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2024 Best General Education Schools

413 Colleges in the United States
29,810 General Education Degrees Awarded
If you pursue a degree in general education, you won't be alone. The field of study is the #31 most popular program in the country. This means there are lots of options to choose from when you decide to get your degree.

College Factual reviewed 413 schools in the United States to determine which ones were the best for degree seekers in the field of general education. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 29,810 degrees in general education during the 2020-2021 academic year.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great General Education School

Best General Education Schools The general education program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for General Education rankings. We derive our Best Overall General Education School rankings by rolling up our degree-level rankings after weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each school.

You may want to choose one of the degree levels below to find the schools of most interest to you.

Pick Your General Education Degree Level

Associate Degrees in General Education
Bachelor's Degrees in General Education
Master's Degrees in General Education
Doctor's Degrees in General Education

When choosing the right school for you, it's important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we've created a number of major-specific rankings, including this Best General Education Schools list to help you make the college decision. If you'd like to restrict your choices to just one part of the country, you can filter this list by location.

In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

If you want to learn more about how we derive our rankings, see College Factual's Methodology.


 

Best Schools for General Education in the United States

The schools below may not offer all types of general education degrees so you may want to filter by degree level first. However, they are great for the degree levels they do offer. Only those schools that rank in the top 15% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.

25 Top Schools in General Education

1
Harvard crest
Harvard University
Cambridge, MA
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In MA
591 General Education Degrees Awarded

Harvard University is a good option for students interested in a degree in general education. Harvard is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Cambridge. A Best Colleges rank of #6 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Harvard is a great university overall.

There were about 591 general education students who graduated with this degree at Harvard in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general education from Harvard University

2
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In MD
643 General Education Degrees Awarded

Every student pursuing a degree in general education has to check out Johns Hopkins University. Johns Hopkins is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Baltimore. A Best Colleges rank of #23 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Johns Hopkins is a great university overall.

There were about 643 general education students who graduated with this degree at Johns Hopkins in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general education from Johns Hopkins University

3
UPenn crest
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
2nd Most Popular In PA
134 General Education Degrees Awarded

It is difficult to beat University of Pennsylvania if you wish to pursue a degree in general education. Located in the large city of Philadelphia, UPenn is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #4 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UPenn is a great university overall.

There were approximately 134 general education students who graduated with this degree at UPenn in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general education from University of Pennsylvania

4
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
2nd Most Popular In WA
150 General Education Degrees Awarded

University of Washington - Seattle Campus is a great choice for students interested in a degree in general education. Located in the large city of Seattle, UW Seattle is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #37 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UW Seattle is a great university overall.

There were approximately 150 general education students who graduated with this degree at UW Seattle in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general education from University of Washington - Seattle Campus

5
Vanderbilt crest
Vanderbilt University
Nashville, TN
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
19th Most Popular In TN
18.2% Growth in Graduates

Vanderbilt is a large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Nashville. A Best Colleges rank of #19 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Vanderbilt is a great university overall.

There were roughly 11 general education students who graduated with this degree at Vanderbilt in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general education from Vanderbilt University

6
Stanford crest
Stanford University
Stanford, CA
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
27th Most Popular In CA
68 General Education Degrees Awarded

Stanford is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the suburb of Stanford. A Best Colleges rank of #3 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Stanford is a great university overall.

There were approximately 68 general education students who graduated with this degree at Stanford in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general education from Stanford University

7
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In IL
233 General Education Degrees Awarded

Located in the city of Champaign, UIUC is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #34 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UIUC is a great university overall.

There were roughly 233 general education students who graduated with this degree at UIUC in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general education from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

8
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
20th Most Popular In IL

Northwestern is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the small city of Evanston. A Best Colleges rank of #5 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Northwestern is a great university overall.

