Historical significance of HBCUs
In a segregated, post-Civil War country, historically Black colleges and universities provided Black Americans with a quality education. Many well-known and respected artists, CEOs and political leaders are graduates of these institutions. Today these colleges are still some of the country’s top producers of Black doctors, scientists and engineers and offer opportunities to a diverse student body. These are the 20 top-ranked HBCUs, per U.S. News data.
20 (tie). Southern University and A&M College (LA)
Overall rank: 93 (tie), Regional Universities (South)
Undergraduate 2020 enrollment: 6,145
Tuition rates for 2021-2022: $9,290 (in-state), $10,479 (out-of-state)
Six-year graduation rate for students entering in fall 2014: 28%
Founded in 1880, Southern University and A&M College is among the top 10 producers of Black students with undergraduate degrees in engineering, according to its website. Engineering degrees at the Louisiana-based school can be earned in the following specialties: civil, electrical, electronics engineering technology or mechanical.
20 (tie). Norfolk State University (VA)
Overall rank: 70 (tie), Regional Universities (South)
Undergraduate 2020 enrollment: 4,992
Tuition rates for 2021-2022: $9,622 (in-state), $20,790 (out-of-state)
Six-year graduation rate for students entering in fall 2014: 38%
Norfolk State University — founded in 1935 during the Great Depression — offers an associate degree in architectural drafting alongside its bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral programs. Notable alumni of the Virginia university include professional track athlete Debbie Dunn and the late Yvonne Bond Miller, the first Black woman elected to Virginia’s legislature.
18 (tie). Jackson State University (MS)
Overall rank: 299-391, National Universities
Undergraduate 2020 enrollment: 4,668
Tuition rates for 2021-2022: $8,445 (in-state), $9,445 (out-of-state)
Six-year graduation rate for students entering in fall 2014: 44%
Founded in 1877, Jackson State University is a top producer of Black meteorologists and claims to be the only HBCU to offer a degree in earth systems science. JSU’s atmospheric science/meteorology program has produced 1 in 4 African Americans with a bachelor’s degree in meteorology, according to its website.
18 (tie). Clark Atlanta University (GA)
Overall rank: 299-391, National Universities
Undergraduate 2020 enrollment: 3,096
Tuition rates for 2021-2022: $24,430
Six-year graduation rate for students entering in fall 2014: 42%
Formed out of a union between Clark College and Atlanta University, Clark Atlanta University opened its doors in 1988. Located a few miles from downtown Atlanta, CAU is home to several on-campus research centers and is the only HBCU member of the Georgia Research Alliance — a nonprofit aimed at increasing research capabilities within the state — according to the school’s website.
17. University of Maryland Eastern Shore
Overall rank: 299-391, National Universities
Undergraduate 2020 enrollment:2,070
Tuition rates for 2021-2022:$8,558 (in-state), $18,968 (out-of-state)
Six-year graduation rate for students entering in fall 2014:41%
Originally founded as the Delaware Conference Academy in 1886 under the auspices of the Methodist Episcopal Church, the University of Maryland Eastern Shore later became a doctoral degree-granting institution. Given its proximity to the Chesapeake Bay, UMES offers several degree programs in environmental science and marine ecology, in addition to owning the Paul S. Sarbanes Coastal Ecology Center. The facility is used as an education resource for K-12 students and for undergraduate and graduate conservation research.
16. Winston-Salem State University (NC)
Overall rank: 48 (tie), Regional Universities (South)
Undergraduate 2019 enrollment: 4,656 (2020 data not provided)
Tuition rates for 2021-2022: $5,941 (in-state), $16,188 (out-of-state)
Six-year graduation rate for students entering in fall 2014:49%
Born out of a one-room frame structure, Winston-Salem State University — originally founded as Slater Industrial Academy in 1892 — now consists of more than 35 buildings on a 117-acre residential campus, according to its website. WSSU offers online certificates and degree options, in addition to its traditional programs.
15. Tougaloo College (MS)
Overall rank: 168-222, National Liberal Arts Colleges
Undergraduate 2019 enrollment:708 (2020 data not provided)
Tuition rates for 2021-2022:$11,398
Six-year graduation rate for students entering in fall 2014:45%
Founded on a former plantation in 1869, Tougaloo College has long put social justice at the forefront of its mission, especially in the 1960s. The Mississippi-based college opened its doors to Freedom Riders and other leaders who fought to end segregation during the civil rights movement. Now, Tougaloo is home to the Institute for the Study of Modern Day Slavery, a collaboration among academics, students and social activists to study human trafficking and forced labor.
