25 Top Ranking New England Colleges and Universities
National Top Picks:Universities | Public Universities | Liberal Arts Colleges | Engineering | Business | Women's | Most Selective | More Top Picks
New England has some of the most selective and prestigious colleges and universities in the country. Harvard frequently ranks first or second among universities, and Williams and Amherst often vie for the top spot for liberal arts colleges. On the engineering front, MIT frequently sits at the top of the rankings. The 25 colleges and universities below were chosen based on retention rates, graduation rates, student engagement, selectivity, and financial aid. I have listed the schools alphabetically to avoid the often arbitrary distinctions that separate #1 from #2, and because of the futility of comparing a large research university to a liberal arts college or a business school.
Will You Get In? See if you have the grades and test scores you need to get into any of the top New England colleges with this free tool from Cappex: Calculate Your Chances for Top New England Colleges
The 25 colleges and universities in the list below are from the New England region of the United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont (click to get top picks for each state).
More Regions: Middle Atlantic | Southeast | Midwest | South Central | Mountain | West Coast
New England has some of the most selective and prestigious colleges and universities in the country. Harvard frequently ranks first or second among universities, and Williams and Amherst often vie for the top spot for liberal arts colleges. On the engineering front, MIT frequently sits at the top of the rankings. The 25 colleges and universities below were chosen based on retention rates, graduation rates, student engagement, selectivity, and financial aid. I have listed the schools alphabetically to avoid the often arbitrary distinctions that separate #1 from #2, and because of the futility of comparing a large research university to a liberal arts college or a business school.
Will You Get In? See if you have the grades and test scores you need to get into any of the top New England colleges with this free tool from Cappex: Calculate Your Chances for Top New England Colleges
•The New England Region
The 25 colleges and universities in the list below are from the New England region of the United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont (click to get top picks for each state).
More Regions: Middle Atlantic | Southeast | Midwest | South Central | Mountain | West Coast
•Amherst College
- Location: Amherst, Massachusetts
- Enrollment: 1,791 (all undergraduate)
- Type of Institution: private liberal arts college
- Distinctions: one of the top liberal arts colleges in the U.S.; one of the most selective colleges; member of the five-college consortium; chapter of Phi Beta Kappa for strengths in the liberal arts and sciences; excellent grant aid for qualifying students
- For more information and admissions data, visit the Amherst College profile
- GPA, SAT and ACT graph for Amherst
•Babson College
- Location: Wellesley, Massachusetts
- Enrollment: 3,380 (2,007 undergraduates)
- Type of Institution: private business college
- Distinctions: highly ranked undergraduate business program; innovative curriculum with emphasis on leadership and entrepreneurship skills; first-year students develop, launch and liquidate a for-profit business of their own design
- For more information and admissions data, visit the Babson College profile
- GPA, SAT and ACT graph for Babson
•Bates College
- Location: Lewiston, Maine
- Enrollment: 1,769 (all undergraduate)
- Type of Institution: private liberal arts college
- Distinctions: test-optional admissions; chapter of Phi Beta Kappa for strengths in the liberal arts and sciences; highly ranked liberal arts college; popular study abroad programs; about 2/3 of students go on to graduate school; 10 to 1 student / faculty ratio
- For more information and admissions data, visit the Bates College profile
- GPA, SAT and ACT graph for Bates
•Bentley University
- Location: Waltham, Massachusetts
- Enrollment: 5,574 (4,237 undergraduates)
- Type of Institution: private university with a business focus
- Distinctions: highly ranked business school; 12 to 1 student / faculty ratio; average class size of 24; business curriculum has a liberal arts core; curricular emphasis on ethics, social responsibility, and global culture
- For more information and admissions data, visit the Bentley University profile
- GPA, SAT and ACT graph for Bentley
•Boston College
- Location: Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts
- Enrollment: 14,754 (9,826 undergraduates)
- Type of Institution: private Catholic university
- Explore the Campus:Boston College photo tour
- Distinctions: one of the top Catholic universities; largest endowment of any Jesuit university; strong undergraduate business program; chapter of Phi Beta Kappa for strengths in the liberal arts and sciences; member of the NCAA Division 1-A Atlantic Coast Conference
- For more information and admissions data, visit the Boston College profile
- GPA, SAT and ACT graph for Boston College
•Bowdoin College
- Location: Brunswick, Maine
- Enrollment: 1,778 (all undergraduate)
- Type of Institution: private liberal arts college
- Distinctions: loan-free financial aid; chapter of Phi Beta Kappa for strong liberal arts and sciences; beautiful ; highly selective admissions; interesting mix of historic and state-of-the-art buildings; 118-acre Coastal Studies Center on Orr's Island
- For more information and admissions data, visit the Bowdoin College profile
- GPA, SAT and ACT graph for Bowdoin
•Brandeis University
- Location: Waltham, Massachusetts
- Enrollment: 5,828 (3,504 undergraduates)
- Type of Institution: private university
- Distinctions: 8 to 1 student / faculty ratio; member of the Association of American Universities for strong research programs; chapter of Phi Beta Kappa for strong liberal arts and sciences; easy access to Boston
- For more information and admissions data, visit the Brandeis University profile
- GPA, SAT and ACT graph for Brandeis
•Brown University
- Location: Providence, Rhode Island
- Enrollment: 8,768 (6,380 undergraduates)
- Type of Institution: private university
- Distinctions: member of the Ivy League; open curriculum allows students to plan their own plans of study; chapter of Phi Beta Kappa for strong liberal arts and sciences; member of the Association of American Universities for strong research programs; one of the country's top universities
- For more information and admissions data, visit the Brown University profile
- GPA, SAT and ACT graph for Brown
•Coast Guard Academy
- Location: New London, Connecticut
- Enrollment: 1,045 (all undergraduate)
- Type of Institution: federal service academy (military)
- Distinctions: 8 to 1 student / faculty ratio; 80% of graduates go on to graduate school; free, but students have a five-year service commitment; merit-based admissions (no congressional nomination required); low acceptance rate
- For more information and admissions data, visit the Coast Guard Academy profile
- GPA, SAT and ACT graph for the Coast Guard Academy
