by our College Data Analytics Team
Choosing a college as a student athlete means weighing both the classroom and the competition. Our ranking highlights 21 colleges for Women’s Swimming & Diving 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:
Whitman College earned the #1 spot in this year's ranking for Women's Swimming & Diving. Located in Walla Walla, WA, Whitman College is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $10,284, against $8,628 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
University of California-Santa Barbara ranked #2 among the best colleges for Women's Swimming & Diving. University of California-Santa Barbara is a public school based in Santa Barbara, CA. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 1000, with a Graduation Success Rate of 100%. The federal graduation rate stands at 96%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $17,881, compared with $17,881 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $11,355.
University of California-San Diego ranked #3 among the best colleges for Women's Swimming & Diving. This public school is set in La Jolla, CA. University of California-San Diego records an NCAA APR of 989, and a 100% Graduation Success Rate. Its federal graduation rate is 100%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $19,003, against $19,003 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $9,847.
Washington State University came in at #4 on this year's ranking for Women's Swimming & Diving. This public school is set in Pullman, WA. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 989, with a Graduation Success Rate of 90%. About 77% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Team revenue averages $56,276 per participant, compared with $80,857 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $20,338.
California Lutheran University earned the #5 place for student athletes. Based in Thousand Oaks, CA, California Lutheran University is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $5,940 per participant, against $5,940 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Willamette University placed #6 among the best colleges for Women's Swimming & Diving. Based in Salem, OR, Willamette University is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $6,157 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $6,157 per participant. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
University of the Pacific came in at #7 in this year's ranking. This private not-for-profit school is set in Stockton, CA. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 979, alongside a GSR of 100%. The federal graduation rate stands at 72%. The program generates about $21,182 in revenue per athlete, against $21,182 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $21,596.
Pacific Lutheran University came in at #8 in this year's ranking. Pacific Lutheran University is a private not-for-profit school based in Tacoma, WA. Team revenue averages $8,611 per participant, against $8,611 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Westmont College placed #9 among the best colleges for Women's Swimming & Diving. Westmont College is a private not-for-profit school based in Santa Barbara, CA. Team revenue averages $10,563 per participant, with expenses of about $13,883 per participant. Athletic aid averages $6,511 per athlete.
Lewis & Clark College landed the #10 spot this year. This private not-for-profit school is set in Portland, OR. Team revenue averages $6,025 per participant, with expenses of about $6,025 per participant. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
University of Redlands landed the #11 spot this year. This private not-for-profit school is set in Redlands, CA. Team revenue averages $7,250 per participant, compared with $7,162 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Seattle University ranked #12 on our 2026 list for Women's Swimming & Diving. This private not-for-profit school is set in Seattle, WA. Seattle University records an NCAA APR of 972, and a 100% Graduation Success Rate. About 92% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Team revenue averages $18,020 per participant, compared with $17,401 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $19,482 per athlete.
George Fox University came in at #13 in this year's ranking. This private not-for-profit school is set in Newberg, OR. Team revenue averages $9,676 per participant, with expenses of about $9,608 per participant. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Whitworth University placed #14 among the best colleges for Women's Swimming & Diving. Whitworth University is a private not-for-profit school based in Spokane, WA. Team revenue averages $9,627 per participant, against $8,984 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo did well this year, earning the #15 position. Located in San Luis Obispo, CA, California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo is a public institution. Student-athletes graduate at a Graduation Success Rate of 88%. Its federal graduation rate is 88%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $9,725, with expenses of about $9,725 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $10,344.
California State University-East Bay placed #16 among the best colleges for Women's Swimming & Diving. This public school is set in Hayward, CA. Team revenue averages $22,619 per participant, with expenses of about $22,619 per participant. Athletic aid averages $5,078 per athlete.
University of Alaska Fairbanks did well this year, earning the #17 position. Based in Fairbanks, AK, University of Alaska Fairbanks is a public institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $41,856, with expenses of about $40,453 per participant. The school awards about $12,144 in athletic aid per athlete.
Fresno Pacific University did well this year, earning the #18 position. Based in Fresno, CA, Fresno Pacific University is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $14,998 per participant, compared with $14,440 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $9,517.
University of La Verne landed the #19 spot this year. University of La Verne is a private not-for-profit school based in La Verne, CA. The program generates about $7,368 in revenue per athlete, compared with $6,584 spent per athlete. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
University of Puget Sound did well this year, earning the #20 position. This private not-for-profit school is set in Tacoma, WA. The program generates about $4,432 in revenue per athlete, against $4,432 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Linfield University landed the #21 spot this year. Linfield University is a private not-for-profit school based in McMinnville, OR. Team revenue averages $6,139 per participant, against $5,539 in expenses. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
*These averages are for the top 25 ranked colleges only.
This list is compiled 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.