Here are the best colleges and universities in Arkansas, categorized into two lists – research universities and liberal arts colleges – to help you find the right kind of school for you.
Colleges and universities in Arkansas are uniquely affordable, with just under half providing tuition rates of $9,000 or less. Included in this list are the state’s two largest universities, the University of Arkansas and Arkansas State University. Though students can find some overlapping degree programs at the two schools, each has its specialties. For example, students hoping to pursue degrees in architecture, agriculture, or business may want to consider the University of Arkansas, while those interested in biology, nursing, or political science may want to attend Arkansas State University.
Find college admissions consultants in your state.
Additionally, about one third of the schools in Arkansas have a religious affiliation. Student populations at these schools range from just under 200 students up to 5,000, and allow students to pursue degrees merging religious studies with fields like chemistry and history. While tuition at each of the state’s 12 private schools varies greatly, costing anywhere between $9,000 and $46,000, many of these colleges boast high graduation rates and small class sizes.
While Arkansas is perhaps best-known and loved for countless lakes, Hot Springs National Park, and the United States’ only active diamond mine. The Natural State houses many higher education institutes where students can earn associate, bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees in a full range of disciplines.
With so many affordable schools and competitive degree programs, students attending school in Arkansas have the luxury of combining their individual budget needs with their desired degree paths. For more information on attending school in Arkansas, check out some of the state’s top schools.
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Related: Differences between research universities and teaching colleges
The best colleges pound for pound!
The people affiliated with a school are ultimately what make it great. This is why, at the undergraduate level, we rank the best colleges and universities based on what we call Concentrated Influence.
Concentrated Influence takes the combined influence score of a college or university’s top academic influencers (including faculty and alums) and divides it by the school’s total number of undergraduates.
Using concentrated influence gives small and mid-sized schools an opportunity to shine by taking away the size advantage of larger universities. A small school with proportionately more influential faculty than a large school, whose influence in absolute terms may be bigger, will nonetheless score higher in a concentrated influence ranking. Our approach highlights undergraduate schools that truly rank for excellence, regardless of size.
If you are serious about finding the best colleges and universities for a bachelor’s degree, you should be asking where the most influential professors are teaching and whether their graduates are themselves advancing the school’s reputation for academic excellence.
Most ranking sites rely on an opaque combination of reputation surveys and arbitrary performance metrics. Concentrated Influence provides a ranking that is free from bias, insulated from manipulation, and reflective of real-world educational outcomes.
Find out more about our ranking methodology here.
Less Tuition + fees
$48K
Acceptance
71%
Graduation
65%
Student body
1K
Median SAT/ACT
1255/29
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Hendrix College’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$9K
Acceptance
78%
Graduation
68%
Student body
25K
Median SAT/ACT
1210/26
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University of Arkansas’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$29K
Acceptance
50%
Graduation
43%
Student body
<1K
Median SAT/ACT
1120/23
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Lyon College’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$28K
Acceptance
62%
Graduation
60%
Student body
2K
Median SAT/ACT
1155/24
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Ouachita Baptist University’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$9K
Acceptance
67%
Graduation
53%
Student body
12K
Median SAT/ACT
1116/24
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Arkansas State University’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$28K
Acceptance
59%
Graduation
64%
Student body
2K
Median SAT/ACT
1160/26
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John Brown University’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$9K
Acceptance
75%
Graduation
34%
Student body
3K
Median SAT/ACT
1044/21
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Henderson State University’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$13K
Graduation
34%
Student body
1K
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Philander Smith College’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$21K
Acceptance
55%
Graduation
72%
Student body
5K
Median SAT/ACT
1165/25
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Harding University’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$9K
Acceptance
94%
Graduation
46%
Student body
10K
Median SAT/ACT
1060/24
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University of Central Arkansas’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$9K
Acceptance
69%
Graduation
43%
Student body
4K
Median SAT/ACT
1067/21
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Southern Arkansas University’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$26K
Acceptance
56%
Graduation
47%
Student body
<1K
Median SAT/ACT
960/20
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University of the Ozarks’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$15K
Graduation
39%
Student body
<1K
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Crowley's Ridge College’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$18K
Acceptance
69%
Graduation
38%
Student body
<1K
Median SAT/ACT
970/20
View profile
Williams Baptist University’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$8K
Acceptance
98%
Graduation
44%
Student body
9K
View profile
Arkansas Tech University’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
What are Custom College Rankings?
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