6 GA Schools Among 2025 Best Colleges, Universities In US: New Survey

ATLANTA, GA — Six Georgia post-secondary institutions are named among the 2025 top colleges and universities in the U.S. in WalletHub's latest ranking.

The personal finance agency released its report Monday and said the Georgia Institute of Technology is the 14th-best college or university in the nation. The Atlanta school bested hundreds of post-secondary institutions.

WalletHub ranked at least 800 colleges and universities, analyzing 30 measures regarding student selectivity, cost and financing and career outcomes. The agency said metrics included student-faculty ratios, graduation rates and post-attendance median salaries.

Attending college may be costly for some people. According to WalletHub, annual tuition and room and board at a four-year college could cost a student $28,000-$60,000.

“In general, universities tend to rank higher than colleges due to their inclusion of graduate-level programs, greater on-campus opportunities and higher earnings for students post-graduation," WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo said in the report. "In fact, the top 10 places for higher education in the U.S. are all universities. There are still tons of high-ranking colleges, though, which offer their own advantages like smaller class sizes, more personalized learning and often safer campuses.”

Per WalletHub, these six Georgia colleges and universities scored the following:

Georgia Institute of Technology, No. 14, Atlanta

• Total Score: 75.12
• Student Selectivity Rank: 41
• Cost and Financing Rank: 350
• Faculty Resources Rank: 781
• Campus Safety Rank: 232
• Campus Experience Rank: 241
• Education Outcomes Rank: 35
• Career Outcomes Rank: 28

Emory University, No. 66, Atlanta

• Total Score: 68.35
• Student Selectivity Rank: 63
• Cost and Financing Rank: 800
• Faculty Resources Rank: 123
• Campus Safety Rank: 214
• Campus Experience Rank: 26
• Education Outcomes Rank: 31
• Career Outcomes Rank: 64

University of Georgia, No. 68, Athens

• Total Score: 68.2
• Student Selectivity Rank: 87
• Cost and Financing Rank: 217
• Faculty Resources Rank: 563
• Campus Safety Rank: 693
• Campus Experience Rank: 528
• Education Outcomes Rank: 65
• Career Outcomes Rank: 287

Mercer University, No. 239, Macon

• Total Score: 59.48
• Student Selectivity Rank: 205
• Cost and Financing Rank: 473
• Faculty Resources Rank: 341
• Campus Safety Rank: 250
• Campus Experience Rank: 162
• Education Outcomes Rank: 212
• Career Outcomes Rank: 672

University of West Georgia, 362, Carrollton

• Total Score: 57.05
• Student Selectivity Rank: 198
• Cost and Financing Rank: 104
• Faculty Resources Rank: 592
• Campus Safety Rank: 357
• Campus Experience Rank: 657
• Education Outcomes Rank: 700
• Career Outcomes Rank: 714

Georgia College and State University, 407, Milledgeville

• Total Score: 56.19
• Student Selectivity Rank: 595
• Cost and Financing Rank: 216
• Faculty Resources Rank: 432
• Campus Safety Rank: 704
• Campus Experience Rank: 581
• Education Outcomes Rank: 424
• Career Outcomes Rank: 416

Solely among U.S. universities, Georgia Tech is 13th, and UGA is ranked No. 55. The College of Coastal Georgia in Brunswick is No. 71 only among the best colleges.

Middle Georgia State University is tied for one of the highest admission rates, WalletHub said. The Macon school had a 100 percent acceptance rate, according to U.S. News and World Report.

On the flip side, Middle Georgia and the College of Coastal Georgia have two of the lowest graduation rates in the country, WalletHub said.

Atlanta's Georgia State University is among the institutions with the highest student-faculty ratio.

As for student-loan debt, WalletHub ranked Savannah College of Art and Design among the highest in the U.S. SCAD has campuses in Atlanta and Savannah.

Students who attend Tifton's Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College make some of the lowest post-attendance median salaries.

Regionally, Rice University in Texas is the best institution, with an overall score of 77.19. Georgia Tech is second best. Emory University and Georgia State are 13th and 14th best, respectively.

Here are the top 10 colleges and universities in the U.S.:

1. Princeton University, New Jersey
2. Yale University, Connecticut
3. Harvard University, Massachusetts
4. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Massachusetts
5. Dartmouth College, New Hampshire
6. Rice University, Texas
7. California Institute of Technology, California
8. Carnegie Mellon University, Pennsylvania
9. Northwestern University, Illinois
10. Johns Hopkins University, Maryland

Here are the top 10 colleges and universities in the South:

1. Rice University, Texas
2. Georgia Institute of Technology, Georgia
3. Duke University, North Carolina
4. Washington and Lee University, Virginia
5. University of Florida, Florida
6. Vanderbilt University, Tennessee
7. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, North Carolina
8. University of Virginia, Virginia
9. University of Richmond, Virginia
10. Florida State University, Florida

See the full lists via WalletHub.