2021 Best Colleges for International Students in the United States
1,232
Colleges
$55,430
Avg Tuition & Fees*
81%
Avg 4-Year Grad Rate*
With all of the options international students 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 Best Colleges for International Students ranking is part of that endeavor.
We analyzed 1,232 colleges and universities across the United States to determine which were the best for international students. To come up with this ranking, we look at a number of factors that are all objective measurements. These factors include the school's overall quality as determined by our Best Colleges ranking and the percentage of international students on campus.
See what other factors we include in our ranking methodology.
Custom Rankings
Since one ranking on its own is not enough to give you a complete understanding of your educational options, you can refine this list by location. We've also developed a number of other tools and rankings based on other factors. These other rankings highlight colleges that excel in other factors such as value or diversity as well as schools that excel in serving different groups of students such as online students 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. We encourage you to try it out and pit your favorite colleges and universities head to head! If you don't have time right now, you can bookmark it for later.
Top Colleges in the U.S. for International Students
See which schools came out on top of our ranking:
Our 2021 rankings named Columbia University in the City of New York the best school for international students working on their bachelor’s degree. Columbia is a private not-for-profit institution located in New York, New York. The school has a large population, and it awarded 2,654 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Around 34.9% of the total student population at the school is international. Students from as far away as China, India, and South Korea come to Columbia to study.
With a freshman retention rate of 95%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Read full report on Columbia University in the City of New York
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Southern California. It ranked #2 on our 2021 Best Colleges for international students list. USC is located in Los Angeles, California and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 5,745 bachelor’s degrees to qualified undergraduates.
Around 22.5% of the total student population at the school is international. Students studying at USC come from such countries as China, India, and South Korea.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%.
Full University of Southern California Report
The excellent bachelor’s degree programs at Northeastern University helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best schools for international students. Northeastern is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Boston, Massachusetts. It awarded 4,358 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Around 29.2% of the total student population at the school is international. Students from as far away as China, India, and Taiwan come to Northeastern to study.
With a freshman retention rate of 97%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Read full report on Northeastern University
The excellent bachelor’s degree programs at Carnegie Mellon University helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best schools for international students. Located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the fairly large private not-for-profit school awarded 1,953 diplomas to qualified bachelor’s degree students in 2020-2021.
International students make up 37.1% of the total student body at the school. Students from as far away as China, India, and South Korea come to Carnegie Mellon to study.
With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Full Carnegie Mellon University Report
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Cornell University. It ranked #5 on our 2021 Best Colleges for international students list. Located in Ithaca, New York, the large private not-for-profit school handed out 4,287 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
International students make up 21.8% of the total student body at the school. Students from as far away as China, India, and Canada come to Cornell to study.
With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Read full report on Cornell University
University of Pennsylvania did quite well in the 2021 Best Colleges for international Students ranking, coming in at #6. Located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the large private not-for-profit school handed out 3,499 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
International students make up 19.5% of the total student body at the school. Students studying at UPenn come from such countries as China, India, and South Korea.
With a freshman retention rate of 95%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Full University of Pennsylvania Report
Boston University did quite well in the 2021 Best Colleges for international Students ranking, coming in at #7. Located in Boston, Massachusetts, the large private not-for-profit school awarded 4,788 diplomas to qualified bachelor’s degree students in 2020-2021.
Around 24.6% of the total student population at the school is international. Students studying at Boston U come from such countries as China, India, and South Korea.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 92%.
Read full report on Boston University
Harvard University ranked #8 on this year’s Best Colleges for international Students list. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the large private not-for-profit school handed out 1,618 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of the total number of students at the school, 22.9% are international. The top three countries sending students to study at Harvard are China, Canada, and India.
The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
Full Harvard University Report
New York University ranked #9 on this year’s Best Colleges for international Students list. Located in New York, New York, the large private not-for-profit school handed out 6,752 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
International students make up 27.6% of the total student body at the school. Students from as far away as China, India, and South Korea come to NYU to study.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 90%.
Read More…
University of Michigan - Ann Arbor came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for international Students ranking. This large public school is located in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and it awarded 9,144 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of the total number of students at the school, 13.9% are international. Students studying at U-M come from such countries as China, India, and South Korea.
With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Read full report on University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
University of California - Berkeley landed the #11 spot on the 2021 Best Colleges for international Students. UC Berkeley is a large public school situated in Berkeley, California. It awarded 10,523 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of the total number of students at the school, 16.2% are international. Students studying at UC Berkeley come from such countries as China, South Korea, and India.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%.
