by our College Data Analytics Team
Picking a college for your sport means looking beyond the field or court. This list ranks 6 schools for Women’s Softball (Division I) by academic-athletic quality, using our 2026 methodology.
To help you decide, College Factual scores each program on 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: No school ranked higher than Mississippi State University this year for Women's Softball (Division I). This public school is set in Mississippi State, MS. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 995, alongside a GSR of 100%. The federal graduation rate stands at 58%. Team revenue averages $149,527 per participant, against $149,527 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $24,143 per athlete. University of Mississippi ranked #2 among the best colleges for Women's Softball (Division I). This public school is set in University, MS. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 994, with a Graduation Success Rate of 100%. The federal graduation rate stands at 50%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $148,256, against $148,256 in expenses. The school awards about $22,457 in athletic aid per athlete. University of Southern Mississippi is one of the top schools for Women's Softball (Division I), at #3. Based in Hattiesburg, MS, University of Southern Mississippi is a public institution. The team's NCAA APR score is 991, with a Graduation Success Rate of 88%. About 46% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. The program generates about $31,923 in revenue per athlete, against $31,923 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $13,309 per athlete. Alcorn State University earned the #4 place for student athletes. Alcorn State University is a public school based in Alcorn State, MS. The team's NCAA APR score is 986, with a Graduation Success Rate of 67%. Its federal graduation rate is 59%. Team revenue averages $18,049 per participant, with expenses of about $18,049 per participant. Athletic aid averages $6,599 per athlete.1
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Jackson State University earned the #5 place for student athletes. Based in Jackson, MS, Jackson State University is a public institution. The team's NCAA APR score is 963, and a 100% Graduation Success Rate. Its federal graduation rate is 56%. The program generates about $16,932 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $16,932 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $7,647.5
Mississippi Valley State University landed the #6 spot this year. Mississippi Valley State University is a public school based in Itta Bena, MS. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 971, with a Graduation Success Rate of 91%. About 55% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $12,319, with expenses of about $12,319 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $4,569.6
*These averages are for the top 25 ranked colleges only.
The ranking above is published by College Factual, 2026 edition. Rankings consider 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
More about our data sources and methodologies.