Berkeley High School: Full Guide

Location: Berkeley, CA

Are you a student or parent at Berkeley High School? Want to understand how to get the most out of high school?

We've written the best guide to Berkeley High available. Here we'll cover:

  • Breakdowns of student ethnicity, gender, and family income
  • How safe Berkeley High is to attend
  • SAT/ACT/AP scores earned by Berkeley High students
  • Which AP/IB classes you can take at Berkeley High
  • Every sports team you can join at Berkeley High

Let's get started!

Basic Information

Berkeley High School is a public school, supporting grades 9 to 12 . It's located in Berkeley, CA in Alameda County.

Based on its location, Berkeley High is classified as a school in a midsized city. Here's the location on a map:


Contact Information

Mailing address:

Berkeley High School
1980 Allston Way
Berkeley, CA 94704-1429

Phone number: 5106446120

Berkeley High School homepage: http://bhs.berkeleyschools.net/

Principal: Sam Pasarow
Email the principal: [email protected]


Student Demographics

Student Enrollment

The total enrollment at Berkeley High School is 3145 students, making it a very large high school, in the top 10% of all California high schools by size.

Wow! Attending Berkeley High might feel like attending a college. You'll be surrounded by a large group of students (over 500 per class) and have more options for activities and clubs to join, which can be exciting.

On the other hand, you may also find that resources like counseling are spread thin across so many students. Make sure that you can get enough teacher and counselor attention to succeed at Berkeley High, which may require being proactive.


Growth in Student Body Size

Is Berkeley High School growing or shrinking? This will help you see trends in where the school is headed.

From our calculations, the enrollment at Berkeley High has increased over the past few years. We calculate this by comparing enrollment in grades 9 to 12.

Male Students Female Students All Students
9th grade 399 393 792
10th grade 446 382 828
11th grade 356 391 747
12th grade 371 407 778

As you can see in the table above, the freshman class is 14 students larger than the senior class. This suggests that the school is growing in size and taking on more students.

There are a few reasons this could be happening. The city of Berkeley could be growing in population, thus sending more students into Berkeley High. Alternatively, Berkeley High could be relaxing its student policies and taking in more students.


Gender Split

Are there more boys or girls at Berkeley High School?

From our statistics, Berkeley High has a 50:50 split between male and female students in the high school grades.

Berkeley High has a balanced male-female ratio that's largely representative of the general population in Alameda County. Since the student body is roughly half and half, it should feel like there are equal numbers of boys and girls in your classes.

This usually means that Berkeley High doesn't strongly select for either males or females, unlike other schools that have a large majority of males or females.


Ethnicity Breakdown

What's the racial diversity at Berkeley High School? Does one ethnicity make up most of the student body, or is it fairly balanced?

From our statistics, Berkeley High has a diverse student body. No single ethnicity composes more than 50% of all students, which means you'll be surrounded by a diverse set of students in class. Only a third of California schools show this much diversity.

The most common ethnicity at Berkeley High is white. In California, white students make up 26.3% of all California students, and are the second most common ethnicity after Hispanic students.

Percentage Number
American Indian/Alaska Native 0.3% 11
Asian 9.2% 290
Hispanic 20.9% 658
Black 21.0% 663
White 37.7% 1188
Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 0.1% 5
Two or more races 10.4% 330

High schools usually reflect the population in the surrounding area, so the ethnicities of students likely resembles those of Berkeley. If you'd like to see how other nearby schools look in diversity, just google "[name of school] prepscholar" to find our guide to that specific school.


Income Level of Berkeley High Families

What are the family incomes of students at Berkeley High School? To determine this, we look at the number of students who qualify for free or reduced lunches, a classification by the US federal government.

To qualify for a reduced price meal, family income needs to be below 185% of the federal poverty guidelines. For a family of 4, this means an income of around $45,000 or below.

To qualify for a free meal, family income needs to be below 130% of the federal poverty guidelines. For a family of 4, this means an income of around $32,000 or below.

The lower the percentage of students who qualify for free or reduced price meals, the higher the income levels are likely to be.

