Top Rated South Private Colleges
These are the top ranked private four-year colleges in the South. Leading the rankings for 2027 as the highest ranked private college in the South is Duke University. Learn how the Best Colleges rankings are calculated on our ranking methodology page.
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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 Miami
- Private 4 Year
- Coral Gables, FL
-
4.0 | 14 reviews
- Jan 1 application deadline
University of Miami is a private university known for undergraduate marine science, business, and communications. The Coral Gables campus has Mediterranean-style buildings set among lakes and tropical landscaping.
- SAT Range 1320-1480
- Avg GPA 3.7
- Acceptance Rate 19%
- Net Price $45,397
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
Southern Methodist University
- Private 4 Year
- Dallas, TX
-
| 0 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
SMU is a private university known for undergraduate business and the performing arts. The campus occupies University Park, a residential enclave within Dallas.
- SAT Range 1340-1490
- Avg GPA 3.68
- Acceptance Rate 63%
- Net Price $48,179
The University of the South
- Private 4 Year
- Sewanee, TN
-
4.5 | 2 reviews
- Feb 1 application deadline
Sewanee is a private liberal arts college known for undergraduate English, creative writing, and environmental studies. The campus occupies a 13,000-acre domain on Tennessee's Cumberland Plateau.
- SAT Range 1260-1390
- Avg GPA NA
- Acceptance Rate 57%
- Net Price $34,815
Furman University
- Private 4 Year
- Greenville, SC
-
| 0 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Furman is a private liberal arts university known for undergraduate biology, political science, and business. The residential campus centers on a lake just outside Greenville.
- SAT Range 1260-1430
- Avg GPA 3.61
- Acceptance Rate 43%
- Net Price $34,086
Texas Christian University
- Private 4 Year
- Fort Worth, TX
-
4.8 | 4 reviews
- Feb 1 application deadline
TCU is a private university known for undergraduate business and communications. The residential campus sits a few miles from downtown Fort Worth.
- SAT Range 1140-1350
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.68
- Acceptance Rate 44%
- Net Price $41,848
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
Rhodes College
- Private 4 Year
- Memphis, TN
-
4.5 | 2 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Rhodes is a private liberal arts college known for undergraduate biology and international studies. The collegiate Gothic campus sits in a wooded residential section of Memphis.
- SAT Range 1300-1486
- Avg GPA 3.99
- Acceptance Rate 50%
- Net Price $31,037
Elon University
- Private 4 Year
- Elon, NC
-
4.0 | 1 reviews
- Jan 10 application deadline
Elon is a private university known for undergraduate communications and business. Most students live on the residential campus in the small college town of Elon.
- SAT Range 1130-1280
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.65
- Acceptance Rate 66%
- Net Price $44,440