Rankings by major · 279 schools scored

Best colleges for education

Every school we cover is scored 0–100 for education. The score blends how graduates in the major do four years out against the national norm for the same major, the strength of the student body, how many undergraduate courses the department lists, and the size of the program. Small programs (under five graduates a year) are capped. 80 and up is a standout program, 65+ strong, 45+ solid.

The top education schools: Vanderbilt University, Swarthmore College, Bowdoin College.

Top 100 colleges for education
Rank	School	Score (0–100)	Tier	Graduates per year in the major	Share of the class	Pay vs. national, same major	Acceptance rate
1	Vanderbilt University Nashville, TN	89	Standout	60	3.5%	1.16×	6%
1	Swarthmore College Swarthmore, PA	89	Standout	26	6.2%	–	7%
3	Bowdoin College Brunswick, ME	88	Standout	24	5.4%	–	7%
4	University of Minnesota–Twin Cities Minneapolis, MN	87	Standout	356	4.7%	1.27×	80%
4	University of Washington Seattle, WA	87	Standout	261	3%	1.29×	39%
4	New York University New York, NY	87	Standout	87	1.3%	1.36×	9%
7	Boston College Chestnut Hill, MA	86	Standout	56	2.4%	1.30×	16%
7	Smith College Northampton, MA	86	Standout	28	4.7%	–	21%
9	Brown University Providence, RI	85	Standout	25	1.5%	–	5%
10	University of Delaware Newark, DE	84	Standout	258	5.9%	1.19×	71%
11	University of Virginia Charlottesville, VA	83	Standout	37	0.8%	–	17%
12	University of Michigan–Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, MI	81	Standout	70	0.9%	1.15×	16%
12	Wellesley College Wellesley, MA	81	Standout	16	2.8%	–	14%
14	Texas Christian University Fort Worth, TX	80	Standout	100	4.4%	1.23×	48%
14	University of California, Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA	80	Standout	99	1.1%	–	9%
14	Syracuse University Syracuse, NY	80	Standout	85	2.5%	1.26×	46%
14	Colby College Waterville, ME	80	Standout	17	3.2%	–	7%
18	University of Iowa Iowa City, IA	79	Strong	232	4.6%	1.08×	80%
18	Chapman University Orange, CA	79	Strong	60	3%	1.30×	72%
18	Furman University Greenville, SC	79	Strong	27	4.4%	–	43%
18	Washington University in St. Louis St. Louis, MO	79	Strong	20	1.1%	–	12%
18	Wesleyan University Middletown, CT	79	Strong	20	2.5%	–	16%
18	Vassar College Poughkeepsie, NY	79	Strong	19	2.9%	–	19%
24	The Pennsylvania State University–University Park University Park, PA	78	Strong	346	3.4%	1.11×	61%
24	University of Connecticut Storrs, CT	78	Strong	139	2.6%	1.21×	54%
24	Boston University Boston, MA	78	Strong	47	1%	1.15×	13%
24	Bucknell University Lewisburg, PA	78	Strong	27	3.1%	–	29%
28	North Carolina State University Raleigh, NC	77	Strong	173	2.7%	1.08×	42%
28	University of North Carolina–Chapel Hill Chapel Hill, NC	77	Strong	115	2.4%	1.04×	17%
30	Virginia Commonwealth University Richmond, VA	76	Strong	377	7.6%	1.16×	84%
30	Texas A&M University College Station, TX	76	Strong	308	2.3%	–	52%
30	University of Florida Gainesville, FL	76	Strong	229	2.4%	1.10×	20%
30	Saint Joseph's University Philadelphia, PA	76	Strong	88	6.5%	1.27×	89%
30	Brandeis University Waltham, MA	76	Strong	18	2.1%	–	40%
35	University of Georgia Athens, GA	75	Strong	214	2.6%	1.08×	38%
35	University of Wisconsin–Madison Madison, WI	75	Strong	183	2.5%	1.02×	45%
35	University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Champaign, IL	75	Strong	174	2.1%	1.14×	42%
35	Marquette University Milwaukee, WI	75	Strong	84	4.3%	1.20×	87%
39	Washington State University Pullman, WA	74	Strong	232	3.8%	1.29×	86%
39	University of Miami Coral Gables, FL	74	Strong	21	0.7%	–	19%
41	University of California, Irvine Irvine, CA	73	Strong	287	3.3%	1.09×	29%
41	Michigan State University East Lansing, MI	73	Strong	236	2.7%	1.06×	85%
41	University of Alabama at Birmingham Birmingham, AL	73	Strong	188	6.8%	1.03×	94%
41	University of Maryland, College Park College Park, MD	73	Strong	133	1.6%	1.23×	45%
41	Baylor University Waco, TX	73	Strong	95	2.9%	1.15×	52%
41	Colgate University Hamilton, NY	73	Strong	20	2.7%	1.16×	14%
41	Denison University Granville, OH	73	Strong	20	3.7%	1.31×	17%
41	American University Washington, DC	73	Strong	18	1%	1.40×	62%
49	Indiana University–Bloomington Bloomington, IN	72	Strong	278	3.8%	1.11×	78%
49	University of California San Diego La Jolla, CA	72	Strong	60	0.7%	–	29%