At Berkeley High, 4.6% of students qualify for reduced-price lunches, and 27.2% qualify for free lunches.

This means Berkeley High has a low poverty level. The overwhelming majority of students at Berkeley High don't qualify for free or reduced price lunches. Berkeley is thus likely to be an affluent community, with quite high family incomes.

Number Percent
Reduced-price lunches 147 4.6%
Free lunches 858 27.2%
Do not qualify for reduced-price or free lunches 2140 68.0%

As with ethnicity, this likely reflects the surrounding community in Berkeley and doesn't speak much about the school itself.

Because Berkeley High is in the top quartile of schools by family income, it's likely to be well-funded relative to other high schools in California. This means you'll likely have access to advanced coursework like AP/IB classes and better-funded extracurriculars and sports.

It's still up to you, though, to take advantage of the resources Berkeley High has to offer. If you work hard and spend your time effectively, you'll likely be well positioned to succeed in college and beyond.

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School Safety

How safe is Berkeley High School to attend? Can you expect a lot of conflict as a student here?

To study this, we look at disciplinary data for two types of incidents at Berkeley High: referrals to law enforcement (when incidents are reported to police), and arrests.

These are the most serious disciplinary actions available to school administration and are more severe than suspensions or expulsions. Suspensions are often discretionary and can be given just for being disruptive in class. In contrast, law enforcement referrals and arrests often indicate incidents that put the safety of other Berkeley High students at risk.

In the school year of 2011-2012, there were 0 referrals to law enforcement, and 0 school-related arrests. This is out of a total enrollment of 3202 students.

To put this into perspective, most California schools (59% of them) reported 0 law enforcement referrals and arrests.

Compare this school with other high schools in the same school district, using the following table:

Berkeley Unified School District Safety

School Name Total Referred Total Arrests Enrollment
Berkeley Technology Academy 0 0 132
Realm Charter High 0 0 0

Academic Performance


Now we get to a major aspect of assessing a high school: academic performance. How good of an education will you get at Berkeley High School? Will you be competitive for college? Will you have access to advanced classes?

We've compiled everything we could find about Berkeley High's academics here.


Graduation Rate

To start off, an important benchmark of academic achievement is graduation rate. For all students who start high school at Berkeley High, the state of California wants as many students to graduate as possible, since a high school diploma can mean a big difference in getting a job.

At Berkeley High, 86% (of 879) Berkeley High students graduated within four years of starting high school.

Here's how this stacks up to other schools. The California state government has defined 90% as a target rate. The state average is around 80-85%.

Berkeley High is in the 59th percentile of all public high schools in California for graduation rate. This is above average. Generally, a graduation rate of above 90% is considered good and well above average, and below 75% is well below average.

Note: This data comes from a few years back, but the trends are likely to stay the same, since schools don't get significantly better or worse within a short period of time.

Standardized Testing


Next, we'll look at another major piece of high school academics: standardized testing performance for Berkeley High School students. These are tests that are administered to large populations of students for comparison purposes.

Let’s start by taking a look at the data for nationally administered standardized tests.

SAT Scores

As you probably know, the SAT is a critical test used for college admissions. The higher the score you get, the better your academic performance compared to students nationwide, and the easier it is to get into top colleges.

We did in-depth research and found the average Berkeley High School SAT scores.

The average composite SAT score is a 1690 out of 2400, compared to a national average of 1500. Each year, roughly 738 at Berkeley High take the SAT.

This is a very high average SAT score, putting Berkeley High School in the top 10% of all California high schools. The average student at Berkeley High is already scoring in the 75th percentile nationwide or higher - in fact, 71% of students score above the national average. The top students will likely be competing in the top tier nationwide.

Because the SAT measures academic ability, this is a good sign that you're surrounded by high-achieving peers. If you can keep up with your classmates at Berkeley High - or even exceed them - you'll have a great shot at getting into very competitive colleges.

