La Quinta High School
79-255 Blackhawk Way, La Quinta, CA 92253View on map
- Public
- La Quinta
- 546 seniors
- 2,445 students
La Quinta High School is a public high school in La Quinta (Desert Sands Unified) with 546 seniors. In fall 2025, 80% of its 124 University of California applicants were admitted, compared with a county median of 81%. Its students applied most often to UC San Diego (UCSD), UC Irvine (UCI), and UC Riverside (UCR). 61% of the class of 2023 completed the A–G courses UC requires.
UC admit rate
80%
99 of 124 applicants, fall 2025
Seniors admitted to a UC
18%
99 of 546 seniors
Seniors who applied to UC
23%
124 of 546 seniors
UC Los Angeles (UCLA) admit rate
9.2%
6 of 65 applicants, fall 2025
UC Berkeley (Cal) admit rate
20%
8 of 41 applicants, fall 2025
Campus by campus, fall 2025
The share of this school's applicants each campus admitted, beside the campus's rate for everyone else. Hardest campus first.
University of California
La Quinta High School applicants did better than all California applicants at 2 of 9 campuses, about the same at 4 and worse at 3.
- Los AngelesAbout the same
9%
6 of 65 admitted
This school9%All CA10%
Admitted students' average GPA 4.23 (all applicants 3.92)
- Berkeley6 pts higher
20%
8 of 41 admitted
This school20%All CA13%
Admitted students' average GPA 4.27 (all applicants 3.90)
- IrvineAbout the same
24%
18 of 75 admitted
This school24%All CA22%
Admitted students' average GPA 4.16 (all applicants 3.91)
- San Diego20 pts higher
45%
42 of 94 admitted
This school45%All CA25%
Admitted students' average GPA 4.19 (all applicants 3.86)
- Santa BarbaraAbout the same
36%
21 of 59 admitted
This school36%All CA32%
Admitted students' average GPA 4.24 (all applicants 3.89)
- Davis9 pts lower
29%
6 of 21 admitted
This school29%All CA37%
Admitted students' average GPA 4.14 (all applicants 3.72)
- Santa Cruz7 pts lower
65%
24 of 37 admitted
This school65%All CA71%
Admitted students' average GPA 3.91 (all applicants 3.62)
- RiversideAbout the same
85%
61 of 72 admitted
This school85%All CA87%
Admitted students' average GPA 3.85 (all applicants 3.73)
- Merced7 pts lower
89%
24 of 27 admitted
This school89%All CA96%
Admitted students' average GPA 3.69 (all applicants 3.64)
Fall 2025. A student admitted to several campuses counts once at each one. All CA is the campus’s admit rate that fall for applicants from every California high school. Within 3 points counts as about the same. GPA is the UC-calculated GPA (weighted, capped).
California State University
La Quinta High School applicants did better than the campus overall at 2 of 5 campuses, about the same at 2 and worse at 1.
- San Luis Obispo6 pts higher
35%
44 of 124 admitted
This school35%Overall30%
- Long Beach4 pts lower
43%
112 of 262 admitted
This school43%Overall47%
- Fullerton5 pts higher
92%
206 of 224 admitted
This school92%Overall87%
- San MarcosAbout the same
97%
222 of 228 admitted
This school97%Overall96%
- San BernardinoAbout the same
97%
176 of 182 admitted
This school97%Overall98%
Fall 2025. A student admitted to several campuses counts once at each one. Overall is the campus’s admit rate for all its applicants, from federal IPEDS data (fall 2023, the latest published). Within 3 points counts as about the same.
Where graduates go
Class of 2023 (556 graduates), the latest published by fall 2025, within 12 months of graduating.
Any college
74%
414 of 556 graduates
UC or CSU
17%
96 graduates
Community college
51%
282 graduates
| Destination | Graduates | Share |
|---|---|---|
| UC | 31 | 6% |
| CSU | 65 | 12% |
| CA private college | 9 | 2% |
| Out of state | 27 | 5% |
| Community college | 282 | 51% |
| Not enrolled | 142 | 26% |
| Enrolled in college | 414 | 74% |
| Total | 556 | 100% |
How each student group compares
Compare college-going across student groups
- Gender: Female, Male
- Race & ethnicity: Hispanic or Latino, White, Two or more races, Asian, Black or African American
- Student need: Low-income, Students with disabilities, English learners, Homeless
Advanced Placement
2
AP courses offered
2023–24 school year · US Dept. of Education Civil Rights Data Collection
3
AP class sections
Counts every section taught, so it is larger than the number of different AP courses.
2% of students are in AP courses
2024–25 school year · California School Accountability Report Card
4%
of graduating seniors passed at least two AP exams or courses
23 of 592 graduates
A score of 3 or higher on exams or a C- or better in courses. Not comparable with the exam-only share.
2025–26 school year · California Department of Education (College/Career Indicator)
3%
of graduating seniors scored 3 or higher on at least two AP exams
20 of 580 graduates
2023–24 school year · California Department of Education (College/Career Indicator)
Subject areas
- Mathematics: 3 classes
Academic context
State test (CAASPP), juniors tested in 2026, and the share of low-income students. A–G is the class of 2023. The tick is the county median.
- Juniors meeting the English standard 66%County median 52%
- Juniors meeting the math standard 26%County median 18%
- Juniors exceeding the English standard 31%County median 20%
- Juniors exceeding the math standard 10%County median 6%
- Low-income students 72%County median 83%
- Graduates completing courses 61%County median 54%