These Tucson-Area Schools Are Among Arizona's Best For 2026-27: U.S. News

TUCSON, AZ — Five Tucson-area public high schools have landed among Arizona's top 25 in U.S. News & World Report's 2026-27 Best High Schools rankings, with University High School and BASIS Tucson North leading the local list.

University High School, part of Tucson Unified School District, ranked No. 6 in Arizona and No. 50 nationally. The school reported a 98% graduation rate, a college-readiness score of 94 and 982 students in grades nine through 12.

BASIS Tucson North followed at No. 9 in Arizona and No. 58 nationally. The public charter school reported a 100% graduation rate and a college-readiness score of 100, with 227 students enrolled in grades nine through 12.

Three other Tucson-area schools also made Arizona's top 25: Tanque Verde High School, Catalina Foothills High School and Empire High School.

Here is how the Tucson-area schools ranked:

1. University High School
   Tucson Unified School District
   Arizona rank: No. 6
   National rank: No. 50
   Graduation rate: 98%
   College-readiness score: 94
   Grades 9-12 enrollment: 982
2. BASIS Tucson North
   BASIS Charter Schools Inc.
   Arizona rank: No. 9
   National rank: No. 58
   Graduation rate: 100%
   College-readiness score: 100
   Grades 9-12 enrollment: 227
3. Tanque Verde High School
   Tanque Verde Unified School District
   Arizona rank: No. 20
   National rank: No. 755
   Graduation rate: 95%
   College-readiness score: 65.5
   Grades 9-12 enrollment: 761
4. Catalina Foothills High School
   Catalina Foothills Unified School District
   Arizona rank: No. 23
   National rank: No. 1,056
   Graduation rate: 94%
   College-readiness score: 49.7
   Grades 9-12 enrollment: 1,865
5. Empire High School
   Vail Unified School District
   Arizona rank: No. 25
   National rank: No. 1,264
   Graduation rate: 96%
   College-readiness score: 40.5
   Grades 9-12 enrollment: 886

The rankings included nearly 18,000 public high schools nationwide from more than 27,000 schools reviewed for the 2026-27 list. Charter and magnet schools were eligible, while private schools were excluded because of limitations in publicly available data.

U.S. News based the rankings on six measures of school quality, including student performance in math, reading and science; participation and performance on college-level exams; and graduation rates. U.S. News worked with RTI International, a North Carolina-based nonprofit research organization, to develop the rankings.

Just north of Tucson, BASIS Oro Valley was Arizona's top-ranked public high school, coming in at No. 15 nationally. The school reported a 100% graduation rate, a college-readiness score of 100 and 234 students enrolled in grades nine through 12.