Best Small Colleges in Kentucky 2024

Badge for BEST IN KENTUCKY SMALL COLLEGES

Published: Mar 25, 2021
Updated: Oct 26, 2023

Small colleges in Kentucky are a great option for students interested in a more intimate campus experience, more personal attention from excellent professors, and more immediate access to support services. Whether the focus is on the technical or on the liberal arts, small colleges give you the chance to pursue a well-rounded education while working closely with classmates and professors in a dynamic community atmosphere.

Transylvania University
Berea College
Centre College
Kentucky State University
Georgetown College
Bellarmine University
Asbury University
University of Pikeville
Spalding University
Kentucky Wesleyan College

Alice Lloyd College 98%
Spalding University 98%
Thomas More University 94%
Midway University 94%
Kentucky State University 91%
Transylvania University 91%
Bellarmine University 88%
Asbury University 79%
Georgetown College 72%
Kentucky Wesleyan College 69%

Lindsey Wilson College 17 to 1
Alice Lloyd College 16 to 1
University of Pikeville 15 to 1
Midway University 15 to 1
Georgetown College 14 to 1
Thomas More University 14 to 1
Sullivan University 13 to 1
Kentucky Christian University 13 to 1
Bellarmine University 12 to 1
Kentucky Wesleyan College 12 to 1

Centre College $48,070
Bellarmine University $46,030
Berea College $45,026
Transylvania University $43,670
Georgetown College $41,600
Thomas More University $35,810
Asbury University $33,146
Kentucky Wesleyan College $31,300
Union College, Kentucky $30,946
Brescia University $27,950

Sullivan University $15,840
Brescia University $15,500
Bellarmine University $13,785
Spalding University $13,075
Georgetown College $11,070
Thomas More University $11,050
Union College, Kentucky $11,040
Lindsey Wilson College $9,635
University of Pikeville $8,550
Asbury University $8,550

Kentucky Christian University
Thomas More University
Kentucky Wesleyan College
Alice Lloyd College
Brescia University
Midway University
Lindsey Wilson College
Union College, Kentucky
Spalding University
Asbury University

Lindsey Wilson College
Midway University
Thomas More University
Alice Lloyd College
Union College, Kentucky
Kentucky Christian University
Brescia University
Sullivan University
Kentucky Wesleyan College
Spalding University

Berea College 25%
Kentucky Christian University 44%
Brescia University 50%
Union College, Kentucky 53%
Centre College 63%
Kentucky Wesleyan College 69%
Georgetown College 72%
Asbury University 79%
Bellarmine University 88%
Transylvania University 91%

Berea College 8 to 1
Spalding University 9 to 1
Union College, Kentucky 9 to 1
Brescia University 9 to 1
Transylvania University 10 to 1
Centre College 10 to 1
Kentucky State University 11 to 1
Asbury University 11 to 1
Bellarmine University 12 to 1
Kentucky Wesleyan College 12 to 1

Kentucky State University $7,854
Sullivan University $14,220
Alice Lloyd College $14,250
University of Pikeville $23,150
Kentucky Christian University $23,700
Midway University $25,050
Lindsey Wilson College $26,228
Spalding University $27,300
Brescia University $27,950
Union College, Kentucky $30,946

Kentucky Christian University $4,950
Kentucky State University $6,501
Midway University $7,200
University of Pikeville $8,550
Asbury University $8,550
Lindsey Wilson College $9,635
Union College, Kentucky $11,040
Thomas More University $11,050
Georgetown College $11,070
Spalding University $13,075

Table of Contents

Colleges and Universities in Kentucky

Students who wish to attend traditional and online colleges in Kentucky have plenty of excellent options. Traditional students and distance learners alike have an array of affordable, accessible, and reputable undergraduate and graduate degrees to choose from.

Between community colleges, technical schools, and universities, Kentucky has 24 public schools. The community colleges and technical schools average $4,000 for tuition, and tuition for public universities ranges from $8,000 to $12,000. Online students pay the same in state tuition rates when enrolling in these public options.

Prospective students planning to attend private colleges can choose from 26 schools, of which 21 are religiously affiliated. The cost to attend private schools tends to be higher, reaching $42,000 in Kentucky. There are, however, some affordable private options with tuition rates as low as $9,000.

Find college admissions consultants in your state.

The largest and top-rated public university is the University of Kentucky. The University of Kentucky has over 30,000 students and costs about $12,000. UK offers a wide range of traditional and fully online programs in areas like political science, chemistry, and literature.

Students who attend either the University of Louisville or Western Kentucky University will become part of a friendly basketball rivalry. Both of these universities also offer highly regarded graduate and undergraduate degrees in fields like mathematics, communications, business, and history.

