Highest graduation rates – baccalaureate colleges
These 50 baccalaureate colleges rank highest by 6-year graduation rate, drawn from 296 institutions with reported data in the U.S. Department of Education data for 2024-25 (Scorecard). Bowdoin College (Brunswick, ME) leads at 95.3%.
| # | Institution | Graduation rate (6-yr · first-time, full-time) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bowdoin CollegeME · Private | 95.3% |
| 2 | Amherst CollegeMA · Private | 93.9% |
| 3 | Washington and Lee UniversityVA · Private | 93.9% |
| 4 | Williams CollegeMA · Private | 93.6% |
| 5 | Pomona CollegeCA · Private | 93.2% |
| 6 | Barnard CollegeNY · Private | 93% |
| 7 | United States Naval AcademyMD · Public | 92.9% |
| 8 | United States Coast Guard AcademyCT · Public | 92.7% |
| 9 | Wesleyan UniversityCT · Private | 92.6% |
| 10 | Swarthmore CollegePA · Private | 92.3% |
| 11 | Wellesley CollegeMA · Private | 91.5% |
| 12 | Middlebury CollegeVT · Private | 91.4% |
| 13 | Claremont McKenna CollegeCA · Private | 91.4% |
| 14 | Colgate UniversityNY · Private | 91.2% |
| 15 | Vassar CollegeNY · Private | 91.1% |
| 16 | Davidson CollegeNC · Private | 91.1% |
| 17 | Hamilton CollegeNY · Private | 90.6% |
| 18 | Hillsdale CollegeMI · Private | 89.7% |
| 19 | Bates CollegeME · Private | 89.7% |
| 20 | Haverford CollegePA · Private | 89.6% |
| 21 | Carleton CollegeMN · Private | 89.6% |
| 22 | Smith CollegeMA · Private | 89% |
| 23 | Colby CollegeME · Private | 88.8% |
| 24 | Grinnell CollegeIA · Private | 88.1% |
| 25 | Colorado CollegeCO · Private | 87.7% |
| 26 | Lafayette CollegePA · Private | 87.6% |
| 27 | United States Air Force AcademyCO · Public | 87.5% |
| 28 | College of the Holy CrossMA · Private | 87.3% |
| 29 | Macalester CollegeMN · Private | 87.1% |
| 30 | United States Military AcademyNY · Public | 87.1% |
| 31 | Bucknell UniversityPA · Private | 86.3% |
| 32 | University of RichmondVA · Private | 85.2% |
| 33 | Wheaton CollegeIL · Private | 84.8% |
| 34 | University of Florida-OnlineFL · Public | 84.7% |
| 35 | Rhodes CollegeTN · Private | 84.5% |
| 36 | Mount Holyoke CollegeMA · Private | 84.4% |
| 37 | Wofford CollegeSC · Private | 84.2% |
| 38 | St Olaf CollegeMN · Private | 84% |
| 39 | Trinity UniversityTX · Private | 84% |
| 40 | Franklin and Marshall CollegePA · Private | 83.8% |
| 41 | Trinity CollegeCT · Private | 83.8% |
| 42 | Pitzer CollegeCA · Private | 83.4% |
| 43 | Grove City CollegePA · Private | 83.2% |
| 44 | Skidmore CollegeNY · Private | 82.6% |
| 45 | Scripps CollegeCA · Private | 82.5% |
| 46 | Gettysburg CollegePA · Private | 82.5% |
| 47 | Kenyon CollegeOH · Private | 82.3% |
| 48 | Muhlenberg CollegePA · Private | 82.2% |
| 49 | Connecticut CollegeCT · Private | 82% |
| 50 | Bryn Mawr CollegePA · Private | 81.8% |
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 baccalaureate colleges ranks highest by 6-year graduation rate?
Bowdoin College (Brunswick, ME), at 95.3%. It leads 50 institutions shown here, drawn from 296 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.