25 Best-in-Class Colleges

Every fall, a familiar set of college rankings tell the same tired story. The wealthiest, most exclusive schools dominate the top. That leaves the vast majority of prospective students—whose SAT scores and family income aren’t in the upper 1 percent—to navigate one of the most consequential decisions of their lives armed with a deeply skewed picture of what “best” really means. And it leaves average citizens, whose taxes underwrite the higher education system to the tune of hundreds of billions of dollars a year, wondering if the country is getting its money’s worth. The Washington Monthly College Guide and Rankings exist to offer a better answer.

This year, for the first time, we’ve combined all four-year colleges and universities—public and private, big and small, research and teaching—into a single master list of more than 1,400 institutions, America’s Best Colleges for Your Tuition (and Tax) Dollars. And we’ve revamped our methodology to focus even more squarely on what we think Americans most want from our colleges and universities: that they help students of modest means earn degrees that pay off in the marketplace, don’t saddle them with heavy debt, and prepare—indeed, encourage—them to become active members of our democracy. To allow for apples-to-apples comparisons, we’ve separated out research performance into a new companion ranking, America’s Best Colleges for Research, which recognizes the contributions of the subset of institutions that invest the most in the scholarship and scholars that drive scientific discovery and economic growth. (For more detail on our methodology, see here.)

Berea College

This tiny college in Appalachian Kentucky has been a top contender in the Washington Monthly’s rankings for the past decade, and this year once again proves that this was no accident.

Why? There’s simply no school that does as well by non-wealthy students as Berea College. Ninety-six percent of students—an incredibly high proportion—qualify for Pell Grants, federal financial assistance that is given to qualifying low- and middle-income students. Those students pay just $3,395 a year, factoring in aid. And they outperform expectations in every major way: graduation rate, debt, and earnings. That’s why we’re proud this year to rank Berea the number one school in America. 

Founded in 1855 by abolitionists who were the first to admit Black students in a southern state, Berea now operates as a federally recognized “work college.” Students spend at least 10 hours a week at on-campus jobs that keep the school running and its costs low. They start off in character-building jobs like food preparation and janitorial work and are given more choice in roles after their first year. Students might file paperwork, assist professors, conduct research, or herd cattle on the college farm. In return, they pay zero tuition and cover most other expenses—including room and board—with their $34-an-hour work scholarships, plus additional outside funding.

Those low costs add up to a rosy financial future for Berea’s graduates, who leave with the second-lowest debt of any school in the country (an average of $4,041) and earn $5,000 a year more, on average, than people of a similar background nine years after enrolling. Berea’s no-tuition, low-debt model is helping to close desperate worker shortages in fields such as nursing, where in Kentucky 3,900 positions went unfilled in 2023—proving that, in serving its students so well, Berea is serving everybody.

Berea is a selective school; its acceptance rate last year was 33 percent. But unlike other selective institutions, Berea is laser focused on opening its doors to the people who will benefit the most: low-income students from Appalachia, who make up more than 70 percent of the population. Not every school can copy Berea’s work study model, either. (Though plenty can, and should follow in its footsteps. Another federally recognized work college, the historically Black institution Paul Quinn, has risen significantly in our rankings through its efforts to “poverty-proof” its experience through low prices and hands-on career preparation.) But if other schools carefully tailor their offerings to benefit the most vulnerable, as Berea has done, they can make similar strides.

And if you’re a college seeker, particularly one in Appalachia, there’s no better leg up than this little school in the foothills.

California State University, Fresno

California State University, Fresno, shows how a public institution can deliver extraordinary value—without prestige branding, sky-high tuition, or exclusionary admission.

Located in Fresno County—an agricultural power-house with stubbornly high poverty in the heart of California’s Central Valley—Fresno State does the hard work of upward mobility. Our rankings use the number of federal Pell Grant recipients a school enrolls as a proxy for how accessible it is to students from median-income-and-below families. And Fresno enrolls 12,600 of them. The average net price for students from median-income families is just $5,171, and average student debt is $14,715, well below the national average. 

Fresno State’s outcomes land it in the top 25 percent of schools we rank, which is amazing given the economic challenges its students face. And its commitment to civic engagement is exceptional: More than 40 percent of federal work study funds go to community service, and 17 percent of students graduate with service-oriented degrees like teaching and social work.

Founded in 1911 as a teacher-training school, Fresno State joined the CSU system in the 1960s after moving to its current campus on the city’s northeast edge in 1956. Today it serves around 24,000 students, most of whom come from the surrounding region. It is also classified as an R2 research university, awarding 20 research and scholarship doctoral degrees a year.

But what makes Fresno State—and the CSU system more broadly—remarkable is not research output or selectivity. It’s regional commitment. Fresno doesn’t view education as a ticket out. It sees it as a way to root students more deeply in the place they call home.

President Saúl Jiménez-Sandoval grew up working on a farm in nearby Fowler. Many of his students have similar stories—raised in farmworker families, spending summers picking crops or helping to run small businesses. Today, they study agricultural science, business, and engineering, not to escape the Central Valley but to reinvest in it. Some go on to run the very firms whose products they once harvested.

That spirit infuses the institution. Fresno State runs the first and largest commercial winery in the country operated by students. Its research centers support the valley’s multibillion-dollar farm economy, testing everything from herbicide resistance to sustainable irrigation practices. And its library—one of the largest in the CSU system—underscores the school’s intellectual seriousness, even as the campus retains a proudly working-class ethos.

As a Hispanic-serving institution in one of the most heavily Latino regions in the country, Fresno State plays a critical role in expanding opportunity. (See “America’s Best Hispanic-Serving Colleges.”) Nearly 65 percent of students are the first in their family to attend college. Many stay close after graduating. 

Fresno State is one pillar of a CSU system (along with third-ranked CSU Northridge, fourth-ranked CSU Los Angeles, sixth-ranked CSU Sacramento, and many others) that dominates the upper reaches of our rankings. And that’s no surprise, because the CSU system excels at what higher education is supposed to do: make the American Dream more real, more local, and more attainable.

