How to Enroll at Huntington Beach High School
Huntington Beach High School enrolls students by Huntington Beach Union High attendance area: students who live inside the boundary register by address, with no entrance exam. The district assigns high school students to one of its six comprehensive high schools by home address, regardless of which middle school they attend; the district's School Locator is the authority on which school an address is assigned to.
District residents can apply to attend a different district high school during the Open Enrollment window, which ran from February 23 to April 3, 2026 for the 2026-27 school year. Applicants must be pre-enrolled with a valid district student ID, approved students commit to the new school for at least one year, and students promoting to 9th grade must submit a new request. After the window closes, intradistrict requests are handled case by case by the home school's Guidance Office, and the district states that transfers are not guaranteed.
Students who live outside the district, including Irvine residents, must first obtain an approved Interdistrict Attendance Agreement from their home district and then submit an online HBUHSD interdistrict application with a disciplinary record (or supporting documentation if there is none) and, for special education students, the IEP. Applications for 2026-27 opened on February 23, 2026; the district considers them based on enrollment criteria and program availability and does not guarantee placement at the requested school.
The district's interdistrict transfer page states that Huntington Beach High School is at capacity for interdistrict transfer placement for 2026-27. APA applicants choose a discipline and submit a written application, after which APA calls the family to schedule an audition or interview; the deadline for the 2027-28 school year is January 29, 2027, and APA asks families to call to confirm the current deadline. APA states that its students must enroll in one of the district's comprehensive high schools and that intradistrict and interdistrict transfers are possible as space permits.
New students must gather proof of age, two proofs of address, immunization records, unofficial transcripts and attendance and discipline records from prior schools; students arriving from outside the U.S. need TB test results from within the last two months, and incoming freshmen need proof of promotion from 8th grade. Huntington Beach High School notes that enrollment takes more than one visit.
Courses and Signature Programs at Huntington Beach High School
In the 2026-27 University of California A-G course list, Huntington Beach High School has 213 approved courses, including 27 AP courses and 38 UC-approved honors courses (courses that receive extra weight in the UC GPA). See the full A-G list.
- Huntington Beach Academy for the Performing Arts (APA)
- APA is a Huntington Beach Union High magnet program founded in 1993 and based at Huntington Beach High School, offering pre-professional arts education within a comprehensive high school. Its nine disciplines are Acting, Costume Design, Dance, Dramatic Production, MMET Media, MMET Pop, Musical Theatre, Orchestra and Technical Theatre. APA expects students to maintain a 3.0 APA GPA.
- Career Technical Education (CTE) Pathways
- According to the school's CTE pathway sheet, pathways include Marketing, Sports Medicine, Film & TV Production, Professional Music, Entertainment Production & Design, Software & Systems Development, Fashion Design, Patient Care (Emergency Medical Responder), Entrepreneurship and Sustainable Agriculture, with the film, music and stage technology pathways taught through APA courses.
- AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination)
- AVID is an elective that prepares students for four-year colleges, and the school lists it among its main programs.
- Model United Nations, Digital Journalism and Business & Design
- The school's programs page lists Model United Nations (MUN), Digital Journalism (the student outlet HB Slick), HBHS Business & Design, HBHS Art and WorkAbility.
Academic Results at Huntington Beach High School: CAASPP and Graduation
In the 2024-25 California state tests (CAASPP), 66.2% of Huntington Beach High School 11th graders met or exceeded the English language arts standard and 53.7% met or exceeded the math standard; the statewide figures for 11th graders were 57% and 30.5%. For the class of 2025, 97.3% of the 705 students in the four-year cohort graduated, and 69.5% of graduates completed the A-G courses required for UC and CSU admission.
| Huntington Beach High School | California | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade 11 ELA met or exceeded | 66.2% | 57% |
| Grade 11 math met or exceeded | 53.7% | 30.5% |
Twelve Years of UC Application Data at Huntington Beach High School: Applicants, Admit Rates and GPA
The University of California publishes applicants, admits and enrollees for every California high school. Combined 2023–2025, 433 of 665 applications from Huntington Beach High School to the UC system were admitted (65%). Categories with fewer than five students are not published by UC and appear as "—", not zero.