Here's a breakdown of SAT scores by section:

Average SAT Scores (2013-2014)

Source Critical Reading Math Writing Composite
Berkeley High 566 567 562 1690
California 498 510 496 1504
United States 495 511 484 1490

Note that the SAT has since changed to a 1600 scale, but the trends above for your high school are likely to continue. Just use this guide to convert between the old 2400 scale and the new 1600 scale.

To learn more about SAT percentile rankings, read our guide on what SAT percentiles really mean.

How good is 1690 as an SAT score? Find out with our complete 1690 SAT score guide, including which colleges you can get into with a 1690 or any other SAT score!

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ACT Scores

In California, the ACT is less popular than the SAT. Fewer students take the ACT, and typically these students are more motivated and academically prepared for college. Therefore, it's harder to compare Berkeley High School ACT scores with the rest of the country.

At Berkeley High, the average ACT composite score was 23, compared to the nationwide average of 20. Each year, roughly 214 out of 3145 total students take the ACT.

This is above average performance, putting Berkeley High in the top 50% of California high schools. Since the ACT tests what you learn in school, these ACT scores are a good indication that you'll get an above-average education at Berkeley High.

Here are the average English, Math, Reading, and Science scores for Berkeley High compared to California and the US:

Average ACT Scores

Source English Math Reading Science
Berkeley High 23 23 24 22
California 21.8 22.8 22.3 21.7
United States 20.3 20.9 21.3 20.8

Scores provided are for the 2013-14 school year.

Find out more about percentile rankings and the ACT in this article.

Every individual is different. What counts as a good ACT score for you? Learn more with this article!

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Advanced Placement (AP)

Advanced Placement (AP) classes are college-level courses that are an additional academic challenge may give Berkeley High School students credit for college.

Here's what we're looking for: high average AP test scores as well as high AP passing rates.

AP Scores

Every year, roughly 760 students in grades 9-12 at Berkeley High take 1360 AP exams. It's important to understand how students score on the AP - earning a 3, 4, or 5 on the AP test means passing the test and often earning college credit.

The average score of all AP exams taken at Berkeley High is 3.3 out of 5.

This is a solid achievement showing above average performance. The majority of students get a passing grade of 3 or above, placing them above the national average. This performance places Berkeley High School in the top 25% of schools for AP tests.

Berkeley High therefore has a robust AP program with classes that will help you pass the AP exam. Furthermore, a sizable number of students still earn a 4 or a 5 on their AP tests, so if you're motivated to do well, you can still get a great AP score.

We have specific data on how many students got a 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 (out of 5) on AP exams in the chart below:


AP Test-Taking Statistics

Another way to gauge the quality of a school's AP program is to see how many AP students actually took AP exams at Berkeley High School. If a lot of students enroll in AP courses but don't actually take the AP tests, it can be a sign that students don't feel adequately prepared to take the test, or the school isn't encouraging students to take the exams enough.

At Berkeley High, there is a total enrollment of 1122 in AP courses (a student taking more than one AP course counts more than once).

Of AP-taking students, 203 took AP tests for ALL AP courses. 233 students took AP tests for SOME AP Courses, and 690 took AP courses but took NO tests.


This is bad test participation. Most AP students at Berkeley High School take the AP exam for NONE of their AP courses. This is an unusual situation, as the goal of an AP course is typically to take the standardized national AP test.

What you want to figure out is why so many students take AP courses but end up not taking the course. Do they not feel comfortable enough taking the AP test, knowing they may not pass? Or is it hard for Berkeley High students to take AP courses? Good people to ask are your counselors and AP teachers.

Hopefully, you may find that there are just logistical issues with taking AP tests that you might be able to overcome. However, you may also learn that the AP courses at Berkeley High don't prepare students well enough for the test, which reflects poorly on the AP program at your school. If the AP resources available to you don't give you confidence, consider self-studying to prepare for the AP test.

Note: The most recent data we have available is from 2012, so the statistics may have changed since then. Most likely, however, the trends are likely to continue - above average schools are likely to stay above average, and below average schools are likely to stay below average.


AP Passing Rates

For AP students at Berkeley High School who take the exam, it's important to know how they do. Here we have specific data on how many students got a passing grade (a 3 or above) on all, some, or none of the AP exams that they took.