14. Dillard University (LA)
Overall rank:168-222, National Liberal Arts Colleges
Undergraduate 2020 enrollment: 1,215
Tuition rates for 2021-2022:$18,112
Six-year graduation rate for students entering in fall 2014:49%
Formed out of the consolidation of two institutions — New Orleans University and Straight University — Dillard University opened its doors in 1935, according to the school’s website. Alumni include actor and comedian Garret Morris and the late Revius O. Ortique, Jr., the first Black justice on the Louisiana Supreme Court.
13. North Carolina Central University
Overall rank:48 (tie), Regional Universities (South)
Undergraduate 2020 enrollment:6,067
Tuition rates for 2021-2022:$6,584 (in-state), $19,291 (out-of-state)
Six-year graduation rate for students entering in fall 2014:52%
Since being chartered as the National Religious Training School and Chautauqua for the Colored Race in 1910, North Carolina Central University has maintained its connection with the Durham community through community engagement and service. During the 2020-2021 academic year, NCCU recorded more than 1.4 million hours of student public service, according to the school’s website.
12. Morgan State University (MD)
Overall rank:299-391, National Universities
Undergraduate 2020 enrollment:6,270
Tuition rates for 2021-2022:$8,008 (in-state), $18,480 (out-of-state)
Designated by the state as Maryland’s preeminent public urban research university, Morgan State University — founded in 1867 — has more than 140 academic programs. MSU’s campus, which is centered in northeast Baltimore but spans more than 185 acres, was named a National Treasure in 2016 by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, according to its website.
10 (tie). Delaware State University
Overall rank:263 (tie), National Universities
Undergraduate 2020 enrollment:4,131
Tuition rates for 2021-2022:$8,258 (in-state), $17,294 (out-of-state)
Six-year graduation rate for students entering in fall 2014:48%
Originally founded as the Delaware College for Colored Students in 1891, Delaware State University offers a variety of degree programs in areas such as agriculture, sports management and aviation. With a fleet of more than 20 aircraft, students in the aviation program participate in flight training and license certification at Delaware Air Park, according to DSU’s website.
10 (tie). Claflin University (SC)
Overall rank:7, Regional Colleges (South)
Undergraduate 2020 enrollment:1,969
Tuition rates for 2021-2022: $17,046
Six-year graduation rate for students entering in fall 2014:50%
Founded in 1869, Claflin University is a small liberal arts college affiliated with the Methodist church. The university claims to be the first school in South Carolina that was open to all races. Claflin produced two of the first five Black women in the world to receive college degrees: Alice Jackson Moorer and Annie Thortne Holmes, both 1884 graduates, according to the school’s website.
9. Fisk University (TN)
Overall rank: 146 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges
Undergraduate 2020 enrollment:879
Tuition rates for 2021-2022:$22,132
Six-year graduation rate for students entering in fall 2014:50%
Founded in 1866, Fisk University is the oldest institution of higher education in Nashville, Tennessee. The school has several notable alumni who were prominent intellectual and civic leaders, such as sociologist W.E.B. Du Bois and journalist Ida B. Wells. Booker T. Washington, who founded Tuskegee University in Alabama, served on Fisk’s board of trustees.
8. North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University
Overall rank:277 (tie), National Universities
Undergraduate 2020 enrollment:11,130
Tuition rates for 2021-2022:$6,733 (in-state), $20,243 (out-of-state)
Founded in the 1890s, the North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University is a national university that is among the top producers of Black engineers, according to the university’s website. Well-known alumni include civil rights activist Rev. Jesse Jackson and Michael Regan, who was nominated by President Joe Biden to be the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.
7. Florida A&M University
Overall rank:202 (tie), National Universities
Undergraduate 2020 enrollment:7,402
Tuition rates for 2021-2022: $5,785 (in-state), $17,725 (out-of-state)
Six-year graduation rate for students entering in fall 2014:56%
Classes began at the State Normal College for Colored Students with just 15 students and two instructors when the school was founded in 1887, according to the university’s website. Now known as Florida A&M University, it has been recognized for its pharmacy school and is known as a leading institution in awarding bachelor’s and doctoral degrees to Black students. Well-known alumni include Wimbledon champ Althea Gibson, Olympic gold medalist Robert “Bullet Bob” Hayes and Fox Sports reporter Pam Oliver.
