Pennsylvania is home to two of the top 20 public high schools in the U.S., one in Philadelphia and the other in its suburbs, according to a new national ranking. 

Julia R. Masterman Secondary School, an academic magnet school in Philadelphia, took third place in the overall U.S. News and World Report ranking released August. The school had a 100% graduation rate for the 2024 class and earned a top score for college readiness, according to the publication.  

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Downingtown STEM Academy, a Chester County magnet program that focuses on science and technology, is 19th on the U.S. News list. 

The publication looked at data from more than 27,000 high schools in developing its list.  

Renovations to Northwest Pennsylvania Collegiate Academy include new brickwork on two parapets, top, shown on July 28, 2021, in Erie. New stairs leading to the student entrance, right, and a deck were also installed, bottom.
Renovations to Northwest Pennsylvania Collegiate Academy include new brickwork on two parapets, top, shown on July 28, 2021, in Erie. New stairs leading to the student entrance, right, and a deck were also installed, bottom.

The publication partnered with a North Carolina-based research firm for the analysis, which took six different criteria into account:

College readiness, or a measure that considered the school's participation rate in the Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate exams and how students performed on these tests. 

College curriculum breadth, which factored in how many students earned qualifying scores in multiple AP or IB exams.

State assessment proficiency, or how well a school's students performed on state testing in math, reading and science.

State assessment performance, which compares a school's scores against what U.S. News would have predicted them to be based on demographic data in the state. 

Underserved student performance, which measures learning outcomes for students of color and low-income students. 

Graduation rates, a factor that rewards schools with a high percentage of students graduating in four years.  

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U.S. News also released state-by-state rankings. Here other top Pennsylvania schools:

Central High School in Philadelphia

New Hope-Solebury High School in Bucks County

Wilkes-Barre Area School District STEM Academy in Luzerne County

Harriton High School in Montgomery County

Radnor High School in Delaware County

Lower Merion High School in Montgomery County

Peters Township High School in Washington County

Unionville High School in Chester County

Academy at Palumbo in Philadelphia

Upper St. Clair High School in Pittsburgh

Bethany Rodgers is a USA TODAY Network Pennsylvania investigative journalist focusing on health and education.

This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: New ranking places two Pennsylvania high schools among nation's best