Eastern Kentucky University is also among the top public colleges in Kentucky, with more than 14,000 students enrolled in a wide range of undergraduate and graduate programs.

In addition, Kentucky encourages graduating education students to apply for the Teacher Loan Forgiveness Program. This financial aid program awards $5,000 to $17,500 toward Federal Stafford loans to those remaining in the profession.

There is something for everyone in The Bluegrass State. Kentucky is home to the famous Kentucky Derby, the Daniel Boone National Forest, and the Louisville Slugger Museum and Factory. Both traditional and online Students wanting to study in a state that Abraham Lincoln and Muhammad Ali called home have 50 higher learning institutions from which to choose.

Kentucky has it all - associate, bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees. Check out the top brick-and-mortar and online schools the state of Kentucky has to offer.

What are Kentucky’s Colleges & Universities?

Kentucky’s Best Overall

The following list of the best small colleges and universities in Kentucky is composed mainly of four-year undergraduate schools (though a handful also offer graduate programs). We’ve identified 18 small colleges in Kentucky. The list below of the 30 best small colleges in Kentucky. To be included schools must fully accredited, and must have student body populations below 5,000 students.

How do we determine Kentucky's best small colleges and universities?

Methodology

The people affiliated with a school are ultimately what make it great! 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 in their fields of study.

Most ranking sites rely on an opaque combination of reputation surveys and arbitrary performance metrics. Concentrated Influence provides a ranking that is freer from bias, insulated from manipulation, and reflective of real-world educational outcomes.

To rank the influence of schools, we first determine the influence of scholars and professionals based on the number of citations and publications they have had over the past 10 years. In addition to publications and citations, we consider the web links to and from these sources, and the page views of those sources. We then match the influential people to their alma maters and institutions of employment, so that their influence is attributed to those schools. Our machine-learning Influence Ranking algorithm produces a numerical score of academic achievements, merits, and citations across Wikipedia, wikidata, Crossref, Semantic Scholar and an ever-growing body of data. If you are interested in exploring how and why we rank by influence, explore our methodology in more depth.

Best Small Colleges in Kentucky 2023

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Kentucky’s Best Small College in Your Area of Interest

2021 Ranking Archive

Many of our 2024 undergraduate focused rankings look considerably different than 2023. That’s because we took a fundamentally different approach. For 2024 we utilized our Concentrated Influence algorithm, designed to take away the size advantage larger schools have when we rank their faculty and alumni’s academic influence. Concentrated influence highlights smaller schools that are proportionally as successful as larger universities at cultivating influential alumni and faculty.

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Best Small Colleges in Kentucky 2024

10 Best Small Colleges in Kentucky 2024

Colleges and Universities in Kentucky

What are Kentucky’s Colleges & Universities?

Best Small Colleges in Kentucky 2023

Career Outlook for degree at Berea College

Most Influential Alumni

Career Outlook for degree at Transylvania University

Most Influential Alumni

Career Outlook for degree at Centre College

Most Influential Alumni

Career Outlook for degree at Bellarmine University

Most Influential Alumni

Career Outlook for degree at University of Pikeville

Most Influential Alumni

University of Pikeville’s Online Degrees

Career Outlook for degree at Georgetown College

Most Influential Alumni

Career Outlook for degree at Kentucky State University

Most Influential Alumni

Kentucky State University’s Online Degrees

Career Outlook for degree at Sullivan University

Sullivan University’s Online Degrees

Degree Concentrations

Degree Concentrations

Career Outlook for degree at Asbury University

Most Influential Alumni

Career Outlook for degree at Spalding University

Most Influential Alumni

Career Outlook for degree at Union College, Kentucky

Most Influential Alumni

Union College, Kentucky’s Online Degrees

Career Outlook for degree at Lindsey Wilson College

Most Influential Alumni

Lindsey Wilson College’s Online Degrees

Career Outlook for degree at Midway University

Midway University’s Online Degrees

Degree Concentrations

Degree Concentrations

Degree Concentrations

Degree Concentrations

Career Outlook for degree at Brescia University

Brescia University’s Online Degrees

Career Outlook for degree at Alice Lloyd College

Career Outlook for degree at Kentucky Wesleyan College

Most Influential Alumni

Kentucky Wesleyan College’s Online Degrees

Career Outlook for degree at Thomas More University

Most Influential Alumni

Thomas More University’s Online Degrees

Career Outlook for degree at Kentucky Christian University

Kentucky Christian University’s Online Degrees

Degree Concentrations

Degree Concentrations

Kentucky’s Best Small College in Your Area of Interest