Northwest Pennsylvania Collegiate Academy is an urban college-preparatory magnet school with a 97% four-year college acceptance rate.

Over 500 eighth graders apply for approximately 225 freshman openings. Admission requirements include a minimum grade point average of 3.0, national standardized test scores at the 75th percentile or above, and two teacher recommendations. The total student body takes approximately 1,000 Advanced Placement and/or college courses. The majority of the fifty-five member teaching staff hold master's degrees, and all are committed to student-centered learning.

Newsweek's annual report of top American high schools ranked Northwest Pennsylvania Collegiate Academy second in Pennsylvania and in the top 20 percent nationally. Collegiate Academy graduates have an average SAT combined math and critical reading score of over 1100 and a writing score more than 60 points higher than the national average. The class of 2007 received $15.5 million in college scholarship offers.