by our College Data Analytics Team
Choosing a college as a student athlete means weighing both the classroom and the competition. We have ranked 21 colleges for Women’s Beach Volleyball (Division I) by academic-athletic quality, using our 2026 methodology.
To arm you with the information you need, College Factual evaluates each program using a blend of academic-athletic outcomes (NCAA Academic Progress Rate and Graduation Success Rate), athletic financial resources (team revenue, expenses, and aid per athlete from the EADA survey), and overall school quality, drawing on NCAA, U.S. Department of Education EADA, and IPEDS data. Learn more about our ranking methodology.
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Learn more about these schools below:
University of Southern California tops our 2026 ranking of the best colleges for Women's Beach Volleyball (Division I). University of Southern California is a private not-for-profit school based in Los Angeles, CA. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 1000. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $93,227, against $93,227 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $40,006 per athlete.
Stanford University came in at #2 on this year's ranking for Women's Beach Volleyball (Division I). Based in Stanford, CA, Stanford University is a private not-for-profit institution. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 1000. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $66,638, compared with $66,638 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $42,012.
University of California-Los Angeles came in at #3 on this year's ranking for Women's Beach Volleyball (Division I). Based in Los Angeles, CA, University of California-Los Angeles is a public institution. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 1000. The program generates about $70,960 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $70,960 per participant. The school awards about $24,306 in athletic aid per athlete.
Loyola Marymount University is one of the top schools for Women's Beach Volleyball (Division I), at #4. Loyola Marymount University is a private not-for-profit school based in Los Angeles, CA. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 994. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $77,393, compared with $77,393 spent per athlete. The school awards about $40,056 in athletic aid per athlete.
University of California-Berkeley came in at #5 on this year's ranking for Women's Beach Volleyball (Division I). Located in Berkeley, CA, University of California-Berkeley is a public institution. The team's NCAA APR score is 995. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $46,898, with expenses of about $46,898 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $21,267.
University of Washington-Seattle Campus ranked #6 on our 2026 list for Women's Beach Volleyball (Division I). This public school is set in Seattle, WA. The team's NCAA APR score is 1000. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $30,050, with expenses of about $97,080 per participant. The school awards about $26,539 in athletic aid per athlete.
Pepperdine University did well this year, earning the #7 position. Located in Malibu, CA, Pepperdine University is a private not-for-profit institution. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 992. The program generates about $74,969 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $74,969 per participant. Athletic aid averages $27,861 per athlete.
Santa Clara University came in at #8 in this year's ranking. Based in Santa Clara, CA, Santa Clara University is a private not-for-profit institution. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 1000. The program generates about $19,523 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $19,523 per participant. The school awards about $19,355 in athletic aid per athlete.
University of San Francisco came in at #9 in this year's ranking. University of San Francisco is a private not-for-profit school based in San Francisco, CA. The team's NCAA APR score is 985. Team revenue averages $54,477 per participant, compared with $54,477 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $31,788.
California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo ranked #10 on our 2026 list for Women's Beach Volleyball (Division I). This public school is set in San Luis Obispo, CA. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 1000. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $32,967, compared with $32,967 spent per athlete. The school awards about $10,344 in athletic aid per athlete.
University of Oregon did well this year, earning the #11 position. University of Oregon is a public school based in Eugene, OR. The team's NCAA APR score is 1000. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $9,981, with expenses of about $36,605 per participant. Athletic aid averages $22,739 per athlete.
Saint Mary's College of California placed #12 among the best colleges for Women's Beach Volleyball (Division I). This private not-for-profit school is set in Moraga, CA. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 1000. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $22,728, with expenses of about $22,728 per participant. The school awards about $18,999 in athletic aid per athlete.
University of California-Davis ranked #13 on our 2026 list for Women's Beach Volleyball (Division I). This public school is set in Davis, CA. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 985. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $13,490, against $13,490 in expenses. The school awards about $14,267 in athletic aid per athlete.
California State University-Long Beach came in at #14 in this year's ranking. Based in Long Beach, CA, California State University-Long Beach is a public institution. California State University-Long Beach records an NCAA APR of 991. The program generates about $25,117 in revenue per athlete, against $25,117 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $8,770.
University of Portland placed #15 among the best colleges for Women's Beach Volleyball (Division I). Located in Portland, OR, University of Portland is a private not-for-profit institution. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 989. Team revenue averages $10,012 per participant, against $10,012 in expenses. The school awards about $17,618 in athletic aid per athlete.
University of Hawaii at Manoa ranked #16 on our 2026 list for Women's Beach Volleyball (Division I). Located in Honolulu, HI, University of Hawaii at Manoa is a public institution. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 982. Team revenue averages $22,398 per participant, against $42,502 in expenses. The school awards about $18,398 in athletic aid per athlete.
University of the Pacific placed #17 among the best colleges for Women's Beach Volleyball (Division I). Based in Stockton, CA, University of the Pacific is a private not-for-profit institution. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 960. The program generates about $13,164 in revenue per athlete, compared with $13,164 spent per athlete. The school awards about $21,596 in athletic aid per athlete.
San Jose State University ranked #18 on our 2026 list for Women's Beach Volleyball (Division I). Based in San Jose, CA, San Jose State University is a public institution. San Jose State University records an NCAA APR of 969. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $17,562, compared with $17,562 spent per athlete. The school awards about $16,034 in athletic aid per athlete.
California State University-Bakersfield landed the #19 spot this year. California State University-Bakersfield is a public school based in Bakersfield, CA. The team's NCAA APR score is 1000. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $15,721, compared with $15,721 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $10,121.
California State University-Sacramento did well this year, earning the #20 position. California State University-Sacramento is a public school based in Sacramento, CA. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $11,949, with expenses of about $11,949 per participant. The school awards about $11,560 in athletic aid per athlete.
California State University-Northridge did well this year, earning the #21 position. Located in Northridge, CA, California State University-Northridge is a public institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $9,491, compared with $10,489 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $11,174 per athlete.
*These averages are for the top 25 ranked colleges only.
This ranking is produced by College Factual, 2026 edition. The methodology weighs a blend of academic-athletic outcomes (NCAA Academic Progress Rate and Graduation Success Rate), athletic financial resources (team revenue, expenses, and athletic aid from the federal EADA survey), and overall school quality. The current methodology measures academic-athletic quality and does not include team win/loss performance.
References
See our data sources and methodologies.