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.
Bucknell University
- Private 4 Year
- Lewisburg, PA
-
3.7 | 3 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Bucknell is a selective private university known for undergraduate engineering, management, and the liberal arts. Most undergrads live on a residential campus in the small college town of Lewisburg.
- SAT Range 1310-1470
- Avg GPA 3.62
- Acceptance Rate 29%
- Net Price $39,003
Boston University
- Private 4 Year
- Boston, MA
-
3.4 | 11 reviews
- Jan 4 application deadline
Boston University is a private university known for undergraduate communications, business, and international relations. The urban campus stretches along Commonwealth Avenue beside the Charles River.
- SAT Range 1420-1530
- Avg GPA 3.79
- Acceptance Rate 11%
- Net Price $24,420
Dickinson College
- Private 4 Year
- Carlisle, PA
-
| 0 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Dickinson is a private liberal arts college known for undergraduate international studies, foreign languages, and environmental science. The historic campus sits in the small college town of Carlisle in central Pennsylvania.
- SAT Range 1310-1460
- Avg GPA NA
- Acceptance Rate 42%
- Net Price $38,483
College of the Holy Cross
- Private 4 Year
- Worcester, MA
-
| 0 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Holy Cross is a highly selective Jesuit liberal arts college known for undergraduate economics, political science, and history. The hilltop campus overlooks the city of Worcester.
- SAT Range 1240-1410
- Avg GPA NA
- Acceptance Rate 18%
- Net Price $36,014
Gettysburg College
- Private 4 Year
- Gettysburg, PA
-
5.0 | 2 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Gettysburg is a private liberal arts college known for undergraduate history and political science. The campus borders Gettysburg National Military Park and the Civil War battlefield.
- SAT Range 1270-1460
- Avg GPA NA
- Acceptance Rate 39%
- Net Price $32,769
Mount Holyoke College
- Private 4 Year
- South Hadley, MA
-
| 0 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Mount Holyoke is a private women's liberal arts college known for undergraduate sciences, international relations, and economics. The South Hadley campus is part of the Five College Consortium with Amherst, Smith, Hampshire, and UMass Amherst.
- SAT Range 1380-1530
- Avg GPA 3.87
- Acceptance Rate 36%
- Net Price $32,526
Bryn Mawr College
- Private 4 Year
- Bryn Mawr, PA
-
| 0 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Bryn Mawr is a highly selective private women's liberal arts college known for undergraduate sciences, archaeology, and classics. The suburban Main Line campus outside Philadelphia shares courses and resources with nearby Haverford and Swarthmore.
- SAT Range 1280-1510
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.85
- Acceptance Rate 29%
- Net Price $33,221
Union College
- Private 4 Year
- Schenectady, NY
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Union is a private liberal arts college known for undergraduate engineering alongside the sciences and social sciences. Most students belong to Minerva Houses that organize dining and campus social life.
- SAT Range 1310-1480
- Avg GPA 3.5
- Acceptance Rate 44%
- Net Price $42,137
Brandeis University
- Private 4 Year
- Waltham, MA
-
4.0 | 1 reviews
Brandeis is a private university known for undergraduate neuroscience, biology, and the social sciences. The suburban campus in Waltham sits just west of Boston.
- SAT Range 1390-1520
- Avg GPA 3.84
- Acceptance Rate 40%
- Net Price $43,550
Rhode Island School of Design
- Private 4 Year
- Providence, RI
-
| 0 reviews
- Feb 1 application deadline
RISD is a highly selective private art and design college known for undergraduate fine arts, industrial design, and architecture. The urban Providence campus borders Brown University and offers a dual-degree program with it.
- SAT Range 1396-1530
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.71
- Acceptance Rate 19%
- Net Price $43,492
Connecticut College
- Private 4 Year
- New London, CT
-
4.8 | 4 reviews
- Jan 1 application deadline
Connecticut College is a private liberal arts college known for undergraduate environmental studies and international relations. Much of the campus sits within a large arboretum overlooking the Thames River.
- SAT Range 1350-1500
- Avg GPA 3.7
- Acceptance Rate 37%
- Net Price $45,700
Muhlenberg College
- Private 4 Year
- Allentown, PA
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
- Feb 1 application deadline
Muhlenberg is a private liberal arts college known for undergraduate theater, biology, and media and communication. The residential campus sits in Allentown in Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley.
- SAT Range 1250-1410
- Avg GPA 3.44
- Acceptance Rate 72%
- Net Price $34,739
Bentley University
- Private 4 Year
- Waltham, MA
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Bentley is a private university known for undergraduate business, accounting, and finance. The suburban campus sits in Waltham just west of Boston.
- SAT Range 1280-1430
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.75
- Acceptance Rate 45%
- Net Price $45,802
Babson College
- Private 4 Year
- Wellesley, MA
-
4.0 | 2 reviews
- Jan 3 application deadline
Babson is a private college known for undergraduate entrepreneurship and business. The suburban campus is in Wellesley near Boston.
- SAT Range 1390-1530
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.79
- Acceptance Rate 17%
- Net Price $32,019
Simmons University
- Private 4 Year
- Boston, MA
-
| 0 reviews
- Feb 1 application deadline
Simmons is a private women's university known for undergraduate nursing, social work, and health sciences. The urban campus sits in Boston's Fenway neighborhood.
- SAT Range 1220-1390
- Avg GPA 3.87
- Acceptance Rate 70%
- Net Price $28,691
Stevens Institute of Technology
- Private 4 Year
- Hoboken, NJ
-
| 0 reviews
Stevens is a private technological university known for undergraduate engineering, computer science, and systems engineering. The compact Hoboken campus sits on the Hudson River waterfront facing the Manhattan skyline.
- SAT Range 1380-1505
- Avg GPA 3.88
- Acceptance Rate 48%
- Net Price $46,165
Drexel University
- Private 4 Year
- Philadelphia, PA
-
3.0 | 1 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Drexel is a private university known for undergraduate engineering, design, and business. The urban campus is in Philadelphia's University City neighborhood.
- SAT Range 1240-1440
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.67
- Acceptance Rate 79%
- Net Price $42,801
Providence College
- Private 4 Year
- Providence, RI
-
3.0 | 2 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Providence College is a private Dominican Catholic college known for undergraduate business and the liberal arts. Most undergrads live on the residential campus in a Providence neighborhood.
- SAT Range 1250-1390
- Avg GPA 3.47
- Acceptance Rate 51%
- Net Price $48,618