Schools
Top 221 NJ Schools That Send Students To Elite Universities
A new website ranks high schools based on how many students they send to Harvard, Princeton and MIT. In NJ, 221 schools made the list.
More than 200 of New Jersey's best landed on a new ranking of schools that are funneling the most students to three elite universities.
The new website, called PolarisList, now offers a new way to rank high schools by the number of students the school sent to Harvard, Princeton and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology between the years 2015 to 2017.
PolarisList, founded by Harvard College alumnus Sai To Yeung, is his attempt "to demystify the education planning process for families across the country, and across all socioeconomic levels."
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In the site's methodology, Yeung explains why those three universities were selected to anchor the ranking:
We decided to focus on Harvard, Princeton, and MIT based on a combination of their selectivity and their accessibility to lower income students.
Selectivity is important to us because it means these schools have their pick of the lot when it comes to applicants. If a high school is able to send students to one of these three schools, it means that the school has created an environment to support high achieving students, whether it's in academics or extracurriculars.
Accessibility is just as important to us because we believe a college is only as good as its student body, and a student body is at its strongest when it encompasses a diversity of experiences. According to U.S. News and World Report, these three schools are among the colleges with the highest percentage of students receiving Pell Grants, which are most often given to undergrads with family incomes below $20,000. This means that these schools all offer generous financial aid that make it possible for all students to attend without significant burden.
At the top of the national list was Thomas Jefferson High School in Alexandria, Virginia, with 79 students sent to Harvard, Princeton and MIT during the period, followed by Stuyvesant High School in New York, which sent 71 students, and Phillips Exeter Academy in Exeter, NH, at No. 3, which sent 70 students. Rounding out the top five were The Lawrenceville School in Lawrenceville, with 63 students, and Phillips Academy in Andover, MA, with 62 students.
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Here are the top 221 New Jersey schools:
- THE LAWRENCEVILLE SCHOOL
- PRINCETON HIGH SCHOOL
- BERGEN COUNTY ACADEMIES, HACKENSACK
- DELBARTON SCHOOL, MORRISTOWN
- WEST WINDSOR-PLAINSBORO HIGH SCHOOL SOUTH
- PINGRY SCHOOL, BASKING RIDGE
- HIGH TECHNOLOGY HIGH SCHOOL, LINCROFT
- WEST WINDSOR-PLAINSBORO HIGH SCHOOL NORTH, PLAINSBORO
- JOHN P. STEVENS HIGH SCHOOL, EDISON
- PRINCETON DAY SCHOOL, PRINCETON
- MONTGOMERY HIGH SCHOOL, SKILLMAN
- EAST BRUNSWICK HIGH SCHOOL
- MILLBURN HIGH SCHOOL, MILLBURN
- BRIDGEWATER-RARITAN REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL
- CHERRY HILL HIGH SCHOOL EAST
- LIVINGSTON HIGH SCHOOL
- PEDDIE SCHOOL, HIGHTSTOWN
- THE HUN SCHOOL OF PRINCETON, PRINCETON
- NEWARK ACADEMY, LIVINGSTON
- SOUTH BRUNSWICK HIGH SCHOOL
- STUART COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL, PRINCETON