Of all AP test takers, 179 students passed every AP test they took, which is a fantastic job. 38 students passed some but not all AP exams, and 181 students didn't pass ANY AP exam they took.

 

This is good performance. The majority of students pass SOME or ALL of the AP tests. Only a minority of students at Berkeley High School fail all the AP exams they take.

Overall, this points to a fairly strong AP program at Berkeley High. Most students are able to pass at least one of the AP tests they take, which means the teaching is likely of acceptable quality, and the students are motivated to do well. However, the program isn't strong across the board. Some teachers or courses may be better than others, and students at Berkeley High may be stronger at some subjects and weaker in others.

If you attend Berkeley High, this means you'll have a good starting point to work from - but if you want to pass all the AP tests you take, you'll need to work hard and use good study strategies.

To find out the passing rates for specific AP courses at Berkeley High School, you'll have to talk to your guidance counselor (who can then help you find that information). For instance, one AP Calculus teacher may have an above-90% passing rate, while another might only have a 50% passing rate. If you can, you'll want to take the class with the teacher who has more students get a 3 or above on the AP exam.

Find out more about the average score for each AP subject here.


State Tests

As of 2014, eleventh graders attending Berkeley High School must take standardized tests in English/Language Arts and Math as part of the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP). These align with the new Common Core standards and are called the "Smarter Balanced" tests.

If Berkeley High students meet or exceed state standards, they're academically prepared to graduate high school and go to college. Specifically, we care about the percentage of students who meet or exceed state standards. The larger this number, the higher the preparation of students at Berkeley High.

English/Language Arts

At Berkeley High School, 57% of students meet or exceed state standards in English/Language Arts.

This is considered above average and puts Berkeley High in the top 50% of all high schools in California for English/Language Arts. Around half of Berkeley High students pass state standards, and around half do not.

This specific percentage isn't much cause for concern - because the standards have gotten harder with the Common Core, the pass rate at Berkeley High will likely rise over time. But it still reflects Berkeley High's roughly average ranking among California high schools.

English/Language Arts Test Results (2015)

 

Read more about what’s measured in each ELA area score here.


Math

The other major test taken for state assessments is Math. Across the state, Math performance is generally lower than English/Language Arts performance, so it's natural for this number to be lower.

At Berkeley High School, 38% of students meet or exceed state standards in Math. This is considered well below average and puts Berkeley High in the bottom 25% of all high schools in California. The vast majority of Berkeley High students don't meet state standards, and only a small percentage pass.

Math Test Results (2015)

 

Read more about what’s measured in each Math area score, go here.


Academic Offerings


In addition to the standard high school curriculum, many high schools like Berkeley High School offer advanced coursework as part of the Advanced Placement (AP) or International Baccalaureate (IB) programs.

Brief Intro to AP/IB

AP and IB courses are designed at the difficulty level of college introductory classes. There are several important benefits to taking advanced coursework at Berkeley High. First, taking more advanced classes shows colleges that you're committed to challenging yourself academically, and that you're one of the more advanced students at Berkeley High. Taking AP/IB classes also raises your weighted GPA and makes you a stronger college applicant.

Furthermore, many colleges will accept your Berkeley High AP/IB coursework as college coursework. In some cases, you'll be able to skip introductory-level classes and move to more advanced classes. In other cases, you'll be able to avoid having to take required courses and might even be able to graduate earlier than the standard 4 years. Often this will require you to pass the AP test, getting a score of 3 or above.

So what advanced courses does Berkeley High School offer?

AP Courses

Berkeley High School offers AP courses in 23 subjects.

This is a huge number of AP subjects, putting Berkeley High School in the top 5% of California schools in AP offerings. You'll be able to choose from the most popular AP courses as well as your pick of broader interests.

The total number of AP subjects is 38, so Berkeley High is missing some subjects, but these are likely the least popular subjects, like some foreign languages and the new AP Research and Seminar courses. If there are any AP courses you want to take that aren't being offered at Berkeley High, ask your counselor for other options.

