Best Small Colleges in Mississippi 2024

Published: Apr 13, 2021
Updated: Oct 26, 2023

Small colleges in Mississippi 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.

10 Best Small Colleges in Mississippi 2024

Tougaloo College
Mississippi College
Alcorn State University
Millsaps College
Mississippi University for Women
Delta State University
Rust College
Belhaven University
William Carey University
Mississippi Valley State University

Delta State University 100%
Mississippi University for Women 99%
Blue Mountain College 99%
Mississippi Valley State University 79%
Millsaps College 68%
Belhaven University 64%
William Carey University 57%
Tougaloo College 56%
Mississippi College 49%
Alcorn State University 39%

Blue Mountain College 17 to 1
Alcorn State University 16 to 1
Mississippi College 15 to 1
William Carey University 14 to 1
Mississippi Valley State University 13 to 1
Mississippi University for Women 12 to 1
Tougaloo College 11 to 1
Delta State University 11 to 1
Millsaps College 9 to 1
Belhaven University 8 to 1

Millsaps College $42,960
Belhaven University $27,825
Mississippi College $20,364
Blue Mountain College $17,380
William Carey University $14,100
Tougaloo College $10,861
Rust College $9,900
Delta State University $8,360
Alcorn State University $8,176
Mississippi University for Women $7,756

Millsaps College $23,568
Mississippi College $12,060
William Carey University $11,875
Blue Mountain College $11,535
Belhaven University $10,530
Tougaloo College $10,134
Delta State University $8,190
Mississippi Valley State University $7,882
Alcorn State University $7,785
Mississippi University for Women $7,656

Blue Mountain College
Mississippi Valley State University
William Carey University
Belhaven University
Rust College
Delta State University
Mississippi University for Women
Millsaps College
Alcorn State University
Mississippi College

Rust College 38%
Alcorn State University 39%
Mississippi College 49%
Tougaloo College 56%
William Carey University 57%
Belhaven University 64%
Millsaps College 68%
Mississippi Valley State University 79%
Blue Mountain College 99%
Mississippi University for Women 99%

Rust College 6 to 1
Belhaven University 8 to 1
Millsaps College 9 to 1
Tougaloo College 11 to 1
Delta State University 11 to 1
Mississippi University for Women 12 to 1
Mississippi Valley State University 13 to 1
William Carey University 14 to 1
Mississippi College 15 to 1
Alcorn State University 16 to 1

Mississippi Valley State University $7,068
Mississippi University for Women $7,756
Alcorn State University $8,176
Delta State University $8,360
Rust College $9,900
Tougaloo College $10,861
William Carey University $14,100
Blue Mountain College $17,380
Mississippi College $20,364
Belhaven University $27,825

Mississippi University for Women $7,656
Alcorn State University $7,785
Mississippi Valley State University $7,882
Delta State University $8,190
Tougaloo College $10,134
Belhaven University $10,530
Blue Mountain College $11,535
William Carey University $11,875
Mississippi College $12,060
Millsaps College $23,568

Table of Contents

Colleges and Universities in Mississippi

The majority of the learning institutes in Mississippi are public schools, with the University of Mississippi, also known as Ole Miss, being the largest. This university, located in Oxford, boasts alumni like William Faulkner, John Grisham, and James Meredith. Tuition at Ole Miss runs about $9,000, just below the national average. The eight private colleges, all of which have religious affiliations, range in tuition costs from $10,000 at Rust College to $40,000 at Millsaps College.

Find college admissions consultants in your state.

Students who attend these schools have the option to pursue degrees in fields like nursing, business, dentistry, Christian ministry, education, and literature. Additionally, all of these private schools are considered small schools, serving under 5,000 students. Mississippi also offers up to $12,000 of undergraduate loan forgiveness, over the course of four years, for teachers who work in designated shortage areas or who teach in critical shortage subjects, like special education or mathematics.

From Mississippi mud pie to fried chicken, Mississippi brings a whole new meaning to the term comfort food. The Magnolia State is easy on the eyes too. With nearly endless forests spilling over with hickory, pine, and oak trees, the intricate river system, and the Gulf Island National Seashore, Mississippi is a true destination for lovers of outdoor adventure. And students who plan on earning their associate, bachelor’s, master’s, or doctoral degree in Mississippi have 31 colleges and universities to choose from.

Explore some of the top schools and career paths Mississippi has to offer.

What are Mississippi’s Colleges & Universities?

Mississippi’s Best Overall

The following list of the best small colleges and universities in Mississippi is composed mainly of four-year undergraduate schools (though a handful also offer graduate programs). We’ve identified 11 small colleges in Mississippi. The list below of the best small colleges in Mississippi. To be included schools must fully accredited, and must have student body populations below 5,000 students.

How do we determine Mississippi'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 Mississippi 2023

Build your own college rankings

Mississippi’s Best Small College in Your Area of Interest

2021 Ranking Archive

Many of our 2022 undergraduate focused rankings look considerably different than 2021. That’s because we took a fundamentally different apporach. For 2021 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.

Do you have a question about this topic? Ask it here

Best Small Colleges in Mississippi 2024

10 Best Small Colleges in Mississippi 2024

Colleges and Universities in Mississippi

What are Mississippi’s Colleges & Universities?

Best Small Colleges in Mississippi 2023

Career Outlook for degree at Mississippi College

Most Influential Alumni

Mississippi College’s Online Degrees

Career Outlook for degree at Delta State University

Most Influential Alumni

Career Outlook for degree at Millsaps College

Most Influential Alumni

Career Outlook for degree at Mississippi University for Women

Most Influential Alumni

Mississippi University for Women’s Online Degrees

Degree Concentrations

Degree Concentrations

Degree Concentrations

Degree Concentrations

Career Outlook for degree at Tougaloo College

Most Influential Alumni

Career Outlook for degree at Alcorn State University

Most Influential Alumni

Alcorn State University’s Online Degrees

Career Outlook for degree at William Carey University

Most Influential Alumni

William Carey University’s Online Degrees

Career Outlook for degree at Belhaven University

Most Influential Alumni

Belhaven University’s Online Degrees

Degree Concentrations

Degree Concentrations

Degree Concentrations

Degree Concentrations

Career Outlook for degree at Rust College

Most Influential Alumni

Career Outlook for degree at Mississippi Valley State University

Career Outlook for degree at Blue Mountain College

Most Influential Alumni

Blue Mountain College’s Online Degrees

Mississippi’s Best Small College in Your Area of Interest