The 25 Best Big Colleges in the U.S.

Big university, big benefits. So say many students and graduates of a Big U, which is a lot of people. Large alumni networks, academic variety, and vast social and extracurricular opportunities are among the reasons people choose big schools. Another plus: Big state schools are typically cheaper than smaller private schools.

Which big schools offer the most benefits to students? Niche broke it down by ranking four-year public and private universities with undergraduate populations over 15,000 by nine factors, with academics (40 percent) and value (27. 5 percent) by far the leading indicators. These 25 big schools topped the list.

25. University of Pittsburgh

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Location: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Undergraduate students: 18,390

Acceptance rate: 60 percent

SAT range: 1240-1420

Net price (annual): $22,848

What else is good about it? Niche ranks the school as the No. 25 public university in the U.S., and No. 12 for students studying kinesiology and physical therapy. The close-to-downtown campus makes it a stellar choice for students who want to be in the thick of a city.

24. Clemson University

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Location: Clemson, South Carolina

Undergraduate students: 18,642

Acceptance rate: 47 percent

SAT range: 1220-1390

Net price (annual): $18,757

What else is good about it? It’s a winning school for sports lovers, and not just because of the perennially great football team. Niche rates Clemson No. 7 for sports management and No. 14 among best colleges for athletics.

Clemson students at Unigo rave about the school’s spirit. Says one freshman, “When I first arrived at Clemson, I was taken back by the amount of school spirit.”

23. North Carolina State University

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Location: Raliegh, North Carolina

Undergraduate students: 21,384

Acceptance rate: 51 percent

SAT range: 1230-1390

Net price (annual): $13,442

What else is good about it? North Carolina State students receive an average of $10,998 in financial aid, several thousand more than the national average of $7,535. The school also ranks No. 8 in agricultural sciences, according to Niche.

22. Texas A&M University

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Location: College Station, Texas

Undergraduate students: 46,724

Acceptance rate: 71 percent

SAT range: 1140-1360

Net price (annual): $19,554

What else is good about it? It certainly lives up to its A&M name. Niche ranks the school No. 4 in the country for agricultural sciences. The most popular majors? Liberal Arts and humanities, and foods, nutrition and wellness studies.

It’s one of two schools on this list with more than 40,000 undergraduate students.

21. The Ohio State University

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Location: Columbus, Ohio

Undergraduate students: 42,003

Acceptance rate: 48 percent

SAT range: 1260-1450

Net price (annual): $18,042

What else is good about it? The second of the two schools on this list with more than 40,000 undergraduate students, OSU ranks No. 16 among all schools for best student life and No. 21 among public universities, according to Niche.

20. Penn State University

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Location: State College, Pennsylvania

Undergraduate students: 39,785

Acceptance rate: 50 percent

SAT range: 1160-1340

Net price (annual): $25,346

What else is good about it? It’s the No. 7 school in the nation for information technology, which explains why information science is the most popular major. Biology and economics run No. 2 and No. 3, respectively.

The student to faculty ratio at PSU is 16:1.

19. University of Washington

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Location: Seattle, Washington

Undergraduate students: 28,759

Acceptance rate: 46 percent

SAT range: 1190-1420

Net price (annual): $9,443

What else is good about it? Information technology makes its mark here, too, as befits a school in the same city as Amazon and Microsoft. The school ranks No. 13 for information technology, according to Niche. It also ranks No. 24 in diversity.

18. University of Minnesota, Twin Cities

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Location: Minneapolis, Minnesota

Undergraduate students: 29,991

Acceptance rate: 50 percent

SAT range: 1270-1480

Net price (annual): $16,808

What else is good about it? It’s another standout school for the agricultural sciences, ranking No. 5 in the country. Median earnings for graduates six years after graduation: $51,900. That’s much higher than the national average of $33,028.

17. Purdue University

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Location: West Lafayette, Indiana

Undergraduate students: 30,277

Acceptance rate: 57 percent

SAT range: 1150-1380

Net price (annual): $12,117

What else is good about it? The student to faculty ratio at the top public school in Indiana: 13:1. Business is the most popular major, tripling the numbers of the second-most popular major, mechanical engineering.

16. Brigham Young University

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Location: Provo, Utah

Undergraduate students: 28,156

Acceptance rate: 52 percent

SAT range: 1210-1410

Net price (annual): $12,979

What else is good about it? Niche ranks the private, Christian university in the top 10 in six different categories:

Most conservative colleges (No. 4)
Best Christian colleges (No. 4)
Best colleges for information technology (No. 4)
Best colleges for education (No. 5)
Best colleges for accounting and finance (No. 6)
Best colleges for kinesiology and physical therapy (No. 9)

15. University of California, Santa Barbara

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Location: Santa Barbara, California

Undergraduate students: 21,777

Acceptance rate: 33 percent

SAT range: 1190-1400

Net price (annual): $16,154

What else is good about it? Besides being located in one of the most beautiful settings for a college campus in America, UCSB ranks No. 15 among top public universities in the country.

It’s also the No. 21 party school. In a Niche survey, 32 percent of students described the typical Santa Barbara student as “work hard, party hard.”

14. University of Georgia

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Location: Athens, Georgia

Undergraduate students: 27,142

Acceptance rate: 54 percent

SAT range: 1200-1370

Net price (annual): $15,934

What else is good about it? Georgia’s social scene is transcendent. According to Niche, the school ranks No. 4 among party schools. No. 5 for best student life, No. 7 for best Greek life and No. 13 for food.