Princeton University

For all the justified derision directed at elite universities, Princeton remains the exception that proves the rule: Yes, a school can be highly selective (roughly 4 percent acceptance rate) and lavishly endowed (upward of $34 billion) and still serve the public interest. It ranks fifth overall in our rankings not because of its wealth or pedigree, but because it chooses to deploy both in the service of access, affordability, and real outcomes.

Low-to-moderate-income students at Princeton pay just $5,000 a year, on average. The university has eliminated loans from its financial aid packages, and its graduates carry some of the lowest debt levels in the country. It’s not that Princeton enrolls huge numbers of low-income students—about 1,000 receive Pell Grants, which is average for an Ivy League school—it’s that it serves those students particularly well. 

The school is also, of course, one of the most prestigious bastions of research in the country. On our Best Colleges for Research ranking, Princeton ranks fifth in the share of its faculty elected to the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

But what’s interesting is that Princeton has shown a rare willingness to use its institutional heft for something other than self-preservation. In April, when the Trump administration moved, without any clear demands, to restrict millions in federal research grants to the school using a thin pretext of anti-Semitism, the school’s president went on the offensive, giving a flurry of interviews to the national media. In an interview with Bloomberg a day after the cuts were announced, Princeton president Christopher Eisgruber made clear that Princeton would not offer concessions or policy changes to regain access to the grants, and he encouraged other schools to follow his lead in exercising their legal rights instead of cowering. “We have to be willing to stand up for [academic freedom],” he said. “In principle, we have to be willing to speak up … we have to be willing to say no to funding if it’s going to constrain our ability to pursue the truth.” To that end, the university floated a $320 million taxable bond to keep its research enterprise afloat. And in May, the school launched “Stand Up,” a communications initiative aimed at informing alumni and the public about threats to academic freedom and federal research funding. In doing so, Princeton behaved less like a cloistered institution of privilege and more like a public-serving institution—one willing to use its influence to protect academic freedom and democratic norms. For that it deserves our praise.

University of Texas Rio Grande Valley

In 2013, the Texas legislature voted to combine two regional campuses into a single new university: the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. The goal was to create a flagship-caliber institution for the state’s poorest region, one that could finally match the valley’s demographic gravity with educational power. In the decade since, UTRGV has done just that.

Today, UTRGV enrolls around 34,000 students across multiple campuses in Edinburg, Brownsville, Harlingen, and beyond. Roughly 93 percent of undergraduates are Hispanic, and more than 66 percent are the first in their family to attend college. Just under 17,000 receive Pell Grants. The university offers a tuition guarantee for families earning under $125,000 and keeps net price below $5,600 for median-income students. Average debt is among the lowest in Texas.

A testament to its success in such a short time, UTRGV will kick off its Division I football program this fall.

But the school’s impact goes far beyond access or athletics. Twenty-two percent of graduates have service-oriented majors, and UTRGV is the largest producer of bilingual educators in Texas. It has invested heavily in regionally focused research; its South Texas Diabetes and Obesity Institute and newly funded Harlingen Diabetes Center of Excellence target local health disparities. In 2016, UTRGV opened the valley’s first public medical school, expanding access to care in one of the state’s most underserved areas. In 2022, UTRGV opened the state’s only school of podiatric medicine and will launch a physical therapy program this fall. It is also in the process of developing the state’s second public optometry school, which will open in 2027, pending accreditation. 

There’s nothing generic about this institution. Its programs reflect the needs of the borderlands. And its students, overwhelmingly local, are reshaping what public higher education can look like when built with—and for—a community. UTRGV is redefining what a regional public university can do.

The University of Central Florida

The University of Central Florida was born with a countdown clock. In 1963, as rockets roared off the pads at Cape Canaveral, Florida lawmakers founded a university just 35 miles west to train the engineers, programmers, and technicians who would help America win the space race. It was called Florida Technological University, and its mission was explicit: to be the academic launchpad for the Apollo era.

Today, the renamed University of Central Florida still carries the same DNA. Its main campus in Orlando sits on a 1,400-acre footprint shaped like a circular NASA launch complex—complete with a central “launchpad” plaza at its heart. The university is one of the largest in the country by enrollment, with nearly 70,000 students, and one of the most technologically focused. It is a national leader in optics, lasers, aerospace, and simulation, all fed by deep partnerships with NASA, Space Force, and behemoth defense contractors like Lockheed Martin.

But UCF isn’t just a pipeline to Cape Canaveral. It’s also a national engine of upward mobility. The university ranks 17th overall in the Monthly’s list thanks to strong scores on access and affordability. It enrolls more than 20,000 recipients of Pell Grants, and its average net price for students from median-income families is just $7,510. These students carry an average debt load of $18,525, which is below the national average.

UCF’s student body reflects the future of American higher ed: racially and economically diverse, many the first in their family to go to college, and overwhelmingly from Florida. Rather than try to emulate elite flagships, UCF has embraced its size and mission, developing one of the most sophisticated student success infrastructures in the country. It uses predictive analytics to identify at-risk students, offers them extensive peer mentoring, and, like the rest of the Florida school system (see Christopher M. Mullin, “Florida’s Fresh-Squeezed Colleges”), it has streamlined its course offerings to help students graduate on time. 

The results show. UCF graduates earn solid middle-class salaries. Many stay local, fueling Central Florida’s booming aerospace, health care, and tourism sectors.

Civic engagement is part of the mix. About 18 percent of UCF students pursue service-oriented majors like education and social work, though that figure doesn’t even capture alumni employed by NASA, who are no doubt serving their country too. And the university holds the Carnegie Community Engagement designation—a national recognition for colleges that build strong partnerships with local communities through service, research, and education. The school’s growing downtown campus, located steps from Orlando’s city hall, was designed as a public-private partnership—with space for nonprofits, clinics, and local job-training programs integrated alongside classrooms.

The school’s research profile is also on the rise. UCF now spends more than $200 million annually on research (boosting it to number 98 on the Monthly’s Best Colleges for Research list), with particular strengths in photonics, simulation, and biomedical engineering. It comes in at number 58 in science and engineering PhDs awarded, and number 104 in faculty accolades. UCF is a young university, but one that’s punching well above its weight.

