Public universities with the highest graduation rates
Four-year public colleges ranked by the share of students who graduate, with in-state tuition, price after grants and graduate earnings beside each.
Data verified Nov 2026 · CollegesRef 2026–27 edition · Source: College Scorecard and IPEDS, latest data · 584 colleges · Last updated November 15, 2026 · Next check November 16, 2026
Ranked first
95%
United States Coast Guard Academy (Connecticut), graduation rate.
College Scorecard, latest data
Key findings
- Median qualifying college
- 51%
- Graduation rate.
- Colleges that qualify
- 584
- The top 50 are listed below.
- States
- 51
- 584 public and 0 private nonprofit colleges.
584 four-year colleges in 51 states meet every criterion on this page.
United States Coast Guard Academy (Connecticut) ranks first, with a graduation rate of 95%.
The median qualifying college has a graduation rate of 51%.
College by college
The ranking
Ranked by graduation rate, highest first. Select a column heading to sort.
| United States Coast Guard AcademyConnecticut · Public | 1 | 95% | — | — | — |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus GA TechGeorgia · Public | 2 | 94% | $12,008 | $12,028 | $114,210 |
| University of California-Berkeley CALCalifornia · Public | 3 | 94% | $17,198 | $14,538 | $100,212 |
| University of Virginia-Main Campus UVAVirginia · Public | 4 | 94% | $22,431 | $18,056 | $96,468 |
| University of California-Los Angeles UCLACalifornia · Public | 5 | 93% | $15,729 | $14,659 | $88,581 |
| University of Michigan-Ann Arbor Main CampusMichigan · Public | 6 | 93% | $18,346 | $14,362 | $92,832 |
| University of FloridaFlorida · Public | 7 | 92% | $6,381 | $5,969 | $78,456 |
| University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Main CampusNorth Carolina · Public | 8 | 91% | $9,095 | $11,305 | $81,094 |
| University of Wisconsin-Madison Main CampusWisconsin · Public | 9 | 90% | $12,166 | $16,600 | $80,330 |
| The University of Texas at Austin Main CampusTexas · Public | 10 | 89% | $11,656 | $18,554 | $81,694 |
| University of GeorgiaGeorgia · Public | 11 | 89% | $11,492 | $13,636 | $77,246 |
| Clemson UniversitySouth Carolina · Public | 12 | 88% | $15,854 | $22,032 | $79,064 |
| United States Naval Academy at AnnapolisMaryland · Public | 13 | 88% | — | — | — |
| University of Maryland-College Park Main CampusMaryland · Public | 14 | 88% | $12,290 | $14,296 | $89,228 |
| William & MaryVirginia · Public | 15 | 88% | $26,456 | $18,880 | $83,488 |
| California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo SLOCalifornia · Public | 16 | 87% | $15,039 | $18,832 | $96,304 |
| Ohio State University-Main CampusOhio · Public | 17 | 87% | $13,641 | $17,269 | $67,080 |
| University of California-Irvine UCICalifornia · Public | 18 | 87% | $16,235 | $13,866 | $83,432 |
| Florida State University-Main CampusFlorida · Public | 19 | 86% | $5,656 | $8,605 | $68,225 |
| United States Military Academy at West PointNew York · Public | 20 | 86% | — | — | — |
| University of California-DavisCalifornia · Public | 21 | 86% | $17,346 | $14,318 | $86,999 |
| University of California-San Diego UCSDCalifornia · Public | 22 | 86% | $17,337 | $14,794 | $96,197 |
| University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Main CampusIllinois · Public | 23 | 86% | $16,354 | $13,042 | $87,599 |
| University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh CampusPennsylvania · Public | 24 | 86% | $22,736 | $29,362 | $73,113 |
| Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State UniversityVirginia · Public | 25 | 86% | $16,450 | $25,808 | $88,716 |
| North Carolina State University at RaleighNorth Carolina · Public | 26 | 85% | $8,815 | $16,486 | $77,810 |
| Pennsylvania State University-Main CampusPennsylvania · Public | 27 | 85% | $21,098 | $33,675 | $71,762 |
| Texas A & M University-College StationTexas · Public | 28 | 85% | $13,154 | $21,527 | $78,159 |
| The College of New JerseyNew Jersey · Public | 29 | 85% | $20,378 | $26,752 | $79,651 |
| University of Minnesota-Twin Cities Main CampusMinnesota · Public | 30 | 85% | $18,482 | $17,330 | $74,314 |
| University of Washington-Seattle Main CampusWashington · Public | 31 | 85% | $13,406 | $13,663 | $83,105 |
| Purdue University-Main CampusIndiana · Public | 32 | 84% | $9,992 | $14,851 | $80,082 |
| Rutgers University-New Brunswick Main CampusNew Jersey · Public | 33 | 84% | $18,824 | $24,897 | $80,490 |
| United States Air Force AcademyColorado · Public | 34 | 84% | — | — | — |
| University of California-Santa Barbara UCSBCalifornia · Public | 35 | 84% | $16,989 | $16,807 | $82,568 |
| University of Connecticut UCONNConnecticut · Public | 36 | 84% | $21,334 | $24,342 | $82,098 |
