Vassar College
Vassar College at a Glance
Reviewed by James A. Barham, PhD, Vice President and Academic Editor. Influence ranks come from our InfluenceRanking™ methodology; other figures come from federal data, with the year shown under each section. Report an error
Vassar College Featured Rankings
- #1 Communications Liberal Arts Colleges
- #3 Best Small Colleges in New York 2026
- #5 Best Liberal Arts Colleges in New York
- #7 Earth Sciences Liberal Arts Colleges
- #7 Liberal Arts Colleges for Education Degrees
- #9 Philosophy Liberal Arts Colleges
- #10 Sociology Liberal Arts Colleges
- #10 Physics Liberal Arts Colleges
- #10 Computer Science Liberal Arts Colleges
- #10 Best Liberal Arts Colleges for Psychology Majors
- #10 Communications Colleges and Universities
- #10 Math Liberal Arts Colleges
- #10 Liberal Arts Colleges for Biology Degrees
- #10 Best Private Colleges in New York 2026
- #11 Best Small Colleges 2026
- #11 Political Science Liberal Arts Colleges
- #11 Economics Liberal Arts Colleges
- #11 English Liberal Arts Colleges
- #13 Best Liberal Arts Colleges 2026
- #16 Best Colleges in New York 2026
- #16 History Liberal Arts Colleges
- #18 Anthropology Liberal Arts Colleges
- #38 Best Undergrad Private Colleges
- #41 Best Undergrad Colleges 2026
About Vassar College
Vassar College is a four-year, liberal arts school founded in 1861 as only the second degree-granting institution of higher education for women in the US. Co-educational since 1969, Vassar now has a total student population of a little over 2,400 individuals.
Vassar offers the bachelor’s degree in some 50 fields of academic study. Among its most popular programs are those in social sciences, in biological and biomedical sciences, in visual and performing arts, and in foreign languages.
In addition to the standard programs in the major foreign languages and literatures, Vassar students may also pursue a Self-Instructional Language Program (SILP). SILP programs exist for a variety of lesser-known languages, including Irish, Yiddish, Turkish, Swahili, Hindi, and Korean, among others.
Vassar is associated with one Nobel laureate for literature, poet Gabriela Mistral.
Vassar is connected with many other distinguished persons, including the following:
- Mathematician, Winifred Asprey
- Computer scientist, Grace Hopper
- Philosophers, Margaret Dauler Wilson and Christopher W. Morris
- Poets—Edna St. Vincent Millay, Elizabeth Bishop, and Mary Oliver
- Novelists, Mary McCarthy and Jane Smiley
- Classicist, Abby Leach
- Translator, Bryan W. Van Norden
- Comic book author, Gregory Rucka
- Cartoonist, Liza Donnelly
- Filmmaker, Noah Baumbach
- Actors—Jean Arthur, Meryl Streep, Jane Fonda, Frances Sternhagen, Lisa Kudrow, Anne Hathaway, and Hope Davis
- Musician and record producer, Mark Ronson
- Astronomers—Mary Watson Whitney, Vera Rubin, and Maria Mitchell
- Chemist and safety engineer, Ellen Swallow Richards
- Cardiologist, Bernadine P. Healy
- Neuroscientist, Patricia Goldman-Rakić
- Ethnobotanist, Maria Fadiman
- Geographer, Ellen Churchill Semple
- Psychologists—Margaret Floy Washburn, Christine Ladd-Franklin, and Alice F. Healy
- Anthropologists—Margaret Mead, Ruth Benedict, and Colin Turnbull
- Librarians—Adelaide Underhill and Anita Florence Hemmings
- Architect, Margaret Burnham Geddes
- Flickr co-founder, Caterina Fake
- Zagat restaurant reviews co-founder, Nina Zagat
- Washington Post publisher, Katharine Graham
- New Yorker columnist, Jane Kramer
- Political reporter, Jonathan Karl
- Television political commentator, Natasha Bertrand
- Former US First Lady and celebrity, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis
Vassar is regionally accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE).
According to Wikipedia, Vassar College is a coeducational private liberal arts college in Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. Founded in 1861 by Matthew Vassar, it was the second degree-granting institution of higher education for women in the United States. The college became coeducational in 1969.
Vassar College Admissions, Retention, and Graduation Information
| Annual Applications | Acceptance | Retention Rate | Graduation Rate | Median SAT Score | Median ACT Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12,145 | 19% | 95% | 89% | 1500 | 34 |
Source: U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and NCES); acceptance rate for fall 2024; test scores for fall 2024; applications and enrollment for fall 2023; retention for students who started in fall 2023; graduation rate within six years for students who started in 2019.
How Much Does Vassar College Cost To Attend?
| Tuition and fees (in-state) |
|---|
| $74,265 |
| Income | Average Net Cost |
|---|---|
| 0 - 30K | $19,674 |
| 30K - 48K | $10,022 |
| 48K - 75K | $13,428 |
| 75K - 110K | $17,576 |
| 110K+ | $50,834 |
Source: U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and NCES); tuition and fees for 2025–26; net price for 2024–25, for first-time, full-time students receiving financial aid.