The ten lines are hard to tell apart where they overlap. Hover over any campus name below to highlight that campus’s trend; click to keep it highlighted, and click again to clear it.Tap any campus name below to highlight that campus’s trend; tap again to clear it.
| UC campus (fall 2025) | Applicants | Admits | Admit rate | Enrollees | Admit GPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UC Berkeley | 114 | 22 | 19% | 13 | 4.15 |
| UC Los Angeles | 152 | 15 | 10% | 10 | 4.25 |
| UC San Diego | 162 | 38 | 23% | 13 | 4.22 |
| UC Davis | 95 | 31 | 33% | 5 | 4.18 |
| UC Irvine | 153 | 44 | 29% | 16 | 4.17 |
| UC Santa Barbara | 158 | 37 | 23% | 7 | 4.23 |
| UC Merced | 48 | 48 | 100% | 3 | 3.89 |
| UC Riverside | 81 | 75 | 93% | 7 | 3.90 |
| UC Santa Cruz | 73 | 53 | 73% | 10 | 4.01 |
Student Body at Huntington Beach High School
In 2025-26, 33.8% of Huntington Beach High School students were socioeconomically disadvantaged and 2.1% were English learners.
Huntington Beach High School: Frequently Asked Questions
Can Irvine families transfer to Huntington Beach High School?
Huntington Beach High School belongs to Huntington Beach Union High School District, so a family living in Irvine is out of district: the student must first obtain an Interdistrict Attendance Agreement from the home district, such as Irvine Unified, and then submit an HBUHSD interdistrict application with a disciplinary record. The district considers applications based on enrollment criteria and program availability and does not guarantee placement at the requested school. The district's website states that Huntington Beach High School is at capacity for interdistrict transfer placement for 2026-27.
Can students from Irvine families apply to APA at Huntington Beach High School?
Huntington Beach High School's APA requires students to enroll in a Huntington Beach Union High comprehensive high school, and APA states that interdistrict transfers are possible as space permits, so Irvine students must first complete an interdistrict transfer. The district lists Huntington Beach High School as at capacity for interdistrict placement for 2026-27, so Irvine families should confirm space with the district and APA before applying. The APA deadline for 2027-28 is January 29, 2027, followed by an audition or interview.
Which disciplines does APA at Huntington Beach High School offer, a question Irvine families often ask?
Huntington Beach High School's APA offers nine disciplines: Acting, Costume Design, Dance, Dramatic Production, MMET Media, MMET Pop, Musical Theatre, Orchestra and Technical Theatre. Students major in one discipline, and current students can apply to change majors or add a minor.
What documents do Irvine families need to enroll a new student at Huntington Beach High School?
Huntington Beach High School asks new students to bring proof of age (birth certificate or passport), two proofs of address, immunization records (out-of-state students need chickenpox and Hep B verification), unofficial transcripts, attendance and discipline records, and withdrawal grades; students arriving from outside the U.S. need TB test results from within two months, and incoming freshmen need proof of 8th grade promotion. The school notes that enrollment takes more than one visit, and out-of-district students must first complete an interdistrict transfer.
Other Public High Schools in Huntington Beach
- Edison High SchoolHuntington Beach Union High School District · in-depth guide
- Marina High SchoolHuntington Beach Union High School District
- Ocean View High SchoolHuntington Beach Union High School District
Compare all public high schools in Huntington Beach → · Orange County public high schools by city →
Sources18 sources · checked 2026-11-14
Enrollment, student body, CAASPP and graduation data come from the California Department of Education. UC admissions data come from the University of California Information Center public data tables, downloaded Nov 2026.
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