Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

AffordableSchools.net Releases Its Ranking of Ideal U.S. Colleges and Universities for Student Athletes for 2015

  • 08/24/15

SUNNYVALE, CA – AffordableSchools.net (affordableschools.net), an independent college search and rankings site that centers on unique and affordable offerings within higher education, has released a ranking of the 25 Best Colleges for Student Athletes in America.

Stanford University (CA) leads the ranking, which was compiled by looking at the number of NCAA team sport national championships each school has at the division one level, as well as the academic prestige of the school as noted by other top ranking sites. The University of California Los Angeles (CA) and the University of Southern California (CA) ranked as second and third, respectively.

Other schools in the ranking include (in alphabetical order):

  • Duke University (Durham, NC)
  • Indiana University (Bloomington, IN)
  • Louisiana State University (Baton Rouge, LA)
  • Ohio State University (Columbus, OH)
  • Oklahoma State University (Stillwater, OK)
  • Pennsylvania State University (State College, PA)
  • Princeton University (Princeton, NJ)
  • University of Arkansas (Fayetteville, AR)
  • University of California–Berkeley (Berkeley, CA)
  • University of Denver (Denver, CO)
  • University of Florida (Gainesville, FL)
  • University of Georgia (Athens, GA)
  • University of Illinois (Urbana-Champaign, IL)
  • University of Iowa (Iowa City, IA)
  • University of Maryland (College Park, MD)
  • University of Michigan (Ann Arbor, MI)
  • University of North Carolina (Chapel Hill, NC)
  • University of Notre Dame (South Bend, IN)
  • University of Texas (Austin, TX)
  • University of Virginia (Charlottesville, VA)
  • University of Wisconsin (Madison, WI)
  • Yale University (New Haven, CT)

According to Raj Dash, managing editor at AffordableSchools.net, “While perhaps the centerpiece of fandom, the assumption that the best schools for athletes in America are generally large flagship state schools with potentially less-than-rigorous academics is misplaced. When looking across the wide range of male, female, and coed sports, many of the nation's top performing schools are also many of the most academically rigorous.”

Many of the nation's top schools are also the oldest, allowing them to have developed long lineages of sending student athletes to the Olympics, or on to win individual or team NCAA titles. Notable trends include the inclusion of eight Big Ten teams, four California schools (including all of the top three), four SEC teams, three ACC teams, and two Ivy League Schools. In total, the ranking looked at the top 60 universities in terms of total NCAA team and individual titles, in the end narrowing them down to the top 25 schools in regards to academic rigor as well as athletic performance in the nation.

AffordableSchools.net (affordableschools.net) is an independent college search and rankings site with a focus on affordable colleges and programs within higher education. It publishes a number of rankings series focusing on affordable bachelor's degrees (various topics), affordable bachelor's degree colleges by state, affordable online degree programs, resource lists and much more.

Featured

  • Doerr School of Sustainability Accelerator

    From Concrete Warehouse to Innovation Hub: Accelerating Sustainability at Stanford

    The transformation of a once windowless, concrete publishing warehouse into a sun-drenched center for global innovation began with a single, fundamental challenge: how to turn an industrial storage shell into a space built for human connection.

  • Dallas ISD Voters Approve $6.2B Bond Package

    Dallas ISD voters have approved a record-setting $6.2-billion bond package that district leaders say will modernize aging campuses, eliminate portable classrooms and reshape learning environments across one of the nation’s largest school systems.

  • Tennessee Middle School Completes Health, Life Safety Renovations

    The Giles County Board of Education in Pulaski, Tenn., recently announced that a series of renovation projects has been completed at Bridgeforth Middle School, according to a news release. The district partnered with Wold Architects & Engineers and Brindley Construction to modernize building systems at one of the district’s oldest schools.

  • Northeastern University Breaks Ground on New Housing Community

    Northeastern University recently announced the groundbreaking of a new student housing community on its campus in Boston, Mass., according to a news release. The university is partnering with American Campus Communities (ACC) for development of the project, which will have the capacity for 1,200 students and has a scheduled completion date of fall 2028.