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Belhaven University tops our 2026 ranking of the most diverse colleges in Mississippi. On overall diversity, it scores 77.8 out of 100. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 65.9, with a gender-diversity score of 94.7.
by our College Data Analytics Team
If you’re seeking a diverse and multi-faceted college experience, you’ve come to the right place. This list highlights 34 schools ranked on overall diversity in Mississippi, using our 2026 methodology.
We measure this ranking on several factors of the student body: racial/ethnic makeup, geographic origin, gender balance, and age range. To help you decide, College Factual analyzed 34 colleges, drawing primarily on U.S. Department of Education data (IPEDS and College Scorecard). Learn more about our ranking methodology.
Diversity means different things to different students. Refine the list by location, or explore the overall, racial-ethnic, gender, economic, and age diversity rankings, or other rankings below.
Looking to pit your favorite colleges against each other? Try our tool College Combat to build custom comparisons using the factors most important to you.
Here are the top-ranked colleges:
Belhaven University tops our 2026 ranking of the most diverse colleges in Mississippi. On overall diversity, it scores 77.8 out of 100. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 65.9, with a gender-diversity score of 94.7.
Out of the 34 colleges in Mississippi in this year's ranking, Delta State University landed the #2 spot. On overall diversity, it scores 72.6 out of 100. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 52.4, alongside a 94.7 gender-diversity score.
William Carey University earned the #3 place in Mississippi. On overall diversity, it scores 71.7 out of 100. On racial-ethnic diversity it scores 52.6, with a gender-diversity score of 91.2.
Millsaps College earned the #4 place in Mississippi. It scores 71.6 out of 100 for overall diversity. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 59.8, and gender diversity 99.7.
University of Southern Mississippi came in at #5 on this year's Most Diverse Colleges ranking in Mississippi. It scores 71.4 out of 100 for overall diversity. Its racial-ethnic diversity score is 56.3, alongside a 94.3 gender-diversity score.
Mississippi College came in at #6 in this year's ranking. On overall diversity, it scores 69.4 out of 100. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 56.0, and gender diversity 96.5.
Blue Mountain Christian University landed the #7 spot in Mississippi this year. It scores 68.8 out of 100 for overall diversity. Its racial-ethnic diversity score is 49.2, and gender diversity 99.1.
Mississippi State University ranked #8 on our 2026 list of the most diverse colleges. It scores 68.0 out of 100 for overall diversity. On racial-ethnic diversity it scores 47.3, alongside a 99.9 gender-diversity score.
Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College placed #9 among the most diverse colleges in Mississippi. It scores 67.8 out of 100 for overall diversity. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 61.7, with a gender-diversity score of 95.4.
University of Mississippi earned the #10 position in Mississippi. It scores 67.7 out of 100 for overall diversity. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 44.8, and gender diversity 97.9.
Blue Cliff College-Gulfport came in at #11 in this year's ranking. The school's overall diversity score is 67.4 out of 100. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 55.2, alongside a 39.9 gender-diversity score.
Jackson State University earned the #12 position in Mississippi. Jackson State University scores 66.6 out of 100 for overall diversity. Its racial-ethnic diversity score is 17.7, with a gender-diversity score of 92.1.
East Mississippi Community College landed the #13 spot in Mississippi this year. The school's overall diversity score is 65.6 out of 100. Its racial-ethnic diversity score is 49.0, alongside a 97.7 gender-diversity score.
Meridian Community College ranked #14 on our 2026 list of the most diverse colleges. On overall diversity, it scores 64.9 out of 100. Its racial-ethnic diversity score is 47.6, with a gender-diversity score of 87.1.
East Central Community College earned the #15 position in Mississippi. On overall diversity, it scores 63.9 out of 100. Its racial-ethnic diversity score is 59.7, alongside a 97.2 gender-diversity score.
Southwest Mississippi Community College placed #16 among the most diverse colleges in Mississippi. On overall diversity, it scores 63.2 out of 100. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 46.0, and gender diversity 96.5.
Mississippi University for Women landed the #17 spot in Mississippi this year. On overall diversity, it scores 63.1 out of 100. Its racial-ethnic diversity score is 43.3, alongside a 74.3 gender-diversity score.
Mississippi Valley State University placed #18 among the most diverse colleges in Mississippi. It scores 62.6 out of 100 for overall diversity. On racial-ethnic diversity it scores 33.7, and gender diversity 98.6.
Northwest Mississippi Community College landed the #19 spot in Mississippi this year. The school's overall diversity score is 62.4 out of 100. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 49.1, with a gender-diversity score of 95.2.
Pearl River Community College came in at #20 in this year's ranking. The school's overall diversity score is 62.3 out of 100. On racial-ethnic diversity it scores 41.5, and gender diversity 91.8.
Copiah-Lincoln Community College landed the #21 spot in Mississippi this year. It scores 61.9 out of 100 for overall diversity. Its racial-ethnic diversity score is 45.1, with a gender-diversity score of 96.2.
Itawamba Community College earned the #22 position in Mississippi. The school's overall diversity score is 61.9 out of 100. On racial-ethnic diversity it scores 42.1, alongside a 94.3 gender-diversity score.
Rust College came in at #23 in this year's ranking. On overall diversity, it scores 61.7 out of 100. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 13.1, with a gender-diversity score of 99.8.
Jones County Junior College came in at #24 in this year's ranking. On overall diversity, it scores 61.1 out of 100. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 43.6, and gender diversity 95.7.
Mississippi Delta Community College landed the #25 spot in Mississippi this year. It scores 60.8 out of 100 for overall diversity. Its racial-ethnic diversity score is 38.3, alongside a 96.1 gender-diversity score.
Not far behind, these colleges also rank among the most diverse this year:
*These averages are for the top 25 ranked colleges only.
This ranking is based on several factors of the student body: racial/ethnic makeup, geographic representation, gender balance, and age range. The racial-ethnic minorities percentage is calculated by taking the total number of students, subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity is unknown, and dividing by total enrollment.
This list is compiled by College Factual, 2026 edition.
References
Read more about our data sources and methodologies.