Rankings and Reputation

Gettysburg College is recognized nationally and ranks among top colleges in the country for our value, programs, and liberal arts experience.

The value of a Gettysburg education is underscored by the great work of our students and alumni who, by applying the knowledge and skills they gained here, are continuously making a positive impact on the world.

Princeton Review

Gettysburgians have proven themselves to be trailblazers of growth and innovation, and these efforts, combined with an enriching campus environment, have resulted in numerous recognitions by Princeton Review on its list of the Best 389 Colleges: 2024 Edition. This honor highlights the College’s prestigious and competitive climate, in academics and elsewhere.

  • No. 15 in ‘Best Classroom Experience’

    From First-Year Seminars to senior capstones, Gettysburg College students participate in classes across multiple disciplines through our rigorous, contemporary liberal arts and sciences curriculum. Through the Gettysburg Approach, students acquire a breadth and depth of knowledge and set of enduring skills as they synthesize information and ideas, draw connections, and learn and explore in new and different ways. Experiential learning opportunities, such as student-faculty research and the Guided Pathways, further extend learning from the classroom into real-world applications.

  • No. 1 in ‘Everyone Plays Intramural Sports’

    With nearly 90% of all students participating in our extensive intramural, club sports, and campus recreation programs each semester, Gettysburg College is an active campus, both physically and intellectually. 

  • No. 7 in ‘Students Study the Most’

    Both students and faculty at Gettysburg College are passionate about the great work they do, fully immersing themselves in high-impact learning experiences. Approximately 75% of Gettysburg alumni over the past seven years have completed at least one internship during their time at Gettysburg. Nearly 65% of the 2023 graduating class served in at least one leadership role on campus, and more than 60% of the Class of 2023 collaborated on research projects with faculty. 

  • No. 12 in ‘Best Campus Food’

    Fueling students’ minds and bodies with quality foods is a top priority for our award-winning Dining Services. In addition to the dining center, which Gettysburg students fondly refer to as Servo, there are three other dining options on campus—The Bullet Hole, The Dive, and Commons Marketplace—which sell everything from made-to-order burgers and fries to sandwiches, snacks, Starbucks coffee, and freshly made smoothies. Recent additions include The Grille on Lincoln and Smart Eats.

  • No. 10 in ‘Great Financial Aid’

    Gettysburg College remains committed to working with students and their families to ensure that the ability to pay tuition does not become an obstacle to a Gettysburg education. For the 2022-2023 academic year, Gettysburg College awarded more than $90 million in merit scholarships and need-based grants, which benefitted 60% of the student body. 

  • No. 10 in ‘Best Athletic Facilities’

    Gettysburg's state-of-the-art, 55,000-square-foot John F. Jaeger Center for Athletics, Recreation, and Fitness is a light-filled, contemporary facility that serves our students. The facility boasts a fitness center, bouldering area, rock-climbing wall, and a natatorium. Competition venues on the campus for football, soccer, softball, lacrosse, field hockey, tennis, and more sports serve the College's Bullets men's and women's sports teams.

Additional recognition from Princeton Review

    • Best Value Colleges
      • Ranked among Top 50 Best Value Colleges (Private Schools) | No. 21 Among Private Liberal Arts Colleges
  • Colleges That Create Futures
  • Green Colleges
  • Best Colleges: Mid-Atlantic Region

U.S. News & World Report’s Best Colleges

U.S. News & World Report’s Best Colleges rankings evaluate 1,500 colleges and universities and consider 19 measures of academic quality for national universities and 13 indicators for national liberal arts colleges, regional universities, and regional colleges. The 2024 rankings included a greater focus on social mobility and outcomes for graduating college students.

  • No. 63 among National Liberal Arts Colleges
  • No. 53 among Best Value Schools

Forbes

Alumni salary, student satisfaction, debt, American leaders (within Forbes’s database of successful leaders), on-time graduation rate, and academic success were considered in the ranking of Forbes Top Colleges.

  • Top Colleges: No. 50 in liberal arts

Money Magazine’s Best Colleges, Ranked by Value

Quality of education, affordability, and outcomes were considered in the ranking of Money Magazine’s Best Colleges.

