by our College Data Analytics TeamIt's not easy to decide which college to attend when you have so many options available. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our Top South Dakota Colleges ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.
We analyzed 13 colleges and universities across South Dakota to determine which 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 2025 rankings named Lake Area Technical Institute the best school in South Dakota in terms of overall quality for students working on their bachelor’s degree.
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%. Those who receive a bachelor’s degree from LATI go into careers with an average salary of $45,473 during the early years of their career.
A rank of #2 on our Best Colleges in South Dakota list means Mount Marty University is a great place for students working on their bachelor’s degree.
Upon graduation, bachelor’s degree recipients go on to jobs making an average salary of $48,179 during the early years of their career..
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend South Dakota State University. It ranked #3 on our 2025 Best Colleges in South Dakota list.
Graduates with a bachelor’s degree from South Dakota State make an average of $55,070 per year during the early years of their career.
A rank of #4 on our Best Colleges in South Dakota list means Southeast Technical College is a great place for students working on their bachelor’s degree.
Upon graduation, bachelor’s degree recipients go on to jobs making an average salary of $46,709 during the early years of their career..
Out of the 13 schools in South Dakota that were part of this year’s ranking, National American University - Rapid City landed the #5 spot on the 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% Graduates with a bachelor’s degree from National American University - Rapid City make an average of $37,325 per year during the early years of their career.
Dakota State University landed the #6 spot on the 2025 Best Colleges in South Dakota ranking.
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%. Graduates with a bachelor’s degree from Dakota State make an average of $50,970 per year during the early years of their career.
University of South Dakota ranked #7 on this year’s Best Colleges in South Dakota list.
Graduates with a bachelor’s degree from USD make an average of $51,926 per year during the early years of their career.
Mitchell Technical College came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges in South Dakota ranking.
Upon graduation, bachelor’s degree recipients go on to jobs making an average salary of $50,743 during the early years of their career..
With a ranking of #9, Augustana University did quite well on the 2025 Best Colleges in South Dakota list.
Graduates with a bachelor’s degree from Augustana Sioux Falls make an average of $59,217 per year during the early years of their career.
Northern State University came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges in South Dakota ranking.
During the early years of their career, graduates from NSU make an average of $47,618 a year.
Black Hills State University landed the #11 spot on the 2025 Best Colleges in South Dakota ranking.
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%. Graduates with a bachelor’s degree from BHSU make an average of $46,674 per year during the early years of their career.
With a ranking of #12, University of Sioux Falls did quite well on the 2025 Best Colleges in South Dakota list.
During the early years of their career, graduates from University of Sioux Falls make an average of $54,521 a year.
Western Dakota Technical Institute came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges in South Dakota ranking.
The student-to-faculty rate of 9 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. During the early years of their career, graduates from Western Dakota Tech make an average of $40,240 a year.
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Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 13 schools only.
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.