- DWIGHT-ENGLEWOOD SCHOOL, ENGLEWOOD
- HOLMDEL HIGH SCHOOL
- MIDDLESEX COUNTY VOC ACADEMY MATH SCIENCE & ENGINEERING TECHNICAL, EDISON
- MONTCLAIR HIGH SCHOOL
- COLUMBIA HIGH SCHOOL, MAPLEWOOD
- KENT PLACE SCHOOL, SUMMIT
- RIDGE HIGH SCHOOL, BASKING RIDGE
- SETON HALL PREPARATORY SCHOOL, WEST ORANGE
- THE MONTCLAIR KIMBERLEY ACADEMY
- THE PENNINGTON SCHOOL, PENNINGTON
- WATCHUNG HILLS REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL, WARREN
- WEST ORANGE HIGH SCHOOL
- BERNARDS HIGH SCHOOL
- BLAIR ACADEMY, BLAIRSTOWN
- CHRISTIAN BROTHERS ACADEMY, LINCROFT
- DR RONALD MCNAIR HIGH SCHOOL, JERSEY CITY
- MANALAPAN HIGH SCHOOL
- RAMAPO HIGH SCHOOL, FRANKLIN LAKES
- TENAFLY HIGH SCHOOL
- ACADEMY FOR MATHEMATICS SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING, ROCKAWAY
- GILL ST BERNARD S SCHOOL, GLADSTONE
- HADDONFIELD MEMORIAL HIGH SCHOOL
- HIGHLAND PARK HIGH SCHOOL
- HOPEWELL VALLEY CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL, PENNINGTON
- HUNTERDON CENTRAL REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL, FLEMINGTON
- LAWRENCE HIGH SCHOOL
- MONTVILLE TOWNSHIP HIGH SCHOOL
- MOORESTOWN HIGH SCHOOL
- NORTH BRUNSWICK TOWNSHIP HIGH SCHOOL
- NORTHERN HIGHLANDS REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL, ALLENDALE
- NORTHERN VALLEY REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL AT OLD TAPPAN
- ROBBINSVILLE HIGH SCHOOL
- SCOTCH PLAINS-FANWOOD HIGH SCHOOL
- THE FRISCH SCHOOL, PARAMUS
- ACADEMY OF THE HOLY ANGELS, DEMAREST
- CHATHAM HIGH SCHOOL
- DON BOSCO PREP HIGH SCHOOL, RAMSEY
- EGG HARBOR TOWNSHIP HIGH SCHOOL
- FRANKLIN HIGH SCHOOL, SOMERSET
- GOLDA OCH ACADEMY, WEST ORANGE
- LENAPE HIGH SCHOOL, MEDFORD
- MARINE ACADEMY OF TECHNOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL, MANAHAWKIN
- MOORESTOWN FRIENDS SCHOOL
- MOUNTAIN LAKES HIGH SCHOOL
- OAK KNOLL SCHOOL OF THE HOLY CHILD, SUMMIT
- SCIENCE PARK HIGH SCHOOL, NEWARK
- VILLA WALSH ACADEMY, MORRISTOWN
- WESTFIELD SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
- ATLANTIC CITY HIGH SCHOOL
- BISHOP GEORGE AHR HIGH SCHOOL, EDISON
- CRANFORD HIGH SCHOOL
- CRESSKILL HIGH SCHOOL
- EASTERN REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL, VOORHEES
- EDISON HIGH SCHOOL
- HANOVER PARK HIGH SCHOOL, EAST HANOVER
- HIGH TECH HIGH SCHOOL, N BERGEN
- JACKSON MEMORIAL HIGH SCHOOL
- JOHN F. KENNEDY HIGH SCHOOL, ISELIN
- JONATHAN DAYTON HIGH SCHOOL, SPRINGFIELD
- MORRISTOWN HIGH SCHOOL
- NOOR-UL-IMAN SCHOOL, MONMOUTH JUNCTION
- POPE JOHN XXIII HIGH SCHOOL, SPARTA
- SPARTA HIGH SCHOOL
- UNION COUNTY MAGNET HIGH SCHOOL, SCOTCH PLAINS
- VOORHEES HIGH SCHOOL, GLEN GARDNER
- WAYNE HILLS HIGH SCHOOL
- WOODSTOWN HIGH SCHOOL
- ACADEMY FOR HEALTH AND MEDICAL SCIENCES, BRIDGEWATER
- ACADEMY OF ALLIED HEALTH AND SCIENCE, NEPTUNE
- BAYONNE HIGH SCHOOL
- BERGEN COUNTY TECHNICAL HIGH SCHOOL - PARAMUS
- BRICK TOWNSHIP HIGH SCHOOL
- CARTERET HIGH SCHOOL
- CINNAMINSON HIGH SCHOOL
- COLTS NECK HIGH SCHOOL
- DELAWARE VALLEY REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL DISTRICT, FLEMINGTON
- EWING HIGH SCHOOL
- FORT LEE HIGH SCHOOL
- FREEHOLD BOROUGH HIGH SCHOOL
- FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP HIGH SCHOOL
- GLEN RIDGE HIGH SCHOOL
- HACKETTSTOWN HIGH SCHOOL
- HAMILTON EAST - STEINERT, HAMILTON
