Top Rankings
Desert Sands Unified School District ranks among the top 20% of public school district in California for:
Category
Attribute
Graduation Rate
Highest graduation rate (Top 10%)
Community Size
Largest student body (number of students) (Top 1%)
For the 2026 school year, there are 8 public high schools serving 8,858 students in Desert Sands Unified School District. This district's average high testing ranking is 4/10, which is in the bottom 50% of public high schools in California.
Public High Schools in Desert Sands Unified School District have an average math proficiency score of 18% (versus the California public high school average of 28%), and reading proficiency score of 42% (versus the 51% statewide average).
Public High School in Desert Sands Unified School District have a Graduation Rate of 94%, which is more than the California average of 86%.
The school with highest graduation rate is Palm Desert High School, with 96% graduation rate. Read more about public school graduation rate statistics in California or national school graduation rate statistics.
Minority enrollment is 84% of the student body (majority Hispanic), which is more than the California public high school average of 79% (majority Hispanic).
Overview
This School District
This State (CA)
# Schools
35 Schools
2,801 Schools
# Students
25,613 Students
2,122,788 Students
# Teachers
1,083 Teachers
101,054 Teachers
Student-Teacher Ratio
24:1
24:1
Student By Grade
District Rank
Desert Sands Unified School District, which is ranked #1080 of all 1,904 school districts in California (based off of combined math and reading proficiency testing data) for the 2022-2023 school year.
The school district's graduation rate of 94% has increased from 90% over five school years.
Overall District Rank
#1043 out of 1932 school districts
(Bottom 50%)
(Bottom 50%)
Math Test Scores (% Proficient)
26%
34%
Reading/Language Arts Test Scores (% Proficient)
40%
47%
Science Test Scores (% Proficient)
24%
29%
Graduation Rate
94%
87%
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