Here are the best high schools in S.C., according to U.S. News and World Report

U.S. News & World Report has released its rankings of the best high schools in South Carolina for 2020.

Academic Magnet High School in North Charleston ranked No. 1 in the state and No. 2 nationwide, according to the rankings. It was the only S.C. school to crack the top 100 nationwide list of schools.

Here in the Midlands, Spring Hill High ranked No. 5 in the state and Dreher High ranked No. 6. The rest of the S.C. top 10 list was dominated by schools from the Lowcountry with two high schools from Fort Mill cracking the top 10, according to the list.

U.S. News & World Report compiled the rankings by using information from the U.S. Department of Education, state test scores, AP exam data and more, according to the report’s methodology page. The largest factors were math and reading scores. The second largest factor was “college readiness,” which is based on the percentage of high school seniors who took advanced placement or international baccalaureate exams as juniors. The rankings also considered graduation rate and performance by students from underrepresented backgrounds, according to the methodology.

Top-ranked schools in S.C.

1. Academic Magnet High School, North Charleston
2. Charleston School of the Arts, North Charleston
3. Wando High, Mt. Pleasant
4. Palmetto Scholars Academy, North Charleston
5. Spring Hill High, Chapin
6. Dreher High, Columbia
7. Fort Mill High, Fort Mill
8. Bluffton High, Bluffton
9. St. James High, Murrells Inlet
10. Nation Ford High, Fort Mill

Top-ranked schools in the Columbia metro area

1. Spring Hill High, Chapin
2. Dreher High, Columbia
3. Chapin High, Chapin
4. A.C. Flora High, Columbia
5. River Bluff High, Lexington
6. Dutch Fork High, Irmo
7. Spring Valley High, Columbia
8. Blythewood High, Blythewood
9. Ridge View High, Columbia
10. Lexington High, Lexington