University High School

4771 Campus Drive

School District

Irvine Unified
Grade

9-12
Teacher/Student Ratio

1:25
Type

public

School Map for Irvine Unified School District

GreatSchools Rating

The school rating calculation is based on four ratings: the Student Progress Rating or Academic Progress Rating, College Readiness Rating, Equity Rating, and Test Score Rating each designed to show different facets of school success. Learn more about GreatSchools Ratings

Reviews

Submitted by parent on December 17, 2023

We had 2 children go to and excel at Uni in the ‘90’s.The first was The Valadictorian and was accepted to and went to Harvard. Our younger one went to and excelled at Cal/BerkeleyWe never had to worry about our kids and did not spend any $$ on tutors.Thanks for the Great Education and most appreciative of the Faculty who made it easy for us to be successful parents.
Submitted by parent on March 15, 2021

University H S came highly recommended, that's the reason we moved to Irvine and close enough for our kids to attend High School here.Very high demanding expectations from teachers, but if you want the best you expect the best and everything was fine, until covid happen. Last year they gave a pass to all students as long they would do their homework at home on line.For the new year they gave us a choice of hybrid (2 days in person, 3 days on line) which it was great to the point that most of the teachers just don't teach anymore. All they do is give video to watch and homework based on those video, very few explanation and tests and quiz every week.They still have high demands from the students, but they refused to explain. They still expect math to be at least 70%, but they don't explain it, same thing for science, history and the other subjects. There are some subjects that they just need to be explained, but all the school cares is to have a high % in everything. Yes they do offer tutoring on line and office hours with the teachers, on line and in person, but don't walk in class too early you might get a nuisance reaction from the teacher who was on the phone. Probably during covid when teachers cannot teach full time the school should also lower their expectation because students don't get the same education they deserve and they are more stressed about the all situation and just giving tons of homework every day, week and week-ends does not help to keep up their reputation as the best in the District and in the County.
Submitted by other on October 02, 2019

Uni is not well rounded, stressing academics 100% and completely ignoring sports, arts, and social development. Many students are elitist snobs who bully underachievers. Students with learning differences get no services and are pressured to conform to the curriculum. As a former student I do not recommend this school unless you enjoy overemphasized academics, bullying, and conformity.
Submitted by parent on May 18, 2018

Academics are highly pushed. Sports are pushed aside. (Unless it’s tennis, or golf). If you’re not already smart then you have to try harder. Great school but not a fair one.
Submitted by student on May 17, 2017

As most people say at UNI, "this school is the best school in the worst way". This school is a 10/10 school, its academic part is very strong and vigorous, making it one of the best schools. However, this school is horrible in its effect emotionally on most students. Most students (other than a few) suffer from depression, stress, bullying, and etc. Making friends at this school is also very hard (most people stick with friends they made back in elementary), so if you transfer in, I am sorry. To sum it up, this school is amazing academically (competitive), but emotionally scarring too.
Submitted by other on July 13, 2016

Good environment and teachers.Especially count sellers are very helpful to prepare classes and courses.My daughter also very satisfied at school.
Submitted by other on June 07, 2016

I had a phenomenal experience in my 4 years at University High, ultimately getting into Stanford as a President's scholar along with 9 of my classmates. The student body was filled with some of the smartest, most dedicated people I know who I am still close with to this day. The teachers were always top-notch, noble, and loved what they did. Could not have had a better experience and would highly recommend it.
Submitted by parent on November 10, 2015

My daughter received a well-rounded education at University High, choosing to be very involved academically, socially, and artistically. She is not Asian and earned a 4.3 GPA. She is doing great at the UC she chose; most of her friends chose UCs, NYU, and a few are at Ivy Leagues. Two of her best friends since preschool switched to private schools in 10th grade, as their parents felt the school's academic competition was not a good fit for their child. If your child has a great work ethic, outstanding study habits, can teach herself math concepts (or has a tutor), isn't bothered by competition, is confident, has strong leadership qualities, is optimistic, and outgoing, UNI will likely be a great choice where your child will thrive.
Submitted by parent on February 03, 2015

We moved from out of the area. There's been no problem whatsoever getting into AP classes, quite the opposite, thanks to the very helpful counselors. Science and Math classes are very very challenging and require a lot of work, but do prepare extremely well for college (choose those AP courses at your own risk). Humanities and Social Sciences are as difficult as at any other Blue Ribbon schools in CA, but not more difficult. The students are not as social as those at some of the other schools, so the "fun" factor is lower. Some sports are top notch (swimming, tennis), developing camaraderie and enriching experience; some sports are not run as successfully. The music program is okay, but most focus is on the marching band, not the orchestras.
Submitted by parent on September 13, 2014

My two sons go to Uni and the school is great. The school has very high standards and it is not as scary as most parents want to portray it. The staff and counselor are very helpful. If your son has good work ethics he/she will do well.
Submitted by parent on June 27, 2014

