shown when it differs from the headline year (UCOP doesn't always publish admit-GPA for every campus every year).

Where Sacred Heart Preparatory School sits vs. all California schools ⓘ

Overall, this school admits its UC applicants in line with what their GPAs predict (25.3% actual vs. 21.8% expected), based on 2024 data.

UC Outcomes Trend — 2018–2025

UC Admit Rate %

UC Reach Score (where available)

UC Admits (count, right axis)

Class size from CDE grade 12 enrollment. Campus-level data: applicant and admit totals count a student once at EACH campus. A senior admitted to UCLA and UC San Diego adds 2 to the admit total, so the total can exceed the senior class — that is the metric working as defined, not an error. The admit RATE is unaffected: both its numerator and denominator are campus-level.

Campus Breakdown — 2025

Campus	Applicants	Admits	Enrollees	Admit Rate	UC Reach Score	Yield	Avg GPA (App) '24	Avg GPA (Adm) '24
UC Berkeley → Elite	67	9	—^†	13.4%	6	—	4.10	4.20
UCLA → Elite	71	6	—^†	8.5%	4	—	4.09	4.27
UC San Diego → Selective	55	9	—^†	16.4%	6	—	4.08	4.24
UC Santa Barbara → Selective	71	19	4	26.8%	12	21.1%	4.09	4.23
UC Irvine → Selective	33	—^†	—^†	—^†	—^†	—	4.07	4.18
UC Davis →	47	8	—^†	17.0%	5	—	4.06	4.11

† = UCOP-suppressed (count below 3 students, hidden for privacy — actual value is 0, 1, or 2, not necessarily zero). Campus-level totals may count one student admitted to multiple UC campuses more than once; Admit Volume metrics are not the same as UC Reach, which is measured against the whole senior class. See methodology →

What This Means

A large share of the senior class applies to UC, indicating strong college-going culture and UC pipeline development.

A large share of the class applies to UC, so the admit rate runs lower than the application volume alone might suggest — expected when many students apply broadly, including to reach campuses. UC Reach (which credits every admit relative to the class) is the truer read of how the class fares: a strong Reach alongside a moderate admit rate is healthy, not a contradiction.

UC Reach is solid. A meaningful share of the senior class is achieving UC admission, and there is likely room to grow both application volume and admission outcomes.

Students are earning UC admission but enrolling elsewhere at a notable rate. This may reflect competition from private colleges, out-of-state flagships, cost considerations, or UC campus fit. Student outcome surveys can clarify.

The school generates broad UC access, but fewer students are reaching the most selective UC campuses (UCLA, Berkeley, UCSD, UCSB, UCI). Targeted academic enrichment and campus-fit advising may help.

UC Reach has declined meaningfully year-over-year. This should be reviewed in context of applicant volume, GPA trends, course rigor changes, and peer-school performance before drawing conclusions.

Note: the UC Reach Score sums campus-level admits across the top-six UC campuses, so a student admitted to both UCLA and UCSD is counted at each. It reflects competitive admit volume relative to class size — admit-events, not distinct students — which is why a Score can exceed 100.

Compare with other schools → See San Mateo County rankings →