by our College Data Analytics Team
Picking a college for your sport means looking beyond the field or court. This list ranks 52 schools for Men’s Swimming & Diving 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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Here are the top-ranked colleges for student athletes:
Johns Hopkins University earned the #1 spot in this year's ranking for Men's Swimming & Diving. Johns Hopkins University is a private not-for-profit school based in Baltimore, MD. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $9,955, compared with $9,955 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $2,612 per athlete.
New York University came in at #2 on this year's ranking for Men's Swimming & Diving. Located in New York, NY, New York University is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $11,471 per participant, compared with $11,250 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus ranked #3 among the best colleges for Men's Swimming & Diving. Located in Pittsburgh, PA, University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus is a public institution. The team's NCAA APR score is 996, and a 94% Graduation Success Rate. About 71% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Team revenue averages $55,686 per participant, with expenses of about $55,686 per participant. Athletic aid averages $30,613 per athlete.
Swarthmore College is one of the top schools for Men's Swimming & Diving, at #4. This private not-for-profit school is set in Swarthmore, PA. Team revenue averages $9,303 per participant, against $7,184 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Union College landed the #5 spot for Men's Swimming & Diving. Based in Schenectady, NY, Union College is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $9,747 per participant, compared with $8,720 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $2,499 per athlete.
Stevens Institute of Technology came in at #6 in this year's ranking. Stevens Institute of Technology is a private not-for-profit school based in Hoboken, NJ. The program generates about $7,188 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $7,188 per participant. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
St Lawrence University did well this year, earning the #7 position. St Lawrence University is a private not-for-profit school based in Canton, NY. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $10,588, with expenses of about $10,588 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $3,126.
Franklin and Marshall College landed the #8 spot this year. Based in Lancaster, PA, Franklin and Marshall College is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $7,221 per participant, against $5,581 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $53.
Mount St. Mary's University placed #9 among the best colleges for Men's Swimming & Diving. Based in Emmitsburg, MD, Mount St. Mary's University is a private not-for-profit institution. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 996, and a 92% Graduation Success Rate. Its federal graduation rate is 73%. The program generates about $28,505 in revenue per athlete, compared with $28,505 spent per athlete. The school awards about $12,910 in athletic aid per athlete.
Gettysburg College ranked #10 on our 2026 list for Men's Swimming & Diving. Located in Gettysburg, PA, Gettysburg College is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $6,710, with expenses of about $6,710 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Bard College landed the #11 spot this year. Based in Annandale-On-Hudson, NY, Bard College is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $12,115 per participant, compared with $12,115 spent per athlete. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Ursinus College placed #12 among the best colleges for Men's Swimming & Diving. This private not-for-profit school is set in Collegeville, PA. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $8,528, compared with $8,528 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Gannon University landed the #13 spot this year. Located in Erie, PA, Gannon University is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $10,311 in revenue per athlete, compared with $10,311 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $9,313 per athlete.
Ithaca College landed the #14 spot this year. Located in Ithaca, NY, Ithaca College is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $7,365 in revenue per athlete, against $7,365 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Monmouth University landed the #15 spot this year. Located in West Long Branch, NJ, Monmouth University is a private not-for-profit institution. Monmouth University records an NCAA APR of 996, alongside a GSR of 79%. About 58% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Team revenue averages $24,070 per participant, compared with $24,070 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $20,376.
Niagara University placed #16 among the best colleges for Men's Swimming & Diving. This private not-for-profit school is set in Niagara University, NY. The team's NCAA APR score is 991, and a 90% Graduation Success Rate. The federal graduation rate stands at 69%. The program generates about $15,079 in revenue per athlete, against $15,079 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $17,462.
Dickinson College landed the #17 spot this year. This private not-for-profit school is set in Carlisle, PA. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $2,857, against $3,557 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Rowan University landed the #18 spot this year. This public school is set in Glassboro, NJ. Team revenue averages $10,177 per participant, compared with $9,114 spent per athlete. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Elizabethtown College placed #19 among the best colleges for Men's Swimming & Diving. Elizabethtown College is a private not-for-profit school based in Elizabethtown, PA. The program generates about $4,269 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $4,269 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Drew University did well this year, earning the #20 position. Based in Madison, NJ, Drew University is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $7,454, against $7,454 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Messiah University placed #21 among the best colleges for Men's Swimming & Diving. This private not-for-profit school is set in Mechanicsburg, PA. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $3,475, with expenses of about $2,435 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Allegheny College did well this year, earning the #22 position. This private not-for-profit school is set in Meadville, PA. Team revenue averages $17,781 per participant, against $17,781 in expenses. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Saint Peter's University placed #23 among the best colleges for Men's Swimming & Diving. Saint Peter's University is a private not-for-profit school based in Jersey City, NJ. Saint Peter's University records an NCAA APR of 961, and a 100% Graduation Success Rate. The federal graduation rate stands at 56%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $9,895, with expenses of about $9,895 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $10,025.
Clarkson University did well this year, earning the #24 position. Clarkson University is a private not-for-profit school based in Potsdam, NY. The program generates about $3,729 in revenue per athlete, against $3,825 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $4,842.
Saint Vincent College did well this year, earning the #25 position. This private not-for-profit school is set in Latrobe, PA. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $6,472, compared with $6,472 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
These programs also stood out among the best this year:
*These averages are for the top 25 ranked colleges only.
The ranking above is published 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
More about our data sources and methodologies.