51	University of Louisville Louisville, KY	71	Strong	247	8.5%	1.33×	79%
51	Clemson University Clemson, SC	71	Strong	196	3.9%	1.04×	38%
51	University of Illinois Chicago Chicago, IL	71	Strong	179	3.5%	1.30×	77%
51	University of Dayton Dayton, OH	71	Strong	153	7.8%	1.01×	65%
51	University of Kansas Lawrence, KS	71	Strong	121	2.9%	1.05×	93%
51	Hofstra University Hempstead, NY	71	Strong	53	3.8%	1.44×	68%
57	Arizona State University Tempe, AZ	70	Strong	703	4.7%	1.12×	88%
57	The Ohio State University Columbus, OH	70	Strong	356	3.1%	0.98×	51%
57	Auburn University Auburn, AL	70	Strong	236	4.2%	1.03×	46%
57	University of Utah Salt Lake City, UT	70	Strong	55	1%	1.29×	87%
57	Duke University Durham, NC	70	Strong	20	1.1%	1.02×	5%
57	University of Tulsa Tulsa, OK	70	Strong	15	2.1%	–	62%
63	Purdue University–Main Campus West Lafayette, IN	69	Strong	175	2.1%	1.04×	50%
63	University of Massachusetts–Amherst Amherst, MA	69	Strong	53	0.8%	–	60%
63	College of St. Benedict St. Joseph, MN	69	Strong	38	10.2%	1.09×	92%
63	University of the Pacific Stockton, CA	69	Strong	32	3.8%	1.46×	71%
63	Mount Holyoke College South Hadley, MA	69	Strong	16	2.8%	1.16×	36%
68	University of Colorado Boulder Boulder, CO	68	Strong	81	1.2%	–	78%
69	Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College Baton Rouge, LA	67	Strong	445	9%	1.17×	73%
69	University of Kentucky Lexington, KY	67	Strong	378	7.5%	0.98×	93%
69	Temple University Philadelphia, PA	67	Strong	200	3.4%	1.11×	86%
72	Seton Hall University South Orange, NJ	66	Strong	78	6%	1.35×	73%
72	Saint Mary's College Notre Dame, IN	66	Strong	36	11.5%	1.09×	76%
72	St. Olaf College Northfield, MN	66	Strong	23	3.3%	1.01×	43%
72	The College of Wooster Wooster, OH	66	Strong	19	4.5%	–	60%
76	University of Nebraska – Lincoln Lincoln, NE	65	Strong	314	7.5%	1.00×	87%
76	CUNY–City College New York, NY	65	Strong	107	4.4%	1.19×	60%
76	University of Oregon Eugene, OR	65	Strong	103	2.6%	1.09×	88%
76	Mercer University Macon, GA	65	Strong	64	5.3%	1.09×	69%
76	Elon University Elon, NC	65	Strong	59	3.9%	1.33×	66%
76	Wheaton College (IL) Wheaton, IL	65	Strong	29	4.9%	1.02×	87%
76	The Catholic University of America Washington, DC	65	Strong	16	2.1%	–	83%
83	Iowa State University of Science and Technology Ames, IA	64	Solid	352	5.5%	1.01×	89%
83	University of Missouri Columbia, MO	64	Solid	290	5.7%	0.94×	78%
83	University of Arizona Tucson, AZ	64	Solid	256	3.5%	1.04×	86%
83	University of Hawaii at Manoa Honolulu, HI	64	Solid	172	5.2%	1.16×	87%
83	Duquesne University Pittsburgh, PA	64	Solid	96	6.8%	1.01×	84%
83	Drexel University Philadelphia, PA	64	Solid	35	1%	1.15×	70%
83	Stony Brook University–SUNY Stony Brook, NY	64	Solid	28	0.6%	–	49%
90	Brigham Young University Provo, UT	63	Solid	400	6.3%	0.99×	68%
90	Kansas State University Manhattan, KS	63	Solid	302	8.2%	0.98×	87%
90	Florida State University Tallahassee, FL	63	Solid	186	2.1%	1.11×	24%
90	University of Portland Portland, OR	63	Solid	31	2.9%	1.14×	89%
90	Drake University Des Moines, IA	63	Solid	30	4.3%	1.04×	64%
90	Ohio Wesleyan University Delaware, OH	63	Solid	29	9.5%	–	64%
90	University of Scranton Scranton, PA	63	Solid	27	3.2%	1.28×	80%
90	Clark University Worcester, MA	63	Solid	16	2.9%	–	40%
98	University of Arkansas Fayetteville, AR	62	Solid	171	3.4%	1.07×	74%
98	Wayne State University Detroit, MI	62	Solid	165	4.2%	1.08×	81%
98	University of Nevada–Reno Reno, NV	62	Solid	153	4%	1.17×	83%

179 more schools are on the full education ranking.

How this ranking works

Updated October 13, 2026. Sources: early-career pay for graduates of each program, by field of study (College Scorecard), graduates per year in the major (IPEDS), undergraduate courses listed in each department's current catalog, and the student body's test scores. Inputs that are missing for a school are dropped and the rest reweighted; programs with fewer than five graduates a year are capped at 30. Scores are relative to the other schools covered, from 0 to 100.

To cite: prefrosh.ai, "Best colleges for education," updated October 13, 2026, https://prefrosh.ai/majors/education. For a specific student's chances at these schools, use Chance me, which reads odds from the student's own high school's admissions chart.

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Best colleges for education

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