Williams College

One of the nation’s most prestigious liberal arts colleges, this school tucked in the Berkshires also makes the top of the Monthly’s social mobility–focused list thanks to the unmatched outcomes it offers its students.

The average Williams student pays just $1,027 a year, after financial aid. That’s the third-cheapest education in the country. Once they make it through Williams’s rigorous academic programs, students graduate with low debt and go on to earn PhDs at the highest rate of any American university. (Williams graduates slightly underperform in their early-career earnings, but that’s likely because so many are pursuing advanced degrees.)

Williams has a small population—2,150 students—and a 232-year history. That has created some strong traditions. Each January, students stay on for “Winter Study,” a monthlong break period where they take only one class, often a study abroad taught by alumni. Its academics are modeled on the close, personal tutoring of Oxford and Cambridge. The Ephs—the nickname for Williams students—have need of all that tradition. The closest city of any size is Albany, an hour away.

When it comes to access, Williams has some room for improvement. The college only admits a small number of students on federal Pell Grants, which means it ranks 759th in terms of how easily non-wealthy students can gain admission. The overall acceptance rate is only 10 percent. Once they’re there, however, those students do well. They make it through college at a higher rate than others with their income level and test scores.

For those who get in the door, the quality of a Williams education can’t be questioned.

Brigham Young University

Brigham Young University is, in many ways, one of the most distinctive institutions in American higher education. Owned and operated by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, it is at once a faith-based university, a national academic performer, and a deeply affordable option for low- and middle-income students. It operates on a different model—and, to a large extent, a different set of values—than most of its peers.

The numbers are hard to argue with. More than 10,000 undergraduates receive Pell Grants (roughly one in three students). Tuition is just over $5,000 for members of the LDS Church (double that for non-LDS students, very few of whom attend), and the university discourages debt both culturally and structurally. Because BYU is owned and operated by the LDS Church and is considered a religious institution, the First Amendment’s establishment and free exercise clauses protect its ability to favor members of its sponsoring church in tuition and other policies. Students graduate with an average loan burden of just $11,523, compared to the national average of $26,000, and more than half borrow nothing at all. BYU’s graduation rate is well over the average, and its alumni earnings are strong across sectors, from business and law to STEM and government service.

Brigham Young University boasts a strict honor code that governs everything from dress to dating to doctrinal belief. Further, it is a place where academic rigor exists alongside religious instruction, where student life is shaped as much by ecclesiastical authority as by campus governance. The university has been a focal point in national debates over LGBTQ rights in religious education, particularly since its Title IX exemptions—which allow the university to ban same-sex intimacy on campus—drew scrutiny from civil rights groups and the Department of Education under President Joe Biden.

Still, for tens of thousands of students from the LDS Church, BYU offers an elite-caliber education aligned with spiritual mission. It sends graduates into federal clerkships and the CIA, but also into missionary work and church leadership. It is at once inward facing and professionally ambitious.

While many universities drift toward ideological sameness, BYU remains deliberately apart. Whether you see it as a beacon or a bubble may depend on what you think a university is for—but there’s no denying BYU’s power as a vehicle of upward mobility within its community.

Pomona College

At first glance, Pomona College looks like the quintessential liberal arts powerhouse: a leafy, elite enclave nestled in beautiful Southern California, part of the prestigious Claremont Colleges consortium. But what sets Pomona apart isn’t just its small class sizes, generous endowment, or 7 percent acceptance rate. It’s that this elite school actually delivers on affordability—and, to a lesser degree, equity.

Start with the numbers. Pomona ranks third in affordability among all liberal arts colleges in the Washington Monthly rankings. Median-income students who attend pay a net price of just $4,828 per year—lower than most public universities. And when they graduate, they carry some of the lightest debt burdens in the country: just $11,257 on average, which ranks fourth best among peer institutions. That combination of low price and low debt is a powerful engine of mobility, especially for the subset of students who come from disadvantaged backgrounds.

That subset, however, is smaller than it could be. Pomona enrolls around 318 recipients of Pell Grants—not a trivial number, but modest for a school of its size and resources. Thus Pomona ranks 640th overall in access, not because it fails to support low-income students, but because it admits a small, carefully curated student body. For the students who attend, the resources are extraordinary. Students at the school enjoy the opportunity to explore classes (and a social life) at the four other Claremont Colleges—Harvey Mudd (ranked number 91), Claremont McKenna (55), Pitzer (228), and Scripps (363). And few have ever complained about the Southern California climate.

Among elite liberal arts colleges, Pomona is a leader on affordability—and a quiet rebuttal to the idea that small, private institutions can’t contribute to economic mobility. Its impact may be measured in depth, not breadth—but for the students who make it in, the opportunity is real. 

Arizona State University

Arizona State University calls itself the “New American University.” That kind of branding might sound like marketing hype—but in this case, it reflects something real. ASU is one of the largest and most ambitious public universities in the country, serving more than 183,000 students across its online and in-person programs. It ranks 32nd overall in the Monthly’s rankings and an impressive 14th in access, largely due to its scale and dedication to serving low- and middle-income students.

Just under 80,000 students are enrolled in ASU’s “campus immersion” programs in Tempe, downtown Phoenix, Mesa, and elsewhere. Among them, 42 percent are the first in their families to attend college, and 31 percent receive Pell Grants. The school admits almost all students who meet basic requirements and maintains a relatively low net price of $10,638. Median student debt at graduation—$19,926—is well below the national average of 26,400.

Founded in 1885, ASU has grown into the opposite of an ivory tower. It has a sprawling physical presence, a diverse student body, and a research engine that ranks 26th in the nation in producing STEM PhDs.

