The International School of Beaverton has once again been named the top high school in Oregon, landing at No. 77 nationally in the 2026 U.S. News & World Report rankings, a slip from its No. 55 spot in 2025 but still enough to keep it in the top 100 out of nearly 18,000 public high schools evaluated nationwide. What makes the ranking notable isn't just the number, it's how the school gets there: students aren't screened or selected based on grades or test scores. They get in through a district lottery, the same as any other option school in Beaverton.
According to a report from The Oregonian/OregonLive, the school earned an overall score of 99.57 out of 100 in the latest rankings. U.S. News evaluates schools using six weighted metrics, with college readiness carrying the heaviest weight at 30 percent, according to methodology reported by Carolina Journal. That measure is based heavily on how many students take and pass Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate exams, and the Oregonian/OregonLive report notes the rankings also account for performance on state-required math and reading tests, college curriculum breadth, and graduation rates, which make up 10 percent of the formula.
ISB's academic model gives it a built-in edge on those metrics. As KGW reported, the school posted a 100 percent four-year graduation rate and a college readiness score of 90.5 out of 100 in this year's evaluation. Every student at the wall-to-wall International Baccalaureate World School is enrolled in the IB Middle Years and Diploma Programmes, and the school requires students to study Mandarin, Japanese, or Spanish and complete a set number of community service hours, according to the Oregonian/OregonLive.
Open Lottery, Not an Entrance Exam
What separates ISB from the stereotype of an elite magnet school is how students get a seat. Per the school's own materials, admission is determined strictly by district lottery, with no prerequisite academic requirements. The result is a student body where 68 percent identify as non-Caucasian, more than 50 languages are spoken at home, and 20 percent qualify for free or reduced-price lunch as of the 2025–2026 school year.
The lottery structure hasn't stopped ISB from posting numbers that dwarf district and state averages. Testing data compiled by SchoolDigger for the 2024–2025 school year shows 86.4 percent of ISB's 11th graders reached proficiency in English Language Arts, compared with 53.2 percent across the Beaverton School District and just 44.4 percent statewide. U.S. News rankings also give extra weight to how well schools serve low-income and minority students, a category where ISB's diverse, non-selective population and strong outcomes line up well with the formula.
How Other Oregon Schools Fared
Oregon's next-highest schools after ISB, per the Oregonian/OregonLive report, were Cleveland High School, Lincoln High School, South Eugene High School, and West Linn High School. Grant High School came in at No. 483 nationally, Lake Oswego High School at No. 391, and Riverdale High School at No. 397. The Beaverton Academy of Science and Engineering, another local option school, ranked No. 253. Nationally, Central Magnet School in Murfreesboro, Tennessee took the top spot, followed by Signature School in Evansville, Indiana, and Julia R. Masterman Secondary School in Philadelphia. On the West Coast, Nikola Tesla STEM High School in Redmond, Washington, ranked No. 9 overall and was cited as the highest-ranked school on the West Coast, ahead of ISB.
A Statewide Backdrop of Strain
ISB's showing stands in sharp contrast to Oregon's broader education numbers. Oregon Department of Education data reported by Oregon Public Broadcasting shows the state's four-year graduation rate hit a record 83.0 percent for the Class of 2025, the first cohort since the pandemic to attend all four years in person, yet that figure still trails the national average of roughly 86 to 87 percent. Meanwhile, the Oregon State Board of Education has extended its suspension of essential skills testing requirements through the Class of 2028, meaning students can graduate without demonstrating basic proficiency on standardized reading, writing, or math tests, as reported by Rogue Valley Times.
Those statewide struggles are unfolding even as the Beaverton School District, ISB's home district and the third-largest in Oregon with nearly 37,500 students across 34 elementary schools, nine middle schools, six comprehensive high schools, five option schools, and two charter schools, works through its own financial strain. Hoodline previously reported that the district faces a structural deficit requiring $10 million in annual spending cuts over three years, a squeeze that has pushed administrators to consider closing an elementary school amid declining enrollment.
Applying for a Spot at ISB
ISB traces back to 2006, when it opened on the former campus of Aloha-Huber Elementary School as a grades 6–10 Middle Years Programme school, later expanding to grades 6–12 in 2009 with the addition of the IB Diploma Programme. Beyond academics, the Oregonian/OregonLive report notes the school offers extracurriculars including Model United Nations and an engineering club, after-school athletics, and international visitors brought in to expose students to other cultures.
Families interested in applying face a defined timeline. According to Beaverton School District admissions guidelines, online applications for the 2027–2028 option school lottery open on October 12 and close on December 4, with student selections conducted by computer lottery on December 9. There's no essay, no test, and no interview, just a name in the pool alongside every other applicant.
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