Of course, keep in mind that quantity doesn't automatically mean quality - it's important that the courses are taught well by effective teachers. But the strong AP program at Berkeley High likely means the classes are of high quality.

The following AP courses were offered at Berkeley High during 2015-2016:

Course Title
Art History
Biology
Calculus AB
Calculus BC
Chemistry
Chinese Language and Culture
Computer Science A
English Language and Composition
English Literature and Composition
Environmental Science
French Language and Culture
Latin
Macroeconomics
Music Theory
Physics C: Electricity and Magnetism
Physics C: Mechanics
Spanish Language and Culture
Spanish Literature and Culture
Statistics
Studio Art: 3-D Design
Studio Art: Drawing
United States Government and Politics
United States History

IB Courses


The International Baccalaureate program is less popular in the United States than the Advanced Placement program (there are around 850 diploma schools in the country and 100 in California). But Berkeley High School is one of the lucky few to have an IB program!

For college application purposes, the IB and AP programs are basically equivalent. So don't worry about being advantaged or disadvantaged either way if you participate in IB vs AP. What colleges care about first is academic achievement, and AP and IB classes are seen as equally challenging.

Berkeley High School has been an IB school since 2/11/08. Questions about the IB program at Berkeley High? You can contact the IB Diploma Programme coordinator, Mr. Chris Young, by phone at (510) 644-6121.

The following IB courses were offered at Berkeley High during 2015-2016:

Course Title HL/SL
Chinese BHL + SL
Spanish BHL + SL
BiologyHL + SL
Social and cultural anthropologyHL + SL
Mathematical studiesSL
Computer ScienceHL + SL
ChemistryHL + SL
Environmental systems and societiesSL
LatinHL + SL
Theory of Knowledge
French BHL + SL
English A LiteratureHL + SL
EconomicsHL + SL
MusicHL + SL
MathematicsHL + SL
HistoryHL + SL
Visual Arts

You can find out more about the IB testing schedule by going here.

We've also written the best study and test guides to International Baccalaureate.


Sports Teams

Finally, we'll cover which sports teams are available at Berkeley High School. Sports are an integral part of many students' high school experiences. The more sports that are available, and the more levels supported (Frosh, JV, Varsity), the more likely you'll be able to participate in a sport at Berkeley High.

By the way, the Berkeley High mascot is the Yellowjackets. Go Yellowjackets!

Berkeley High School fields 19 teams for girls' sports. This is a high number that puts Berkeley High in the top 25% of California schools that offer girls' sports. If you're a female, you'll have lots of options of sports and levels to try out for.

And now for the boys: Berkeley High School fields 24 teams for boys' sports. Clearly Berkeley High has a strong sports culture - Berkeley High is in the top 10% of California schools that offer boys' sports. Boys will find plenty of options of sports at different levels to try out for. Because more teams usually also means more resources devoted to sports, you can also expect Berkeley High sports teams to be competitive.

Boys Teams Girls Teams
Lacrosse
Var JV Fr
Lacrosse
Var JV Fr
Basketball
Var JV Fr
Basketball
Var JV Fr
Golf
Var JV Fr
Tennis
Var JV Fr
Tennis
Var JV Fr
Football
Var JV Fr
Wrestling
Var JV Fr
Volleyball
Var JV Fr
Volleyball
Var JV Fr
Baseball
Var JV Fr
Softball
Var JV Fr
Waterpolo
Var JV Fr
Waterpolo
Var JV Fr
Trackfield
Var JV Fr
Crosscountry
Var JV Fr
Soccer
Var JV Fr
Soccer
Var JV Fr
Fieldhockey
Var JV Fr

What’s Next?


Want to get more useful information about high school classes and preparing for colleges? Our blog has a ton of articles and advice on topics ranging from coursework and GPA to letters of recommendation, extracurriculars, and much more!

Ready to bulk up your schedule and maximize your college preparedness? Read all about the Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate programs.

Not quite in high school yet, but eager to get started? We've also got information for younger students interested in advanced learning opportunities, both in and out of school.

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Sources

The data on this page is drawn from a variety of sources, including (but not limited to):