Hero - Image Slideshow
Saint James Earns Top Honors in Niche's 2027 School Rankings
Saint James School has once again earned recognition among the leading independent schools in Maryland and across the country in Niche’s 2027 school rankings. Saint James was named the #1 Best Boarding High School in Maryland and the #1 Best Christian High School in Maryland, while maintaining an A+ overall Niche grade.
The 2027 rankings also place Saint James among the nation’s highly-ranked Christian and boarding schools. The School ranks #36 out of 2,232 Christian high schools in America and #61 among boarding high schools nationally. In Maryland, Saint James ranks #7 out of 125 private high schools.
“These rankings are a wonderful affirmation of the extraordinary work taking place every day at Saint James,” said the Revd. Dr. D. Stuart Dunnan, Headmaster. “Our faculty and staff are deeply committed to knowing and supporting our students, challenging them academically, and helping them grow in character, faith, confidence, and purpose. We are especially pleased to see the strength of our boarding program and our strong Episcopal identity recognized in this way.”
Best Boarding School in Maryland
Saint James earned the top spot among 13 boarding schools ranked in Maryland in Niche’s 2027 Best Boarding High Schools rankings. Nationally, the School ranked #61 among 439 schools considered for the ranking.
For 2027, Niche revised its boarding school methodology to more specifically evaluate the residential experience. In addition to college outcomes and academic measures, the methodology now considers factors including boarding concentration, residential faculty, amenities, and a school’s national and global reach.
A Nationally-Ranked Private High School
Saint James also made a significant move upward in Niche’s Best Private High Schools in America ranking, climbing 109 places nationally, from #396 in 2026 to #287 in 2027, putting Saint James in the top 6 percent of private schools across the country.
The School has maintained an A+ Niche grade every year from 2020 through 2027. Niche reports that an A+ grade in its 2027 Best Private High Schools ranking is associated with approximately the top 2.5 percent of schools scored.
Saint James also placed in the top 6 percent nationally for Best High Schools for STEM (#547 out of 8,963). The School has an MIT-certified Fab Lab with a new state-of-the-art facility currently under construction.
The rankings also recognize Saint James as the #1 Best Private High School, #1 Best Christian High School, and #1 Best Boarding High School in Washington County.
The School’s strong results reflect several measures central to the Saint James experience. In Niche’s private school evaluation, Saint James achieved 100 percent in the college enrollment factor, ranked in the 99.5th percentile nationally for school accreditation, and in the 93rd percentile for instructional spending.
“Our goal has never been to earn rankings, but we are grateful when outside organizations recognize the quality of the education and community our students experience here,” Father Dunnan said. “At Saint James, young people are challenged to discover their gifts, develop meaningful relationships with classmates and teachers, and live and learn in community together.”
Located on an 800-acre campus near Hagerstown, Maryland, Saint James School is an Episcopal, coeducational boarding and day school serving students in grades 8–12. The School combines a rigorous college-preparatory academic program with opportunities in athletics, the arts, leadership, service, and a vibrant residential community.
Niche develops its school rankings through an analysis of data from sources including the U.S. Department of Education, accrediting agencies, colleges, schools, and ratings and reviews collected from Niche users. For its 2027 Best Private High Schools ranking, Niche considered factors including four-year college enrollment, college outcomes, culture and diversity, student and parent satisfaction, student-teacher ratio, accreditation, endowment, instructional spending, and tuition value.
More information about Saint James’ 2027 Niche rankings is available on the School’s Niche profile.
