Best Private Colleges in Oklahoma 2026

Badge for BEST IN OKLAHOMA PRIVATE COLLEGES

Updated: Apr 7, 2026

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 Oklahoma.

10 Best Private Colleges in Oklahoma in 2026

University of Tulsa
Oklahoma City University
Oral Roberts University
Oklahoma Christian University
Oklahoma Baptist University
Bacone College
Southern Nazarene University
+1
Oklahoma Wesleyan University
–1
Southwestern Christian University
+1
Randall University
–1

Table of Contents

Colleges and Universities in Oklahoma

Less than half of the schools in Oklahoma are private schools. However, students who attend one these schools can expect a more intimate college experience, as each has a student population smaller than 4,000 students. The largest private school, the University of Tulsa, offers degrees in fields like education, criminal justice, and literature, with tuition fees around $41,000. The public schools tend to be more cost-friendly, with tuition ranging from $4,000 to $9,000 per year.

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The University of Oklahoma, the state’s largest public school, costs about $9,000 and serves over 24,000 students. Here, students can partake in competitive on-campus programs in fields like communications and social work, or pursue one of the 30 graduate degrees and certificates online. Oklahoma is also home to several religiously affiliated schools, like Oral Roberts University and Bacone College. Students hoping to pursue a career as a physician, physician’s assistant, or dentist may also want to consider earning their degree here as the state offers several loan forgiveness programs to those who qualify.

The state of Oklahoma is serious about its food - so serious they even declared an official state meal, which consists of fried okra, cornbread, barbecue pork, squash, biscuits, sausage and gravy, grits, corn, strawberries, chicken fried steak, black-eyed peas, and pecan pie. Those hoping to feed both their bellies and their minds can attend one of Oklahoma’s more than 40 colleges and universities.

To learn more about earning your degree in Oklahoma, check out some of the state’s top programs.

What are Oklahoma’s Colleges & Universities?

Oklahoma’s Best Overall

What is the difference between public and private colleges?

Public and private colleges and universities operate under different business models. Public colleges and universities are owned by the state and receive both state and federal funding to operate. Private colleges and universities are private companies with private funding. If you’re looking at the pros and cons of private vs. public colleges, 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 bachelor’s 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. Attending a college in-state is usually the cheapest option. Private universities and colleges can be very competitive with their funding opportunities, so do not simply believe that private colleges are always going to be more expensive. According to National Center for Educational Statistics, the average annual cost (tuition, fees, room and board for full-time students) at a public university was slightly over $20,000. In contrast, private universities cost, on average, nearly $43,000 annually. But in the end, the cost of college comes down to each student’s academic and financial situation.

How do we determine Oklahoma's best private 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.

This list is composed entirely of private colleges and universities that offer bachelor’s degrees. We’ve identified 11 private universities in Oklahoma. To be included in the list below of the best private universities in Oklahoma, schools must be fully accredited, private, non-profit institution, and must offer a broad range of bachelor’s degrees.

Best Private Colleges in Oklahoma

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Oklahoma’s Best Private Colleges in Your Area 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.

“Best” private colleges in Oklahoma can mean different things depending on whether you prioritize academic reputation, program strength, affordability, campus experience, or post-graduate outcomes. This article compares the private institutions that consistently matter in the state—small liberal arts colleges, faith-based universities, and specialized professional schools—so you can match institutional strengths (nursing, business, education, STEM, the arts) to your goals.

Below you’ll find concise profiles that highlight what distinguishes each school, how they differ on size and selectivity, typical cost considerations, and the student outcomes that prospective students and families most often weigh. Check out our directory of private colleges throughout the U.S. for a look at the top private schools in every state.

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Best Private Colleges in Oklahoma 2026

10 Best Private Colleges in Oklahoma in 2026

Colleges and Universities in Oklahoma

What are Oklahoma’s Colleges & Universities?

Best Private Colleges in Oklahoma

Last Year’s Ranking:

Career Outlook for degree at University of Tulsa

Most Influential Alumni

Career Outlook for degree at Oklahoma City University

Most Influential Alumni

Career Outlook for degree at Oral Roberts University

Most Influential Alumni

Oral Roberts University’s Online Degrees

Degree Concentrations

Degree Concentrations

Career Outlook for degree at Oklahoma Christian University

Most Influential Alumni

Oklahoma Christian University’s Online Degrees

Career Outlook for degree at Oklahoma Baptist University

Most Influential Alumni

Most Influential Alumni

Bacone College’s Online Degrees

Career Outlook for degree at Southern Nazarene University

Most Influential Alumni

Southern Nazarene University’s Online Degrees

Career Outlook for degree at Oklahoma Wesleyan University

Oklahoma Wesleyan University’s Online Degrees

Degree Concentrations

Career Outlook for degree at Southwestern Christian University

Southwestern Christian University’s Online Degrees

Career Outlook for degree at Randall University

Career Outlook for degree at Mid-America Christian University

Mid-America Christian University’s Online Degrees

Degree Concentrations

Oklahoma’s Best Private Colleges in Your Area Interest