Strongest operating margins – private nonprofit universities

These 50 private nonprofit universities rank highest by operating margin, drawn from 653 institutions with reported data in the U.S. Department of Education data for 2024-25. Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (Boston, MA) leads at 48%.

Institutions ranked by Operating margin.
#	Institution	Operating margin
1	Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health SciencesMA	48%
2	Berea CollegeKY	45.5%
3	Dunwoody College of TechnologyMN	44.7%
4	Bryant & Stratton College-OnlineNY	41.4%
5	Trine UniversityIN	41.1%
6	Whitman CollegeWA	38.7%
7	Northwood UniversityMI	37.6%
8	Austin CollegeTX	37.1%
9	Hillsdale CollegeMI	36.8%
10	Oklahoma City UniversityOK	35.9%
11	University of the CumberlandsKY	35.2%
12	Savannah College of Art and DesignGA	35%
13	Saint Louis UniversityMO	34.2%
14	Catawba CollegeNC	33.6%
15	Grove City CollegePA	33.5%
16	Kenyon CollegeOH	31.2%
17	Berry CollegeGA	30.6%
18	Hardin-Simmons UniversityTX	30.1%
19	Wayland Baptist UniversityTX	30.1%
20	Carleton CollegeMN	29.5%
21	Long Island UniversityNY	29%
22	Wofford CollegeSC	27.4%
23	Saint Ambrose UniversityIA	26.9%
24	Colorado CollegeCO	26.9%
25	Spelman CollegeGA	26.4%
26	Concordia University-NebraskaNE	25.8%
27	Quinnipiac UniversityCT	25.8%
28	Transylvania UniversityKY	25.6%
29	Virginia Wesleyan UniversityVA	25.5%
30	John Brown UniversityAR	25.5%
31	Saint Johns UniversityMN	25.2%
32	Sacred Heart UniversityCT	25%
33	Wheaton CollegeIL	24.6%
34	Ultimate Medical AcademyFL	24.6%
35	Lafayette CollegePA	24.5%
36	Touro UniversityNY	24.4%
37	DePauw UniversityIN	24.3%
38	Liberty UniversityVA	24.2%
39	University of St ThomasMN	23.9%
40	Cumberland UniversityTN	23.8%
41	Augustana UniversitySD	23.2%
42	College of Saint BenedictMN	22.8%
43	Everglades UniversityFL	22.8%
44	Midway UniversityKY	22.5%
45	Johns Hopkins UniversityMD	22.4%
46	The Master's University and SeminaryCA	22.4%
47	Reed CollegeOR	22.4%
48	Palm Beach Atlantic UniversityFL	22.4%
49	Oklahoma Baptist UniversityOK	22.3%
50	Lincoln Memorial UniversityTN	22%

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; 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 operating margin?

Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (Boston, MA), at 48%. It leads 50 institutions shown here, drawn from 653 with reported data.

How is this ranking calculated?

On one disclosed metric only: by operating margin, from College Scorecard & IPEDS, 2024-25. 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. 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.