Rankings by major · 271 schools scored

Best colleges for journalism

Every school we cover is scored 0–100 for journalism. The score weighs what graduates earn four years out against the same major nationally (25%), research spending in the field (20%, NSF), how many undergraduate courses the department lists (20%), the student body's test scores (20%) and the size of the program (15%, capped so size alone can't win). 80 and up is a standout program, 65+ strong, 45+ solid.

The top journalism schools: University of Wisconsin–Madison, University of Southern California, Syracuse University.

Top 100 colleges for journalism
Rank	School	Score (0–100)	Tier	Graduates per year in the major	Share of the class	Pay vs. national, same major	Acceptance rate
1	University of Wisconsin–Madison Madison, WI	100	Standout	208	2%	1.30×	45%
2	University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA	97	Standout	94	1.6%	1.36×	10%
3	Syracuse University Syracuse, NY	95	Standout	131	3.2%	1.20×	46%
4	Arizona State University Tempe, AZ	95	Standout	158	1%	1.10×	88%
5	University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Champaign, IL	93	Standout	54	0.6%	1.16×	42%
6	Northeastern University Boston, MA	93	Standout	36	0.8%	1.28×	5%
7	University of Maryland, College Park College Park, MD	92	Standout	126	1.4%	1.17×	45%
8	University of Washington Seattle, WA	91	Standout	40	0.4%	–	39%
9	Boston University Boston, MA	91	Standout	100	2%	1.12×	13%
10	University of Missouri Columbia, MO	90	Standout	426	7.7%	1.18×	78%
11	American University Washington, DC	90	Standout	54	2.7%	1.14×	62%
12	The Pennsylvania State University–University Park University Park, PA	89	Standout	182	1.7%	1.07×	61%
13	The University of Texas–Austin Austin, TX	89	Standout	132	1.3%	1.05×	27%
14	Rutgers University–New Brunswick Piscataway, NJ	88	Standout	118	1.4%	1.07×	58%
15	Fordham University New York, NY	88	Standout	34	1.3%	1.24×	59%
16	University of Minnesota–Twin Cities Minneapolis, MN	87	Standout	96	1.1%	1.14×	80%
17	University of Georgia Athens, GA	87	Standout	151	1.7%	1.04×	38%
18	Stony Brook University–SUNY Stony Brook, NY	87	Standout	48	1%	1.12×	49%
19	University of Florida Gainesville, FL	86	Standout	160	1.6%	0.99×	20%
20	George Washington University Washington, DC	86	Standout	58	1.8%	1.40×	47%
21	Baylor University Waco, TX	85	Standout	62	1.6%	1.09×	52%
22	Chapman University Orange, CA	85	Standout	30	1.4%	1.35×	72%
23	California Polytechnic State University–San Luis Obispo San Luis Obispo, CA	85	Standout	54	1.1%	1.21×	30%
24	University of Miami Coral Gables, FL	84	Standout	27	0.8%	1.22×	19%
25	Loyola Marymount University Los Angeles, CA	84	Standout	36	2%	–	45%
26	University of Kansas Lawrence, KS	83	Standout	210	4.7%	1.07×	93%
27	Indiana University–Bloomington Bloomington, IN	83	Standout	122	1.6%	1.01×	78%
28	Southern Methodist University Dallas, TX	83	Standout	40	1.9%	–	48%
29	University of Richmond Richmond, VA	82	Standout	16	1.7%	–	22%
30	Lehigh University Bethlehem, PA	82	Standout	24	1.7%	1.40×	29%
31	University of Central Florida Orlando, FL	81	Standout	54	0.4%	1.04×	43%
32	Elon University Elon, NC	81	Standout	36	2%	1.20×	66%
33	Michigan State University East Lansing, MI	81	Standout	108	1.2%	1.02×	85%
34	Marquette University Milwaukee, WI	80	Standout	27	1.1%	1.08×	87%
35	University of Colorado Boulder Boulder, CO	80	Standout	62	0.8%	0.98×	78%
36	Hofstra University Hempstead, NY	80	Standout	53	3.6%	1.05×	68%
37	Creighton University Omaha, NE	79	Strong	20	1.5%	1.16×	92%
38	Miami University–Oxford Oxford, OH	79	Strong	32	0.7%	1.04×	75%
39	University of Connecticut Storrs, CT	79	Strong	30	0.5%	1.02×	54%
40	University of Iowa Iowa City, IA	78	Strong	96	1.7%	0.97×	80%
41	The University of Alabama Tuscaloosa, AL	78	Strong	109	1.5%	0.94×	71%
42	University of Arkansas Fayetteville, AR	78	Strong	108	2.1%	1.13×	74%
43	University of Tennessee–Knoxville Knoxville, TN	77	Strong	84	1.5%	0.90×	42%
44	University of Arizona Tucson, AZ	77	Strong	66	0.8%	0.95×	86%
45	The University of Oklahoma Norman, OK	77	Strong	238	5%	0.92×	77%