I completely agree with both previous posts. We moved from out of state and were told that my student couldn't get into the AP classes because this school was very hard. Even though came with an A+ in Honors English was not allowed to get into AP English. Teachers were not helpful most of the time, with some exceptions of course. The environment is very far from welcoming. It is fake like everything in the area. In general the experience has been bad, I hope to get a better environment for my other child.
Submitted by parent on February 20, 2014

I completely agree with previous parent. This has been disappointing. Staff have a saying they use over and over...Your child may be getting b's because this school is difficult. Wrong! Many students have tutoring outside of school and take courses to review the next year curriculum. The teachers donot need to teach the students but merely give assignments because a large majority of students do not participate in class because they go to private tutoring to actually learn the material. This also make for very talkative class rooms. There is a discrimination of white students. Look into any Honors or AP classes and you will find 1 or 2 white students. Which doesn't fit the fact that there are 25% white students at the school. If you are not asian, and you are in these classes there is question that you belong there.
Submitted by parent on December 09, 2013

We are one of those families that moved from out of state and chose our home because it was in the UNI district. That was an enormous mistake. I had two children go through this school and can honestly say it has been a terrible experience for both. The majority of the teachers could care less about the students, some answering cell phones during class or not in their classroom during office hours. The administration is not much better always assuming the students are wrong, not the teachers. The counselors are even worse because they pretend to care but have so many students, they can't even begin to know one from the other. My first child, accepted to an elite college, tells me not one semester of college comes close to how hard UNI was. My second used to be an enthusiastic learner, a straight A student until UNI. Averaging 4 hours sleep in order to get B's in high school is just not right. The kids that get A's are, and I hate to say it, Asian. They take summer prep classes in the AP subjects so when they take the class at UNI they can get an A. This is what the teachers teach to. So unless your child takes a prep class, they can forget about doing well in the AP classes.
Submitted by parent on September 26, 2013

University High School in Irvine is truly a great school, which offers high academic and sports standards to all of its students. The faculty is wonderful, and they not only teach our children. They make them think and prepare for the future.
Submitted by student on August 31, 2013

This is an awesome school and i really love it, the teachers are awesome and it is very competitive, just as i like it
Submitted by student on May 01, 2013

Honestly, I don't find UNI that terrible. I agree, this school is based on high grades and test scores and only teach toward students who are AP and intelligent students. But that doesn't mean they ignore the rest who are struggling. We have office hours where students can come in to talk to teachers. We have tutoring after school. It's up to the students and how they perform at their own level. If it's hard, then take the extra time at home to study or even talk to the teacher about the problems of trying to catch up the academically driven classes. I'm not smart and I am graduating with a 3.35 GPA and going to a state college but all of my friends and other students who are attending UCs and even IV Leagues do not look down on me nor any other person because we're all happy we're going somewhere in the end. UNI is a great place because it prepares us so well for college. I wouldn't want to change high schools. There isn't any trouble with bullying and we're accepting of other races. We get along well with anyone at high school and I like that about UNI.
Submitted by parent on January 20, 2013

This school monitors this site, and does not like receiving low scores. 99% of the teachers here need to be replaced or required to attend tolerance and communication training. Mainstream teachers will do whatever they can to not deal with your child. Please don't send your child here, it will benefit them in their life. What child needs to constantly be bullied by teachers and deal with racism coming from authority figures?
Submitted by student on January 02, 2013

This is one of the best high schools in the nation at preparing young adults for competition in the real world. Sorry, once you graduate from college, no one is going to coddle you. If the competition is tough, it is because everyone here is doing their best. I'm sorry some people feel that not enough students are slacking or messing around so the grade curves go down. The negative comments on this board about this school reflect what is wrong with America. The world and the business world is competitive and you will feel pressure. There's no need to apologize for success.
Submitted by parent on August 11, 2012

No one high school is perfect. It may be good to someone and bad to others. It is the parent job to find a high school for your children to learn. If you think this school is too tough, you can choose a mild school to give your children more time to grow and build the confident.
Submitted by parent on June 26, 2012

I'm a parent of a student who just graduated last week after 4 incredible years at Uni. I truly cannot comprehend some of the most recent negative posts about Uni. This school provides whatever you want in terms of education AND extracurricular activities. Sure, Uni offers some of the most challenging AP classes to prepare students who aspire to attend the best college they can...BUT, many of my son's friends are not in that category and have greatly enjoyed taking "regular" classes, playing sports, etc. Yes, many of his friends are in the 3.8 to 4.2 GPA range, him included...but, these are normal, everyday kids who play sports, work part time, play video games, etc. They are good kids who we've known since moving to the area 9 or 10 years ago. Any school is what you make of it. Some of my son's friends are headed to local community colleges, some to UCs and a few are headed to the top colleges in the nation...yet they all hang out together and support each other. Not sure how anyone can say Uni is "failing" it's students. High school is about getting prepared for the "real world." Uni gets a perfect score in my book for that!