There were roughly 1 general education students who graduated with this degree at Northwestern in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general education from Northwestern University

9
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
32nd Most Popular In CA
58 General Education Degrees Awarded

Located in the large suburb of Claremont, Claremont Graduate University is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population. This university ranks 27th out of 168 schools for overall quality in the state of California.

There were approximately 58 general education students who graduated with this degree at Claremont Graduate University in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general education from Claremont Graduate University

10
Brown crest
Brown University
Providence, RI
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
2nd Most Popular In RI
20.0% Growth in Graduates

Located in the city of Providence, Brown is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #21 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Brown is a great university overall.

There were roughly 30 general education students who graduated with this degree at Brown in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general education from Brown University

11
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
2nd Most Popular In IN
258 General Education Degrees Awarded

Purdue is a fairly large public university located in the city of West Lafayette. This university ranks 2nd out of 42 colleges for overall quality in the state of Indiana.

There were roughly 258 general education students who graduated with this degree at Purdue in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general education from Purdue University - Main Campus

12
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
2nd Most Popular In VA
159 General Education Degrees Awarded

University of Virginia is a fairly large public university located in the suburb of Charlottesville. A Best Colleges rank of #33 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means University of Virginia is a great university overall.

There were roughly 159 general education students who graduated with this degree at University of Virginia in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general education from University of Virginia - Main Campus

13
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
9th Most Popular In CA
222 General Education Degrees Awarded

Located in the large city of Los Angeles, UCLA is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #26 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UCLA is a great university overall.

There were approximately 222 general education students who graduated with this degree at UCLA in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general education from University of California - Los Angeles

14
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
36th Most Popular In CA
45 General Education Degrees Awarded

UC Berkeley is a fairly large public university located in the city of Berkeley. A Best Colleges rank of #18 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UC Berkeley is a great university overall.

There were approximately 45 general education students who graduated with this degree at UC Berkeley in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general education from University of California - Berkeley

15
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
4th Most Popular In CA
368 General Education Degrees Awarded

UC Irvine is a fairly large public university located in the large city of Irvine. This university ranks 15th out of 168 schools for overall quality in the state of California.

There were about 368 general education students who graduated with this degree at UC Irvine in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general education from University of California - Irvine

16
Michigan State crest
Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
2nd Most Popular In MI
186 General Education Degrees Awarded

Located in the small city of East Lansing, Michigan State is a public university with a fairly large student population. This university ranks 2nd out of 57 schools for overall quality in the state of Michigan.

There were roughly 186 general education students who graduated with this degree at Michigan State in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general education from Michigan State University

17
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
19th Most Popular In CA
127 General Education Degrees Awarded

UCSD is a fairly large public university located in the city of La Jolla. This university ranks 8th out of 168 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.

There were about 127 general education students who graduated with this degree at UCSD in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general education from University of California - San Diego

18
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
4th Most Popular In GA
39 General Education Degrees Awarded

Located in the midsize city of Athens, UGA is a public university with a very large student population. This university ranks 3rd out of 68 colleges for overall quality in the state of Georgia.

There were approximately 39 general education students who graduated with this degree at UGA in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general education from University of Georgia

19
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
2nd Most Popular In OR
160 General Education Degrees Awarded

Western Oregon State College is a small public university located in the town of Monmouth. This university ranks 6th out of 30 colleges for overall quality in the state of Oregon.

There were approximately 160 general education students who graduated with this degree at Western Oregon State College in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general education from Western Oregon University

20
NUS Florida crest
Nova Southeastern University
Fort Lauderdale, FL
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In FL
296 General Education Degrees Awarded

NUS Florida is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the large suburb of Fort Lauderdale. This university ranks 10th out of 77 colleges for overall quality in the state of Florida.

There were roughly 296 general education students who graduated with this degree at NUS Florida in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general education from Nova Southeastern University

21
UF crest
University of Florida
Gainesville, FL
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
5th Most Popular In FL
38 General Education Degrees Awarded

Located in the medium-sized city of Gainesville, UF is a public university with a very large student population. This university ranks 1st out of 77 schools for overall quality in the state of Florida.

