Mira Costa High School
Manhattan Beach · Los Angeles County · Manhattan Beach Unified · Public
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Most similar nearby schools
Redondo Union High School → Leuzinger High School → North High → West High → Torrance High School → Compare all similar →📋 At a glance
- 📚 24 AP courses offered — Elite
- ✅ Gifted & talented program
- 🔢 12 calculus classes · 20 physics · 20 chemistry
- 🎓 AP rigor: 86th percentile nationally
- 📝 SAT/ACT participation: 80th percentile by test-taker volume
- 🎓 4-yr grad rate: 97% (90th percentile nationally)
Composed from federal CRDC offerings, EDFacts ACGR, and other public data. Full breakdowns below.
🎓 Where grads go
UC admits by campus · Class of 2025
Source: University of California Office of the President, Admissions by Source School. Full campus-by-campus breakdown below.
How Mira Costa High School compares for families
Top-tier college outcomes for California families.
- ▸ Statewide59.9% UC Reach — 41.8 points above the California median of 18.1%. Ahead of 94% of California high schools.
- ▸ Locally🎓 Top 10% in California on UC Reach — plus 4 more top-ranks.
- ▸ vs Similar SchoolsBeats the peer median (59.9% UC Reach vs 32.5% median) across the 5 most similar nearby schools.
For Parents
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🎓 Academic rigor
AP + advanced-course offerings
Elite — exceptional AP + advanced course breadth
86th percentile nationally
Source: federal Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC 2020-21). CRDC reports what's offered + enrolled — it doesn't collect AP exam pass rates (College Board owns that data and doesn't release it school-level).
SAT / ACT participation
CRDC federal data · 2020-2180th percentile by test-taker volume
Source: federal Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC 2020-21). Volume — not score — is what's reported here. A higher count means more students at this school are entering the college admissions pipeline. Note: 2020-21 was COVID-disrupted; some districts (especially those that stayed remote longer) report unusually low or zero takers.
🎓 4-year graduation rate · federal EDFacts
What % of students graduate on time?
90th percentile nationally
Source: federal EDFacts ACGR (Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate), 2019 vintage via Urban Institute. EDFacts publishes a range (low-high) to preserve privacy on small cohorts; we display the midpoint.
🏛️ Federal Title I context
Lower-need school
Not Title I eligible (FRPL < 25%)
<25% of students qualify for free/reduced lunch. Well below the Title I threshold; expect a higher-income student body on average.
Source: NCES Common Core of Data, free/reduced-price lunch eligibility. The actual Title I designation is a district decision and may differ from eligibility — but the federal eligibility math is what we show here. We don't claim to assert whether the district formally chose to enroll this school in Title I.
🏛️ Your state's public flagship
University of California-Berkeley
The in-state tuition gap is the flagship's biggest draw — most in-state families pay far less than the out-of-state sticker. Average net price after aid runs about $13,481/yr. Admission odds depend on your student's GPA and test scores, not which high school they attend.
Source: IPEDS admissions, tuition & enrollment + College Scorecard net price. Flagship = the state's primary public research university.
💰 Pay for college in California
California's public scholarships
California's Cal Grant covers tuition and fees at UC, CSU, community, and many private colleges. Awards are need-based with a GPA floor — file the FAFSA or CA Dream Act Application with a verified GPA.
Covers UC/CSU tuition & fees for CA residents with a 3.0 GPA who fall under the income ceilings. (Recent grads who meet every criterion get a guaranteed (entitlement) award.)
Official program details ↗For lower-income CA students with a 2.0+ GPA — a living-cost access award in year one, plus tuition in later years.
Official program details ↗For CA residents in career-technical programs — need-based, no GPA gate. (For occupational / vocational / technical training.)
Official program details ↗Eligibility rules change yearly — confirm with the official program before relying on it. Amounts are recent published figures; awards cover tuition/fees, not housing or books unless noted. Verified 2026-06-14.
Mira Costa High School sent 1,540 applications to the six most selective University of California campuses and 25.4% were admitted, producing a UC Reach of 59.9% — 41.8 percentage points above the California median of 18.1%, higher than 94% of California high schools. The school produces 12.9 UCLA + UC Berkeley admits per 100 seniors.
+27.4 pp above peer median (32.5%) · Ranked #2 of 11 similar schools
18.1%
32.5%
51.2%
59.9%
Higher than 94% of California high schools (978 ranked, ≥50 seniors)
Mira Costa High School's UC Reach of 59.9% clears the statewide top-10% cutoff (51.2%) — meaning roughly 59 top-6 UC admits per 100 seniors, well above what most California schools achieve.
Against similar schools, Mira Costa High School stands out clearly — the peer-group median is 32.5%.
For context, the elite tier (top 1%) clears 97.3% — a gap of 37 pp from where this school sits.
Overall, Mira Costa High School's UC Reach is higher than 94% of California high schools (978 ranked).
