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These 7 Mass Liberal Arts Colleges Rank Among Top 20 In US, New Report Says

The grades are in, and these colleges are a cut above the rest.

A college lecture hall

A college lecture hall

 Photo Credit: Canva/Stratol
Michael Mashburn
@mistermashburn Email me Read More Stories

Of the top 20 liberal arts colleges in the United States, four can be found in Massachusetts, three in New York, and one in Connecticut, according to U.S. News & World Report’s 2023 National Liberal Arts Colleges Rankings.

They are:

  • No. 1 - Williams College in Williamstown, Massachusetts
  • No. 2 - Amherst College in Amherst, Massachusetts
  • No. 4 - Wellesley College in Wellesley, Massachusetts (Tied with Pomona College in Claremont, California and Swarthmore College in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania)
  • No. 8 - United States Military Academy at West Point in West Point, New York
  • No. 11 - Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut (Tied with Barnard College in New York City, Claremont McKenna College in Claremont, California, Grinnell College in Grinnell, Iowa, and Middlebury College in Middlebury, Vermont)
  • No. 16 - Hamilton College in Clinton, New York, Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts, and Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York (Tied with Davidson College in Davidson, North Carolina and Harvey Mudde College in Claremont, California)

Rankings were calculated using a number of key indicators, such as graduation rates, first-year retention rates, student-faculty ratio, standardized tests, class sizes, and the number of graduates earning more than high school graduates.

The top school on the list, Williams College, in Williamstown, Massachusetts, boasts an 88-percent 4-year graduation rate, along with a student-faculty ratio of seven to one, according to the report. Seventy-two percent of classes have fewer than 20 students.

Popular majors at the 230-year-old school include econometrics and quantitative economics (21 percent), political science and government (13 percent), and psychology (13 percent). History and mathematics follow at 10 percent each.

On average, students at the school spend $14,739 per year on tuition, fees, and room and board expenses, according to the report.

Williams College boasts several famous alums, including Chris Murphy, Connecticut’s junior senator, James Garfield, the 20th president of the United States, and broadcast journalists Mika Brzezinski and Erin Burnett.

View the complete ranking on U.S. News & World Report’s website.

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