The Best Southeastern Small Colleges
These are the top ranked small, public and private, four-year colleges in the Southeast as ranked by CollegeSimply. These schools all have total enrollment under 3,000. Small colleges allow students a more intimate and personalized experience where it's more likely you will get to know your professors. Leading the list for 2027 is Washington and Lee University. Learn how the Best Small Colleges rankings are calculated on our ranking methodology page.
Tougaloo College
- Private 4 Year
- Tougaloo, MS
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| 0 reviews
- 1,301 total enrollment
Tougaloo is a private historically Black liberal arts college known for undergraduate programs in the sciences and social sciences. The historic campus just outside Jackson was a key site in the Civil Rights Movement.
- SAT Range 790-1090
- Avg GPA 2.8
- Acceptance Rate 60%
- Net Price $14,328
University of Mount Olive
- Private 4 Year
- Mount Olive, NC
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| 0 reviews
- 2,109 total enrollment
Mount Olive is a private Christian university known for undergraduate agriculture and business. The residential campus is in the small town of Mount Olive in eastern North Carolina.
- SAT Range 990-1150
- Avg GPA 2.85
- Acceptance Rate 76%
- Net Price $18,853
Point University
- Private 4 Year
- West Point, GA
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| 0 reviews
- 2,260 total enrollment
Point is a small private Christian university known for undergraduate ministry, business, and education. The campus is in the small town of West Point on the Georgia-Alabama border.
- SAT Range 972-1237
- Avg GPA 3.41
- Acceptance Rate 44%
- Net Price $19,545
Barton College
- Private 4 Year
- Wilson, NC
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5.0 | 1 reviews
- 1,235 total enrollment
Barton is a private liberal arts college known for undergraduate nursing and education. The residential campus is in the small city of Wilson in eastern North Carolina.
- SAT Range 970-1150
- Avg GPA 3.25
- Acceptance Rate 94%
- Net Price $23,962
North Carolina Wesleyan University
- Private 4 Year
- Rocky Mount, NC
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| 0 reviews
- 1,419 total enrollment
North Carolina Wesleyan is a small private university known for undergraduate business, education, and criminal justice. The residential campus is located in Rocky Mount in eastern North Carolina.
- SAT Range 860-1120
- Avg GPA 3.2
- Acceptance Rate 80%
- Net Price $18,472
Coker University
- Private 4 Year
- Hartsville, SC
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| 0 reviews
- 1,325 total enrollment
Coker is a private university known for undergraduate liberal arts programs and round-table classroom teaching. The historic campus sits in the small town of Hartsville.
- SAT Range 940-1160
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.1
- Acceptance Rate 94%
- Net Price $19,823
Elizabeth City State University
- Public 4 Year
- Elizabeth City, NC
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| 0 reviews
- 2,258 total enrollment
ECSU is a public HBCU known for undergraduate aviation and teacher education. The campus is in the small coastal city of Elizabeth City in northeastern North Carolina.
- SAT Range 920-1080
- Avg GPA 3.16
- Acceptance Rate 64%
- Net Price $6,483
University of South Carolina Beaufort
- Public 4 Year
- Bluffton, SC
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| 0 reviews
- 2,208 total enrollment
A public university known for undergraduate nursing, hospitality management, and biology. The Bluffton campus sits in South Carolina's Lowcountry near Hilton Head Island.
- SAT Range 940-1110
- Avg GPA 3.82
- Acceptance Rate 73%
- Net Price $15,363
Bethel University
- Private 4 Year
- McKenzie, TN
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| 0 reviews
- 2,936 total enrollment
Bethel is a private Christian university affiliated with the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, known for undergraduate business and education programs. The campus is set in the small town of McKenzie in western Tennessee.
- SAT Range 830-1120
- Avg GPA 3.6
- Acceptance Rate 60%
- Net Price $13,112
Johnson C Smith University
- Private 4 Year
- Charlotte, NC
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4.5 | 2 reviews
- 1,302 total enrollment
Johnson C. Smith is a private historically Black university known for undergraduate business, computer science, and social work. The compact urban campus sits in Charlotte's historic West End.
- SAT Range 800-980
- Avg GPA 2.48
- Acceptance Rate 45%
- Net Price $19,705
Bluefield State University
- Public 4 Year
- Bluefield, WV
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| 0 reviews
- 1,141 total enrollment
Bluefield State is a public HBCU known for undergraduate nursing, engineering technology, and education. The campus is in Bluefield, a small city in the Appalachian mountains of southern West Virginia.
- SAT Range 870-1080
- Avg GPA 3.41
- Acceptance Rate 97%
- Net Price $15,814
Dillard University
- Private 4 Year
- New Orleans, LA
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| 0 reviews
- 1,080 total enrollment
Dillard is a private historically Black university known for undergraduate nursing, public health, and the sciences. The urban campus sits in New Orleans's Gentilly neighborhood.
- SAT Range 968-1202
- Avg GPA 3.31
- Acceptance Rate 42%
- Net Price $21,842
Claflin University
- Private 4 Year
- Orangeburg, SC
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| 0 reviews
- 1,852 total enrollment
Claflin is a private historically Black university known for undergraduate biology, business, and education. The residential campus is located in Orangeburg in central South Carolina.
- SAT Range 840-1040
- Avg GPA 3.28
- Acceptance Rate 65%
- Net Price $17,272
Concord University
- Public 4 Year
- Athens, WV
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| 0 reviews
- 1,943 total enrollment
Concord is a small public university known for undergraduate teacher education and business. The residential campus sits in the college town of Athens in southern West Virginia.
- SAT Range 830-1090
- Avg GPA 3.4
- Acceptance Rate 93%
- Net Price $11,379
Newberry College
- Private 4 Year
- Newberry, SC
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3.0 | 2 reviews
- 1,536 total enrollment
Newberry is a private liberal arts college with undergraduate programs in education and business. The residential campus sits in the small town of Newberry and has long ties to the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.
- SAT Range 820-1060
- Avg GPA 3.58
- Acceptance Rate 90%
- Net Price $21,943
Union Commonwealth University
- Private 4 Year
- Barbourville, KY
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4.5 | 2 reviews
- 1,324 total enrollment
Union Commonwealth is a small private university with undergraduate programs in education, business, and nursing. The residential campus sits in the Appalachian college town of Barbourville.
- SAT Range 920-1105
- Avg GPA 3.15
- Acceptance Rate 63%
- Net Price $17,124
Truett McConnell University
- Private 4 Year
- Cleveland, GA
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| 0 reviews
- 2,615 total enrollment
Truett McConnell is a private Baptist university known for undergraduate Christian studies and education. The campus is in the North Georgia mountains near Cleveland.
- SAT Range 1000-1190
- Avg GPA 3.49
- Acceptance Rate 78%
- Net Price $22,179
Tusculum University
- Private 4 Year
- Greeneville, TN
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| 0 reviews
- 1,103 total enrollment
Tusculum is a small private university with undergraduate programs in business, education, and nursing. The historic Greeneville campus is Tennessee's oldest college and retains a Presbyterian affiliation.
- SAT Range 910-1110
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.18
- Acceptance Rate 72%
- Net Price $20,355