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While most students plan to earn their Bachelor's degrees in four years, the reality is that it often takes a little longer than that. Working, changing majors, and a variety of other factors can make college take more than four years. As a result, colleges and universities are often judged by their ability to graduate students in six years, 150% of normal time. The 23 colleges and universities listed below all graduated 93% or more of their students in six years. Note that many factors influence graduation rates, and the most selective colleges will always have an advantage when it comes to graduating a high percentage -- they enroll students who are well prepared for college-level work, and most of their students will enter with AP course credits. You'll also notice from the list that private institutions outperform public institutions. The University of Virginia is the only public college to make the list. Be sure to read more about graduation rates to understand the factors that influence the numbers.
Amherst College
Qin Zhi Lau / Wikimedia Commons
- 6-Year Graduation Rate: 94%
- Location: Amherst, Massachusetts
- School Type: Private liberal arts college
- Enrollment: 1,744 (all undergraduate)
- Description: Located in a small town in Western Massachusetts, Amherst usually stands #1 or #2 in rankings of top liberal arts colleges. It is also one of the most selective colleges in the United States. Students can round out the Amherst course offerings with classes from the other excellent schools in the five-college consortium: Mount Holyoke College, Smith College, Hampshire College, and University of Massachusetts at Amherst. Amherst has an interesting open curriculum with no distribution requirements, and the college is a member of Phi Beta Kappa.
- For acceptance rate, test scores and other admissions data, read the Amherst College profile
Bowdoin College
sglickman / Flickr
- 6-Year Graduation Rate: 94%
- Location: Brunswick, Maine
- School Type: 1,777 (all undergraduate)
- Enrollment: Private liberal arts college
- Description: Located in a town of 21,000 on the Maine coast, Bowdoin takes pride in both its beautiful location and its academic excellence. For its strengths in the liberal arts and sciences, Bowdoin was awarded a chapter of the prestigious Phi Beta Kappa honor society. Eight miles away from the main campus is Bowdoin's 118-acre Coastal Studies Center on Orr's Island. Bowdoin recently changed their financial aid practices, and students can look forward to graduating with no loans.
- For acceptance rate, test scores and other admissions data, read the Bowdoin College profile
Brown University
_Gene_ Flickr
- 6-Year Graduation Rate: 95%
- Location: Providence, Rhode Island
- School Type: Private research university
- Enrollment: 8,574 (6,244 undergraduates)
- Description: Often considered the most liberal of the Ivy League schools, Brown is well known for its open curriculum in which students craft their own plan of study. Like Dartmouth, Brown has more of an undergraduate focus than other top-ranked universities. Boston is only a short drive or train ride away. The university has a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa, and it is a member of the Association of American Universities.
- For acceptance rate, test scores and other admissions data, read the Brown University profile
Claremont McKenna College
Bazookajoe1 / Wikimedia Commons
- 6-Year Graduation Rate: 93%
- Location: Claremont, California
- School Type: Private liberal arts college
- Enrollment: 1,238 (all undergraduate)
- Description: With an acceptance rate below 20%, Claremont McKenna College is one of the most selective colleges in the country. Claremont McKenna's small 50-acre campus is located in the heart of the Claremont Colleges, and students at CMC share facilities and often cross-register for classes at the other schools -- Scripps College, Pomona College, Harvey Mudd College, and Pitzer College. Claremont McKenna has a 9 to 1 student faculty ratio, a diverse student body, and strong liberal arts credentials that earned it a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa.
- For acceptance rate, test scores and other admissions data, read the Claremont McKenna College profile
Columbia University
Yandi / Flickr
- 6-Year Graduation Rate: 94%
- Location: New York, New York
- School Type: Private research university
- Enrollment: 24,230 (7,743 undergraduates)
- Description: If you want an Ivy League education in a truly urban setting, be sure to take a look at Columbia. Its location in upper Manhattan places it right in the bustle of New York City. Columbia has extensive graduate programs—of its 22,000 students, over two-thirds are graduate students. Like all the Ivy League schools, Columbia's high level of research and instruction has earned it membership in the Association of American Universities, and its strengths in the liberal arts and sciences earned it a chapter of the prestigious Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society.