ASU’s relatively low outcomes ranking—934th out of roughly 1,400 colleges—reflects more of a data quirk than a performance failure. Graduation rates are reported separately by campus, and ASU’s main Tempe campus graduates 67 percent of its students—well above the national average. But the federal earnings data used in our rankings combines all ASU graduates, including those from its enormous online program, which has a lower graduation rate (44 percent) and serves a different, sometimes less prepared, population. That’s the paradox of scale: ASU opens its doors wider than almost any flagship university in the country, but serving tens of thousands of students from diverse academic and economic backgrounds makes consistency harder to deliver.

The university also does well on public service, putting a significant share of federal work study dollars into community-based jobs. Nearly 13 percent of graduates go into fields like teaching, social work, or nonprofit leadership. ASU also receives national recognition for its civic engagement efforts—partnering with local schools, clinics, and public agencies throughout the Phoenix area.

The campus culture reflects ASU’s dual personality: part research university, part civic engine. In Tempe, the desert sun bakes a skyline of gleaming new academic buildings, corporate partnerships, and start-up incubators. But scattered throughout the metro area are clinics, K–12 collaborations, and outreach programs that still reflect the school’s public mission.

Like many large state institutions, ASU may lack the hands-on feel of a small liberal arts college. For many students, though, it is exactly what they need it to be: affordable, flexible, career focused, and rich in opportunity. Few schools can say the same at ASU’s scale. And as a model for what large public universities might become—open-access, innovation driven, and public spirited—it remains one of the most important institutions in American higher education.

Johns Hopkins University

Johns Hopkins has the vibe of an Ivy but the engine of a federal agency. Tucked into Baltimore’s Charles Village, the campus blends redbrick quads and Georgian buildings with modern glass-and-steel labs. Students juggle biomedical engineering problem sets and cello recitals, while across town, faculty members lead pandemic response teams or run trials on Alzheimer’s disease treatments.

This is America’s original research university—the prototype. Founded in 1876 with a German-style focus on graduate training and original scholarship, Hopkins pioneered the very idea that universities should produce new knowledge. Today, it still spends more on research than any other college in the country: more than $3.6 billion a year, much of it in biomedical science and public health. Its School of Medicine and Bloomberg School of Public Health are among the world’s best.

More surprising: It’s relatively affordable. With an average net price of just $2,708 for median-income students, Hopkins ranks 17th in affordability—cheaper than many state schools, thanks to aggressive financial aid for those who make it through the admission gauntlet. Access is a mixed story. Just over 1,100 Pell Grant recipients are enrolled—not a standout figure, but far from the worst among elite private institutions. 

Hopkins ranks fifth in research in our 2025 rankings and 22nd in producing science and engineering PhDs. Its faculty are among the most awarded in the country, and its labs remain critical to national health and security. Given all of this, it is hard to fathom why the Trump administration has singled the school out so callously. Earlier this year, the U.S. government abruptly cut more than $800 million in global health funding to Hopkins, gutting dozens of programs linked to USAID. (For more on the cuts, see “America’s Best Colleges for Research.”)

Still, Hopkins will endure. What it lacks in warm-and-fuzzy liberal arts feel, it makes up for in seriousness of purpose. Its undergrads are known for their intensity—biophysics majors double-major in classics, engineers launch nonprofits in their spare time, and pre-meds volunteer in Baltimore clinics before sunrise. The Homewood campus might not have the rah-rah spirit of a Big Ten school, but it crackles with natural ambition that political attacks can’t tame. 

Florida Atlantic University

With its main campus in Boca Raton and satellites in various other South Florida beach towns, Florida Atlantic University might sound like the kind of institution that caters to dissolute out-of-state rich kids. Instead, its student body mirrors the striving, diverse, predominantly working-to-middle-class demographics of surrounding Palm Beach, Broward, and Miami-Dade Counties. At number 39 on the Washington Monthly’s rankings, FAU places higher than elite private schools elsewhere in the South like Rice, Vanderbilt, and Emory. That’s because the Monthly rewards colleges for enrolling students from modest backgrounds, keeping costs low, and producing strong outcomes. FAU does all three, making it one of the greatest success stories in American higher education.

Students from median-income families pay just $5,624 to attend Florida Atlantic. That’s lower than what many community colleges in other states charge after financial aid. FAU’s admission policy is also nearly as open as a community college, with an acceptance rate north of 70 percent—a far cry from the 24 percent acceptance rate of the state’s flagship, the University of Florida. And nearly 9,000 of FAU’s 31,000 students receive Pell Grants. 

Open-access schools like this tend to have low graduation rates and post-college student earnings. By contrast, Florida Atlantic ranks in the top 20 percent nationally for student outcomes. Graduates finish their degrees at above-average rates and earn solid wages in fields like business development, marketing, engineering, and information technology. Nearly one in five graduates earns a degree in a service-oriented field—education, nursing, social work, or public health. These are the professionals who keep South Florida’s schools, clinics, and communities running. FAU has also earned R1 research status—the highest classification a research university can receive—and built standout programs in fields like ocean engineering, neuroscience, and health sciences.

FAU’s campus was built in the early 1960s on the site of the Boca Raton Army Airfield, a World War II–era military installation used to train radar operators and patrol the Atlantic coast. (The airfield itself had been created on land seized during the war—5,800 acres taken through eminent domain from Japanese American farmers who had settled in the area as part of the early-20th-century Yamato Colony.) Today, remnants of the base—such as old runways—still mark the Boca campus, a quiet reminder of the fraught and layered history behind Florida’s postwar boom.

In 2023, the men’s basketball team grabbed national headlines with a Cinderella run to the Final Four. But the real story is what’s happened off the court: Florida Atlantic University has quietly become one of the country’s most effective engines of upward mobility.

University of Illinois Chicago

Schools that combine accessibility, affordability, and strong outcomes and that serve large numbers of students are hard to come by, especially in the Midwest. The University of Illinois Chicago is one of the rare exceptions.

UIC’s undergraduate program began as a makeshift operation for returning World War II veterans who traveled by streetcar to exhibition halls at Navy Pier. It moved to its present home on the city’s Near West Side in the early 1960s as part of a controversial urban renewal project spearheaded by Chicago’s then Mayor Richard J. Daley. It is located just southwest of what used to be called the Circle Interchange, where the city’s three major expressways connect. Chicagoans of a certain age still refer to it as Circle Campus, and while the wall of interstates can make it feel isolated, the university is now at the outer edge of some of the city’s hippest and fastest-growing neighborhoods.