- HAMMONTON HIGH SCHOOL
- HILLSBOROUGH HIGH SCHOOL
- HUDSON CATHOLIC REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL, JERSEY CITY
- IMMACULATA HIGH SCHOOL, SOMERVILLE
- LAKELAND REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL, WANAQUE
- LEONIA HIGH SCHOOL
- MAAYANOT YESHIVA HIGH SCHOOL FOR GIRLS, TEANECK
- MANASQUAN HIGH SCHOOL
- MIDDLE TOWNSHIP HIGH SCHOOL, CAPE MAY COURT HOUSE
- MIDDLESEX HIGH SCHOOL
- MONMOUTH REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL, TINTON FALLS
- MONROE TOWNSHIP HIGH SCHOOL
- MONSIGNOR DONOVAN HIGH SCHOOL, TOMS RIVER
- MORRIS HILLS HIGH SCHOOL, ROCKAWAY
- NEW PROVIDENCE HIGH SCHOOL
- NORTH HUNTERDON HIGH SCHOOL, ANNANDALE
- NORTH PLAINFIELD HIGH SCHOOL
- NORTHERN VALLEY REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL AT DEMAREST
- OAKCREST HIGH SCHOOL, MAYS LANDING
- OLD BRIDGE HIGH SCHOOL
- PERTH AMBOY HIGH SCHOOL
- RANDOLPH HIGH SCHOOL
- RANNEY SCHOOL, TINTON FALLS
- RED BANK CATHOLIC HIGH SCHOOL
- RIDGEWOOD HIGH SCHOOL
- ROXBURY HIGH SCHOOL
- SADDLE RIVER DAY SCHOOL
- SPOTSWOOD HIGH SCHOOL
- TOMS RIVER HIGH SCHOOL NORTH
- WARDLAW-HARTRIDGE SCHOOL, EDISON
- WARREN HILLS REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL, WASHINGTON
- WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP HIGH SCHOOL, SEWELL
- WEST MORRIS CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL, CHESTER
- WESTWOOD JUNIONR/SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL, TOWNSHIP OF WASHINGTON
- ABSEGAMI HIGH SCHOOL, GALLOWAY
- ACADEMY FOR ALLIED HEALTH SCIENCES, SCOTCH PLAINS
- ACADEMY FOR INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY, SCOTCH PLAINS
- ACADEMY OF SAINT ELIZABETH, CONVENT STATION
- BENEDICTINE ACADEMY, ELIZABETH
- BERGEN CATHOLIC HIGH SCHOOL, ORADELL
- BERGENFIELD HIGH SCHOOL
- BIOTECHNOLOGY HIGH SCHOOL, FREEHOLD
- BLOOMFIELD HIGH SCHOOL
- BRICK TOWNSHIP MEMORIAL HIGH SCHOOL
- BURLINGTON TOWNSHIP HIGH SCHOOL
- CAPE MAY COUNTY HIGH SCHOOL, CAPE MAY COURT HOUSE
- CHEROKEE HIGH SCHOOL, MARLTON
- CHERRY HILL HIGH SCHOOL WEST
- CLEARVIEW REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL, MULLICA HILL
- CLIFFSIDE PARK HIGH SCHOOL
- COLONIA HIGH SCHOOL
- DELRAN HIGH SCHOOL
- DWIGHT MORROW HIGH SCHOOL/ACADEMIES@ENGLEWOOD, ENGLEWOOD
- EAST ORANGE CAMPUS HIGH SCHOOL
- EASTERN CHRISTIAN HIGH SCHOOL, NORTH HALEDON
- GLEN ROCK HIGH SCHOOL
- GOVERNOR LIVINGSTON HIGH SCHOOL, BERKELEY HEIGHTS
- HACKENSACK HIGH SCHOOL
- HAMILTON NORTH-NOTTINGHAM, HAMILTON
- HASBROUCK HEIGHTS HIGH SCHOOL
- HENRY HUDSON REGIONAL SCHOOL, HIGHLANDS
- HIGHLAND REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL, BLACKWOOD
- INDIAN HILLS HIGH SCHOOL, OAKLAND
- JAMES CALDWELL HIGH SCHOOL, WEST CALDWELL
- JEFFERSON TOWNSHIP HIGH SCHOOL, OAK RIDGE
- JOSEPH KUSHNER HEBREW ACADEMY RAE KUSHNER YESHIVA, LIVINGSTON
- KINGSWAY REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL, WOOLWICH TWP
- LENAPE VALLEY REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL, STANHOPE
- LODI HIGH SCHOOL
- MADISON HIGH SCHOOL
- MAINLAND REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL, LINWOOD
- MARINE ACADEMY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, HIGHLANDS
- MARLBORO HIGH SCHOOL
- MATAWAN REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL
