by our College Data Analytics TeamIt's not easy to decide which college to attend when you have so many options available. At College Factual, we're committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our Top Louisiana Colleges ranking.
Our analysis looked at 30 schools in Louisiana to determine which ones were the best in terms of overall quality. Our ranking is based on over 20 objective factors, including post graduate earnings, freshman retention, and graduation rate. We steer clear of subjective measures since they don't give a clear picture when determining how one school compares to another.
Get more details on 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 Tulane University of Louisiana to be the best school for overall quality in Louisiana in this year’s ranking.
The school boasts an average 4-year graduation rate of 77%, which is excellent when compared to the national rate of 33%. Those who receive a bachelor’s degree from Tulane go into careers with an average salary of $63,268 during the early years of their career.
Out of the 30 schools in Louisiana that were part of this year’s ranking, Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College landed the #2 spot on the list.
Graduates with a bachelor’s degree from Louisiana State University make an average of $61,251 per year during the early years of their career.
Read full report on Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College
Out of the 30 schools in Louisiana that were part of this year’s ranking, Delgado Community College landed the #3 spot on the list.
During the early years of their career, graduates from Delgado Community College make an average of $33,305 a year.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend River Parishes Community College. The school came in at #4 in Louisiana on this year’s overall quality ranking.
During the early years of their career, graduates from River Parishes Community College make an average of $37,848 a year.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend South Louisiana Community College. It ranked #5 on our 2025 Best Colleges in Louisiana list.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. During the early years of their career, graduates from South Louisiana Community College make an average of $31,432 a year.
With a ranking of #6, Louisiana State University - Shreveport did quite well on the 2025 Best Colleges in Louisiana list.
Those who receive a bachelor’s degree from Louisiana State University - Shreveport go into careers with an average salary of $47,477 during the early years of their career.
University of Louisiana at Lafayette came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges in Louisiana ranking.
Those who receive a bachelor’s degree from UL Lafayette go into careers with an average salary of $47,089 during the early years of their career.
With a ranking of #8, University of Louisiana at Monroe did quite well on the 2025 Best Colleges in Louisiana list.
The low student loan default rate of 1.0% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1% Upon graduation, bachelor’s degree recipients go on to jobs making an average salary of $46,769 during the early years of their career..
Loyola University New Orleans landed the #9 spot on the 2025 Best Colleges in Louisiana ranking.
During the early years of their career, graduates from Loyola New Orleans make an average of $52,927 a year.
With a ranking of #10, Bossier Parish Community College did quite well on the 2025 Best Colleges in Louisiana list.
The average salary of a graduate with a bachelor’s degree from Bossier Parish Community College is $34,502 during the early years of their career.
Louisiana Tech University did quite well in the 2025 Best Colleges in Louisiana ranking, coming in at #11.
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% Those who receive a bachelor’s degree from Louisiana Tech go into careers with an average salary of $52,279 during the early years of their career.
With a ranking of #12, McNeese State University did quite well on the 2025 Best Colleges in Louisiana list.
During the early years of their career, graduates from McNeese make an average of $46,453 a year.
Southeastern Louisiana University ranked #13 on this year’s Best Colleges in Louisiana list.
Those who receive a bachelor’s degree from Southeastern go into careers with an average salary of $46,482 during the early years of their career.
Northwestern State University of Louisiana came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges in Louisiana ranking.
The average salary of a graduate with a bachelor’s degree from NSU is $47,021 during the early years of their career.
Baton Rouge Community College landed the #15 spot on the 2025 Best Colleges in Louisiana ranking.
The average salary of a graduate with a bachelor’s degree from BRCC is $34,581 during the early years of their career.
Nunez Community College landed the #16 spot on the 2025 Best Colleges in Louisiana ranking.
Upon graduation, bachelor’s degree recipients go on to jobs making an average salary of $35,343 during the early years of their career..
With a ranking of #17, Xavier University of Louisiana did quite well on the 2025 Best Colleges in Louisiana list.
During the early years of their career, graduates from XULA make an average of $52,184 a year.
University of Holy Cross ranked #18 on this year’s Best Colleges in Louisiana list.
Those who receive a bachelor’s degree from UHC go into careers with an average salary of $49,316 during the early years of their career.
With a ranking of #19, Nicholls State University did quite well on the 2025 Best Colleges in Louisiana list.
Those who receive a bachelor’s degree from Nicholls State University go into careers with an average salary of $45,454 during the early years of their career.
Louisiana State University - Eunice landed the #20 spot on the 2025 Best Colleges in Louisiana ranking.
Upon graduation, bachelor’s degree recipients go on to jobs making an average salary of $36,498 during the early years of their career..
Fletcher Technical Community College did quite well in the 2025 Best Colleges in Louisiana ranking, coming in at #21.
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% Those who receive a bachelor’s degree from Fletcher Technical Community College go into careers with an average salary of $32,189 during the early years of their career.
With a ranking of #22, University of New Orleans did quite well on the 2025 Best Colleges in Louisiana list.
The average salary of a graduate with a bachelor’s degree from UNO is $47,872 during the early years of their career.
With a ranking of #23, Louisiana State University - Alexandria did quite well on the 2025 Best Colleges in Louisiana list.
Graduates with a bachelor’s degree from Louisiana State University - Alexandria make an average of $42,205 per year during the early years of their career.
With a ranking of #24, Louisiana Delta Community College did quite well on the 2025 Best Colleges in Louisiana list.
During the early years of their career, graduates from LDCC make an average of $30,438 a year.
Dillard University did quite well in the 2025 Best Colleges in Louisiana ranking, coming in at #25.
Those who receive a bachelor’s degree from Dillard University go into careers with an average salary of $39,196 during the early years of their career.
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Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.