| University of Florida-OnlineFlorida · Public | 37 | 83% | $3,876 | $4,336 | $78,456 |
| Auburn UniversityAlabama · Public | 38 | 82% | $13,318 | $25,424 | $73,273 |
| Binghamton University SUNYNew York · Public | 39 | 82% | $10,567 | $20,907 | $89,136 |
| Colorado School of MinesColorado · Public | 40 | 82% | $22,658 | $32,901 | $102,077 |
| Fashion Institute of Technology FITNew York · Public | 41 | 81% | $6,596 | $16,514 | $72,055 |
| Miami University-OxfordOhio · Public | 42 | 81% | $18,520 | $29,447 | $63,814 |
| University of Massachusetts-Amherst UMASS Main CampusMassachusetts · Public | 43 | 81% | $18,487 | $22,857 | $80,486 |
| University of Vermont UVMVermont · Public | 44 | 81% | $19,514 | $20,277 | $68,368 |
| Indiana University-Bloomington Main CampusIndiana · Public | 45 | 80% | $12,144 | $16,003 | $70,105 |
| James Madison UniversityVirginia · Public | 46 | 80% | $14,620 | $23,550 | $75,482 |
| Michigan State UniversityMichigan · Public | 47 | 80% | $17,256 | $21,322 | $74,168 |
| Citadel Military College of South CarolinaSouth Carolina · Public | 48 | 79% | $12,570 | $22,019 | $82,609 |
| The University of Texas at DallasTexas · Public | 49 | 79% | $14,664 | $15,271 | $74,762 |
| University of South Carolina-Columbia Main CampusSouth Carolina · Public | 50 | 79% | $12,688 | $22,197 | $69,024 |
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
Use this for your family
These are medians. Your price and payback depend on your income, your state and the college, so run the numbers for the colleges on your list.
Methodology
- Colleges counted
- Every college published on CollegesRef that is public or private nonprofit, in a four-year Carnegie class (doctoral, master's or baccalaureate), in the 50 states or D.C., with at least 500 undergraduates and both figures reported in the College Scorecard.
- Criteria
- This list keeps public four-year colleges, then ranks them by graduation rate. Closed colleges are left out.
3 more notes: exclusions, definitions, what it leaves out
- Exclusions
- For-profit colleges, two-year colleges, special-focus institutions, colleges with fewer undergraduates than the minimum, U.S. territories and colleges missing either figure are left out. Earnings figures without a federal reporting year are excluded.
- Definitions
- Median earnings are former students' earnings ten years after entry (College Scorecard MD_EARN_WNE_P10). Average net price is cost of attendance minus average grants for aided first-time, full-time students (NPT4). Median debt is federal loan debt at graduation (GRAD_DEBT_MDN). Graduation rate is the IPEDS rate reported in the Scorecard.
- What it leaves out
- A ranking on federal figures says nothing about teaching, fit or programs. Earnings are before tax and not specific to a major; prices are averages, so your family's price depends on its income and the college's aid.
Read the CollegesRef methodology for how college data is checked, or browse all data stories.
Sources
- Data
- U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, which reports these figures from the IPEDS surveys and federal student aid records; Carnegie classes from IPEDS.
- Edition
- 2026–27, data verified Nov 2026
- Source data
- Latest College Scorecard release
- Last updated
- November 15, 2026
- Next check
- November 16, 2026. The figures are recomputed weekly and change only when the federal data does.
- License
- Federal data is a U.S. government work in the public domain. CollegesRef's tables, charts and CSV are free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 with a link to this page.
- Downloads
- CSVMarkdown (for AI tools)
Frequently asked questions
Short answers about how the numbers work.
How is this list ranked?
CollegesRef keeps public four-year colleges, and ranks them by graduation rate, highest first. 584 colleges qualify; the top 50 are shown and the CSV holds the same rows.
Which college ranks first?
United States Coast Guard Academy (Connecticut, public), with graduation rate of 95%. The median qualifying college reports 51%.
Where does the data come from?
The U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard (latest data), which reports IPEDS cost and graduation figures and federal earnings and debt records. CollegesRef recomputes the list weekly from the latest snapshot.
How to cite
Credit CollegesRef and link to this story; the CSV above carries every figure on this page. Free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 with a visible link to this page. Questions go to Data and press.
Related guides and tools
Step-by-step explanations of the figures, written from the same federal data.