Best college in every state
Deciding where to go to college is one of the biggest decisions a teenager has to make in their lives, ultimately having an impact on everything from future earnings and potential student loan debt to which opportunities they’ll be afforded to network with alumni. And while every student wants to get the best education they possibly can, there are also other considerations to take into account: location, size, diversity, their field of study, whether they’d like to study abroad ... the list goes on. While most best college lists tend to be topped with the same handful of expensive Ivy League schools, the U.S. is home to over 4,000 degree-granting schools with amazing education offerings for every college-bound high school senior.
To demonstrate the excellence that extends beyond the Ivy League, Stacker dug into Niche’s 2019 Best Colleges in America rankings, which employ data from the Department of Education, including everything from academics and admissions to financial aid and student life, and gives each of these factors a letter grade. Combining this data with millions of reviews from students and alumni, Niche then assigns each school a rank. Stacker used these rankings to find the best college in every state, sorted alphabetically.
Check out this list to discover which college is the best in your state and which state has a mining school sitting at #1.
Alabama: Auburn University
Number of undergraduates: 20,396
Acceptance rate: 81% (Academics grade: A-)
Net price: $21,698 (Campus grade: A)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $47,100 (Value grade: A)
Alaska: University of Alaska Southeast
Number of undergraduates: 659
Acceptance rate: 49% (Academics grade: B+)
Net price: $8,719 (Campus grade: C+)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $36,800 (Value grade: B-)
Arizona: Arizona State University
Number of undergraduates: 38,946
Acceptance rate: 83% (Academics grade: A-)
Net price: $13,007 (Campus grade: A)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $45,400 (Value grade: A-)
Arkansas: University of Arkansas
Number of undergraduates: 19,853
Acceptance rate: 63% (Academics grade: A-)
Net price: $15,411 (Campus grade: A)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $43,100 (Value grade: A-)
California: Stanford University
Number of undergraduates: 7,034
Acceptance rate: 5% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $16,695 (Campus grade: A+)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $85,700 (Value grade: A+)
Colorado: Colorado School of Mines
Number of undergraduates: 4,395
Acceptance rate: 40% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $25,097 (Campus grade: B-)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $82,100 (Value grade: A+)
Connecticut: Yale University
Number of undergraduates: 5,469
Acceptance rate: 6% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $18,319 (Campus grade: A+)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $83,200 (Value grade: A+)
Delaware: University of Delaware
Number of undergraduates: 17,761
Acceptance rate: 70% (Academics grade: A-)
Net price: $15,894 (Campus grade: A)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $55,100 (Value grade: A)
Florida: University of Florida
Number of undergraduates: 31,014
Acceptance rate: 46% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $14,761 (Campus grade: A)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $53,100 (Value grade: A+)
Georgia: Emory University
Number of undergraduates: 6,714
Acceptance rate: 25% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $24,804 (Campus grade: A)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $61,500 (Value grade: A+)
Hawaii: Brigham Young University - Hawaii
Number of undergraduates: 2,419
Acceptance rate: 27% (Academics grade: A-)
Net price: $12,319 (Campus grade: B-)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $41,000 (Value grade: B)
Idaho: University of Idaho
Number of undergraduates: 7,269
Acceptance rate: 76% (Academics grade: B+)
Net price: $14,787 (Campus grade: B)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $41,000 (Value grade: A-)
Illinois: Northwestern University
Number of undergraduates: 8,298
Acceptance rate: 11% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $29,326 (Campus grade: A)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $65,900 (Value grade: A+)
Indiana: University of Notre Dame
Number of undergraduates: 8,514
Acceptance rate: 19% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $26,683 (Campus grade: A+)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $71,600 (Value grade: A+)
Iowa: Grinnell College
Number of undergraduates: 1,658
Acceptance rate: 20% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $30,010 (Campus grade: B)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $44,300 (Value grade: A)
Kansas: University of Kansas
Number of undergraduates: 17,141
Acceptance rate: 93% (Academics grade: A-)
Net price: $18,014 (Campus grade: A)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $46,500 (Value grade: A-)
Kentucky: University of Kentucky
Number of undergraduates: 20,833
Acceptance rate: 91% (Academics grade: B+)
Net price: $17,850 (Campus grade: A-)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $43,000 (Value grade: A-)
Louisiana: Tulane University
Number of undergraduates: 6,487
Acceptance rate: 26% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $32,515 (Campus grade: A-)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $56,200 (Value grade: A)
Maine: Bowdoin College
Number of undergraduates: 1,801
Acceptance rate: 15% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $24,888 (Campus grade: A+)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $58,700 (Value grade: A+)
Maryland: Johns Hopkins University
Number of undergraduates: 5,621
Acceptance rate: 13% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $27,352 (Campus grade: B)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $69,800 (Value grade: A+)
Massachusetts: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Number of undergraduates: 4,476
Acceptance rate: 8% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $21,576 (Campus grade: A-)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $94,200 (Value grade: A+)
Michigan: University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
Number of undergraduates: 27,969
Acceptance rate: 29% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $16,107 (Campus grade: A+)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $60,100 (Value grade: A+)
