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.
Quinnipiac University
- Private 4 Year
- Hamden, CT
-
3.8 | 5 reviews
- Feb 1 application deadline
Quinnipiac is a private university known for undergraduate nursing, health sciences, and communications. The suburban campus sits at the base of Sleeping Giant in Hamden.
- SAT Range 1150-1320
- Avg GPA 3.39
- Acceptance Rate 72%
- Net Price $40,632
Adelphi University
- Private 4 Year
- Garden City, NY
-
3.0 | 3 reviews
Adelphi is a private university known for undergraduate nursing, psychology, and the performing arts. The suburban Garden City campus sits on Long Island outside New York City.
- SAT Range 1120-1340
- Avg GPA 3.69
- Acceptance Rate 66%
- Net Price $31,303
Bard College
- Private 4 Year
- Annandale-On-Hudson, NY
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
- Jan 1 application deadline
Bard is a private liberal arts college known for undergraduate arts, music, and literature. The campus overlooks the Hudson River in New York's Hudson Valley.
- SAT Range 1270-1450
- Avg GPA NA
- Acceptance Rate 52%
- Net Price $29,320
Clarkson University
- Private 4 Year
- Potsdam, NY
-
5.0 | 3 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Clarkson is a private university known for undergraduate engineering, business, and the sciences. The residential campus is in the small college town of Potsdam in northern New York.
- SAT Range 1200-1390
- Avg GPA 3.8
- Acceptance Rate 77%
- Net Price $32,406
Duquesne University
- Private 4 Year
- Pittsburgh, PA
-
3.0 | 2 reviews
- Aug 15 application deadline
Duquesne is a private Catholic university known for undergraduate pharmacy, nursing, and business. The urban campus sits on a bluff overlooking downtown Pittsburgh.
- SAT Range 1180-1340
- Avg GPA 3.8
- Acceptance Rate 84%
- Net Price $37,917
Allegheny College
- Private 4 Year
- Meadville, PA
-
| 0 reviews
- Feb 15 application deadline
Allegheny is a private liberal arts college known for requiring a major and minor in different fields and a senior comprehensive project. The historic campus sits in the small college town of Meadville in northwestern Pennsylvania.
- SAT Range 1173-1358
- Avg GPA 3.53
- Acceptance Rate 55%
- Net Price $26,420
Hofstra University
- Private 4 Year
- Hempstead, NY
-
4.0 | 3 reviews
Hofstra is a private university known for undergraduate communications, journalism, and business. The suburban Long Island campus sits in Hempstead near New York City.
- SAT Range 1230-1400
- Avg GPA 3.74
- Acceptance Rate 68%
- Net Price $35,792
Moravian University
- Private 4 Year
- Bethlehem, PA
-
| 0 reviews
Moravian is a private university known for undergraduate nursing, education, and the liberal arts. The historic campus sits in downtown Bethlehem in the Lehigh Valley.
- SAT Range 1070-1285
- Avg GPA 3.55
- Acceptance Rate 54%
- Net Price $31,743
Emerson College
- Private 4 Year
- Boston, MA
-
| 0 reviews
- Feb 20 application deadline
Emerson is a private college known for undergraduate journalism, film, and performing arts. The urban campus sits in Boston's Theater District near Boston Common.
- SAT Range 1270-1420
- Avg GPA 3.73
- Acceptance Rate 51%
- Net Price $53,432
St. John Fisher University
- Private 4 Year
- Rochester, NY
-
4.0 | 1 reviews
St. John Fisher is a private Catholic university known for undergraduate pharmacy, nursing, and business. The suburban campus sits in the Rochester area of western New York.
- SAT Range 1120-1300
- Avg GPA 3.53
- Acceptance Rate 66%
- Net Price $30,540
Seton Hall University
- Private 4 Year
- South Orange, NJ
-
3.0 | 1 reviews
- Feb 1 application deadline
Seton Hall is a private Catholic university known for undergraduate business and diplomacy. The suburban campus in South Orange sits a short train ride from New York City.
- SAT Range 1220-1390
- Avg GPA 3.64
- Acceptance Rate 73%
- Net Price $33,896
Springfield College
- Private 4 Year
- Springfield, MA
-
| 0 reviews
- Aug 1 application deadline
Springfield College is a private college known for undergraduate physical education, exercise science, and health sciences. Basketball was invented on its campus, and the school keeps a long focus on sport and human services.
- SAT Range 1080-1330
- Avg GPA 3.56
- Acceptance Rate 72%
- Net Price $30,039
University of Scranton
- Private 4 Year
- Scranton, PA
-
5.0 | 2 reviews
- Mar 1 application deadline
Scranton is a private Jesuit university known for undergraduate health sciences, physical therapy, and business. The compact urban campus sits in downtown Scranton.
- SAT Range 1160-1318
- Avg GPA 3.56
- Acceptance Rate 81%
- Net Price $34,234
New York Institute of Technology
- Private 4 Year
- Old Westbury, NY
-
3.0 | 2 reviews
NYIT is a private university known for undergraduate architecture, engineering, and computer science. The suburban Old Westbury campus sits on Long Island.
- SAT Range 1190-1420
- Avg GPA 3.5
- Acceptance Rate 81%
- Net Price $24,688
Manhattan University
- Private 4 Year
- Riverdale, NY
-
4.5 | 2 reviews
- Aug 31 application deadline
Manhattan University is a private Lasallian Catholic university known for undergraduate engineering. The residential campus is in the Riverdale section of the Bronx.
- SAT Range 1180-1358
- Avg GPA 3.63
- Acceptance Rate 79%
- Net Price $29,717
Pratt Institute Main
- Private 4 Year
- Brooklyn, NY
-
4.0 | 1 reviews
- Jan 5 application deadline
Pratt is a private college known for undergraduate architecture, art, and design. The compact urban campus occupies a city-block setting in Brooklyn's Clinton Hill.
- SAT Range 1150-1390
- Avg GPA 3.86
- Acceptance Rate 73%
- Net Price $54,150
Siena College
- Private 4 Year
- Loudonville, NY
-
2.8 | 6 reviews
- Feb 15 application deadline
Siena is a private Franciscan college known for undergraduate business and the liberal arts. Students live on a residential campus in the Albany suburb of Loudonville.
- SAT Range 1110-1360
- Avg GPA 3.53
- Acceptance Rate 69%
- Net Price $32,955
Saint Anselm College
- Private 4 Year
- Manchester, NH
-
| 0 reviews
- Feb 1 application deadline
Saint Anselm is a private Catholic liberal arts college known for undergraduate politics and nursing. The Benedictine campus in Manchester has long hosted New Hampshire presidential primary debates.
- SAT Range 1110-1278
- Avg GPA 3.39
- Acceptance Rate 78%
- Net Price $35,551