- For acceptance rate, test scores and other admissions data, read the Columbia University profile
Dartmouth College
Brave Sir Robin / flickr
- 6-Year Graduation Rate: 94%
- Location: Hanover, New Hampshire
- School Type: Private research university
- Enrollment: 5,987 (4,196 undergraduates)
- Description: As the smallest of the Ivy League schools, Dartmouth provides the curricular breadth of its larger rivals with a feeling more like a liberal arts college. Dartmouth’s picturesque campus is located in Hanover, New Hampshire, a town of 11,000. Dartmouth's strong programs in the liberal arts and sciences earned the school a chapter of the prestigious Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society.
- For acceptance rate, test scores and other admissions data, read the Dartmouth College profile
Duke University
mricon / Flickr
- 6-Year Graduation Rate: 95%
- Location: Durham, North Carolina
- School Type: Private research university
- Enrollment: 14,060 (6,496 undergraduates)
- Description: Duke is one of the most prestigious and competitive universities in the south, and it frequently ranked nationally among the top ten universities. Duke is part of the “research triangle” with UNC Chapel Hill and North Carolina State University in Raleigh. The area boasts the highest concentration of PhDs and MDs in the world. Duke's strengths in research and instruction have earned it membership in the Association of American Universities, and its strong liberal arts and sciences earned Duke a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa. The Duke Blue Devils compete in the NCAA Division I Atlantic Coast Conference.
- For acceptance rate, test scores and other admissions data, read the Duke University profile
Georgetown University
tvol / Flickr
- 6-Year Graduation Rate: 93%
- Location: Washington, D.C.
- School Type: Private Jesuit research university
- Enrollment: 14,826 (7,038 undergraduates)
- Description: Georgetown's location in the capital has contributed to its sizable international student population, and the popularity of the International Relations major. Bill Clinton stands out among Georgetown's notable alumni. Over half of Georgetown students take advantage of the many study abroad opportunities, and the university recently opened a campus in Qatar. For strengths in the liberal arts and sciences, Georgetown was awarded a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa. On the athletic front, the Georgetown Hoyas compete in the NCAA Division I Big East Conference.
- For acceptance rate, test scores and other admissions data, read the Georgetown University profile
Harvard University
timsackton / Flickr
- 6-Year Graduation Rate: 98%
- Location: Cambridge, Massachusetts
- School Type: Private research university
- Enrollment: 27,651 (10,257 undergraduates)
- Explore campus in this Harvard University photo tour
- Description: Harvard usually ranks #1 or #2 among the top universities. With an endowment in the tens of billions, Harvard has more financial resources at its disposal than any other university in the world. The result is a world-class faculty, high-level research and AAU membership, state-of-the-art facilities, and free tuition for students from families with modest income. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, this Ivy League school is in close-proximity to the hundreds of thousands of college students in the greater Boston area. Low achieving students need not apply -- Harvard has the lowest acceptance rate of any U.S. university.
- For acceptance rate, test scores and other admissions data, read the Harvard University profile
Northwestern University
powerbooktrance / Flickr
- 6-Year Graduation Rate: 95%
- Location: Evanston, Illinois
- School Type: Private research university
- Enrollment: 19,291 (9,336 undergraduates)
- Description: Northwestern University is located on a 240-acre campus just north of Chicago on the shore of lake Michigan. Northwestern has a rare balance of exceptional academics and athletics. It is the only private university in the Big Ten athletic conference. For its strengths in research and instruction, Northwestern earned membership in the Association of American Universities. For its strong liberal arts and sciences, the university was awarded a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa.
- For acceptance rate, test scores and other admissions data, read the Northwestern University profile