UIC has also become a full-fledged research university with more than 30,000 students, most hailing from Illinois and nearly 40 percent from Chicago public schools. A large majority identify as Black, Hispanic, Asian, or multiracial, and more than 10,000 receive Pell Grants. That’s 22 percent more than other universities with similar demographics, a testament to UIC’s commitment to serve non-wealthy students.

UIC accepts nearly 80 percent of applicants, and while its graduation rate (70 percent over eight years) keeps its outcomes in the middle of the pack, students still earn an average of $57,439 a decade after enrolling—a better return than many public flagships and private institutions that serve far more privileged student bodies.

Just as important: It’s affordable. After financial aid, the average student pays less than $10,000 a year—a rare number for any major research university, especially one located in a large metro area. Starting in fall 2025, UIC is also offering free tuition to any student who is a citizen and an Illinois resident from a family earning less than $75,000.

It also happens to be one of the most quietly productive research institutions in the country. The university spends $360 million a year on research (55th in the nation in research expenditures) and ranks 51st in science and engineering PhDs awarded. That level of research output, combined with broad access and real affordability, is increasingly rare in American higher education.

In our rankings, UIC comes in at number 40 overall, ahead of many bigger-name schools—not because it’s the wealthiest or most selective, but because it does what public universities were built to do: make high-quality education available to a broad group of students, at a price they can afford, with a real chance of success.  

University of California Berkeley

Berkeley has long been the crown jewel of public higher education. From the adoption of the California Master Plan for Higher Education in 1960, Berkeley has embodied its boldest ideal: that a child from any background, given the right education, could rise as high as their talent would take them. And remarkably, in an era when many public flagships have drifted toward exclusivity and prestige-chasing, Berkeley still walks the line between excellence and access. The school educates a large number of non-wealthy students at a relatively low cost, and does it well.

More than 8,600 Berkeley undergraduates receive Pell Grants. Its access rank of 51 is impressive for such a prestigious institution. Students from median-income backgrounds pay an average net price of just under $10,000—a relative bargain given the school’s stellar reputation—and graduate with one of the lowest debt loads in the country (about $13,300 on average).

Still, the numbers only partially capture the story. Outcomes, as measured by our data, are in the top 20 percent: The school ranks 240th. That number would be even higher if so many graduates didn’t go on to get advanced degrees. Berkeley is third in the country at producing STEM PhDs, and seventh overall on our research rankings.

Its service ranking—number 628—is a weak spot. Berkeley does not hold the Carnegie Community Engagement Classification, and only a modest share of federal work study funding goes toward public service. For a campus that birthed the free speech movement, the institutional support for civic engagement is surprisingly thin. Much of the activism and community work comes from students themselves, not the university’s infrastructure.

And yet, Berkeley remains an engine of upward mobility and intellectual firepower. It sends more undergraduates on to doctoral programs than nearly any other institution. Its faculty includes Nobel laureates, MacArthur Fellows, and field-defining scholars. (The school ranks sixth on our faculty accolades measure.) Its alumni power the state’s economy, government, and cultural institutions. And its student body—diverse, sharp edged, politically engaged—reflects California at its most ambitious and unsettled.

Boricua College

Just a few blocks north from Columbia in Upper Manhattan, this tiny college for adult continuing education is posting impressive results. Boricua was founded in 1974 by a group of community organizers and educators to serve the Puerto Rican community. (You might know the area around its main campus, Washington Heights, from Lin-Manuel Miranda’s musical In the Heights.) For most of the students who attend Boricua, success is not guaranteed by wealth or privilege—which is why the school brags about helping them to “Earn It.”

Boricua is an institution built to offer non-wealthy people that pathway to success. A high proportion of students are on Pell Grants, and many are also adults. (The school accepts almost everyone who applies.) They graduate at a much higher rate than average for their background, making Boricua the fourth-best school in America at getting diplomas to those who otherwise wouldn’t earn them. Unlike their peers in Morningside Heights, Boricua grads don’t jump straight into lucrative careers in consulting and finance—and their post-college incomes reflect that, at an average $31,768. But these graduates are more often going on to serve their communities by working as teachers, daycare providers, and activists. And with the fourth-lowest post-college debt in the country, they have room to maneuver, too.

With its unusual mission comes a unique teaching style. Boricua uses a holistic system that focuses on “critical thinking” and professional training in a variety of classroom settings from small, 8-to-10-person “colloquia” to cultural studies classes to hands-on experiential workshops. Recognizing the needs of its community, the college provides a laptop and printer to every new student.

Boricua’s model has quietly gathered respect over the years, leading it to expand to locations in Manhattan, Brooklyn, and the Bronx. (Though Washington Heights hosts the current main campus, the original site is in Williamsburg.) All the while, it has honored the culture of Puerto Rico and other Hispanic ethnicities, hosting art exhibitions and taking part in the city’s famous annual Puerto Rican Day Parade. All of this adds up to a school devoted to its community. Whether by lifting up its people, celebrating its culture, or building its institutions, Boricua exemplifies the values of the Monthly’s college rankings. 

Northeastern State University

Tahlequah is the capital of the Cherokee Nation, which after removal from its homeland in the 1830s founded a women’s seminary there to help rebuild its uprooted institutions. In 1909, the state bought the buildings and grounds to create Northeastern State, which to this day honors this legacy. More than a quarter of NSU’s 8,000 students identify as Native American, and a similar proportion are on Pell Grants.

Ninety-nine percent of applicants are accepted. Students pay low prices and leave with little debt—in both cases, better than 90 percent of American schools. Their incomes exceed expectations, too. Where Northeastern State really stands out, however, is in graduation rates, which are 15 percent higher than expected based on college preparation and economic background. That makes the university America’s 19th best at helping students to cross the commencement stage. 

