Poway High School is a public high school in Poway (Poway Unified) with 550 seniors. In fall 2025, 76% of its 164 University of California applicants were admitted, compared with a county median of 72%. Its students applied most often to UC San Diego (UCSD), UC Santa Barbara (UCSB), and UC Los Angeles (UCLA). 69% of the class of 2023 completed the A–G courses UC requires.
UC admit rate
76%
124 of 164 applicants, fall 2025
Seniors admitted to a UC
23%
124 of 550 seniors
Seniors who applied to UC
30%
164 of 550 seniors
UC Los Angeles (UCLA) admit rate
8.6%
8 of 93 applicants, fall 2025
UC Berkeley (Cal) admit rate
9.9%
7 of 71 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
Poway High School applicants did better than all California applicants at 4 of 9 campuses, about the same at 4 and worse at 1.
- Los AngelesAbout the same
9%
8 of 93 admitted
This school9%All CA10%
Admitted students' average GPA 4.31 (all applicants 3.98)
- Berkeley4 pts lower
10%
7 of 71 admitted
This school10%All CA13%
Admitted students' average GPA 4.28 (all applicants 4.03)
- Irvine20 pts higher
42%
36 of 86 admitted
This school42%All CA22%
Admitted students' average GPA 4.18 (all applicants 3.91)
- San DiegoAbout the same
22%
25 of 114 admitted
This school22%All CA25%
Admitted students' average GPA 4.27 (all applicants 3.94)
- Santa Barbara4 pts higher
36%
38 of 105 admitted
This school36%All CA32%
Admitted students' average GPA 4.24 (all applicants 4.01)
- Davis7 pts higher
44%
40 of 91 admitted
This school44%All CA37%
Admitted students' average GPA 4.18 (all applicants 4.02)
- Santa Cruz5 pts higher
76%
45 of 59 admitted
This school76%All CA71%
Admitted students' average GPA 4.09 (all applicants 3.96)
- RiversideAbout the same
88%
56 of 64 admitted
This school88%All CA87%
Admitted students' average GPA 3.94 (all applicants 3.84)
- MercedAbout the same
97%
35 of 36 admitted
This school97%All CA96%
Admitted students' average GPA 3.97 (all applicants 3.94)
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
Poway 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 Obispo12 pts lower
18%
18 of 99 admitted
This school18%Overall30%
- San DiegoAbout the same
34%
55 of 164 admitted
This school34%Overall34%
- Pomona14 pts higher
88%
28 of 32 admitted
This school88%Overall74%
- Fullerton7 pts higher
94%
49 of 52 admitted
This school94%Overall87%
- San MarcosAbout the same
94%
101 of 107 admitted
This school94%Overall96%
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 (549 graduates), the latest published by fall 2025, within 12 months of graduating.
Any college
81%
442 of 549 graduates
UC or CSU
21%
115 graduates
Community college
35%
194 graduates
| Destination | Graduates | Share |
|---|---|---|
| UC | 35 | 6% |
| CSU | 80 | 15% |
| CA private college | 15 | 3% |
| Out of state | 118 | 21% |
| Community college | 194 | 35% |
| Not enrolled | 107 | 19% |
| Enrolled in college | 442 | 81% |
| Total | 549 | 100% |
How each student group compares
Compare college-going across student groups
- Gender: Male, Female
- Race & ethnicity: White, Hispanic or Latino, Two or more races, Asian, Filipino
- Student need: Low-income, Students with disabilities, Homeless, English learners
Advanced Placement
22
AP courses offered
2023–24 school year · US Dept. of Education Civil Rights Data Collection
42
AP class sections
Counts every section taught, so it is larger than the number of different AP courses.
38% of students are in AP courses
2024–25 school year · California School Accountability Report Card
55%
of graduating seniors passed at least two AP exams or courses
266 of 488 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)
39%
of graduating seniors scored 3 or higher on at least two AP exams
208 of 530 graduates
2023–24 school year · California Department of Education (College/Career Indicator)
Subject areas
- English: 5 classes
- Foreign language: 3 classes
- Mathematics: 4 classes
- Science: 8 classes
- Social science: 22 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 59%County median 63%
- Juniors meeting the math standard 48%County median 32%
- Juniors exceeding the English standard 32%County median 28%
- Juniors exceeding the math standard 26%County median 11%
- Low-income students 21%County median 57%
- Graduates completing courses 69%County median 65%