UC funnel — which kids are getting in at what GPA
Combining the school's applicant pool GPA, admit pool GPA, actual admit rate, and statewide CA admit rates by individual GPA band, we can read which GPA tiers tend to get in — and which don't.
| Campus | 4.00+ GPA | 3.70–3.99 GPA | 3.30–3.69 GPA | < 3.30 GPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UC Berkeley | Real shot | Long odds | Filtered out | Filtered out |
| UCLA | Real shot | Long odds | Filtered out | Filtered out |
| UC San Diego | Strong shot | Moderate | Long odds | Filtered out |
| UC Santa Barbara | Strong shot | Real shot | Long odds | Filtered out |
| UC Irvine | Strong shot | Real shot | Long odds | Filtered out |
| UC Davis | Strong shot | Strong shot | Real shot | Filtered out |
The numbers behind it
| Campus | Applicant GPA | Admit GPA | Lift ⓘ | Admit rate | vs peer schools @ same GPA ⓘ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UC Berkeley | 4.10 | 4.23 | +0.13 | 17.3% | Peers +0.18 · wider |
| UCLA | 4.09 | 4.29 | +0.20 | 11.7% | Peers +0.22 · matches |
| UC San Diego | 4.04 | 4.27 | +0.23 | 23.2% | Peers +0.24 · matches |
| UC Santa Barbara | 4.05 | 4.28 | +0.23 | 36.9% | Peers +0.25 · matches |
| UC Irvine | 4.01 | 4.24 | +0.23 | 34.5% | Peers +0.22 · matches |
| UC Davis | 4.05 | 4.22 | +0.17 | 34.4% | Peers +0.19 · matches |
📊 Statewide CA admit rates by individual GPA band, 2025 (for reference)
| GPA band | UCB | UCLA | UCSD | UCSB | UCI | UCD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4.00+ | 17.0% | 15.1% | 45.2% | 62.3% | 46.3% | 65.9% |
| 3.70–3.99 | 3.1% | 1.6% | 9.3% | 17.6% | 17.0% | 31.1% |
| 3.30–3.69 | 0.8% | 0.5% | 1.5% | 2.8% | 2.4% | 10.3% |
| 3.00–3.29 | 0.4% | 0.3% | 0.2% | 0.4% | 0.3% | 1.9% |
| < 3.00 | 0.7% | 0.4% | 0.3% | 0.2% | 0.1% | 0.7% |
Where Mira Costa High School sits vs. all California schools ⓘ
Overall, this school admits its UC applicants in line with what their GPAs predict (25.4% actual vs. 22.4% expected).
UC Outcomes Trend — 2018–2025
Class size from CDE grade 12 enrollment. Campus-level data — applicant/admit totals may count a student at multiple campuses more than once.
Campus Breakdown — 2025
| Campus | Applicants | Admits | Enrollees | Admit Rate | UC Reach | Yield | Avg GPA (App) | Avg GPA (Adm) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UC Berkeley → Elite | 271 | 47 | 27 | 17.3% | 7.2% | 57.4% | 4.10 | 4.23 |
| UCLA → Elite | 315 | 37 | 21 | 11.7% | 5.7% | 56.8% | 4.09 | 4.29 |
| UC San Diego → Selective | 259 | 60 | 5 | 23.2% | 9.2% | 8.3% | 4.04 | 4.27 |
| UC Santa Barbara → Selective | 309 | 114 | 19 | 36.9% | 17.5% | 16.7% | 4.05 | 4.28 |
| UC Irvine → Selective | 203 | 70 | 11 | 34.5% | 10.7% | 15.7% | 4.01 | 4.24 |
| UC Davis → | 183 | 63 | 6 | 34.4% | 9.6% | 9.5% | 4.05 | 4.22 |
SBAC academic outcomes — grade 11, 2025
Share of grade-11 students meeting or exceeding the California standard on Smarter Balanced ELA and Math. This is the academic-readiness signal that pairs with UC Reach (post-grad outcomes), stability (retention), and absenteeism (engagement). Note: statewide median Math is only ~20% — a school at 20% isn't an outlier; one at 45%+ genuinely is.
Source: California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP) Smarter Balanced research files. Benchmarks limited to non-virtual public & charter HS with ≥30 tested students.
Student composition — 2025-26
HS grades 9–12 racial/ethnic composition and program subgroups, from CDE Census Day Enrollment. Two-year shift shown when ≥1 pt — surfaces how the community served has changed since 2023-24.
Race / ethnicity
Program subgroups
Source: California Department of Education, Census Day Enrollment 2025-26 (HS grades 9–12). Δ shown when shift is ≥1 pt since 2023-24. Categories below 0.5% omitted.
Chronic absenteeism — 2024-25
Share of students missing 10% or more of expected attendance — the leading indicator that often precedes the demand decline shown above. Families disengaging tend to raise absenteeism first, then formally leave. Basis: grades 9–12.
Absenteeism is up 11.6 pp since 2016-17. A rising absenteeism trend often precedes formal departure — worth investigating which subgroups are driving it.
Source: California Department of Education, Chronic Absenteeism 2024-25. Benchmarks limited to non-virtual public & charter HS with ≥100 eligible students. CDE didn't publish a usable 2019-20 file (COVID).