Minnesota: Carleton College
Number of undergraduates: 2,087
Acceptance rate: 23% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $28,587 (Campus grade: B+)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $52,600 (Value grade: A+)
Mississippi: Mississippi State University
Number of undergraduates: 16,695
Acceptance rate: 56% (Academics grade: A)
Net price: $15,628 (Campus grade: A)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $40,300 (Value grade: A-)
Missouri: Washington University in St. Louis
Number of undergraduates: 6,915
Acceptance rate: 17% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $28,824 (Campus grade: A+)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $66,300 (Value grade: A+)
Montana: Montana Tech of the University of Montana
Number of undergraduates: 1,672
Acceptance rate: 89% (Academics grade: B)
Net price: $12,385 (Campus grade: B-)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $41,100 (Value grade: A-)
Nebraska: University of Nebraska - Lincoln
Number of undergraduates: 19,381
Acceptance rate: 75% (Academics grade: A-)
Net price: $16,462 (Campus grade: A)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $43,700 (Value grade: A-)
Nevada: University of Nevada - Reno
Number of undergraduates: 15,408
Acceptance rate: 83% (Academics grade: B+)
Net price: $15,022 (Campus grade: B+)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $45,000 (Value grade: B+)
New Hampshire: Dartmouth College
Number of undergraduates: 4,270
Acceptance rate: 11% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $21,177 (Campus grade: B+)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $70,000 (Value grade: A+)
New Jersey: Princeton University
Number of undergraduates: 5,251
Acceptance rate: 7% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $17,732 (Campus grade: A-)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $80,500 (Value grade: A+)
New Mexico: New Mexico Tech
Number of undergraduates: 1,388
Acceptance rate: 23% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $13,331 (Campus grade: C-)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $52,900 (Value grade: A)
New York: Columbia University
Number of undergraduates: 7,552
Acceptance rate: 7% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $22,973 (Campus grade: A)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $78,200 (Value grade: A+)
North Carolina: Duke University
Number of undergraduates: 6,577
Acceptance rate: 11% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $19,950 (Campus grade: A)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $77,900 (Value grade: A+)
North Dakota: North Dakota State University
Number of undergraduates: 10,680
Acceptance rate: 93% (Academics grade: B+)
Net price: $14,581 (Campus grade: B+)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $46,600 (Value grade: A-)
Ohio: Kenyon College
Number of undergraduates: 1,689
Acceptance rate: 27% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $28,192 (Campus grade: B+)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $44,300 (Value grade: A+)
Oklahoma: University of Tulsa
Number of undergraduates: 3,478
Acceptance rate: 40% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $27,264 (Campus grade: B+)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $45,100 (Value grade: A)
Oregon: Reed College
Number of undergraduates: 1,379
Acceptance rate: 31% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $27,805 (Campus grade: B+)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $37,900 (Value grade: A-)
Pennsylvania: University of Pennsylvania
Number of undergraduates: 10,468
Acceptance rate: 9% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $22,944 (Campus grade: A)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $82,400 (Value grade: A+)
Rhode Island: Brown University
Number of undergraduates: 6,565
Acceptance rate: 9% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $25,264 (Campus grade: A-)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $63,100 (Value grade: A+)
South Carolina: Clemson University
Number of undergraduates: 17,883
Acceptance rate: 51% (Academics grade: A)
Net price: $17,797 (Campus grade: A)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $50,900 (Value grade: A+)
South Dakota: Augustana University
Number of undergraduates: 1,574
Acceptance rate: 69% (Academics grade: A-)
Net price: $19,974 (Campus grade: B+)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $41,600 (Value grade: A)
Tennessee: Vanderbilt University
Number of undergraduates: 6,817
Acceptance rate: 11% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $23,150 (Campus grade: A)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $64,500 (Value grade: A+)
Texas: Rice University
Number of undergraduates: 3,836
Acceptance rate: 15% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $22,061 (Campus grade: A+)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $64,300 (Value grade: A+)
Utah: Brigham Young University
Number of undergraduates: 28,012
Acceptance rate: 51% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $12,864 (Campus grade: A+)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $56,800 (Value grade: A)
Vermont: Middlebury College
Number of undergraduates: 2,506
Acceptance rate: 16% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $21,437 (Campus grade: A)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $55,600 (Value grade: A+)
Virginia: University of Virginia
Number of undergraduates: 15,476
Acceptance rate: 30% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $15,945 (Campus grade: A)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $60,700 (Value grade: A+)
Washington: University of Washington
Number of undergraduates: 28,380
Acceptance rate: 45% (Academics grade: A)
Net price: $10,068 (Campus grade: A)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $54,800 (Value grade: A+)
West Virginia: West Virginia University
Number of undergraduates: 20,524
Acceptance rate: 76% (Academics grade: B+)
Net price: $10,814 (Campus grade: A-)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $44,000 (Value grade: A-)
Wisconsin: University of Wisconsin
Number of undergraduates: 28,577
Acceptance rate: 53% (Academics grade: A+)
Net price: $15,874 (Campus grade: A+)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $54,200 (Value grade: A+)
Wyoming: University of Wyoming
Number of undergraduates: 8,102
Acceptance rate: 95% (Academics grade: A-)
Net price: $13,155 (Campus grade: B+)
Median earnings six years after graduation: $46,200 (Value grade: A-)