13. University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign

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Location: Champaign, Illinois

Undergraduate students: 32,613

Acceptance rate: 62 percent

SAT range: 1340-1500

Net price (annual): $16,638

What else is good about it? Here it is, your No. 1 school for Greek life. It also ranks No. 5 among party schools. Students emerge, though, with excellent earning prospects. The median earnings six years after graduation: $61,500 a year, almost double the national average.

12. University of Wisconsin

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Location: Madison, Wisconsin

Undergraduate students: 28,977

Acceptance rate: 54 percent

SAT range: 1280-1450

Net price (annual): $15,910

What else is good about it? Another school notable for its social scene. It’s the No. 3 party school, according to Niche, and it ranks No. 4 for best student life. Academically, it ranks exceptionally well for agricultural sciences (No. 7) and education (No. 11).

11. Boston University

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Location: Boston, Massachusetts

Undergraduate students: 17,286

Acceptance rate: 25 percent

SAT range: 1300-1480

Net price (annual): $33,728

What else is good about it? Here’s another great school for city lovers. The Beantown university is popular with business and communications majors. The student to faculty ratio is 10:1.

10. University of Florida

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Location: Gainesville, Florida

Undergraduate students: 31,384

Acceptance rate: 42 percent

SAT range: 1240-1400

Net price (annual): $15,283

What else is good about it? Florida’s best college, according to Niche, graduates 88 percent of its students, far higher than the national average of 49 percent. Athletics are huge on campus. It’s the No. 1 ranked school for college athletics and the No. 4 school for student-athletes. It also ranks No. 3 for sports management.

9. Virginia Tech

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Location: Blacksburg, Virginia

Undergraduate students: 26,603

Acceptance rate: 70 percent

SAT range: 1180-1360

Net price (annual): $18,700

What else is good about it? It’s the No. 2 school for food and the No. 9 school for best student life. What do students at Virginia Tech study? Management sciences and information systems, and mechanical engineering, are the top-two majors.

The graduation rate is 84 percent.

8. University of Texas

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Location: Austin, Texas

Undergraduate students: 37,740

Acceptance rate: 36 percent

SAT range: 1220-1460

Net price (annual): $14,356

What else is good about it? The net annual cost of attending is $14,356, more than $1,000 less than average. And the median earnings six years after graduation is $58,200, which is almost double the national average. It’s a solid value.

7. New York University

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Location: New York, New York

Undergraduate students: 25,347

Acceptance rate: 28 percent

SAT range: 1290-1490

Net price (annual): $36,256

What else is good about it? This is the school for city lovers. Niche ranks it the school with the No. 3 setting in the U.S. Academically, it ranks No. 2 for film and photography, No. 3 for information technology and No. 8 for nursing.

6. University of North Carolina

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Location: Chapel Hill, North Carolina

Undergraduate students: 18,303

Acceptance rate: 24 percent

SAT range: 1270-1460

Net price (annual): $11,100

What else is good about it? Niche ranks UNC in the top 10 in seven different categories, including best big colleges. The other six ranks:

Best for student athletes (No. 6)
Best for education (No. 6)
Best for college athletics (No. 7)
Top public universities (No. 7)
Best colleges for communications (No. 8)
Best for global studies (No. 10)

5. University of California, Berkeley

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Location: Berkeley, California

Undergraduate students: 29,351

Acceptance rate: 17 percent

SAT range: 1260-1480

Net price (annual): $18,178

What else is good about it? The first of three California schools in the top five ranks No. 4 among the most liberal schools in the country. The graduation rate is 91 percent, and the top three majors are economics, cellular biology and computer science.

4. University of Virginia

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Location: Charlottesville, Virginia

Undergraduate students: 15,766

Acceptance rate: 27 percent

SAT range: 1310-1500

Net price (annual): $16,594

What else is good about it? The student-to-faculty ratio at the institution founded by Thomas Jefferson is 15:1. The top major: Liberal arts and humanities. As befits a school with a beautiful campus, the school ranks No. 8 among the best colleges for architecture.

3. University of California, Los Angeles

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Location: Los Angeles, California

Undergraduate students: 30,458

Acceptance rate: 16 percent

SAT range: 1220-1450

Net price (annual): $14,760

What else is good about it? Niche ranks UCLA in the top 10 in seven different categories, including best big colleges. The other six ranks:

Best college campus (No. 1)
Best food (No. 1)
Best student life (No. 2)
Top public universities (No. 2)
Best for design (No. 6)
Best for film and photography (No. 6)

2. University of Michigan

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Location: Ann Arbor, Michigan

Undergraduate students: 28,702

Acceptance rate: 27 percent

SAT range: 1330-1500

Net price (annual): $16,408

What else is good about it? Niche ranks Michigan in the top 10 in ten different categories, including best big colleges. The other nine ranks:

Best for sports management (No. 2)
Best for education (No. 3)
Best student life (No. 3)
Top public universities (No. 1)
Best for kinesiology and physical therapy (No. 4)
Best for business (No. 5)
Best for nursing (No. 7)
Best for student athletes (No. 8)
Best for film and photography (No. 10)

1. University of Southern California

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Location: Los Angeles, California

Undergraduate students: 18,631

Acceptance rate: 17 percent

SAT range: 1300-1500

Net price (annual): $32,892

What else is good about it? Not only is it the top-ranked big school, according to Niche, it also ranks No. 1 in student life, design, and film and photography.

While the cost of the private school is high, with a net annual cost of more than $32,000, the return is also high. The median earnings of Trojans six years after graduation: $74,000.