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2024 Best Rhetoric & Composition Schools

50 Colleges in the United States
1,835 Rhetoric and Composition Degrees Awarded
A degree in rhetoric & composition is more popular than many other degrees. In fact, it ranks #297 out of 1506 on popularity of all such degrees in the nation. So, you have a fair amount of options to choose from when looking for a school.

In 2024, College Factual analyzed 50 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Rhetoric & Composition Schools ranking. Combined, these schools handed out 1,835 degrees in rhetoric & composition to qualified students.

What's on this page: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Rhetoric & Composition School

Best Rhetoric & Composition Schools Your choice of rhetoric & composition school matters, so we have put together these rankings to help you make your decision. We derive our Best Overall Rhetoric & Composition School rankings by rolling up our degree-level rankings after weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each school.

In order to find the schools that are the best fit for you, you may want to filter to one of the degree levels below.

Pick Your Rhetoric & Composition Degree Level

Associate Degrees in Rhetoric and Composition
Bachelor's Degrees in Rhetoric and Composition
Master's Degrees in Rhetoric and Composition
Doctor's Degrees in Rhetoric and Composition

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best Rhetoric & Composition Schools ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision. More interested in schools in a specific area of the country? Filter this list by region or state.

To further help you make the college decision, we've developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.

Read more about College Factual's methodology.

Best Schools for Rhetoric & Composition in the United States

If you aren't interested in a particular degree level and want to know which schools are the overall best at delivering an education for the rhetoric and composition degrees they offer, see the list below. Only those schools that rank in the top 15% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.

10 Top Schools in Rhetoric and Composition

1
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In MN
186 Rhetoric and Composition Degrees Awarded

University of Minnesota - Twin Cities is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a degree in rhetoric & composition. UMN Twin Cities is a fairly large public university located in the city of Minneapolis. A Best Colleges rank of #51 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UMN Twin Cities is a great university overall.

There were about 186 rhetoric & composition students who graduated with this degree at UMN Twin Cities in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in rhetoric & composition from University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

2
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In PA
146 Rhetoric and Composition Degrees Awarded

It's hard to beat University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Campus if you wish to pursue a degree in rhetoric & composition. Pitt is a very large public university located in the city of Pittsburgh. A Best Colleges rank of #79 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Pitt is a great university overall.

There were roughly 146 rhetoric & composition students who graduated with this degree at Pitt in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in rhetoric & composition from University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Campus

3
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
7th Most Popular In PA
50.0% Growth in Graduates

Carnegie Mellon University is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting a degree in rhetoric & composition. Carnegie Mellon is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Pittsburgh. A Best Colleges rank of #9 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Carnegie Mellon is a great university overall.

There were approximately 14 rhetoric & composition students who graduated with this degree at Carnegie Mellon in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in rhetoric & composition from Carnegie Mellon University

4
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In CA
56 Rhetoric and Composition Degrees Awarded

University of California - Berkeley is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting a degree in rhetoric & composition. Located in the midsize city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #18 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UC Berkeley is a great university overall.

There were approximately 56 rhetoric & composition students who graduated with this degree at UC Berkeley in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in rhetoric & composition from University of California - Berkeley

5
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In MI

Michigan State is a fairly large public university located in the small city of East Lansing. A Best Colleges rank of #74 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Michigan State is a great university overall.

There were approximately 10 rhetoric & composition students who graduated with this degree at Michigan State in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in rhetoric & composition from Michigan State University

5
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
4th Most Popular In TX

TCU is a large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Fort Worth. A Best Colleges rank of #80 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means TCU is a great university overall.

There were about 2 rhetoric & composition students who graduated with this degree at TCU in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in rhetoric & composition from Texas Christian University

6

Located in the fringe town of Oxford, Miami University - Oxford is a public university with a large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #116 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Miami University - Oxford is a great university overall.More information about a degree in rhetoric & composition from Miami University - Oxford

6
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
5th Most Popular In VA
57.1% Growth in Graduates

Located in the suburb of Fairfax, GMU is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #117 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means GMU is a great university overall.

There were roughly 7 rhetoric & composition students who graduated with this degree at GMU in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in rhetoric & composition from George Mason University

7

UT Austin is a very large public university located in the large city of Austin. A Best Colleges rank of #36 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UT Austin is a great university overall.More information about a degree in rhetoric & composition from The University of Texas at Austin

7
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In SC
71 Rhetoric and Composition Degrees Awarded

Clemson is a very large public university located in the suburb of Clemson. A Best Colleges rank of #107 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Clemson is a great university overall.

There were approximately 71 rhetoric & composition students who graduated with this degree at Clemson in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in rhetoric & composition from Clemson University

Honorable Mentions

These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Rhetoric & Composition Schools award.

RankCollegeLocation
8Iowa State UniversityAmes, IA
9Duquesne UniversityPittsburgh, PA
10West Chester University of PennsylvaniaWest Chester, PA
11University of New Mexico - Main CampusAlbuquerque, NM
12Bowling Green State University - Main CampusBowling Green, OH

Rhetoric & Composition by Region

View the Best Rhetoric & Composition Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Other U.S. Territories
Great Lakes

View All Rankings >

One of 4 majors within the Writing Studies area of study, Rhetoric & Composition has other similar majors worth exploring.

Majors Similar to Rhetoric and Composition

Related MajorAnnual Graduates
Creative Writing7,164
Professional, Technical, Business, & Scientific Writing3,129
General Writing853
Other Rhetoric & Composition/Writing Studies563

View All Rhetoric and Composition Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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