Best Colleges in Pennsylvania (2026)

How this list is ranked

The strongest colleges and universities in Pennsylvania, ranked by graduation rate and selectivity, with verified acceptance rates, net price, and test scores for this admissions cycle.

Schools on this list 40

Source Federal data, same records as every school page

Admit rate, net price, and SAT in the table are for context. Rank order follows the method above, not those columns.

Rank	School	Admit	Net price	SAT
1	University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA	5.4%	$28,699	1510-1570	See record
2	Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA	11.7%	$31,944	1500-1570	See record
3	Swarthmore College Swarthmore, PA	7.5%	$23,149	1490-1560	See record
4	Lehigh University Bethlehem, PA	26%	$36,931	1370-1500	See record
5	Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus University Park, PA	61%	$32,875	1240-1420	See record
6	Yeshivath Beth Moshe Scranton, PA	100%	$9,800	-	See record
7	Curtis Institute of Music Philadelphia, PA	4.6%	-	-	See record
8	Villanova University Villanova, PA	27%	$43,756	1395-1510	See record
9	Haverford College Haverford, PA	12.4%	$25,314	1460-1550	See record
10	Lafayette College Easton, PA	31%	$34,433	1350-1500	See record
11	Bucknell University Lewisburg, PA	29%	$40,766	1310-1470	See record
12	University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus Pittsburgh, PA	58%	$30,434	1280-1460	See record
13	Franklin and Marshall College Lancaster, PA	28%	$36,425	1310-1463	See record
14	Grove City College Grove City, PA	72%	-	1141-1388	See record
15	Gettysburg College Gettysburg, PA	39%	$31,490	1270-1460	See record
16	Muhlenberg College Allentown, PA	72%	$28,905	1250-1410	See record
17	Bryn Mawr College Bryn Mawr, PA	29%	$31,759	1280-1510	See record
18	Susquehanna University Selinsgrove, PA	81%	$28,819	1100-1300	See record
19	Dickinson College Carlisle, PA	42%	$37,607	1310-1460	See record
20	University of Scranton Scranton, PA	81%	$32,568	1160-1318	See record
21	Saint Joseph's University - Philadelphia Philadelphia, PA	89%	$29,689	1170-1350	See record
22	Drexel University Philadelphia, PA	79%	$38,509	1240-1440	See record
23	Duquesne University Pittsburgh, PA	84%	$37,730	1180-1340	See record
24	Elizabethtown College Elizabethtown, PA	78%	$26,598	1105-1310	See record
25	Temple University Philadelphia, PA	80%	$28,198	-	See record
26	Messiah University Mechanicsburg, PA	79%	$26,502	1110-1350	See record
27	Saint Francis University Loretto, PA	77%	$23,526	1050-1230	See record
28	Juniata College Huntingdon, PA	79%	$23,988	1130-1320	See record
29	Ursinus College Collegeville, PA	92%	$30,536	1200-1385	See record
30	Allegheny College Meadville, PA	55%	$22,940	1173-1358	See record
31	DeSales University Center Valley, PA	77%	$31,643	1090-1260	See record
32	Moravian University Bethlehem, PA	54%	$30,670	1070-1285	See record
33	Misericordia University Dallas, PA	71%	$37,485	-	See record
34	Marywood University Scranton, PA	61%	$23,388	1060-1250	See record
35	Immaculata University Immaculata, PA	86%	$24,258	1156-1323	See record
36	West Chester University of Pennsylvania West Chester, PA	78%	$23,331	1100-1270	See record
37	Washington & Jefferson College Washington, PA	81%	$25,002	-	See record
38	Saint Joseph's University - Lancaster Lancaster, PA	41%	$42,478	-	See record
39	Saint Vincent College Latrobe, PA	62%	$23,510	1020-1230	See record
40	Thomas Jefferson University Philadelphia, PA	81%	$28,928	1160-1330	See record