There were approximately 38 general education students who graduated with this degree at UF in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general education from University of Florida

22
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
12th Most Popular In CA
145 General Education Degrees Awarded

SDSU is a fairly large public university located in the city of San Diego. This university ranks 22nd out of 168 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.

There were approximately 145 general education students who graduated with this degree at SDSU in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general education from San Diego State University

23
National University crest
National University
San Diego, CA
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In CA
1,075 General Education Degrees Awarded

Located in the large city of San Diego, National University is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population. This university ranks 33rd out of 168 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.

There were approximately 1075 general education students who graduated with this degree at National University in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general education from National University

23
Walden University crest
Walden University
Minneapolis, MN
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In MN
1,234 General Education Degrees Awarded

Located in the large city of Minneapolis, Walden University is a private for-profit university with a very large student population.

There were roughly 1234 general education students who graduated with this degree at Walden University in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in general education from Walden University

24
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
3rd Most Popular In IA
42.1% Growth in Graduates

Located in the small city of Ames, Iowa State is a public university with a very large student population. This university ranks 1st out of 40 schools for overall quality in the state of Iowa.

There were about 19 general education students who graduated with this degree at Iowa State in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in general education from Iowa State University

Rest of the Top Best General Education Schools

26
NYU crest
New York University
New York, NY
27
28
29
30
31
32

33

34
Hamline crest
Hamline University
Saint Paul, MN
35
36
37
37
Monmouth crest
Monmouth University
West Long Branch, NJ
38
39
40

41

42
43
44
Lesley crest
Lesley University
Cambridge, MA
45
46
Pacific crest
Pacific University
Forest Grove, OR
47
Niagara crest
Niagara University
Niagara University, NY
48
St. Olaf crest
St Olaf College
Northfield, MN
49

 

Remaining Award Winners

This section represents the rest of the schools awarded a Best General Education Schools badge. Showing in this list means the school was ranked in the top 15% of the 413 different United States general education schools we analyzed.

Rank College Location
50 James Madison University Harrisonburg, VA
51 Eastern Washington University Cheney, WA
52 University of Hawaii at Manoa Honolulu, HI
53 California State University - Fresno Fresno, CA
54 California State University - Fullerton Fullerton, CA
55 San Francisco State University San Francisco, CA
56 University of San Diego San Diego, CA
57 Syracuse University Syracuse, NY
58 Point Loma Nazarene University San Diego, CA
59 University of Missouri - Columbia Columbia, MO
60 Texas Tech University Lubbock, TX
61 Augustana University Sioux Falls, SD
65 Boston University Boston, MA

Additional Noteworthy Schools

Here are some additional great schools for General Education students that almost earned our Best General Education Schools award.

Rank College Location
62 Gustavus Adolphus College Saint Peter, MN
63 Winona State University Winona, MN
64 Gonzaga University Spokane, WA
65 Montclair State University Montclair, NJ
66 University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Chapel Hill, NC
67 Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota Winona, MN
68 Oregon State University Corvallis, OR
69 California State University - Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA
70 Notre Dame of Maryland University Baltimore, MD
71 Denison University Granville, OH
72 University of Maryland - Baltimore County Baltimore, MD
73 University of Wyoming Laramie, WY
74 Southwestern University Georgetown, TX
75 The University of Tennessee - Knoxville Knoxville, TN
76 University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee Milwaukee, WI
77 Concordia College at Moorhead Moorhead, MN
78 Loyola Marymount University Los Angeles, CA
79 The University of Texas at San Antonio San Antonio, TX
80 Brandeis University Waltham, MA
81 University of Vermont Burlington, VT
82 Chapman University Orange, CA

General Education by Region

View the Best General Education 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 >

General Education is one of 0 different types of General Education programs to choose from.

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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