Highest graduation rates – private nonprofit universities

These 50 private nonprofit universities rank highest by 6-year graduation rate, drawn from 658 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	97.6%
2	Harvard UniversityMA	97.6%
3	Duke UniversityNC	96.8%
4	University of PennsylvaniaPA	96.5%
5	Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyMA	96.4%
6	Columbia University in the City of New YorkNY	96.1%
7	University of ChicagoIL	95.9%
8	Yale UniversityCT	95.7%
9	Brown UniversityRI	95.7%
10	Dartmouth CollegeNH	95.5%
11	Cornell UniversityNY	95.4%
12	Bowdoin CollegeME	95.3%
13	University of Notre DameIN	95.2%
14	Northwestern UniversityIL	95.1%
15	Georgetown UniversityDC	94.8%
16	Rice UniversityTX	94.6%
17	Washington University in St LouisMO	94.3%
18	Carnegie Mellon UniversityPA	94.1%
19	Amherst CollegeMA	93.9%
20	Washington and Lee UniversityVA	93.9%
21	Johns Hopkins UniversityMD	93.8%
22	Williams CollegeMA	93.6%
23	Vanderbilt UniversityTN	93.5%
24	Tufts UniversityMA	93.5%
25	Pomona CollegeCA	93.2%
26	Babson CollegeMA	93.1%
27	Barnard CollegeNY	93%
28	Wesleyan UniversityCT	92.6%
29	Swarthmore CollegePA	92.3%
30	Stanford UniversityCA	91.9%
31	Villanova UniversityPA	91.9%
32	University of Southern CaliforniaCA	91.8%
33	Wellesley CollegeMA	91.5%
34	Middlebury CollegeVT	91.4%
35	Claremont McKenna CollegeCA	91.4%
36	Colgate UniversityNY	91.2%
37	Emory UniversityGA	91.1%
38	Vassar CollegeNY	91.1%
39	Davidson CollegeNC	91.1%
40	Boston CollegeMA	90.8%
41	Hamilton CollegeNY	90.6%
42	Northeastern UniversityMA	90.5%
43	Hillsdale CollegeMI	89.7%
44	Worcester Polytechnic InstituteMA	89.7%
45	Bates CollegeME	89.7%
46	Haverford CollegePA	89.6%
47	Carleton CollegeMN	89.6%
48	Wake Forest UniversityNC	89.1%
49	Smith CollegeMA	89%
50	Colby CollegeME	88.8%

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 private nonprofit universities ranks highest by 6-year graduation rate?

Princeton University (Princeton, NJ), at 97.6%. It leads 50 institutions shown here, drawn from 658 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.