Crean Lutheran High School

Overview

Crean Lutheran High School is a Lutheran high private school in Irvine, California, serving grades 9-12, founded in 2007, with about 1,195 students. Tuition for 2026-27 is $23,575, which puts it in the middle range among Orange County private schools at this level. Religion classes are required, so confirm your family is comfortable with that before applying. Average class size is about 19. The school offers 26 AP courses. Mandarin is offered, and students can continue through AP Chinese. The school accepts F-1 international students and issues the I-20 needed for a student visa.

Admissions

Entrance exam requirements are not published; contact admissions.

The school publishes the following application details. The main entry point is grade 9. From the school website’s Application Steps page: the online application opens July 1, 2026, with a nonrefundable $75 application fee; applicants must submit transcripts, attendance and discipline records and immunization records, along with one recommendation each from an English teacher and a math teacher, and the student also has a 15-minute new-student interview with the school. Documents for domestic applicants are due November 20, 2026, the first round of admission decisions goes out December 4, 2026, and further decisions follow as space allows. The required materials listed on the school website include no entrance exam, but the school website also carries no affirmative statement that no entrance exam is required; after admission and enrollment there is an optional Honors placement test, on the mornings of January 23 and February 6, 2027 (school website, Course Placement page). The international early deadline is December 1, 2026 and the regular deadline is January 31, 2027; a green card must be obtained before February 1, 2027 for a student to apply as a domestic applicant. On transportation, the school provides no bus information but maintains a rideshare directory that families can join by completing a form and returning it to the front desk (school website, FAQ).

For schools whose main entry point is grade 9, the target list should be settled before the fall of grade 8: attend open houses and shadow days in the fall, submit applications and sit the entrance test between November and January, and expect decisions in March. The summer after grade 7 is a realistic time to start ISEE or HSPT preparation.

Tuition and fees

$23,575 per year for domestic students and $40,810 per year for international students (2026-27, school website, Tuition & Fees page)

Academics and programs

• 26 AP courses and 66 Honors courses (school website, Academics page)
• World languages include Mandarin I-IV (including Honors Mandarin IV) and AP Chinese Language & Culture, plus Spanish I-IV and AP Spanish and American Sign Language (ASL); graduation requires 2 credits in the same language (school website, Course Offerings 2026-2027, Academic Handbook & Curriculum Guide)
• 28 dual-credit courses, with up to 84 college credits available; partner institutions include Concordia University Irvine and Concordia University Nebraska (school website, Academics page, Counseling page)
• Cohort programs in specialized fields, such as the Medical Cohort, with a $600 program fee (school website, Cohort Programs page, Tuition & Fees page)
• The international division was established in 2008 and issues the I-20; new international students must attend a two-week summer program before school starts as well as Friday and Saturday international student courses (school website, International Admissions page, International Student Programs page)
• The Learning Success Program provides learning support for a $2,210 annual fee; there are more than 70 student clubs; and the performing arts include choir, dance, instrumental music and theater (school website, Tuition & Fees page, FAQ page)

How this school compares

These are the nearest schools at the same level and a comparable price. Select a name to open that school’s admissions guide:

School	City	Grades	Tuition	Entrance test	Class size	Distance
Crean Lutheran High School	Irvine	9-12	$23,575	—	19	—
Ronald Reagan Secondary School	Laguna Hills	7-12	$35,000	None	—	5.4 mi
Heritage Christian School (Junior High / High School Campus)	Lake Forest	7-12	$12,215	On-campus assessment	20	5.9 mi
Mater Dei High School	Santa Ana	9-12	$21,150	HSPT	—	8.9 mi
Santa Margarita Catholic High School	Rancho Santa Margarita	9-12	$22,000	HSPT	23	9.6 mi

Where graduates go

The school website’s Academics - Counseling page publishes figures for the Class of 2025: 284 graduates, 96% of whom went on to college, with 244 entering four-year universities, 57 entering Christian universities and 53 entering the University of California system; scholarships totaled about $15 million, an average of $52,817 per student. The school has 6 full-time credentialed college counselors, a student-to-counselor ratio of 180:1. The school website does not publish admission or enrollment counts for individual universities (school website, Counseling page).

For college applications from this school, EDUBUS can begin with course selection in grade 9.

Total tuition through graduation

At the 2026-27 rate of $23,575, 4 years covering grades 9-12 come to roughly $94,300 in tuition alone. Assuming the 4% annual increase common at private schools, the figure is closer to $100,000. Neither number includes registration fees, deposits, uniforms or activity fees. A California 529 plan can cover up to $10,000 per child per year of K-12 tuition.

Getting there from Irvine

These are straight-line distances from neighborhoods where many Irvine families live. Actual drive times will be longer, and a morning rush-hour trip typically takes 1.5 to 2 times as long as an off-peak one:

Neighborhood	Straight-line distance
Woodbury	0.7 miles
Northwood	3.5 miles
Turtle Rock	6.6 miles
Portola Springs	1.9 miles

The website does not describe bus service; confirm this during your visit.

Questions to ask on a campus visit

• Whether religion classes and chapel are required, and how many families are not members of the faith
• Whether the ISEE is required above grade 5, and roughly where the score bar sits
• How many mid-year openings come up in a typical year, and how the waitlist works
• Registration, technology, uniform and activity fees beyond tuition

How EDUBUS helps

Our Irvine-based counselors work in both Chinese and English. We track Crean Lutheran High School’s admissions calendar, prepare students for the campus visit and interview, and review application materials before they are submitted. Book a school-selection consultation or read the Chinese version of this page.