Highest graduation rates – doctoral research universities

These 50 doctoral research universities rank highest by 6-year graduation rate, drawn from 430 institutions with reported data in the U.S. Department of Education data for 2024-25 (Scorecard). Princeton University (Princeton, NJ) leads at 97.6%.

Institutions ranked by Graduation rate (6-yr · first-time, full-time).
#	Institution	Graduation rate (6-yr · first-time, full-time)
1	Princeton UniversityNJ · Private	97.6%
2	Harvard UniversityMA · Private	97.6%
3	Duke UniversityNC · Private	96.8%
4	University of PennsylvaniaPA · Private	96.5%
5	Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyMA · Private	96.4%
6	Columbia University in the City of New YorkNY · Private	96.1%
7	University of ChicagoIL · Private	95.9%
8	Yale UniversityCT · Private	95.7%
9	Brown UniversityRI · Private	95.7%
10	University of Virginia-Main CampusVA · Public	95.6%
11	Dartmouth CollegeNH · Private	95.5%
12	Cornell UniversityNY · Private	95.4%
13	University of Notre DameIN · Private	95.2%
14	Northwestern UniversityIL · Private	95.1%
15	Georgetown UniversityDC · Private	94.8%
16	Rice UniversityTX · Private	94.6%
17	Washington University in St LouisMO · Private	94.3%
18	Carnegie Mellon UniversityPA · Private	94.1%
19	Georgia Institute of Technology-Main CampusGA · Public	94%
20	Johns Hopkins UniversityMD · Private	93.8%
21	Vanderbilt UniversityTN · Private	93.5%
22	Tufts UniversityMA · Private	93.5%
23	University of Michigan-Ann ArborMI · Public	93.2%
24	University of California-BerkeleyCA · Public	92.8%
25	University of California-Los AngelesCA · Public	92.6%
26	Stanford UniversityCA · Private	91.9%
27	Villanova UniversityPA · Private	91.9%
28	University of Southern CaliforniaCA · Private	91.8%
29	University of North Carolina at Chapel HillNC · Public	91.2%
30	University of FloridaFL · Public	91.1%
31	Emory UniversityGA · Private	91.1%
32	Boston CollegeMA · Private	90.8%
33	Northeastern UniversityMA · Private	90.5%
34	Worcester Polytechnic InstituteMA · Private	89.7%
35	University of GeorgiaGA · Public	89.7%
36	University of Wisconsin-MadisonWI · Public	89.5%
37	William & MaryVA · Public	89.4%
38	Wake Forest UniversityNC · Private	89.1%
39	The University of Texas at AustinTX · Public	88.9%
40	Boston UniversityMA · Private	88.7%
41	University of Maryland-College ParkMD · Public	88.6%
42	Santa Clara UniversityCA · Private	87.9%
43	Lehigh UniversityPA · Private	87.9%
44	Ohio State University-Main CampusOH · Public	87.7%
45	New York UniversityNY · Private	87.6%
46	Case Western Reserve UniversityOH · Private	87.2%
47	Stevens Institute of TechnologyNJ · Private	86.9%
48	University of California-IrvineCA · Public	86.9%
49	Clemson UniversitySC · Public	86.6%
50	Gonzaga UniversityWA · Private	86.3%

A data ranking, not an Ibex endorsement or quality rating. Ranked solely on the metric named above using U.S. Department of Education data for 2024-25 (Scorecard); federal collections lag the current academic year, and some measures are no longer published at all, so the most recent figure is not always a recent one. Institutions that do not report this metric are excluded. Figures and peer context appear on each institution’s profile.

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Frequently asked

Which of these doctoral research universities ranks highest by 6-year graduation rate?

Princeton University (Princeton, NJ), at 97.6%. It leads 50 institutions shown here, drawn from 430 with reported data.

How is this ranking calculated?

On one disclosed metric only: by 6-year graduation rate, from College Scorecard & IPEDS, 2024-25 (Scorecard). Institutions that do not report the metric are excluded. It is a data ranking, not an Ibex endorsement, quality rating or reputation survey, and no part of it is estimated or AI-generated.

How current is the data?

This list is built from the College Scorecard release of June 10, 2026 and the newest IPEDS collection on disk, using the most recent figure each of them publishes for the metric it ranks: College Scorecard & IPEDS, 2024-25 (Scorecard). Federal collections lag the current academic year by two to three years, so the newest published figure is not always a recent one; the release the leaderboard is dated on is printed under it.

Source: U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard & IPEDS (each measure carries its own collection year; see the methodology), with NSF NCSES (HERD), the Clery Act & EADA collections, Census ACS, BLS Employment Projections, WICHE & the FSA Direct Loan Dashboard. Compiled by Ibex Insights. For informational benchmarking only, not financial, investment, or accreditation advice. See the methodology.