In many threads I see reference to high schools as “great” or “competitive” etc.
What defines that? Ranking nationally? State wide?
Where would you put thresholds for good/great/top high schools?
It’s usually based on metrics such as average SAT/ACT, #s of students attending top schools, #of NMSF etc. There’s no definite ranking system that is trustworthy, more just word of mouth/high school published stats. Keep in mind that a large part is due to the students themselves, though having great teachers definitely helps.
Also, what is a good school for the student does depend somewhat on the student’s interests and goals.
Many parents and students think their schools are competitive as they are looking in their nearby areas and their school might be the best. Colleges are going to be looking at candidates from across the US and the world. So, that is going to vary. It’s the same with “top colleges” what some have mentioned as “top schools” I would not consider to be even really good schools. It’s in the eyes of the beholder.
The only way to be consistent is to look at ranking systems which include all schools and check on these databases. Some are better than others. But at least they will be ranking thousands of schools instead of 100,
“Competitive high school” is usually defined as whatever high school the applicant or CC poster happens to attend.