- MILLVILLE SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
- MORRIS KNOLLS HIGH SCHOOL, DENVILLE
- MORRISTOWN-BEARD SCHOOL
- MOUNT SAINT DOMINIC ACADEMY, CALDWELL
- MT ST MARY ACADEMY, WATCHUNG
- NEW EGYPT HIGH SCHOOL
- NEW TESTAMENT CHURCH SCHOOL, NEWARK
- NORTH STAR ACADEMY CHARTER SCHOOLS OF NEWARK, NEWARK
- NORTHERN BURLINGTON COUNTY REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL, COLUMBUS
- NOTRE DAME HIGH SCHOOL, LAWRENCEVILLE
- OCEAN CITY HIGH SCHOOL
- ORATORY PREPARATORY SCHOOL, SUMMIT
- PALISADES PARK JUNIOR-SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
- PARSIPPANY HILLS HIGH SCHOOL, MORRIS PLAINS\
- PASCACK VALLEY HIGH SCHOOL, HILLSDALE
- PASSAIC COUNTY TECHNICAL INSTITUTE, WAYNE
- PASSAIC VALLEY REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL, LITTLE FALLS
- PENNS GROVE HIGH SCHOOL, CARNEYS POINT
- PHILLIPSBURG HIGH SCHOOL
- RANCOCAS VALLEY REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL, MOUNT HOLLY
- RAV TEITZ MESIVTA ACADEMY, ELIZABETH
- RED BANK REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL, LITTLE SILVER
- RIDGEFIELD MEMORIAL HIGH SCHOOL
- RIVER DELL REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL, ORADELL
- SHORE REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL, WEST LONG BRANCH
- SOUTH AMBOY MIDDLE/HIGH SCHOOL
- SOUTH HUNTERDON HIGH SCHOOL, LAMBERTVILLE
- ST DOMINIC ACADEMY, JERSEY CITY
- ST JOHN VIANNEY REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL, HOLMDEL
- ST PETERS PREPARATORY SCHOOL, JERSEY CITY,
- SUMMIT SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL, SUMMIT
- TEANECK HIGH SCHOOL
- TECHNOLOGY HIGH SCHOOL, NEWARK,
- TIMOTHY CHRISTIAN SCHOOL, PISCATAWAY
- TOMS RIVER HIGH SCHOOL EAST
- TRENTON CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL - WEST CAMPUS
- TRITON REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL, RUNNEMEDE
- UNION CITY HIGH SCHOOL
- UNIVERSITY HIGH SCHOOL, NEWARK
- VERONA HIGH SCHOOL
- WEST ESSEX HIGH SCHOOL, NORTH CALDWELL
- WHIPPANY PARK HIGH SCHOOL
- WOODBRIDGE HIGH SCHOOL
Top 10 New Jersey private schools based on how many students were sent to Harvard, Princeton and MIT:
- 1. The Lawrenceville School (Lawrenceville)
- 2. Princeton High School (Princeton)
- 3. Bergen County Academies (Hackensack)
- 4. Delbarton School (Morristown)
- 5. West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South (West Windsor)
- 6. Pingry School (Basking Ridge)
- 7. High Technology High School (Lincroft)
- 8. West Windsor-Plainsboro High School North (Plainsboro)
- 9. John P. Stevens High School (Edison)
- 9. Princeton Day School (Princeton)
Top 10 New Jersey public schools include:
- 1. Princeton High School (Princeton)
- 2. Bergen County Academies (Hackensack)
- 3. West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South (West Windsor)
- 4. High Technology High School (Lincroft)
- 5. West Windsor-Plainsboro High School North (Plainsboro)
- 6. John P. Stevens High School (Edison)
- 7. Montgomery High School (Skillman)
- 8. East Brunswick High School (East Brunswick)
- 8. Millburn High School (Millburn)
- 10. Bridgewater-Raritan Regional High School (Bridgewater)
Also contributing to this story was Rich Kirby, Patch Staff.
(Image via Shutterstock)
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