by our College Data Analytics TeamWith all of the options you have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our Top Hawaii Colleges ranking is part of that endeavor.
After analyzing 10 schools in Hawaii, we came up with our list of those that offered the highest quality education. To come up with this ranking, we look at more than 20 factors that are all objective measurements. These factors include freshman retention, graduation rate, student-to-faculty ratio, and post graduate earnings, among other things.
Find out more about our ranking methodology.
We know that one set of rankings doesn't always help you determine the best school for you, so we've created the ability to narrow your list by location and field of study as well as alternative rankings that prioritize different factors such as those of importance to veterans and returning adults or those who value diversity and value for your money.
One of our other unique offerings is College Combat. This tool lets you build your own customized comparisons utilizing the factors that are most important to you. We encourage you to try it out and pit your favorite colleges and universities head to head!
Learn more about these excellent schools below:
Our analysis found Chaminade University of Honolulu to be the best school for overall quality in Hawaii in this year’s ranking.
Upon graduation, bachelor’s degree recipients go on to jobs making an average salary of $52,343 during the early years of their career..
Out of the 10 schools in Hawaii that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Hawaii at Manoa landed the #2 spot on the list.
The student loan default rate at the school is 1.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1% Upon graduation, bachelor’s degree recipients go on to jobs making an average salary of $57,624 during the early years of their career..
The excellent bachelor’s degree programs at Honolulu Community College helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best schools in Hawaii.
Those who receive a bachelor’s degree from Honolulu CC go into careers with an average salary of $45,105 during the early years of their career.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Hawaii Maui College. The school came in at #4 in Hawaii on this year’s overall quality ranking.
Graduates with a bachelor’s degree from UH Maui College make an average of $34,453 per year during the early years of their career.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Kapiolani Community College. The school came in at #5 in Hawaii on this year’s overall quality ranking.
Upon graduation, bachelor’s degree recipients go on to jobs making an average salary of $44,599 during the early years of their career..
Leeward Community College ranked #6 on this year’s Best Colleges in Hawaii list.
Those who receive a bachelor’s degree from Leeward CC go into careers with an average salary of $39,899 during the early years of their career.
University of Hawaii - West Oahu did quite well in the 2025 Best Colleges in Hawaii ranking, coming in at #7.
Upon graduation, bachelor’s degree recipients go on to jobs making an average salary of $52,075 during the early years of their career..
Hawaii Pacific University came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges in Hawaii ranking.
During the early years of their career, graduates from Hawaii Pacific University make an average of $59,593 a year.
Windward Community College landed the #9 spot on the 2025 Best Colleges in Hawaii ranking.
The average salary of a graduate with a bachelor’s degree from Windward CC is $38,439 during the early years of their career.
University of Hawaii at Hilo did quite well in the 2025 Best Colleges in Hawaii ranking, coming in at #10.
Graduates with a bachelor’s degree from UH Hilo make an average of $47,856 per year during the early years of their career.
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Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 10 schools only.
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.