While its social mobility stats are impressive, Northeastern State’s record in service is even better. A whopping 40 percent of federal work study funds are spent on community service jobs, which means that the university is extremely conscientious about ensuring that its students give back to the community. Respectable numbers of students serve their country through ROTC, and fully a third pursue a service-oriented major like teaching or social work.

NSU has three campuses. At the main Tahlequah location, students can row or charter a float on the Illinois River. There’s hiking nearby, as well as the Center for Tribal Studies, which celebrates Cherokee heritage and offers internships and fellowships for students interested in contributing to the community. Every year, the Tahlequah and Broken Arrow campuses participate in the “Big Event”—a massive day of service that involves “painting houses, raking, weeding, cleaning, washing windows, working school carnivals and much more.” The Muskogee campus advertises access to more tribal museums and culture, golf courses, and a festival venue that doubles as a fireworks emporium known as the “Castle of Muskogee.”

Serving its community is NSU’s specialty, and although that doesn’t garner the prestige of some richer schools, we think it’s exemplary.

Metropolitan State University

As part of its 50th anniversary in 2021, Metropolitan State University rebranded … sort of. Aside from shortening its name to “Metro State,” the school mostly reaffirmed its roots as a public university for older, nontraditional students that provides a “barrier-breaking higher education.”

Located in Saint Paul, Minnesota, and not to be confused with the similarly named Metropolitan State University of Denver, Metro State serves just over 8,000 students. Its acceptance rate is 96 percent, and about a third of the students are on Pell Grants. Illustrating Metro State’s commitment to serving underprivileged populations, those students graduate at about the same rate as the overall student body, which is far ahead of what’s statistically expected for their background. They pay middle-of-the-road prices—$17,614 annually, counting aid—and as early-career graduates, they earn a whopping $10,000 more than people with a similar education level.

The higher salaries likely reflect the school’s older population, who are often further along in their careers, as well as Metro State’s classification as a “professions focused” school. Roughly half of students attend part-time. But the numbers also reflect the incomes in their most common chosen majors—like technology, computer science, nursing, and business administration. In 2023, Metro State won a $1.45 million grant from the National Security Agency to create a cybersecurity clinic to help small businesses, K–12 schools, nonprofits, and governmental bodies to protect themselves from cyberattacks. 

Metro State also performs admirably in our service metrics, with respectable numbers of students entering national programs like AmeriCorps and majoring in fields like teaching and social work. On campus, the university culture isn’t particularly close-knit, nor is it much for quirky traditions. Students often have lives elsewhere. To reflect that, classes are small, with flexible schedules. Metro State is close to the center of St. Paul, which means that all the wonders of the Twin Cities are within easy reach.

One of the school’s former presidents is Reatha Clark King, a retired research chemist who was one of the “hidden figures” in America’s 1969 lunar landing program, and the first Black woman to serve as president of a college in Minnesota. She helped grow the school from a barely accredited upstart to a thriving professional college—and to this day, it follows in her barrier-breaking steps.

CUNY Lehman College

In terms of economic fundamentals, this sprawling campus in the Bronx is better than practically any regional college.

Lehman College, part of the City University of New York system, serves a high number of needy students—close to half the population are on Pell Grants. The school offers them one of the lowest net prices in the country ($3,115 a year, counting aid) and sends them into the workforce with among the lowest levels of debt ($10,864). That makes Lehman the sixth-most-affordable school in America. Students graduate at higher rates than predicted by college preparation and earn more than expected—significantly more, around $4,500—in their early careers.

Students tend not to join national service programs, though high numbers major in areas like teaching and social work. The acceptance rate is 55 percent, slightly low for a school of its profile and perhaps reflecting high demand.

Lehman’s academics are meant to produce versatile, well-rounded adults, with a core curriculum that touches on writing, mathematics, foreign language, and natural sciences, as well as two special courses, unique to the college, that promote critical thinking. A small number of honors “Lehman Scholars” are able to build their own course of study if they pass a rigorous application process. Like many of the CUNYs, Lehman is a bit of a commuter school, but the college has dozens of clubs and organizations for students, from the Mycology Club to Aporia, a philosophy discussion group. The New York Botanical Garden is a few blocks away, and the art, culture, and nightlife of New York City are just beyond.

Towson University

Eight miles from downtown Baltimore, Maryland’s second-largest public university outranks its flagship cousin, UMD in College Park, thanks to an all-around solid performance in social mobility and a particular focus on graduating students on time.

Towson’s acceptance rate is high, at 82.8 percent. More than a quarter of students there rely on federal aid, unlike at College Park, where the proportion is half that. The net cost of a Towson education is comparatively low for a non-wealthy school—about $9,000 a year—and students leave with low debt and better-than-expected earnings. Towson’s standout measure, however, is its graduation rate. Compared to others with the same level of income and preparation, Towson students graduate at an 11 percent higher rate. If you compare that performance gap across all American schools, Towson comes in 66th, an impressive distinction for a little-known state school. 

In terms of service, Towson performs admirably, with decent numbers of ROTC cadets and a strong commitment to student voting, according to the Monthly’s data. Towson was founded as a “normal school” for teachers, and continues to produce the most teachers of any Maryland college. The school also runs several outreach programs to nearby Baltimore, including the Cherry Hill Learning Zone, a partnership with city schools and community organizations to rebuild the southern neighborhood of Cherry Hill.

Towson has a respectable campus life for a commuter-heavy state college, with 85 percent of freshmen living on campus (though they tend to move away later). Athletics are a cornerstone of school spirit, with students proudly rallying around the college mascot, Doc the Tiger, and a bronze tiger statue that towers over campus. In late April, TigerFest brings headline musical acts to campus, including Lil Yachty, Playboi Carti, Kid Cudi, and Yellowcard.

As in so many cases, it’s the nearby regional public school that does the grunt work of shepherding non-wealthy students into the workforce at low cost, without receiving the same acclaim as its flagship sibling. UMD–College Park has millions in research dollars, scores of partnerships with the federal government, and illustrious alumni like Google’s Sergey Brin—and we herald those accomplishments. But Towson also has the enduring gratitude of generations of roaring Tigers.

