by our College Data Analytics TeamLees-McRae College is a private not-for-profit institution in Banner Elk, North Carolina enrolling 873 undergraduates. It accepts 77% of applicants and has an on-time graduation rate of 42%, above the national average of 33%. College Factual ranks it #1,462 of 5,159 colleges nationwide in its 2027 Best Colleges ranking (top 28%), and its Value for Your Money analysis rates it a Fair Price.
Source: IPEDS 2025; College Scorecard July 2026; College Factual rankings 2027. Data as of: July 2026.
Lees-McRae College ranks #1,462 of 5,159 colleges nationwide in College Factual’s 2027 Best Colleges ranking, placing it in the top 28%.
College Factual recognizes the best colleges and universities in its annual rankings. These rankings include categories for best overall colleges, best colleges for each major, best value schools, and much more.
Lees-McRae College was awarded 4 badges in the 2027 rankings.
College Factual ranked Lees - McRae College as #1,462 out of 5,159 colleges and universities in the country on its 2027 Best Colleges list.
Lees - McRae College also holds the #26 spot on the Best Colleges in North Carolina ranking.
See all of the rankings for Lees-McRae College.
The acceptance rate at Lees-McRae College is 77%. That’s higher than the rate at many schools, but still low enough to be considered somewhat selective. If you want to get in, you’ll need good grades and to be able to show that Lees - McRae College is a good fit for you.
Learn more about Lees-McRae College admissions.
The student to faculty ratio at Lees - McRae College is an impressive 11 to 1. That’s quite good when you compare it to the national average of 15 to 1. This is a good sign that students at the school will have more opportunities for one-on-one interactions with their professors.
When estimating how much access students will have to their teachers, some people like to look at what percentage of faculty members are full time. This is because part-time teachers may not have as much time to spend on campus as their full-time counterparts.
The full-time faculty percentage at Lees-McRae College is 50%. This is comparable to the national average of 47%.
The freshmen retention rate tells us what percentage of first-year, full-time students choose to continue on to their sophomore year at a particular school. The rate at Lees-McRae College is 69%, which is about average when compared to the national rate of 68%.
Students are considered to have graduated on time if they finish their studies within four years. At Lees - McRae College the on-time graduation rate of first-time, full-time students is 42%. That is great when compared to the national average of 33.3%.
Find out more about the retention and graduation rates at Lees-McRae College.
The current enrollment includes 873 undergraduates at Lees - McRae College.
Get more detailed information on the diversity at Lees-McRae College.
The typical net cost at Lees - McRae College is $17,140. The affordability of the school largely depends on your financial need since net price varies by income group. See the table below for the net price for different income groups.
| $0-30 K | $30K-48K | $48-75 | $75-110K | $110K + |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $23,030 | $22,733 | $25,905 | $28,854 | $33,664 |
The net price is calculated by adding tuition, room, board and other costs and subtracting financial aid. Note that the net price is typically less than the published price for a school. For more information on the sticker price of Lees - McRae College, see our tuition and fees and room and board pages.
Almost 66% of college students who graduated with the class of 2018 took out student loans, but that percentage varies from school to school. At Lees - McRae College, approximately 59% of students took out student loans averaging $6,051 a year. That adds up to $24,204 over four years for those students. The student loan default rate is 6.8%. Although this is lower than the national default rate of 10.1%, you’ll still want to keep this in mind when taking out student loans. Get more details about paying for Lees-McRae College.
Yearly salaries vary depending on what you major in, but on average, bachelor’s degree recipients from Lees-McRae College make around $43,415 per year during the early years of their employment. Unfortunately, this is 12% less than the average college graduate’s salary of $49,219 per year. However, graduates in your major field may make more.
See which majors at Lees-McRae College make the most money.
Lees-McRae College is an private not-for-profit institution situated in Banner Elk, North Carolina. Students who love country life may enjoy the rural location of Lees - McRae College. Get more details about the location of Lees-McRae College.
Contact information for Lees-McRae College can be found below.
| Contact Details | |
|---|---|
| Address: | 191 Main Street, Banner Elk, NC 28604 |
| Phone: | 8288985241 |
| Website: | www.lmc.edu |
| Facebook: | www.facebook.com/lmc.edu |
| Twitter: | twitter.com/LeesMcRae |
In the most recent reporting year, students from 15 majors graduated from Lees-McRae College. The following table lists the most popular undergraduate majors along with the average salary graduates from those majors make.
| Most Popular Majors | Completions | Average Salary of Graduates |
|---|---|---|
| Multi-Disciplinary Studies | 296 | NA |
| Zoology | 57 | $18,174 |
| Criminal Justice & Corrections | 36 | $34,325 |
| Human Services | 36 | $27,980 |
| Business Administration & Management | 34 | $33,268 |
| Teacher Education Grade Specific | 26 | $35,351 |
| Health & Physical Education | 18 | $24,560 |
| Agriculture/Veterinary Preparatory Programs. | 16 | NA |
| General Psychology | 16 | $17,244 |
| General Biology | 12 | NA |
172 students took at least one online class at Lees-McRae College.
Online courses are a great option for busy, working students as well as for those who have scheduling conflicts and want to study on their own time. As time goes by, expect to see more and more online learning options become available.
Learn more about online learning at Lees-McRae College.
Want to see how other colleges compare to Lees - McRae College? Compare them side by side using College Combat, our free tool for head-to-head college comparisons.
Footnotes
*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.
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