Are There Many AP Courses in High School? How Do Graduates Do With UC and Top Colleges?

Both Carmel Valley high schools offer many AP courses, and graduates do very well with UC and top colleges, but the exact numbers depend on which year and which source you ask, because AP course counts differ across sources. Torrey Pines and Canyon Crest Academy each offer more than twenty AP courses, covering English, math, science, social studies, world languages, arts, and career technical subjects. If your child wants to take advanced courses, both schools are enough, and there is no need to worry about which school offers a few more.

What is really worth looking at is what graduates actually achieve. In 2025 UC admissions, Canyon Crest Academy's results were strong: 444 applications, 374 admitted, an 84.2 percent admission rate. Of those, 81 were admitted to UCSD, 152 to UCSB, 122 to UC Davis, 29 to Berkeley, and 44 to UCLA. Torrey Pines had 334 applications, 236 admitted, a 70.7 percent admission rate, with 40 admitted to UCSD, 75 to UCSB, 58 to UC Davis, 29 to Berkeley, and 21 to UCLA.

There are a few things to keep in mind when reading these numbers. First, Canyon Crest Academy had more applicants and more admissions, but that relates to the two schools' student counts and application strategies, and does not mean one school is stronger. Second, UCSD is where students from both schools concentrate most, which makes sense because UCSD is nearby and children can attend college close to home. Third, at the most competitive campuses, Berkeley and UCLA, the two schools' admission numbers are about the same, which shows their top students are at the same level.

Beyond UC, both schools have students going to other top colleges. Torrey Pines swimmers have been admitted to Princeton and MIT, and a math competition student won first place in the American and International Mathematical Olympiads and was later admitted to MIT. Canyon Crest Academy students have won more PSAT national awards than Torrey Pines, even though CCA has far fewer students overall. These examples show both schools have the ability to send children to top universities.

For parents, the answers to whether there are enough AP courses and whether college admissions are good are both yes, and neither school is a concern. The better question is whether your child can find subjects and clubs they like over four years of high school, and stay healthy in mind and body under academic pressure. Admission numbers are the result; whether your child is happy going to school every day is the process, and the process often decides how far your child goes more than the result does.