Top Rated East Private Colleges
These are the top ranked private four-year colleges in the East. Leading the rankings for 2027 as the highest ranked private college in the East is Princeton University. Learn how the Best Colleges rankings are calculated on our ranking methodology page.
Barnard College
- Private 4 Year
- New York, NY
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5.0 | 1 reviews
- Jan 4 application deadline
Barnard is a highly selective private women's liberal arts college known for undergraduate English, political science, and psychology. The urban Morningside Heights campus sits beside Columbia University, where students can cross-register for courses.
- SAT Range 1470-1560
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.85
- Acceptance Rate 9%
- Net Price $26,407
Wesleyan University
- Private 4 Year
- Middletown, CT
-
| 0 reviews
- Jan 1 application deadline
Wesleyan is a highly selective liberal arts college known for undergraduate film studies, creative writing, and music. Students live on a residential Middletown campus and follow an open curriculum with no required core courses.
- SAT Range 1415-1540
- Avg GPA NA
- Acceptance Rate 16%
- Net Price $23,025
Colby College
- Private 4 Year
- Waterville, ME
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5.0 | 1 reviews
- Jan 1 application deadline
Colby is a highly selective private liberal arts college known for undergraduate environmental studies, economics, and government. The residential campus sits on Mayflower Hill above Waterville.
- SAT Range 1460-1550
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.86
- Acceptance Rate 7%
- Net Price $16,219
Swarthmore College
- Private 4 Year
- Swarthmore, PA
-
5.0 | 3 reviews
- Jan 4 application deadline
Swarthmore is a highly selective liberal arts college known for undergraduate engineering, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The suburban campus is a designated arboretum just outside Philadelphia.
- SAT Range 1490-1560
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.9
- Acceptance Rate 7%
- Net Price $22,469
Bates College
- Private 4 Year
- Lewiston, ME
-
| 0 reviews
- Jan 1 application deadline
Bates is a highly selective private liberal arts college known for undergraduate political science, economics, and biology. Most students live on the residential campus in the small city of Lewiston.
- SAT Range 1420-1530
- Avg GPA NA
- Acceptance Rate 13%
- Net Price $24,723
Haverford College
- Private 4 Year
- Haverford, PA
-
5.0 | 7 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Haverford is a highly selective liberal arts college known for undergraduate sciences, economics, and political science. Students live under a student-run honor code on a suburban campus near Philadelphia.
- SAT Range 1460-1550
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.9
- Acceptance Rate 12%
- Net Price $26,535
New York University
- Private 4 Year
- New York, NY
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
NYU is a highly selective private university known for undergraduate business, film, and the performing arts. The urban campus is centered in Manhattan's Greenwich Village.
- SAT Range 1480-1560
- Avg GPA 3.79
- Acceptance Rate 9%
- Net Price $30,325
Carnegie Mellon University
- Private 4 Year
- Pittsburgh, PA
-
| 0 reviews
- Jan 1 application deadline
Carnegie Mellon is a highly selective private university known for undergraduate computer science, engineering, and drama. The urban campus sits in Pittsburgh's Oakland neighborhood.
- SAT Range 1500-1570
- Avg GPA 3.89
- Acceptance Rate 12%
- Net Price $35,552
Vassar College
- Private 4 Year
- Poughkeepsie, NY
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
- Jan 1 application deadline
Vassar is a highly selective private liberal arts college known for undergraduate English, art history, and the sciences. Most students live on the historic residential campus in New York's Hudson Valley.
- SAT Range 1450-1550
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.86
- Acceptance Rate 19%
- Net Price $29,981
Trinity College
- Private 4 Year
- Hartford, CT
-
5.0 | 6 reviews
- Jan 17 application deadline
Trinity is a private liberal arts college known for undergraduate engineering, political science, and economics. The historic campus occupies a compact urban site in Hartford.
- SAT Range 1298-1470
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.8
- Acceptance Rate 29%
- Net Price $36,071
Lehigh University
- Private 4 Year
- Bethlehem, PA
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3.8 | 6 reviews
- Jan 1 application deadline
Lehigh is a private university known for undergraduate engineering and business. The hillside campus sits on South Mountain overlooking Bethlehem.
- SAT Range 1370-1500
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.81
- Acceptance Rate 26%
- Net Price $34,154
Skidmore College
- Private 4 Year
- Saratoga Springs, NY
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Skidmore is a private liberal arts college known for undergraduate studio art, performing arts, and business. The residential campus sits in the historic spa town of Saratoga Springs.
- SAT Range 1340-1480
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.75
- Acceptance Rate 21%
- Net Price $31,187
Yeshiva University
- Private 4 Year
- New York, NY
-
| 0 reviews
- Feb 1 application deadline
Yeshiva is a private Jewish university known for combining Jewish studies with undergraduate business, sciences, and liberal arts. Men and women study on separate urban campuses in Manhattan.
- SAT Range 1340-1510
- Avg GPA 3.41
- Acceptance Rate 56%
- Net Price $39,681
University of Rochester
- Private 4 Year
- Rochester, NY
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
- Jan 5 application deadline
Rochester is a highly selective private university known for undergraduate optics, music through the Eastman School, and engineering. Undergraduates follow a flexible curriculum built around interdisciplinary clusters rather than fixed general-education requirements.
- SAT Range 1410-1540
- Avg GPA 3.75
- Acceptance Rate 40%
- Net Price $40,462
Franklin and Marshall College
- Private 4 Year
- Lancaster, PA
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3.8 | 6 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Franklin and Marshall is a private liberal arts college known for undergraduate government and the natural sciences. Most students live on a residential campus in the city of Lancaster.
- SAT Range 1310-1463
- Avg GPA NA
- Acceptance Rate 28%
- Net Price $43,987
Villanova University
- Private 4 Year
- Villanova, PA
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5.0 | 4 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Villanova is a highly selective private Catholic university known for undergraduate business, nursing, and engineering. The suburban campus sits on Philadelphia's Main Line.
- SAT Range 1395-1510
- Avg GPA 3.87
- Acceptance Rate 27%
- Net Price $37,201
Smith College
- Private 4 Year
- Northampton, MA
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Smith is a highly selective private women's liberal arts college known for undergraduate engineering, government, and the arts. Students live on a historic campus in Northampton and can cross-register through the Five College Consortium.
- SAT Range 1420-1540
- Avg GPA 4.0
- Acceptance Rate 21%
- Net Price $27,305
Lafayette College
- Private 4 Year
- Easton, PA
-
| 0 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Lafayette is a private liberal arts college known for undergraduate engineering alongside the liberal arts. The residential hillside campus in Easton overlooks the Delaware and Lehigh rivers.
- SAT Range 1350-1500
- Avg GPA 3.53
- Acceptance Rate 31%
- Net Price $38,442