Top High Schools in Washington State
Washington's top high schools include highly selective STEM magnet programs, innovative international schools, and well-funded suburban public schools near the tech industry corridor.
Tesla STEM High School (Redmond)
A public STEM-focused high school in the Lake Washington School District, serving the Microsoft and Amazon employee communities. Tesla STEM consistently ranks among the top 10 high schools in Washington for AP participation, National Merit Scholars, and college placement. Admission is by competitive application.
International School (Bellevue)
A public K-12 school in the Bellevue School District offering full immersion in Chinese (Mandarin) or Spanish from kindergarten through graduation, plus the IB diploma in high school. The International School has become a nationally recognized model for immersion language education. Its graduates are disproportionately represented at selective universities.
Lakeside School (Seattle)
The private school that produced Bill Gates and Paul Allen — the two founders of Microsoft. Lakeside is consistently one of the 10 most selective independent high schools in the US. It offers the full range of college preparatory courses; essentially 100% of graduates attend four-year universities.
Interlake High School (Bellevue)
A public high school in the Bellevue School District with consistently high AP participation, National Merit Scholars, and strong math and science programs. The Bellevue district as a whole is one of the highest-performing urban school districts in the US.
Newport High School (Bellevue) and Mercer Island High School are additional top suburban schools in the Greater Seattle area with exceptional college placement records driven by their affluent, highly educated parent communities.
Eastside Preparatory School (Kirkland)
A small independent school near Microsoft's campus known for its rigorous college preparatory program and significant scholarship support. An unusually diverse student body by independent school standards.
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