Enrollment trend & projection
If this trend holds (-0.2%/yr, Total enrollment)
At per-pupil funding of $ / student:
| Horizon | Projected Total enrollment | Change | Funding impact / yr |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 yr (2027) | ~2,486 | -6 | $0 |
| 3 yr (2029) | ~2,474 | -18 | $0 |
| 5 yr (2031) | ~2,462 | -30 | $0 |
Straight-line extrapolation of the recent annual rate — a what-if, not a forecast of intent. Default = California's LCFF base grant for grades 9–12 ($12,423/ADA). Edit the figure to match your school.
Mira Costa High School — Enrollment & Outcomes Snapshot
Public · Manhattan Beach · vs. 10 most similar nearby schools
- ▸On UC Reach, Mira Costa High School sits near the top of its similar-school group (ranked #2 of 11): 60% vs. a peer median of 32%.
- ▸Its UC Reach has risen 17 points since 2018.
- ▸Senior-class enrollment is up 3% (619→635 from 2018 to 2026), outpacing the peer-group median of -10%.
- ▸At its recent rate (-0.2%/yr), enrollment projects to ~2474 by 2029 — about 18 fewer students than today.
Enrollment projection
That's about 18 fewer students. At per-student funding of $ per student, that's roughly $0 in annual state funding at risk.
Default = California's LCFF base grant for grades 9–12 ($12,423 per ADA) — adjust to your district's actual per-pupil figure. Projection extrapolates the recent annual rate — not a forecast of intent.
Your school vs. its 10 most similar nearby schools
| School | Type | Size | UC Reach | Enroll. trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mira Costa High School | Public | 2492 | 59.9% | +3% |
| Peer-group median | 32.5% | -10% | ||
| Redondo Union High School | Public | 2895 | 35.5% | +10% |
| Leuzinger High School | Public | 2014 | 19.0% | +4% |
| North High | Public | 1847 | 28.8% | +7% |
| West High | Public | 1747 | 44.9% | -11% |
| Torrance High School | Public | 1939 | 28.8% | +2% |
| Palos Verdes Peninsula Hs | Public | 1899 | 70.8% | -8% |
| South High | Public | 1707 | 35.9% | -14% |
| Hawthorne High School | Public | 1549 | 15.0% | -23% |
| Palos Verdes High School | Public | 1605 | 57.0% | -27% |
| Lawndale High School | Public | 1207 | 29.4% | -29% |
UC Reach = top-6 UC admits ÷ senior class (can exceed 100% when students are admitted to multiple campuses). Enrollment trend = first-to-latest grade-12 change on file. Similar schools matched on proximity, size, type. Methodology →
Enrollment stability & demand — 2024-25
Two complementary signals: retention (do students stay once enrolled?) and demand (are families choosing the school?). Read against the Los Angeles County baseline — the demographic tide is moving every CA HS, so a school's gap vs. county is the actionable signal.
Mira Costa High School outperformed Los Angeles County on enrollment (school +2.6% vs. county -8.2%) AND maintains 91.6% stability. Replicable model — worth documenting what's working.
223 of 2,644 students who enrolled at Mira Costa High School this year didn't maintain continuous enrollment (8.4% non-stability). Mid-year transfers, dropouts, and other exits are all counted.
Stability by student group
Nearest peer high schools
Source: California Department of Education, Stability Rate 2024-25. Benchmarks limited to non-virtual public & charter HS with ≥100 cumulative enrollees so by-design-high-churn continuation schools don't dominate the bottom of the distribution. Cumulative enrollment counts every student on the rolls during the year, so it can exceed peak-day enrollment.
District financial profile — Manhattan Beach Unified (FY2020)
From 4 years of NCES F-33 filings (the federally-mandated district finance survey). Public schools don't have their own books — the district does. These figures show the financial scale, revenue dependence, instruction-vs-overhead mix, and long-term debt that shape what a school can sustain.
Local: 77.9%
Federal: 4.1%
Source: NCES F-33 Annual Survey of School System Finances (Urban Institute Education Data API). Latest year currently published: FY2020. F-33 is a district-level federal filing — it reflects the Manhattan Beach Unified as a whole, not this individual school's books. Revenue mix shows where the district's dollars come from (state aid dominates in CA via LCFF). Instruction share is current expenditure on instruction ÷ total current expenditure (national benchmark ~60%). Long-term debt is end-of-year outstanding (mostly facilities bonds).
What This Means
For School Admins
The full Reach Report for Mira Costa High School
A board- and LCAP-ready intelligence brief: your enrollment retention and college outcomes, benchmarked against your closest competitors, with a 5-year forecast, concrete steps to act on, and the rigor + outcomes story you can share with your families. Built from primary public data — prepared for you, not auto-generated.
- ✓Your UC Reach (59.9%) ranked head-to-head against your closest competitor schools
- ✓Your 5-year enrollment forecast (currently -0.2%/yr) with the revenue at stake
- ✓Student-retention benchmarking vs your county median — and the LCAP evidence to back your goals