Best Value Southern Colleges
There are 359 colleges in the South ranked by value using the same methodology as our national list. Rankings balance academic quality with the net price students typically pay.
University of Tulsa leads South value rankings for 2027 with a 10 out of 10 academic rating and an average net price of $13,095. The top value public university is New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology. Also high value: Duke University, Johns Hopkins University and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Compare net price, aid, and academic ratings across the colleges below. See how value scores are calculated on our methodology page. Explore the regional list below or browse individual states.
University of Tulsa
- Private 4 Year
- Tulsa, OK
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
University of Tulsa is a private university known for undergraduate petroleum engineering and energy programs. The compact urban campus sits in midtown Tulsa.
- SAT Range 1223-1530
- Avg GPA 3.97
- Acceptance Rate 62%
- Net Price $13,095
Duke University
- Private 4 Year
- Durham, NC
-
5.0 | 6 reviews
- Jan 3 application deadline
Duke is a highly selective private university known for undergraduate public policy, biomedical engineering, and economics. The residential campus in Durham centers on Collegiate Gothic quads and a separate East Campus for first-year housing.
- SAT Range 1500-1570
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.94
- Acceptance Rate 6%
- Net Price $21,981
Johns Hopkins University
- Private 4 Year
- Baltimore, MD
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
- Jan 3 application deadline
Johns Hopkins is a highly selective private university known for undergraduate biomedical engineering, public health, and international studies. Most undergraduates study on the Homewood campus in north Baltimore.
- SAT Range 1520-1570
- Avg GPA 3.92
- Acceptance Rate 6%
- Net Price $26,017
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
- Public 4 Year
- Chapel Hill, NC
-
5.0 | 2 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
UNC-Chapel Hill is a highly selective public university known for undergraduate journalism, business, and public health. Chapel Hill is a classic college town built around the historic campus.
- SAT Range 1390-1530
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.83
- Acceptance Rate 15%
- Net Price $10,154
Vanderbilt University
- Private 4 Year
- Nashville, TN
-
5.0 | 5 reviews
- Jan 1 application deadline
Vanderbilt is a highly selective private university known for undergraduate education, music, and the sciences. The tree-lined urban campus is a designated arboretum in the heart of Nashville.
- SAT Range 1500-1570
- Avg GPA 3.89
- Acceptance Rate 6%
- Net Price $25,186
Rice University
- Private 4 Year
- Houston, TX
-
5.0 | 2 reviews
- Jan 1 application deadline
Rice is a highly selective private university known for undergraduate engineering, architecture, and the natural sciences. Most undergraduates live in residential colleges that organize dining and social life on the urban Houston campus.
- SAT Range 1510-1570
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.96
- Acceptance Rate 8%
- Net Price $23,589
Washington and Lee University
- Private 4 Year
- Lexington, VA
-
4.3 | 3 reviews
- Jan 1 application deadline
Washington and Lee is a highly selective private liberal arts university known for undergraduate business, journalism, and politics. Most undergrads live under a strict student-run honor system on the historic campus in Lexington.
- SAT Range 1430-1540
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.87
- Acceptance Rate 14%
- Net Price $23,055
Wake Forest University
- Private 4 Year
- Winston-Salem, NC
-
| 0 reviews
- Jan 1 application deadline
Wake Forest is a highly selective private university known for undergraduate business and the liberal arts. Most undergraduates live on the residential campus in Winston-Salem.
- SAT Range 1410-1520
- Avg GPA NA
- Acceptance Rate 22%
- Net Price $24,401
University of Virginia Main Campus
- Public 4 Year
- Charlottesville, VA
-
| 0 reviews
UVA is a highly selective public university known for undergraduate commerce, government, and architecture. The historic campus in Charlottesville centers on Thomas Jefferson's Academical Village.
- SAT Range 1410-1540
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.85
- Acceptance Rate 17%
- Net Price $18,427
Emory University
- Private 4 Year
- Atlanta, GA
-
4.8 | 5 reviews
- Jan 1 application deadline
Emory is a highly selective private university known for undergraduate business, nursing, and the biological sciences. The wooded campus sits in Atlanta's Druid Hills neighborhood.
- SAT Range 1470-1550
- Avg GPA 3.8
- Acceptance Rate 11%
- Net Price $27,303
Davidson College
- Private 4 Year
- Davidson, NC
-
4.0 | 1 reviews
- Jan 7 application deadline
Davidson is a highly selective private liberal arts college known for undergraduate economics, political science, and the sciences. An honor code shapes unproctored exams and student self-governance on the residential campus near Charlotte.
- SAT Range 1400-1530
- Avg GPA 3.81
- Acceptance Rate 13%
- Net Price $27,720
New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology
- Public 4 Year
- Socorro, NM
-
| 0 reviews
- Aug 1 application deadline
New Mexico Tech is a small public technological university known for undergraduate engineering, earth sciences, and physics. The campus is in the small town of Socorro in central New Mexico.
- SAT Range 1080-1310
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.63
- Acceptance Rate 44%
- Net Price $11,551
University of Richmond
- Private 4 Year
- University of Richmond, VA
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
- Jan 1 application deadline
University of Richmond is a highly selective private university known for undergraduate business and leadership studies. The suburban Collegiate Gothic campus sits in Richmond's West End.
- SAT Range 1410-1530
- Avg GPA 3.71
- Acceptance Rate 22%
- Net Price $30,037
University of Florida
- Public 4 Year
- Gainesville, FL
-
4.5 | 6 reviews
- Mar 1 application deadline
UF is a highly selective public university known for undergraduate business, engineering, and journalism. The large campus anchors the college town of Gainesville.
- SAT Range 1320-1480
- Avg GPA 3.9
- Acceptance Rate 24%
- Net Price $11,936
Centre College
- Private 4 Year
- Danville, KY
-
| 0 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Centre is a private liberal arts college known for undergraduate economics, politics, and the natural sciences. Most students live on the residential campus in the small college town of Danville.
- SAT Range 1160-1450
- Avg GPA 3.62
- Acceptance Rate 54%
- Net Price $23,860
Virginia Military Institute
- Public 4 Year
- Lexington, VA
-
5.0 | 2 reviews
- Feb 1 application deadline
VMI is a public military college known for undergraduate engineering and the sciences. All students join the Corps of Cadets and live in barracks under a military regimen on the historic Lexington campus.
- SAT Range 1050-1270
- Avg GPA 3.65
- Acceptance Rate 71%
- Net Price $18,825
Trinity University
- Private 4 Year
- San Antonio, TX
-
| 0 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Trinity is a private university known for undergraduate business, communication, and the sciences. Most students live on a residential hilltop campus overlooking downtown San Antonio.
- SAT Range 1340-1500
- Avg GPA 3.68
- Acceptance Rate 26%
- Net Price $32,224
William & Mary
- Public 4 Year
- Williamsburg, VA
-
5.0 | 4 reviews
- Jan 2 application deadline
William & Mary is a highly selective public university known for undergraduate history, government, and international relations. The historic campus adjoins Colonial Williamsburg in a small college town.
- SAT Range 1400-1530
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.85
- Acceptance Rate 34%
- Net Price $19,686