High Schools in Wake County Schools

Wake County Schools spans 36 high schools across the Raleigh/Cary/Apex area, ranging from large traditional 9-12 comprehensive campuses to small early-college, STEM, and leadership academies.

This is one of North Carolina's strongest districts: Wake County Schools carries a 4-star rating, ranking 60th of 246 districts (76th percentile), and 18 of 35 ranked high schools earned 4 or 5 stars. It is also a district of two tiers. Large neighborhood schools such as Enloe High and Panther Creek High enroll roughly 1,600-2,700 students, while specialty and early-college programs typically serve 260-600 students. A few small alternative schools such as Longview and Phillips High serve students with intensive needs and are not comparable on test scores alone.

Small selective schools dominate the top of the 2025-2026 state rankings. Wake EC of Information & Biotechnologies ranks #1 in North Carolina, followed by Wake Young Men's Leadership Academy (#22), Wake STEM Early College High School (#31), Wake Early College of Health and Science (#52), and Wake Young Women's Leadership Academy (#74). The best traditional school is Green Level High at #90, with roughly 2,300 students and outstanding Biology, English II, and Math III scores. Apex Friendship High, the district's largest school at 2,748 students, still ranks #105. The biggest academic concern is Math I, where the district average (36.6%) trails the state (42.1%) despite Wake beating the state by large margins in every other tested subject.

Chronic absenteeism is the district's most consistent warning sign. Knightdale High, Southeast Raleigh High, East Wake High, Garner High, and South Garner High all rank in the bottom half of the state with chronic absenteeism above 35%; top-ranked schools such as Wake STEM Early College High School (6.4%) and Green Level High (9.4%) post the lowest rates. High-poverty schools generally rank lower, yet several academies — including Wake Early College of Health and Science, Wake Young Women's Leadership Academy, North Wake College and Career Academy, and Vernon Malone College and Career Academy — perform well despite serving high percentages of economically disadvantaged students.