How Much Do Vassar College Graduates Make?
Ten years after starting college, former Vassar College students who received federal financial aid earn a median of $75,532 a year, and 90% of those not still in school are working.
Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard; students who started college in 2011–12 or 2012–13, measured in 2022 and 2023, in 2024 dollars.
Vassar College's Demographics
Students enrolled at any time during the 2023–24 school year, including part-time and online students.
| Student Body | Under-Grads |
|---|---|
| 2,609 | 2,609 |
Source: National Center for Education Statistics; 12-month enrollment for 2023–24.
Where is Vassar College?
Vassar College is located at 124 Raymond Ave, Poughkeepsie, NY 12604.
How Safe is Vassar College?
Relative to its enrollment, Vassar College has a violent crime rate of 0.24% and a property crime rate of 0.24%. Sources: campus: U.S. Department of Education Campus Safety and Security data, on-campus offenses in 2024 (violent: murder, rape, robbery and aggravated assault; property: burglary, motor vehicle theft and arson, which excludes ordinary theft).
What Is Vassar College Known For?
Vassar College is known for its academic work in the following disciplines:
- Literature
- Computer Science
- Education
- Communications
- Sociology
- Anthropology
- Physics
- Philosophy
- History
- Psychology
- Earth Sciences
- Mathematics
- Political Science
- Chemistry
- Economics
- Biology
- Religious Studies
Vassar College's Top Areas of Influence With Degrees Offered
Each rank compares how much Vassar College's faculty and alumni have shaped a field with other schools, using Wikipedia, Wikidata and scholarly citation databases such as Crossref and Semantic Scholar. World and U.S. ranks reflect modern influence; the historical rank counts influence across all time. How we rank influence
Vassar College ranks #49 in the U.S. and #137 worldwide for influence in Literature.
literature DegreesVassar College ranks #53 in the U.S. and #144 worldwide for influence in Computer Science.
computer-science DegreesVassar College ranks #74 in the U.S. and #237 worldwide for influence in Education.
education DegreesVassar College ranks #82 in the U.S. and #261 worldwide for influence in Communications.
communications DegreesVassar College ranks #83 in the U.S. and #253 worldwide for influence in Sociology.
sociology DegreesVassar College ranks #84 in the U.S. and #225 worldwide for influence in Anthropology.
anthropology DegreesVassar College ranks #85 in the U.S. and #343 worldwide for influence in Physics.
physics DegreesVassar College ranks #88 in the U.S. and #276 worldwide for influence in Philosophy.
philosophy DegreesVassar College ranks #90 in the U.S. and #226 worldwide for influence in History.
history DegreesVassar College ranks #91 in the U.S. and #184 worldwide for influence in Psychology.
psychology DegreesVassar College ranks #109 in the U.S. and #432 worldwide for influence in Earth Sciences.
earth-science DegreesVassar College ranks #116 in the U.S. and #441 worldwide for influence in Mathematics.
math DegreesVassar College ranks #129 in the U.S. and #485 worldwide for influence in Political Science.
political-science DegreesVassar College ranks #131 in the U.S. and #595 worldwide for influence in Chemistry.
chemistry DegreesVassar College ranks #133 in the U.S. and #575 worldwide for influence in Economics.
economics DegreesVassar College ranks #136 in the U.S. and #459 worldwide for influence in Biology.
biology DegreesVassar College ranks #317 in the U.S. and #1373 worldwide for influence in Religious Studies.
religious-studies-hub DegreesWho Are Vassar College's Most Influential Alumni?
Vassar College's most influential alumni include professors and professionals in the fields of Anthropology, Literature, and Computer Science. Here are some of Vassar College's most famous alumni:
- Grace Hopper
- An American computer scientist and United States Navy officer.
- Ruth Benedict
- An American anthropologist and folklorologist .
- Elizabeth Bishop
- An American poet.
- Edna St. Vincent Millay
- An American poet.
- Neil Strauss
- An American author and journalist.
- Ellen Swallow Richards
- An American chemist .
- Mary McCarthy
- An American writer.
- Edith Clarke
- An American engineer.
- Philip Kitcher
- A British philosopher.
- Greg Rucka
- A Writer.
- Linda Nochlin
- An American art historian.
- Henry Seely White
- An American mathematician.
Who Are Vassar College's Most Influential Faculty?
Vassar College's most influential faculty include professors in the fields of Anthropology, Literature, and Computer Science. Here are some of Vassar College's most famous faculty:
- Hua Hsu
- An Asian-American writer.
- Kiese Laymon
- An American writer.
- Patrice Nganang
- A Cameroonian writer.
- Deborah Paredez
- An American poet.
- Joseph Osmundson
- An American scientist and writer.
- Judith Weisenfeld
- An American scholar of religion.
- Kathleen Man Gyllenhaal
- An American film director.
- Priscilla Gilman
- An American writer and former college professor.
- Richard Möller
- An American soccer player-coach, teacher.
