United States Private Colleges Ranked by Largest Enrollment
Below is a ranking of the 1262 private colleges in the United States with the largest enrollment of full and part time students. Western Governors University leads the list with a population of 210,208 students.
Enrollment is a measure of the size of the student body. Larger schools are more likely to offer a wider range of programs and services while smaller schools may have a more intimate and personalized experience.
| College | Enrollment |
|---|---|
|
Illinois Wesleyan University
Bloomington, Illinois |
1,582 |
|
La Sierra University
Riverside, California |
1,574 |
|
Saint Johns University
Collegeville, Minnesota |
1,572 |
|
Oklahoma Baptist University
Shawnee, Oklahoma |
1,569 |
|
Whitman College
Walla Walla, Washington |
1,561 |
|
Midland University
Fremont, Nebraska |
1,558 |
|
Spalding University
Louisville, Kentucky |
1,553 |
|
University of Mobile
Mobile, Alabama |
1,545 |
|
MidAmerica Nazarene University
Olathe, Kansas |
1,538 |
|
Dunwoody College of Technology
Minneapolis, Minnesota |
1,537 |
|
Newberry College
Newberry, South Carolina |
1,536 |
|
Berea College
Berea, Kentucky |
1,527 |
|
Ohio Wesleyan University
Delaware, Ohio |
1,525 |
|
Ursinus College
Collegeville, Pennsylvania |
1,502 |
|
Wartburg College
Waverly, Iowa |
1,483 |
|
Averett University
Danville, Virginia |
1,476 |
|
Thomas University
Thomasville, Georgia |
1,471 |
|
Kettering University
Flint, Michigan |
1,466 |
This list is updated annually based on the latest data from the National Center for Education Statistics.
Last updated: March 15, 2026
Data source: IPEDS 2025 survey for academic year 2024/2025 - National Center for Education Statistics.