Best Eastern Colleges
There are 284 ranked four-year colleges in the East, evaluated with the same methodology used for our national rankings. Only nonprofit, selective four-year schools are included.
Leading our 2027 rankings is Princeton University in Princeton, New Jersey, topping our list in the East. The top rated public university is University at Buffalo. Also highly ranked: Harvard University, Yale University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Compare tuition, acceptance rates, and enrollment across the colleges below. See how rankings are calculated on our methodology page. Explore the regional list below or browse individual states.
SUNY Oneonta
- Public 4 Year
- Oneonta, NY
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3.0 | 2 reviews
SUNY Oneonta is a public university known for undergraduate education, environmental science, and music. The residential campus sits in a college town in New York's Catskill region.
- SAT Range 1120-1310
- Avg GPA 3.45
- Acceptance Rate 70%
- Net Price $18,669
CUNY Brooklyn College
- Public 4 Year
- Brooklyn, NY
-
1.0 | 1 reviews
- Feb 1 application deadline
Brooklyn College is a public CUNY college known for undergraduate education, the liberal arts, and performing arts. The Georgian-style campus sits on a tree-lined quadrangle in Brooklyn's Midwood neighborhood.
- SAT Range 950-1340
- Avg GPA 3.42
- Acceptance Rate 58%
- Net Price $4,512
Juniata College
- Private 4 Year
- Huntingdon, PA
-
5.0 | 2 reviews
- Mar 15 application deadline
Juniata is a private liberal arts college known for undergraduate natural sciences and its Program of Emphasis, which lets students design individualized majors. The residential campus sits in the small town of Huntingdon along the Juniata River.
- SAT Range 1130-1320
- Avg GPA 3.81
- Acceptance Rate 79%
- Net Price $24,580
DeSales University
- Private 4 Year
- Center Valley, PA
-
3.0 | 2 reviews
- Aug 1 application deadline
DeSales is a private Catholic university known for undergraduate theatre, nursing, and business. The suburban campus is in Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley.
- SAT Range 1090-1260
- Avg GPA 3.39
- Acceptance Rate 77%
- Net Price $31,732
SUNY Polytechnic Institute
- Public 4 Year
- Utica, NY
-
| 0 reviews
- Aug 1 application deadline
SUNY Poly is a public polytechnic institute known for undergraduate engineering, computer science, and cybersecurity. The Utica-area campus sits in Central New York.
- SAT Range 1025-1370
- Avg GPA 3.7
- Acceptance Rate 81%
- Net Price $14,782
Lebanon Valley College
- Private 4 Year
- Annville, PA
-
3.5 | 2 reviews
Lebanon Valley is a private liberal arts college known for undergraduate music and physical therapy. The residential campus sits in the small town of Annville.
- SAT Range 1140-1302
- Avg GPA 3.79
- Acceptance Rate 84%
- Net Price $27,995
Molloy University
- Private 4 Year
- Rockville Centre, NY
-
| 0 reviews
Molloy is a private Catholic university known for undergraduate nursing and health sciences. Students attend a suburban campus in Rockville Centre on Long Island.
- SAT Range 1088-1290
- Avg GPA 3.2
- Acceptance Rate 82%
- Net Price $24,405
Widener University
- Private 4 Year
- Chester, PA
-
| 0 reviews
Widener is a private university known for undergraduate engineering, nursing, and business. The Chester campus sits just south of Philadelphia.
- SAT Range 1080-1290
- Avg GPA 3.46
- Acceptance Rate 71%
- Net Price $26,778
Lycoming College
- Private 4 Year
- Williamsport, PA
-
| 0 reviews
Lycoming is a private liberal arts college known for undergraduate biology, archaeology, and business. The residential campus sits in Williamsport along the Susquehanna River in north-central Pennsylvania.
- SAT Range 1080-1300
- Avg GPA 3.57
- Acceptance Rate 74%
- Net Price $20,492
Messiah University
- Private 4 Year
- Mechanicsburg, PA
-
| 0 reviews
Messiah is a private Christian university known for undergraduate nursing, engineering, and music. Most undergrads live on the residential campus in the Harrisburg suburbs.
- SAT Range 1110-1350
- Avg GPA 3.8
- Acceptance Rate 79%
- Net Price $29,408
SUNY at Fredonia
- Public 4 Year
- Fredonia, NY
-
| 0 reviews
Fredonia is a public university known for undergraduate music, performing arts, and education. The residential campus sits in a small college town in western New York near Lake Erie.
- SAT Range 1160-1370
- Avg GPA 3.3
- Acceptance Rate 78%
- Net Price $16,023
Massachusetts Maritime Academy
- Public 4 Year
- Buzzards Bay, MA
-
| 0 reviews
- Apr 15 application deadline
Mass Maritime is a public maritime academy known for undergraduate marine transportation, marine engineering, and maritime business. Most students join a regiment of cadets on a campus along the Cape Cod Canal in Buzzards Bay.
- SAT Range 1030-1185
- Avg GPA 3.25
- Acceptance Rate 95%
- Net Price $13,546
Gordon College
- Private 4 Year
- Wenham, MA
-
| 0 reviews
- Feb 1 application deadline
Gordon is a private Christian liberal arts college known for undergraduate music, education, and psychology. Most students live on a wooded residential campus in the small North Shore town of Wenham.
- SAT Range 1130-1355
- Avg GPA 3.58
- Acceptance Rate 69%
- Net Price $25,299
Saint Vincent College
- Private 4 Year
- Latrobe, PA
-
| 0 reviews
- May 1 application deadline
Saint Vincent is a private Benedictine liberal arts college known for undergraduate business and biology. The campus shares its grounds with Saint Vincent Archabbey in a small western Pennsylvania town.
- SAT Range 1020-1230
- Avg GPA 3.6
- Acceptance Rate 62%
- Net Price $23,758
CUNY Queens College
- Public 4 Year
- Queens, NY
-
4.0 | 1 reviews
Queens College is a public CUNY college known for undergraduate music through the Aaron Copland School of Music and for education. The tree-lined campus is in Flushing, Queens.
- SAT Range 1010-1290
- Avg GPA 3.0
- Acceptance Rate 64%
- Net Price $5,728
SUNY at Purchase College
- Public 4 Year
- Purchase, NY
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
- Jul 1 application deadline
Purchase is a public college known for undergraduate performing arts, visual arts, and film. The suburban Westchester campus sits near New York City.
- SAT Range 1185-1380
- Avg GPA 3.37
- Acceptance Rate 74%
- Net Price $18,211
Drew University
- Private 4 Year
- Madison, NJ
-
| 0 reviews
- Feb 1 application deadline
Drew is a private liberal arts university known for undergraduate theater, political science, and the humanities. The forested campus sits in suburban Madison near New York City.
- SAT Range 1103-1338
- Avg GPA 3.1
- Acceptance Rate 68%
- Net Price $28,425
Pace University
- Private 4 Year
- New York, NY
-
4.5 | 2 reviews
- Feb 15 application deadline
Pace is a private university known for undergraduate business and performing arts. The urban Manhattan campus sits near New York City's financial district.
- SAT Range 1180-1340
- Avg GPA 3.4
- Acceptance Rate 76%
- Net Price $34,791