4 (tie). Tuskegee University (AL)
Overall rank:17 (tie), Regional Universities (South)
Undergraduate 2020 enrollment:2,280
Tuition rates for 2021-2022:$22,679
Six-year graduation rate for students entering in fall 2014:58%
Founded by Booker T. Washington in 1881, Tuskegee University has multiple claims to fame. It was the institutional home of legendary scientist George Washington Carver and is also known for producing the Tuskegee Airmen, the first Black pilots to serve in the then-segregated U.S. military. The school’s website notes that the university is also a top producer of Black engineering graduates, military generals and veterinarians.
4 (tie). Morehouse College (GA)
Overall rank:128 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges
Undergraduate 2020 enrollment: 2,152
Tuition rates for 2021-2022: $29,468
Six-year graduation rate for students entering in fall 2014: 56
Founded in the basement of a Baptist church in Augusta, Georgia, in 1867 and later moved to Atlanta, Morehouse College is the only all-male HBCU in the country. Martin Luther King, Jr. graduated from the institution in 1948. Morehouse has also produced five Rhodes scholars.
4 (tie). Hampton University (VA)
Overall rank: 202 (tie), National Universities
Undergraduate 2020 enrollment3,063
Tuition rates for 2021-2022:$29,287
Six-year graduation rate for students entering in fall 2014:60%
Hampton University was founded in 1868 as the Hampton Normal and Agricultural Institute. In addition to its mission to educate Black students, Hampton also welcomed 70 previously incarcerated Native Americans in 1878, sparking an educational program that served the American Indian population for more than 40 years. Notable alumni include Booker T. Washington, a renowned educator, speaker and author who founded and presided at Tuskegee University in Alabama until his death in 1915.
3. Xavier University of Louisiana
Overall rank:15 (tie), Regional Universities (South)
Undergraduate 2020 enrollment:2,517
Tuition rates for 2021-2022:$26,398
Six-year graduation rate for students entering in fall 2014:47%
Xavier University of Louisiana is a top producer of Black medical school applicants, according to data from the Association of American Medical Colleges. Founded as a high school in 1915, the New Orleans university is the nation’s only Catholic HBCU and annually produces more Black graduates who go on to medical school than any other university in the nation, according to the school’s website. Xavier counts former U.S. Surgeon General Regina Benjamin among its graduates.
2. Howard University (DC)
Overall rank:83 (tie), National Universities
Undergraduate 2020 enrollment:7,857
Tuition rates for 2021-2022:$28,916
Six-year graduation rate for students entering in fall 2014:64%
Founded in 1867, Howard University spans more than 250 urban acres in the nation’s capital and Maryland. The university has 13 schools and colleges and is home to the country’s first Black-owned public television station, WHUT, according to the school’s website. WHUR, the campus FM radio station, is among the few commercial radio stations owned by a university, per the school’s website. Howard’s many notable alumni include U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, late Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall and actress Taraji P. Henson.
1. Spelman College(GA)
Overall rank:54 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges
Undergraduate 2020 enrollment: 2,207
Tuition rates for 2021-2022: $28,181
Six-year graduation rate for students entering in fall 2014:75%
Founded as Atlanta Baptist Female Seminary in 1881, Spelman College emerged from its origins in a church basement to become the top HBCU in the country. Some of the first students were formerly enslaved people learning basic life skills. The college has since produced such notable alumnae as Pulitzer Prize-winning author Alice Walker and 1960 valedictorian Marian Wright Edelman, who founded the Children’s Defense Fund.
Learn more about HBCUs.
Thinking about attending an HBCU or seeking a school with a diverse student body? Learn more about why diversity in college matters and why students may want to factor it into their admissions decisions. Follow U.S. News Education on Twitter and Facebook to find advice on researching, applying to and paying for college.
Highest-ranked historically Black colleges and universities
— 1. Spelman College
— 2. Howard University
— 3. Xavier University of Louisiana
— 4 (tie). Hampton University
— 4 (tie). Morehouse College 4
— 4 (tie). Tuskegee University
— 7. Florida A&M University
— 8. North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University
— 9. Fisk University
— 10 (tie). Claflin University
— 10 (tie). Delaware State University
— 12. Morgan State University
— 13. North Carolina Central University
— 14. Dillard University
— 15. Tougaloo University
— 16. Winston-Salem State University
— 17. University of Maryland Eastern Shore
— 18 (tie). Clark Atlanta University
— 18 (tie). Jackson State University
— 20. Norfolk State University
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Top 20 Historically Black Colleges and Universities originally appeared on usnews.com
Update 02/15/22: The story was previously published at an earlier date and has been updated with new information.