SUNY Geneseo

This SUNY branch in the Finger Lakes region of upper New York has long been a favorite in our rankings, but not for the usual reasons. Many of the top performers in the Monthly’s list make it there because of advantages in access and affordability. They have low prices, high rates of non-wealthy students, and low levels of debt after graduation. While SUNY Geneseo performs well in those stats, it’s the outcomes that really shine.

Geneseo graduates overperform in terms of early-career income, to the tune of about $5,400 annually compared to statistical predictions. They also go on to earn higher degrees at startlingly high rates for a non-elite school—about the same rate as graduates of Tufts, a major research university. About 90 percent of faculty have PhDs themselves, and the school’s rigorous academics—it bills itself as an “honors college”—focus on critical thinking, building skills for careers, and public service.

The school does even better in our service list, with high numbers of students (it is ranked 51st) entering AmeriCorps and the Peace Corps after college. On campus, students brave chilly upstate New York winters and hilly hikes between classes in exchange for access to some of the Northeast’s most beautiful natural vistas. Day trips to Rochester, Buffalo (and Niagara Falls), and the area’s pristine lakes are not uncommon.

With its focus on service and lifelong academic inquiry, Geneseo is squarely in line with the SUNY system motto: “To Learn, to Search, to Serve.”

Rutgers University-Camden

Rutgers–Camden might not have the name recognition of Princeton or even Rutgers–New Brunswick, the system’s flagship. It doesn’t enroll tens of thousands of students, and you won’t find it on ESPN most Saturdays. But if you’re looking for a school that delivers a strong return on investment—especially for students who don’t come from wealthy families—this smaller urban campus deserves a close look.

Students who attend Rutgers–Camden tend to graduate and find solid jobs. In our rankings, the school performs especially well on what we call “outcomes”—a category that includes graduation rates and how much alumni earn after college. That’s not just good news for students; it’s a signal that a degree from Rutgers–Camden means something in the real world. Whether graduates are going into law, health care, business, or government, they tend to land on their feet.

It’s also a campus with a clear civic purpose. About one in five graduates earns a degree in fields like education, social work, or public service. And Rutgers–Camden has earned national recognition for its commitment to the local community, partnering with nonprofits, public schools, and civic organizations across Camden and the surrounding region.

Financially, Rutgers–Camden falls in the middle of the pack. Students from non-wealthy families—those who qualify for Pell Grants—pay an average of $12,332 per year and graduate with student loan debt around $4,000 less than the national average. That’s not particularly cheap on our rankings, but it’s far more affordable than many private or flagship public institutions, especially in the Northeast. And with strong job outcomes, the investment pays off.

Around 2,200 students receive Pell Grants—more than a third of the students enrolled. The relatively high admission rate (78 percent) means that students who are academically qualified have a strong chance of getting in.

What you get in return is a tight-knit public research university with a clear sense of mission. Classes are small, faculty are accessible, and students can take advantage of Rutgers’s broader academic resources while staying grounded in a local, community-focused campus.

Rutgers–Camden doesn’t have the prestige of its flagship sibling—or the glitz of a brand-name private college. But it offers something else: a high-quality education that helps students move up, give back, and stay out of excessive debt. For students who want a meaningful degree at a public university that still believes in public service, it’s a compelling choice.

Appalachian State University

As its name suggests, Appalachian State University lies in the “high country” of North Carolina, a region known for beautiful vistas, a bustling logging industry, and limited economic opportunity. In 2023 census estimates, 18.6 percent of Watauga County lived under the poverty line, well above the national average of 11.1 percent. That gives Appalachian State a formidable task—to serve a population with significant needs by offering them an affordable pipeline to the workforce, in a region that is hardly overflowing with options. We believe that the university has succeeded admirably.

Out of a student body of 21,570, about a quarter are on Pell Grants. Though the school is not awash in money, it is able to keep prices reasonably low, at an annual $10,681 including aid. That makes Appalachian State 263rd in net price—a very respectable rank for an institution with its finances and level of student need. Graduates leave with an average $20,334 in debt, and make close to what you’d expect for degree holders of their background and region.

Perhaps unsurprisingly in an economically struggling area, many students seek out military service as a potential pathway. Appalachian State has high numbers of ROTC enrollees, giving it a service score above many of its peers in the Monthly’s rankings. In short, although it isn’t sending its average student on to a lucrative and prestigious career, it is pushing them upward in the ladder of life by keeping their costs low and their access to a respectable education easy. (That applies to its admission process, too, where 89 percent gain acceptance.) 

And in the meantime, Appalachian State has itself become an economic mainstay for the region. A labor analytics firm estimated in 2023 that the university added $573 million to the surrounding five counties and $2.2 billion to the state through its own operations, construction projects, student spending, and the economic contributions of its alumni.

To current students, a vibrant campus culture and the beauty of the Blue Ridge Mountains offer a full and rewarding college experience. Nearby, there’s hiking, rock climbing, skiing, camping, rafting, and fishing. The 40-year-old student union, the Appalachian Popular Programming Society, organizes concerts, parties, and exhibitions. Each year, students run the “Neerly Naked Mile,” a semi-undressed race for charity that recognizes the challenges many in the region face in putting clothes on their back. That’s the spirit of Appalachian State: celebrating what’s unique about its community, while taking every opportunity to lift it up.

Mississippi University for Women

The W,” as its 2,200 students call it, was founded in 1884 as one of the first publicly supported schools for women in America. It was regarded as a “godsend,” a legislator once said, “for the poor girls of Mississippi.” These days, close to a quarter of students are men. But the W stays true to its economic mission.

Forty percent of undergraduates are on Pell Grants, a very high proportion of non-wealthy students. The university accepts pretty much everyone who applies, and charges them a reasonably low net price—about $11,000 annually. But its standout accomplishment is the low debt with which its graduates leave: an average of $15,000. That puts the W at 70th in the nation, ahead of venerated names like Northwestern, University of Chicago, and Cal Tech. The W also overperforms in getting its students to graduate on time. Earnings just about meet expectations, and students’ participation in service is middle of the road. Where MUW really excels is getting degrees into the hands of Mississippi’s working and middle classes—on time, at low cost, with little debt.