Read full report on University of California - Berkeley
Massachusetts Institute of Technology landed the #12 spot on the 2021 Best Colleges for international Students. MIT is located in Cambridge, Massachusetts and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 1,249 bachelor’s degrees to qualified undergraduates.
Of the total number of students at the school, 29.1% are international. Students from as far away as China, India, and Canada come to MIT to study.
The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 3 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
Full Massachusetts Institute of Technology Report
Stanford University ranked #13 on this year’s Best Colleges for international Students list. Located in Stanford, California, the fairly large private not-for-profit school awarded 1,511 diplomas to qualified bachelor’s degree students in 2020-2021.
Around 23.9% of the total student population at the school is international. Students studying at Stanford come from such countries as China, India, and Canada.
The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
Full Stanford University Report
Duke University did quite well in the 2021 Best Colleges for international Students ranking, coming in at #14. Duke is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Durham, North Carolina. It awarded 2,319 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
International students make up 18.3% of the total student body at the school. The top three countries sending students to study at Duke are China, India, and South Korea.
With a student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
Full Duke University Report
University of California - Los Angeles came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for international Students ranking. Los Angeles, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelor’s degrees to 10,102 students in 2020-2021.
Of the total number of students at the school, 13.8% are international. Students from as far away as China, South Korea, and India come to UCLA to study.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 96%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Full University of California - Los Angeles Report
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign did quite well in the 2021 Best Colleges for international Students ranking, coming in at #16. UIUC is located in Champaign, Illinois and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 9,305 bachelor’s degrees to qualified undergraduates.
Around 19.2% of the total student population at the school is international. Students studying at UIUC come from such countries as China, India, and South Korea.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%.
Full University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Report
Northwestern University did quite well in the 2021 Best Colleges for international Students ranking, coming in at #17. Located in Evanston, Illinois, the large private not-for-profit school handed out 2,722 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
International students make up 16.3% of the total student body at the school. The top three countries sending students to study at Northwestern are China, India, and South Korea.
Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, those pursuing a bachelor’s degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
Read full report on Northwestern University
With a ranking of #18, Johns Hopkins University did quite well on the 2021 Best Colleges for international Students. Johns Hopkins is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Baltimore, Maryland. It awarded 1,847 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of the total number of students at the school, 19.2% are international. Students studying at Johns Hopkins come from such countries as China, India, and South Korea.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 97%.
Read More…
With a ranking of #19, University of Chicago did quite well on the 2021 Best Colleges for international Students. University of Chicago is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 2,163 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
International students make up 26.6% of the total student body at the school. The top three countries sending students to study at UChicago are China, India, and South Korea.
The student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
Read full report on University of Chicago
University of California - San Diego came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for international Students ranking. University of California - San Diego is a large public school located in La Jolla, California that handed out 9,086 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
International students make up 21.4% of the total student body at the school. The top three countries sending students to study at UCSD are China, India, and South Korea.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%.
Read More…
Yale University landed the #21 spot on the 2021 Best Colleges for international Students. Yale is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in New Haven, Connecticut. It awarded 1,431 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
International students make up 21.1% of the total student body at the school. The top three countries sending students to study at Yale are China, Canada, and India.
With a student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
Read More…
Washington University in St Louis landed the #22 spot on the 2021 Best Colleges for international Students. Washington University in St Louis is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in Saint Louis, Missouri that handed out 2,441 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Of the total number of students at the school, 21.0% are international. Students studying at WUSTL come from such countries as China, South Korea, and India.
The student-to-faculty ratio of 7 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
Full Washington University in St Louis Report
University of Rochester ranked #23 on this year’s Best Colleges for international Students list. This fairly large private not-for-profit school is located in Rochester, New York, and it awarded 2,035 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Around 30.3% of the total student population at the school is international. Students from as far away as China, India, and South Korea come to University of Rochester to study.
With a freshman retention rate of 92%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Read More…
Princeton University did quite well in the 2021 Best Colleges for international Students ranking, coming in at #24. Princeton is located in Princeton, New Jersey and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 1,175 bachelor’s degrees to qualified undergraduates.
Of the total number of students at the school, 23.2% are international. Students from as far away as China, Canada, and India come to Princeton to study.
With a student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
Full Princeton University Report
University of Washington - Seattle Campus ranked #25 on this year’s Best Colleges for international Students list. Located in Seattle, Washington, the large public school awarded 9,451 diplomas to qualified bachelor’s degree students in 2020-2021.
Of the total number of students at the school, 16.2% are international. Students from as far away as China, India, and South Korea come to UW Seattle to study.
With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Full University of Washington - Seattle Campus Report
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