Top Women's Colleges in the U.S.

Agnes Scott College is in Decatur, Georgia, a mere six miles away from Atlanta. The college has received accolades for the beauty of its campus and the quality of residential living. The school also boasts a robust honor code, a diverse student body, and a 10:1 student / faculty ratio. Agnes Scott is also about $10,000 less expensive than some of the other colleges on this list.

Barnard College is affiliated with adjacent Columbia University, but it maintains its own faculty, endowment, governance, and curriculum. However, Barnard and Columbia students can easily take classes at either school. Barnard's four-acre urban campus stands in sharp contrast to the open green spaces of the other top women's colleges. On the admissions front, Barnard is the most competitive of all the women's colleges.

You can learn more about Barnard and explore the campus in this Barnard College photo tour.

Another academic powerhouse, Bryn Mawr is a member of the Tri-College Consortium with Swarthmore and Haverford. Shuttles run between the three campuses, and students can easily cross-register for classes. The college is also close to Philadelphia, and students can register for courses at the University of Pennsylvania. Along with strong academics, Bryn Mawr is rich in history and traditions including "Parade Night" at the year's start and "May Day" at the end of the spring semester.

Founded in 1852, Mills College has been located at its current 135-acre campus in Oakland, California, since 1871. The school has earned many accolades for its value and academic quality, and it typically ranks among the top women's colleges in the country. The school also gets high marks for its environmental efforts. Mills college has a 12 to 1 student / faculty ratio and an average class size of 16. For its strengths in the liberal arts and sciences, the school was awarded a chapter of the Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society.

Founded in 1837, Mount Holyoke College is the oldest of the "seven sister" colleges. Mount Holyoke is a member of the Five College Consortium with Amherst College, UMass Amherst, Smith College and Hampshire College. Students can easily register for courses at any of the five schools. Mount Holyoke has one of the more beautiful campuses in the country, and students can enjoy the college's botanic gardens, two lakes, waterfalls, and horseback-riding trails. Mount Holyoke, like a growing number of colleges, is test-optional and does not require ACT or SAT scores for admission.

Simmons College has strengths in both the liberal arts and sciences and professional fields. Simmons undergraduates can choose from over 50 majors and programs. Nursing is the most popular, and at the graduate level library science, social work and education are all flourishing programs. Simmons is located in the Fenway neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, and students can easily cross-register for classes at five other colleges in the area.

Located in Northampton, Massachusett, Smith is a member of the Five College Consortium with Amherst College, Mount Holyoke, UMass Amherst, and Hampshire College. Students at any of these five colleges can easily take classes at the other member institutions. First opened in 1875, Smith has a beautiful and historic campus that includes the 12,000 square foot Lyman Conservatory and the Botanic Garden with about 10,000 different plant species. The college can boast of many famous alumnae including Sylvia Plath, Julia Child, and Gloria Steinem. Smith is test-optional and does not require ACT or SAT scores for admission

Spelman College, a historically Black college, is located a few minutes from downtown Atlanta. Its urban location allows it to share resources with the Atlanta University Center, a consortium of historically Black colleges including Clark Atlanta University, the Interdenominational Theological Center, Morehouse College and Morehouse School of Medicine. Spelman has a strong liberal arts focus, and the school places well in rankings of best schools for African Americans and best schools for social mobility.

Founded in 1833, Stephens has the distinction of being the second oldest women's college in the country. The Stephens' curriculum has a liberal arts core, but the college also has notable programs in the performing arts and pre-professional areas such as health and business. The college's attractive 86-acre campus is located in Columbia, Missouri, a small city that is also home to the University of Missouri and Columbia College.

Also check out what Stephens alumnae have to say abou their alma mater.

Sweet Briar College is located on a 3,250-acre campus in Sweet Briar, Virginia, a town in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. For its strengths in the liberal arts and sciences, Sweet Briar College was awarded a chapter of the prestigious Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society. Other notable features include well-regarded junior year programs in France and Spain, one of the country's most beautiful campuses, a top equestrian program, and an impressive 9 to 1 student / faculty ratio.

Located in an affluent and beautiful town outside of Boston, Wellesley provides women with one of the best educations available. The school offers small classes taught exclusively by the full-time faculty, a beautiful campus with Gothic architecture and a lake, and academic exchange programs with Harvard and M.I.T. Wellesley frequently tops the lists of the best women's colleges in the U.S.

Be sure to explore the campus in this Wellesley College photo tour.