by our College Data Analytics TeamThere are lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. At College Factual, we're committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our Top Connecticut Colleges ranking.
We analyzed 18 colleges and universities across Connecticut to determine which were the best in terms of overall quality. Instead of depending on subjective information, we focus on over 20 objective factors to determine this ranking. These factors include such things as student-to-faculty ratio, average graduate earnings, and graduation rate.
See what other factors we include in our ranking methodology.
We've developed a number of other tools and rankings to help you make your college decision. Start by filtering this list by location or field of study and then explore our other rankings that feature schools great for different groups of students such as veterans or returnings adults.
We've created a tool called College Combat that lets you create your own customized comparisons based on the factors that matter the most to you. If you're torn between two schools, you can use it to help you see how they stack up against one another!
Learn more about these excellent schools below:
Our analysis found Yale University to be the best school for overall quality in Connecticut in this year’s ranking.
The 4-year grad rate at the school is 84%. That’s impressive when you compare it to the national rate of 33%. Upon graduation, bachelor’s degree recipients go on to jobs making an average salary of $100,533 during the early years of their career..
The excellent bachelor’s degree programs at Fairfield University helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best schools in Connecticut.
The 4-year grad rate at the school is 80%. That’s impressive when you compare it to the national rate of 33%. The average salary of a graduate with a bachelor’s degree from Fairfield U is $88,794 during the early years of their career.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Connecticut. It ranked #3 on our 2025 Best Colleges in Connecticut list.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. Upon graduation, bachelor’s degree recipients go on to jobs making an average salary of $73,997 during the early years of their career..
A rank of #4 on our Best Colleges in Connecticut list means Trinity College is a great place for students working on their bachelor’s degree.
Since the school has a student-to-faculty rate of 8 to 1, those pursuing a bachelor’s degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. Upon graduation, bachelor’s degree recipients go on to jobs making an average salary of $90,779 during the early years of their career..
The excellent bachelor’s degree programs at Quinnipiac University helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best schools in Connecticut.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 88%. The average salary of a graduate with a bachelor’s degree from Quinnipiac is $83,759 during the early years of their career.
Connecticut College ranked #6 on this year’s Best Colleges in Connecticut list.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%. Those who receive a bachelor’s degree from Conn College go into careers with an average salary of $75,001 during the early years of their career.
With a ranking of #7, Capital Community College did quite well on the 2025 Best Colleges in Connecticut list.
Upon graduation, bachelor’s degree recipients go on to jobs making an average salary of $41,344 during the early years of their career..
University of New Haven ranked #8 on this year’s Best Colleges in Connecticut list.
During the early years of their career, graduates from University of New Haven make an average of $60,126 a year.
Sacred Heart University ranked #9 on this year’s Best Colleges in Connecticut list.
The average salary of a graduate with a bachelor’s degree from Sacred Heart is $75,059 during the early years of their career.
Charter Oak State College ranked #10 on this year’s Best Colleges in Connecticut list.
With a freshman retention rate of 100%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. Upon graduation, bachelor’s degree recipients go on to jobs making an average salary of $64,209 during the early years of their career..
Southern Connecticut State University landed the #11 spot on the 2025 Best Colleges in Connecticut ranking.
Upon graduation, bachelor’s degree recipients go on to jobs making an average salary of $55,043 during the early years of their career..
With a ranking of #12, University of Hartford did quite well on the 2025 Best Colleges in Connecticut list.
The impressive student-to-faculty rate of 8 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The average salary of a graduate with a bachelor’s degree from UHart is $60,823 during the early years of their career.
University of Saint Joseph landed the #13 spot on the 2025 Best Colleges in Connecticut ranking.
The student-to-faculty rate of 8 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. Those who receive a bachelor’s degree from USJ go into careers with an average salary of $59,908 during the early years of their career.
Central Connecticut State University did quite well in the 2025 Best Colleges in Connecticut ranking, coming in at #14.
Upon graduation, bachelor’s degree recipients go on to jobs making an average salary of $58,562 during the early years of their career..
Eastern Connecticut State University ranked #15 on this year’s Best Colleges in Connecticut list.
The average salary of a graduate with a bachelor’s degree from ECSU is $56,469 during the early years of their career.
Post University landed the #16 spot on the 2025 Best Colleges in Connecticut ranking.
During the early years of their career, graduates from Post University make an average of $38,696 a year.
Western Connecticut State University ranked #17 on this year’s Best Colleges in Connecticut list.
During the early years of their career, graduates from WestConn make an average of $59,115 a year.
University of Bridgeport came in at #18 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges in Connecticut ranking.
Graduates with a bachelor’s degree from UBridgeport make an average of $50,323 per year during the early years of their career.
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Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 18 schools only.
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.