The university has a well-renowned nursing program, ranked first in the state and one of the few disciplines where admission is competitive. Befitting a southern school, MUW has several Greek organizations and a number of whimsically named social clubs: the Lockhearts, the Mam’selles, the Rev’s, the Silly’s, the Troub’s (short for Troubadours). During commencement, new graduates carry a chain of magnolias down the aisle to symbolize their accomplishments—a tradition dating to 1890.

The W also has a legacy of artistic, legal, medical, and civic excellence. A long list of women alumni were trailblazers in the courts and on the written page, not least Eudora Welty, the Pulitzer-winning chronicler of the South. A daughter of Jackson, Mississippi, Welty once described her own writing this way: “My continuing passion is to part a curtain, that invisible veil of indifference that falls between us and that blinds us to each other’s presence.” It could equally apply to her alma mater’s dedication to humanity.

Evergreen State College

This nontraditional liberal arts college in Olympia, the capital of Washington State, earns a high place in our rankings thanks to the extraordinary outcomes it provides to a student body of everyday means.

Almost everyone who applies gets in. Of Evergreen’s 2,505 students, a third are on Pell Grants. Though the college has a fairly high net price of $20,420, its graduates leave without a crushing amount of debt. It only gets better from there. Evergreen graduates greatly overperform in earnings, making almost $11,000 more in their early careers than peers with similar educations and socioeconomic backgrounds. Many go on to earn PhDs and to participate in national service programs like AmeriCorps and the Peace Corps.

What’s Evergreen’s secret? Academics is part of it. All students have the option to design their own curriculum or follow a traditional path of study, in either case closely guided by faculty advisers. There are no majors or letter grades. From that base has sprung an incredible outburst of creativity, with alumni who include Matt Groening, creator of The Simpsons; the rapper Macklemore; the Oscar-winning director Byron Howard; and a generation of grunge icons including members of the bands Sleater-Kinney and Bikini Kill.

Olympia sits within a bus ride of Seattle near the base of Puget Sound. Natural wonders aren’t far from campus, and a rich arts community flourishes in the state capital, where students also have the opportunity to learn about public service and the workings of state government. In keeping with its origins as an experimental college of the 1960s, Evergreen has a number of nontraditional traditions, including Speedy the Geoduck, a burrowing clam who serves as the college mascot and is known for his unique catchphrase: “Gurgle … blurp … blurp.” (Don’t ask.)

Whatever goes on in the minds of Evergreen State students, it’s leading them to success. Shoulder the cost of its education, and it’ll pay dividends, both in hard numbers and in the creativity it can unlock.

Blue Field State University

This small public university in West Virginia coal country earns its place in the Washington Monthly’s top 200 through the quality and affordability of the education it provides to everyday people.

Founded in 1895 as a “high-graded school” for Black Americans in the segregated South, Bluefield became a cultural mecca by the middle of the next century. Joe Louis held boxing exhibitions there, Langston Hughes read poetry, and Count Basie and Duke Ellison played at fraternity parties. Today, Bluefield remains racially diverse but has more students of European descent, who were attracted by its high quality and low cost after integration in the 1950s.

Close to half of Bluefield’s 1,300 students are on Pell Grants. Admission is fairly easy; 87 percent of applicants are accepted. They pay a respectable amount ($10,079 when factoring in loans), graduate at higher rates than expected, and do so without crushing debt. In all of those statistics, Bluefield has a rank around 200—a strong performance out of more than 1,400 schools, and a deeply valuable contribution in a community where roughly one in five people lives in poverty.

Bluefield students score high in their commitment to service. More than half in areas like education and social work, and a high proportion of its work study students, focus their efforts on community service. In other ways, the school’s graduates post middling results. They earn modest incomes—$33,727 nine years after enrolling, which slightly underperforms expectations. They earn postgraduate degrees and enter national service programs like AmeriCorps and ROTC at rates in the middle of our rankings.

One hundred and thirty years of tradition await students who embrace the “Big Blue.” Before each final exam period, the school hosts the free “Almost Midnight Breakfast.” At football games, students take selfies with Sir Blue, a Great Dane who serves as mascot and cheers on the team. No wonder that its proud students and alumni are eager to follow Bluefield’s motto and “Accept the Challenge.”

Elizabeth City State University

Elizabeth City is an old favorite in the Monthly’s College Guide. Back in 2012, it topped our list of baccalaureate-granting institutions, and this year it cracks the top 200 thanks to the extraordinarily low cost at which it provides an education.

Part of the University of North Carolina system, the 134-year-old historically Black school charges one of the lowest rates in the nation—$3,797 after aid. The state university system’s NC Promise program keeps tuition dirt cheap at Elizabeth City and three other state colleges—$500 for in-state students. Each year, roughly 1,000 students on Pell Grants are attracted by the school’s favorable economics (out of a total population of 2,261). Forty-three percent graduate within eight years, which is more than statistically expected. Most applicants—about 70 percent—earn admission. The debt and earnings of Elizabeth City grads fall smack in the middle of the table. Where the school really excels is providing access to non-wealthy students and keeping their costs low.

As the Monthly noted in 2012, Elizabeth City carefully caters to a student body whose academic preparation reflects the struggles of K–12 schools in its region. To make sure new students succeed, the school brings them to campus before they matriculate to get used to the college experience. And it looks closely for warning signs that a student is in danger of dropping out. Strong local traditions bind students to Elizabeth City State: a matriculation ceremony that until not long ago was conducted by candlelight, and, in the harbor town that bears the same name, the annual “Moth Boat Regatta” in October. (Moth boats are tiny, speedy sailboats that became popular for recreation in Elizabeth City in the 1920s and ’30s.)

As the school’s chancellor, Karrie G. Dixon, said in a statement in 2021, “People are taking note that we are providing access to a high-quality education at an affordable price.” We certainly are.

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