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2024 Best Literature Bachelor's Degree Schools

22 Colleges in the United States
460 Bachelor's Degrees
$24,591 Avg Early-Career Salary
When it comes to popularity, a bachelor's degree in literature sits in the middle of the road, ranking #210 out of 363 majors in the country. As such, the degree program isn't offered at every college in the United States, but there are schools that do have a program in the field that are top-notch when it comes to quality.

In 2024, College Factual analyzed 22 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Literature Bachelor's Degree Schools ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 460 bachelor's degrees in literature during the 2020-2021 academic year.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology

Choosing a Great Literature School for Your Bachelor's Degree

Best Literature Bachelor's Degree Schools Your choice of literature for getting your bachelor's degree school matters. This section explores some of the factors we include in our ranking and how much they vary depending on the school you select. When choosing a school we recommend considering some of the following factors:

Quality Overall Is Important

A school that excels in educating for a particular major and degree level must be a great school overall as well. To make it into this list a school must rank well in our overall Best Colleges ranking. This ranking considered factors such as graduation rates, overall graduate earnings and other educational resources to identify great colleges and universities.

Average Earnings

To determine the overall quality of a graduate school, one factor we look at is the average early-career salary of those receiving their bachelor's degree from the school. This is because one of the main reasons people pursue their bachelor's degree is to enable themselves to find better-paying positions.

Other Factors We Consider

In addition to the above, you should consider some of the following factors:

Our complete ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best schools for literature students working on their bachelor's degree.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Rankings by Location Check Out Other Locales
More Literature Rankings Other Ranking Categories

The literature school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we've developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of the Best Literature Bachelor's Degree Schools.

In addition to College Factual's rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don't forget it.

Best Schools for Bachelor’s Students to Study Literature in the United States

Below you'll see a list of the best colleges and universities for pursuing a bachelor's degree in literature.

10 Top Schools for a Bachelor's in Literature

1
NYU crest
New York University
New York, NY
87 Annual Graduates

It's hard to beat New York University if you wish to pursue a bachelor's degree in literature. Located in the city of New York, NYU is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in literature from New York University

2
Duke crest
Duke University
Durham, NC
6 Annual Graduates

Duke University is a wonderful decision for individuals pursuing a bachelor's degree in literature. Located in the large city of Durham, Duke is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in literature from Duke University

3
The American University crest
American University
Washington, DC
22 Annual Graduates
$38,528 Median Starting Salary
$26,105 Median Student Debt

It is difficult to beat American University if you want to pursue a bachelor's degree in literature. The American University is a large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Washington.

Those literature students who get their bachelor's degree from American University earn $13,937 more than the average literature student.

More information about a bachelor’s in literature from American University

4
UPenn crest
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA

Every student pursuing a degree in a bachelor's degree in literature has to look into University of Pennsylvania. Located in the large city of Philadelphia, UPenn is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in literature from University of Pennsylvania

5
36 Annual Graduates
$13,093 Median Student Debt

Located in the large city of Los Angeles, UCLA is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in literature from University of California - Los Angeles

6

Sewanee is a small private not-for-profit university located in the rural area of Sewanee.More information about a bachelor’s in literature from Sewanee - The University of the South

7
41 Annual Graduates
$24,135 Median Starting Salary
$27,000 Median Student Debt

Located in the large city of Pittsburgh, Pitt is a public university with a very large student population.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the literature program state that they receive average early career wages of $24,135.

More information about a bachelor’s in literature from University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Campus

8

Miami University - Oxford is a large public university located in the fringe town of Oxford.More information about a bachelor’s in literature from Miami University - Oxford

9
Hamilton crest
Hamilton College
Clinton, NY
18 Annual Graduates

Hamilton is a small private not-for-profit college located in the medium-sized suburb of Clinton.More information about a bachelor’s in literature from Hamilton College

10
Pacific crest
Pacific University
Forest Grove, OR
5 Annual Graduates

Located in the suburb of Forest Grove, Pacific is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population.More information about a bachelor’s in literature from Pacific University

Literature by Region

View the Best Literature Bachelor's Degree 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

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Literature is one of 9 different types of English Language & Literature programs to choose from.

Literature Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
General Literature 220
English Literature (British & Commonwealth) 194
American Literature (United States) 40
Other Literature 6

Related Major Annual Graduates
General English Literature 31,214
Writing Studies 6,597
English Literature (Other) 574

Notes and References

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