Edina High School was recently named the best college prep high school in Minnesota by Niche. Niche is a ranking and review site that ranks places to live, colleges, workplaces, and schools. When ranking the best college prep high schools, Niche’s criteria include the school’s graduation rate, standardized testing scores, AP enrollment, and the quality of colleges that students attend.

A major factor in EHS being ranked the #1 college prep high school in the state is the resources the counseling office offers to students. “We have curriculum through advisory through our Naviance program starting in freshman year. Every year, students do a 4 year plan and there are other lessons. Students are getting information in advisory,” college counselor Mr. Hicks said.

The counseling department also offers many college prep opportunities outside of the school curriculum. “There have been at least 8 or 9 flex block offerings for students,” Hicks said. He added, “[we’ve had] admissions representatives from NYU, PSEO [representatives], and Clearinghouse for student athletes.”

Additionally, many EHS teachers integrate college prep coursework into their curriculum. This includes anything from doing ACT writing assignments in music classes to rehearsing college-level writing in English classes. “After the AP tests [for AP US Literature and Language] we had a Common App essay assignment where we wrote two possible Common App essays. We got a head start on essay writing going into the summer which was super helpful. [During this unit] a St. Olaf admissions officer visited us and gave us tips from real application files,” senior Ava Chow said.

Finally, EHS’ high standardized testing scores and the abundance of AP/enriched classes available helped make it the top college prep school. Edina’s class of 2018 had an average composite ACT score of 25.8, while the Minnesota average is 21.3, and the national average score is only 20.8.

Furthermore, EHS offers 23 AP classes and six enriched classes in a multitude of subjects. According to Niche, the AP enrollment rate at EHS is 53%. When it comes to standardized testing and AP participation rates, EHS not only excels compared to the state but also excels compared to the nation.

In addition to being ranked the #1 college prep high school, EHS was also ranked the 3rd best public high school in the state and the 3rd best high school for STEM in the state.