46	San Diego State University San Diego, CA	76	Strong	156	1.8%	0.92×	37%
47	University at Albany–SUNY Albany, NY	76	Strong	26	0.8%	1.02×	69%
48	University of Massachusetts–Amherst Amherst, MA	76	Strong	92	1.3%	0.89×	60%
49	Emerson College Boston, MA	76	Strong	88	10.3%	1.08×	43%
50	University of Denver Denver, CO	75	Strong	16	1%	–	85%
51	University of Oregon Eugene, OR	75	Strong	138	2.9%	0.95×	88%
52	Rochester Institute of Technology Rochester, NY	74	Strong	4	0.2%	–	71%
53	Drake University Des Moines, IA	74	Strong	34	4.2%	1.08×	64%
54	Ohio University Athens, OH	74	Strong	132	2.5%	1.01×	85%
55	Washington State University Pullman, WA	74	Strong	84	1.4%	1.01×	86%
56	Pepperdine University Malibu, CA	73	Strong	12	1.3%	1.01×	63%
57	Fairfield University Fairfield, CT	73	Strong	2	0.2%	–	33%
58	Utah State University Logan, UT	73	Strong	58	1.4%	1.06×	94%
59	Washington and Lee University Lexington, VA	72	Strong	8	1.4%	–	14%
60	University of South Carolina Columbia, SC	72	Strong	74	1%	0.91×	60%
61	Butler University Indianapolis, IN	72	Strong	10	0.9%	–	85%
62	San Francisco State University San Francisco, CA	72	Strong	37	0.6%	0.98×	96%
63	The College of New Jersey Ewing, NJ	71	Strong	13	0.8%	1.15×	64%
64	Seton Hall University South Orange, NJ	71	Strong	16	1%	–	73%
65	University of North Texas Denton, TX	71	Strong	252	3.2%	0.98×	71%
66	Texas Christian University Fort Worth, TX	70	Strong	37	1.4%	1.00×	48%
67	Denison University Granville, OH	70	Strong	2	0.3%	–	17%
68	DePaul University Chicago, IL	70	Strong	31	1%	1.06×	76%
69	Georgia State University Atlanta, GA	69	Strong	140	2.6%	0.94×	55%
70	University of Houston Houston, TX	69	Strong	54	0.7%	0.91×	74%
71	University of Nebraska – Lincoln Lincoln, NE	69	Strong	80	1.7%	0.92×	87%
72	High Point University High Point, NC	68	Strong	10	0.9%	–	79%
73	Iowa State University of Science and Technology Ames, IA	68	Strong	38	0.6%	0.92×	89%
74	Long Island University Brookville, NY	68	Strong	6	0.4%	1.07×	93%
75	University of Nevada–Reno Reno, NV	68	Strong	93	2.4%	0.93×	83%
76	Brigham Young University Provo, UT	67	Strong	68	1%	0.86×	68%
77	Ithaca College Ithaca, NY	67	Strong	26	2%	1.05×	75%
78	Kansas State University Manhattan, KS	67	Strong	72	1.9%	0.97×	87%
79	University of St. Thomas (MN) St. Paul, MN	66	Strong	10	0.6%	–	85%
80	California State University, Long Beach Long Beach, CA	66	Strong	84	0.9%	0.94×	45%
81	CUNY Brooklyn College Brooklyn, NY	66	Strong	24	0.8%	1.03×	55%
82	Gonzaga University Spokane, WA	65	Strong	14	1.1%	1.07×	82%
83	Texas Tech University Lubbock, TX	65	Strong	34	0.5%	0.91×	73%
84	St. John's University Queens, NY	65	Strong	24	1.1%	1.01×	83%
85	West Virginia University Morgantown, WV	64	Solid	151	3.4%	1.00×	89%
86	The Ohio State University Columbus, OH	64	Solid	34	0.3%	0.88×	51%
87	Quinnipiac University Hamden, CT	64	Solid	38	2.2%	1.06×	77%
88	California State University–Dominguez Hills Carson, CA	64	Solid	21	0.6%	–	91%
89	Temple University Philadelphia, PA	63	Solid	72	1.2%	0.92×	86%
90	Auburn University Auburn, AL	63	Solid	50	0.9%	0.76×	46%
91	CUNY Baruch College New York, NY	63	Solid	43	1.1%	0.93×	50%
92	Azusa Pacific University Azusa, CA	62	Solid	8	0.6%	–	79%
93	San Jose State University San Jose, CA	62	Solid	30	0.4%	–	80%
94	Rutgers University–Newark Newark, NJ	62	Solid	25	1.2%	1.07×	71%
95	Point Loma Nazarene University San Diego, CA	61	Solid	5	0.6%	–	82%
96	Belmont University Nashville, TN	61	Solid	20	1.2%	–	95%
97	University of Kentucky Lexington, KY	61	Solid	49	0.9%	0.90×	93%
98	Pace University New York, NY	60	Solid	6	0.3%	–	83%
99	Colorado State University Fort Collins, CO	60	Solid	135	2.5%	0.92×	89%
100	Loyola University Chicago Chicago, IL	60	Solid	28	0.9%	0.98×	75%

171 more schools are on the full journalism ranking.

How this ranking works

Updated October 18, 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 journalism," updated October 18, 2026, https://prefrosh.ai/majors/journalism. 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 journalism

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