  • No. 11 in liberal arts
  • No. 60 in nation

The Wall Street Journal and College Pulse America's Best Colleges 2024

The Wall Street Journal, in cooperation with College Pulse and Statista, publishes its America's Best Colleges 2024 rankings to recognize the colleges that are doing an outstanding job in higher education. The final ranking of the top 400 colleges is based on:

  • Student and alumni survey: College Pulse asked more than 60,000 undergraduates and recent undergraduate alumni to provide feedback on colleges that provide great value to students for tuition, learning environment, degree completion, and the likelihood of a higher salary after graduation.
  • Student outcomes metrics: College Pulse considered various metrics around student outcomes to determine the salary impact compared to similar colleges, the number of years to pay off the net price, and graduation rates compared to those of similar colleges. An assessment of level of diversity on campus also factored into the analysis.

Gettysburg College is ranked No. 26 among best liberal arts colleges in the nation.

The National Study of Learning, Voting, and Engagement (NSLVE)

The National Study of Learning, Voting, and Engagement (NSLVE) reports college student participation in the 2020 presidential election, which also includes data on 2016 and 2018. It examines aggregate student participation in the most recent national election across categories like field of study, age, and sex.

  • Nearly 80% of Gettysburg College students voted in 2020, earning platinum status from the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge—a national and nonpartisan initiative to encourage informed participation, citizenship, and civic learning in higher education. Only 47 colleges across the country received this platinum status distinction from more than 800 campuses that have joined the competition since its launch in 2016.

Kiplinger’s Personal Finance Best College Values

Student-to-faculty ratio, test scores of incoming students, graduation rates, and low student debt at graduation were considered in the ranking of Kiplinger’s Personal Finance Best College Values. This ranking list is intended to recognize institutions that combine academic quality with affordability.

  • No. 41 among private liberal arts colleges
  • On list of America's 400 Best College Values

Payscale.com’s College Salary Report

The data used in PayScale’s College Salary Report is collected through Payscale’s ongoing, online compensation survey, where users provide information about jobs, compensation, employer, demographics, and educational background. This data is used to examine early-career and mid-career salaries of alumni.

  • No. 19 in liberal arts

Learn why Gettysburg College graduates have outstanding post-college outcomes.

Best-In-Class Colleges: Baccalaureate Colleges with an Arts and Sciences Focus

Gettysburg College is recognized by Best-In-Class Colleges among U.S. baccalaureate colleges with an arts and sciences focus delivering an exceptional education. This classification highlights academic institutions with a strong emphasis on undergraduate education and a focus on the arts and sciences in their academic curricula. Best-In-Class Colleges considers colleges and universities that provide a well-rounded education with a range of academic disciplines, foster intellectual growth, promote critical thinking, and inspire students to understand the world more deeply.

  • Best-In-Class Colleges rankings consider comprehensive, objective data from multiple categories: rigorous admissions standards, the caliber of the student body, student retention, on-time graduation, post-college earnings, and manageable student debt after graduation.

The Power of International Education (IIE) Open Doors Report, mid-length study abroad programs

Open Doors is a comprehensive information resource on students who study abroad as part of their academic experience. The data in this annual report are obtained through surveying approximately 1,800 accredited U.S. higher education institutions who award credit for study abroad. At Gettysburg College, nearly 60% of our students study abroad for at least one semester.

  • No. 1 in PA
  • No. 2 in the nation

Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program Top Producing Institution

Each year, the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) announces the top-producing institutions for the Fulbright Program, the U.S. government's flagship international educational exchange program. Gettysburg College was recognized as Top Producing Institution for receiving one grant and submitting seven applications in 2021. The Fulbright Program was established more than 75 years ago to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries. Fulbright is the world’s largest and most diverse international educational exchange program.

The Georgetown University Center on Education & the Workforce ROI Study: ROI of Liberal Arts Colleges

Using data from the expanded College Scorecard, this report ranks 4,500 colleges and universities by return on investment. Through this study, Georgetown University found that the ROI for liberal arts institutions is well below the median for all colleges at the 10-year horizon, but well above the median for all colleges 40 years after enrollment.

  • No. 50 among liberal arts colleges based on 10-year ROI
  • No. 33 among liberal arts colleges based on 40-year ROI

Fiske Guide to Colleges

Led by former New York Times education editor Edward B. Fiske, the Fiske Guide to Colleges 2024, named the No. 1 bestselling college guide, provides prospective students and their parents student testimonials and helpful information, including academic offerings, costs, “quality-of-life” ratings, acceptance rates, and more. It is recommended widely by high school college counselors.

  • On list of 300+ “best and most interesting” four-year colleges in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom