by our College Data Analytics Team
For student athletes, the right college balances academics with athletics. Our ranking highlights 143 colleges for Women’s Volleyball by academic-athletic quality, using our 2026 methodology.
To help you decide, 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.
Want to narrow by division or explore related lists? Pick a path below.
Explore the leading programs below:
Our analysis found University of Chicago to be the best college for Women's Volleyball in the Great Lakes Region. This private not-for-profit school is set in Chicago, IL. The program generates about $15,002 in revenue per athlete, against $15,002 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Northwestern University landed the #2 spot for Women's Volleyball. Based in Evanston, IL, Northwestern University is a private not-for-profit institution. Northwestern University records an NCAA APR of 1000, with a Graduation Success Rate of 100%. Its federal graduation rate is 100%. Team revenue averages $102,824 per participant, compared with $208,102 spent per athlete. The school awards about $53,919 in athletic aid per athlete.
Case Western Reserve University earned the #3 place for student athletes. Based in Cleveland, OH, Case Western Reserve University is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $9,573, against $9,573 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
University of Notre Dame is one of the top schools for Women's Volleyball, at #4. Based in Notre Dame, IN, University of Notre Dame is a private not-for-profit institution. University of Notre Dame records an NCAA APR of 1000, and a 100% Graduation Success Rate. Its federal graduation rate is 90%. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $167,786, against $167,786 in expenses. The school awards about $34,391 in athletic aid per athlete.
Denison University is one of the top schools for Women's Volleyball, at #5. Located in Granville, OH, Denison University is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $14,386 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $14,386 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Ohio State University-Main Campus placed #6 among the best colleges for Women's Volleyball. Located in Columbus, OH, Ohio State University-Main Campus is a public institution. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 1000, and a 93% Graduation Success Rate. About 91% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Team revenue averages $158,051 per participant, compared with $158,051 spent per athlete. The school awards about $27,151 in athletic aid per athlete.
Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology placed #7 among the best colleges for Women's Volleyball. Located in Terre Haute, IN, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $13,608, compared with $13,608 spent per athlete. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
University of Wisconsin-Madison did well this year, earning the #8 position. This public school is set in Madison, WI. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 995, and a 100% Graduation Success Rate. The federal graduation rate stands at 91%. The program generates about $213,444 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $273,138 per participant. Athletic aid averages $21,586 per athlete.
Michigan Technological University came in at #9 in this year's ranking. This public school is set in Houghton, MI. The program generates about $41,741 in revenue per athlete, compared with $41,785 spent per athlete. The school awards about $13,159 in athletic aid per athlete.
Purdue University-Main Campus came in at #10 in this year's ranking. Based in West Lafayette, IN, Purdue University-Main Campus is a public institution. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 1000, and a 100% Graduation Success Rate. About 75% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Team revenue averages $359,215 per participant, compared with $134,881 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $19,382 per athlete.
Illinois Wesleyan University placed #11 among the best colleges for Women's Volleyball. Located in Bloomington, IL, Illinois Wesleyan University is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $8,927, compared with $8,927 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Indiana University-Bloomington ranked #12 on our 2026 list for Women's Volleyball. Indiana University-Bloomington is a public school based in Bloomington, IN. Indiana University-Bloomington records an NCAA APR of 1000, and a 93% Graduation Success Rate. The federal graduation rate stands at 89%. Team revenue averages $98,733 per participant, compared with $98,733 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $23,161.
Michigan State University came in at #13 in this year's ranking. This public school is set in East Lansing, MI. The team's NCAA APR score is 995, with a Graduation Success Rate of 100%. Its federal graduation rate is 100%. Team revenue averages $197,734 per participant, against $197,734 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $22,500.
Calvin University ranked #14 on our 2026 list for Women's Volleyball. Calvin University is a private not-for-profit school based in Grand Rapids, MI. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $12,309, against $12,309 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
DePauw University landed the #15 spot this year. Based in Greencastle, IN, DePauw University is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $13,610 in revenue per athlete, against $13,610 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Oberlin College ranked #16 on our 2026 list for Women's Volleyball. Located in Oberlin, OH, Oberlin College is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $15,037 in revenue per athlete, against $15,037 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor ranked #17 on our 2026 list for Women's Volleyball. This public school is set in Ann Arbor, MI. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 1000, with a Graduation Success Rate of 100%. Its federal graduation rate is 89%. Team revenue averages $22,255 per participant, with expenses of about $128,259 per participant. Athletic aid averages $28,650 per athlete.
Cedarville University came in at #18 in this year's ranking. This private not-for-profit school is set in Cedarville, OH. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $30,607, compared with $30,607 spent per athlete. The school awards about $5,791 in athletic aid per athlete.
Kenyon College placed #19 among the best colleges for Women's Volleyball. Located in Gambier, OH, Kenyon College is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $6,921 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $6,921 per participant. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Illinois Institute of Technology ranked #20 on our 2026 list for Women's Volleyball. Illinois Institute of Technology is a private not-for-profit school based in Chicago, IL. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $11,740, compared with $11,740 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Hope College came in at #21 in this year's ranking. This private not-for-profit school is set in Holland, MI. Team revenue averages $8,530 per participant, compared with $8,474 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Lawrence University ranked #22 on our 2026 list for Women's Volleyball. Based in Appleton, WI, Lawrence University is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $12,123 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $12,123 per participant. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
John Carroll University ranked #23 on our 2026 list for Women's Volleyball. This private not-for-profit school is set in University Heights, OH. The program generates about $9,594 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $9,594 per participant. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Xavier University came in at #24 in this year's ranking. This private not-for-profit school is set in Cincinnati, OH. Its student-athletes post an NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) of 1000, and a 100% Graduation Success Rate. About 70% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. The program generates about $75,244 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $75,245 per participant. Athletic aid averages $20,280 per athlete.
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign came in at #25 in this year's ranking. This public school is set in Champaign, IL. The team's NCAA APR score is 1000, alongside a GSR of 100%. About 69% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. Team revenue averages $34,334 per participant, compared with $145,720 spent per athlete. The school awards about $25,398 in athletic aid per athlete.
These schools rounded out the top of the list:
*These averages are for the top 25 ranked colleges only.
This list is compiled by College Factual, 2026 edition. Programs are scored on 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.