U.S. News & World Report 2022
Elon is ranked among the top-100 National Universities with a #1 ranking for teaching excellence
Elon University is ranked #83 among the nation’s most prestigious comprehensive universities, with a #1 ranking for excellence in undergraduate teaching and a #9 ranking for Most Innovative National University. The 2022 rankings are included in the annual U.S. News & World Report “Best Colleges” guide.
Elon is ranked #1 in the nation for excellence in teaching.
As the #1 ranked National University for undergraduate teaching, Elon leads a group of outstanding universities committed to teaching excellence, including Georgia State University, Princeton University, Brown University, Dartmouth College, Rice University, University of Maryland-Baltimore County, Boston College, the College of William & Mary and Arizona State University.
Schools in the National Universities category offer a full range of undergraduate majors, plus master’s and doctoral programs. Elon moved to the category in 2019 after it was classified as a Doctoral/Professional University by the Carnegie Classification of Colleges. The top schools in the National Universities category this year are (in rank order) Princeton, Columbia, Harvard, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Yale, Stanford, University of Chicago, University of Pennsylvania, California Institute of Technology, Duke University, Johns Hopkins and Northwestern University.
Elon is also ranked by U.S. News & World Report as the #9 Most Innovative National University. Schools in the top-10 include Arizona State University, Georgia State University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Georgia Institute of Technology, Carnegie Mellon University, University of Maryland-Baltimore County, Stanford University, Purdue University-West Lafayette, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor and California Institute of Technology. Duke University is ranked #16 and North Carolina A&T State University #46, while the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Wake Forest University, North Carolina State University and the University of North Carolina at Charlotte are all ranked #70.
Elon is ranked #83 overall and #52 among private National Universities based on strong scores in several areas of the U.S. News “Best Colleges” methodology. Elon ranks #19 in alumni annual financial support, #65 in graduation and student retention rates, with 90 percent of first-year students returning for their sophomore year and 79 percent going on to graduate within six years. Elon is one of only 16 schools with zero percent of classes larger than 50 students.
This year’s #1 national ranking for teaching excellence is a testament to the strong relationships faculty mentors build with their students inside and outside the classroom. Teaching and mentorship are central to an Elon education, and with the support of staff across the university, Elon’s highly skilled faculty are impacting the lives of their students on a daily and lifelong basis.
For the seventh straight year, Elon is the leader in the “Focus on Student Success” feature – the only college or university ranked in the top-20 in all eight categories of high-impact academic programs.
- #1 Learning Communities
- #1 Study Abroad
- #2 First-Year Experiences
- #2 Service Learning
- #3 Senior Capstone
- #6 Internships/Co-ops
- #13 Undergraduate Research/Creative Projects
- #16 Writing in the Disciplines
With Elon ranked in the top-20 in eight categories, Duke University was ranked in the top-20 in seven categories; Stanford University and Agnes Scott College in seven categories; Yale University, Carleton College and Boston University in six categories; and Dartmouth College, Harvard University, Brown University, Princeton University, University of Michigan, Amherst College and Northwestern University in five categories.
Top-10 National Universities recognized for excellence in undergraduate teaching:
- #1 Elon University
- #2 Georgia State University
- #3 Princeton University
- #4 Brown University
- #5 Dartmouth College
- #6 Rice University
- #6 University of Maryland–Baltimore County
- #8 Boston College
- #9 College of William & Mary
- #10 Arizona State University
Top-10 “Most Innovative” National Universities:
- #1 Arizona State University-Tempe
- #2 Georgia State University
- #3 Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- #4 Georgia Institute of Technology
- #5 Carnegie Mellon University
- #6 University of Maryland-Baltimore County
- #7 Stanford University
- #8 Purdue University-West Lafayette
- #9 Elon University
- #9 University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
North Carolina colleges and universities in the National Universities category:
- #9 Duke University
- #28 University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
- #28 Wake Forest University
- #79 North Carolina State University
- #83 Elon University
- #187 University of North Carolina at Wilmington
- #213 East Carolina University
- #227 University of North Carolina at Charlotte
- #239 University of North Carolina at Greensboro
- #277 Campbell University
- #277 Gardner-Webb University
- #277 North Carolina A&T State University
- #299-391 Wingate University