Private colleges, unlike large public institutions, can be a great option for students wanting a more intimate campus experience, more personal attention from excellent professors, and more immediate access to support services. Here is our list of the best private colleges in Georgia.
Georgia has 70 colleges and universities, 38 of which are public institutions. The University of Georgia, located in the city of Athens, is the largest, with over 35,000 students. Those attending Georgia State University and Georgia Southern University will enter into a friendly athletics rivalry. Tuition at Georgia State costs $9,000, and at Georgia Southern, $6,000. Of the 20 religiously affiliated schools, Emory University has both the highest tuition, just over $50,000, and student population, with over 13,000 in attendance. Whether you’re looking to earn your associate, bachelor’s, master’s, or doctoral degree, Georgia schools offer plenty of options.
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Students can earn degrees in religious studies, business, social work, law, and computer science. Those looking to attend technical colleges can also choose from a handful of schools that offer two-year degrees in medicine, nursing, and education. Part of the University System of Georgia, Atlanta Metropolitan State college is the state’s most affordable college at $3,000, and its students can major in fields like mathematics, criminal justice, and philosophy.
The Blue Ridge Mountains, oak and hickory forests, and the Atlantic Coastal Plain all make their home in Georgia, but the state’s most notable landform is the Okefenokee Swamp, the largest such water-mass in North America. This diverse landscape in The Peach State provides Georgia’s college and graduate students with a beautiful backdrop for an education.
Georgia also offers a loan repayment program for qualifying graduates in the medical field through the Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce. Check out the best degree programs and top career paths this southern state has to offer.
Public and private colleges and universities operate under different business models — one is a private company with private funding; the other is owned by the state and receives both state and federal funding to operate. If you’re weighing the pros and cons of private vs. public college, consider that many public colleges provide diverse course offerings, influential professors, and an excellent return on your investment.
Public colleges are schools that receive most of their funding from tax revenues. As a result, the cost of a four-year degree at a public university is often lower than the equivalent cost at a private college — especially for students attending a public school in their home state. According to the National Center for Educational Statistics, the average annual cost (tuition, fees, room and board for full-time students) at a four-year public university was slightly over $20,000. In contrast, private universities cost, on average, nearly $43,000 annually.
This list is composed entirely of private colleges and universities that offer four-year undergraduate degrees. We’ve identified 24 private universities in Georgia; 8 of which meet our criteria. The list below of the best private universities in the state satisfies the following four conditions:
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.
Tuition + fees
$54K
Acceptance
19%
Graduation
90%
Student body
13K
Median SAT/ACT
1445/32
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Emory University’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$29K
Acceptance
77%
Graduation
56%
Student body
2K
Median SAT/ACT
1081/20
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Morehouse College’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$30K
Acceptance
53%
Graduation
75%
Student body
2K
Median SAT/ACT
1155/24
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Spelman College’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$29K
Acceptance
78%
Graduation
73%
Student body
7K
Median SAT/ACT
1255/27
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Mercer University’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$44K
Acceptance
68%
Graduation
72%
Student body
1K
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Agnes Scott College’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$25K
Acceptance
60%
Graduation
51%
Student body
<1K
Median SAT/ACT
1030/19
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Wesleyan College’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$38K
Acceptance
77%
Graduation
70%
Student body
2K
Median SAT/ACT
1205/27
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Berry College’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$37K
Acceptance
98%
Graduation
68%
Student body
<1K
Median SAT/ACT
1215/26
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Covenant College’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$41K
Acceptance
67%
Graduation
51%
Student body
1K
Median SAT/ACT
1195/25
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Oglethorpe University’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$28K
Acceptance
70%
Graduation
43%
Student body
2K
Median SAT/ACT
1060/21
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Piedmont University’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$32K
Acceptance
92%
Graduation
41%
Student body
2K
Median SAT/ACT
1030/20
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Brenau University’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$32K
Acceptance
60%
Graduation
44%
Student body
<1K
Median SAT/ACT
1074/21
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LaGrange College’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$19K
Acceptance
59%
Graduation
29%
Student body
<1K
Median SAT/ACT
905/16
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Andrew College’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$21K
Acceptance
58%
Graduation
49%
Student body
1K
Median SAT/ACT
1035/19
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Toccoa Falls College’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$22K
Acceptance
97%
Graduation
35%
Student body
2K
Median SAT/ACT
1040/20
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Truett McConnell University’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$30K
Acceptance
65%
Graduation
44%
Student body
1K
Median SAT/ACT
1040/20
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Young Harris College’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
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