Catholic School CompassTrue north for Catholic families.

Every accredited U.S. college

Colleges

Catholic colleges receive the full four-pillar faith scorecard. All other colleges are rated on Catholic life on campus: campus ministry, Mass and confession, and student groups. Four-year colleges also get an Academic Excellence score from federal data.

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Best match lists Catholic colleges first, by Compass Score. The other sorts order every school by that one measure.
Ratings1
Compass ScoreCompass Score: 75% faith and 25% Academic Excellence, for every school that has both. Choose the lowest grade to show.
Faith or Catholic lifeFaith: the average of the four faith pillars. Other colleges are graded on Catholic life on campus instead.
Academic ExcellenceAcademic Excellence: a score from federal data on graduation, retention, test scores, faculty ratio, and spending. It never uses rankings or surveys.
Only schools marked Compass Recommended: a Faith or Catholic life score of 80 or higher, and a Compass Score of 80 or higher where academics are rated.
Only Honor Roll schools: Catholic schools with a Faith score of 85 or higher, and campus ministries at other colleges with a Catholic life score of 85 or higher.
Only the eight Ivy League universities. None of them is Catholic; their pages rate Catholic life on campus.
Researched only: hides schools whose faith or Catholic life has not been checked against official sources.
Faith pillars
Sacramental lifeHow readily students can attend Mass, go to confession, pray before the Blessed Sacrament, and find a priest.
Theology and core curriculumWhat every undergraduate must study in theology and philosophy, and how the core draws on the Catholic intellectual tradition.
Campus culture and residence lifeThe reach of campus ministry, retreats and student faith groups, and the residence-hall policies many families ask about.
Service and Catholic social teachingService programs, how Catholic social teaching enters the curriculum, and both pro-life and justice work tied to the mission.
Location
Distance (miles)
A broad region of the country, as the guide groups the states. Territories are listed separately.
School
Catholic or otherAll: every college. Catholic: Catholic colleges with the full faith scorecard. Other: colleges rated on Catholic life on campus, not the full faith scorecard.
Public or privatePublic: run by a state or local government. Private: nonprofit or for-profit, including Catholic colleges.
Level4-year: bachelor's degree programs. 2-year: associate degree programs.
Total enrollment: small is under 2,000 students, medium 2,000 to 9,999, large 10,000 to 24,999, and very large 25,000 or more.
Net price: what a typical student pays per year after grants and scholarships, from the federal College Scorecard.
Coed: men and women together. Single-sex: all-male or all-female.
Schools founded or run by a religious order, such as the Jesuits or Dominicans, from the guide's order data.
Campus life
College sports level from federal data: NCAA Division I (the biggest programs), Division II, Division III, or NAIA.
Where the campus is, from federal data: in a city, a suburb, a town, or a rural area.
Mass every weekday on or next to campus, checked against the college's own schedule.
A Catholic parish church within a mile of campus.
The college offers Army, Navy or Air Force ROTC, on campus or with a nearby college (federal data).
The college offers study abroad (federal data).
Admissions and outcomes1
How many applicants are admitted (federal data). Most: 65% or more. Selective: 25% to 64%. Highly selective: under 25%.
Your SAT or ACT, to sort colleges Target, Likely and Reach. Signed in, it is kept on your account (private to you); otherwise only in this browser.
Reach, Target or LikelyA rough guide from admitted students' scores and admission rates, not a prediction. Target: your score is in the college's middle range. Likely: above it, or the college admits most applicants. Reach: below it, or the college admits fewer than 1 in 5.
Small classes: 12 or fewer students per faculty member (federal data).
Strong outcomes: 75% or more of students graduate (federal data).
Major
Colleges that offer a bachelor's degree in this major or field, from the federal College Scorecard.
Clear all
CatholicOnly Catholic colleges, which get the full four-pillar faith scorecard.RecommendedOnly schools marked Compass Recommended: a Faith or Catholic life score of 80 or higher, and a Compass Score of 80 or higher where academics are rated.Honor RollOnly Honor Roll schools: Catholic schools with a Faith score of 85 or higher, and campus ministries at other colleges with a Catholic life score of 85 or higher.FaithOnly schools with a Faith score of 85 or higher (grade A). At other colleges, this is their Catholic life score.AcademicsOnly schools with an Academic Excellence score of 85 or higher (grade A), from federal data.Ivy LeagueOnly the eight Ivy League universities. None of them is Catholic; their pages rate Catholic life on campus.Clear
Division I sportsCollege sports level from federal data: NCAA Division I (the biggest programs), Division II, Division III, or NAIA.Daily MassMass every weekday on or next to campus, checked against the college's own schedule.Church nearbyA Catholic parish church within a mile of campus.ROTCThe college offers Army, Navy or Air Force ROTC, on campus or with a nearby college (federal data).Study abroadThe college offers study abroad (federal data).NursingColleges that offer a bachelor's degree in this major or field, from the federal College Scorecard.EngineeringColleges that offer a bachelor's degree in this major or field, from the federal College Scorecard.Under $20kNet price under $20,000 a year: what a typical student pays after grants and scholarships (federal data).Small classesSmall classes: 12 or fewer students per faculty member (federal data).
Academics ASmall classesClear all

165 schools · Sorted by Best match (Catholic first)

Grade filters include only schools with that grade; “Not enough information” is excluded.

Other colleges with strong Catholic life

Rated on Catholic life on campus, not the full faith scorecard. Their Catholic Life Scores are not comparable with the Compass Scores of Catholic colleges.

  • Catholic Life Score

    Butler University

    Indianapolis, IN · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 5,763 students
    Catholic lifeStrongAcademicsExcellent
  • Catholic Life Score

    American University

    Washington, DC · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 13,019 students
    Catholic lifeStrongAcademicsExcellent
  • Catholic Life Score

    Wesleyan University

    Middletown, CT · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 3,271 students
    Catholic lifeStrongAcademicsExcellent
  • Catholic Life Score

    Tufts University

    Medford, MA · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 13,274 students
    Catholic lifeFairAcademicsExcellent
  • Catholic Life Score

    Bentley University

    Waltham, MA · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 5,264 students
    Catholic lifeFairAcademicsExcellent
  • Catholic Life Score

    United States Air Force Academy

    USAF Academy, CO · Public · 4-year · 4,124 students
    Catholic lifeFairAcademicsExcellent
  • Catholic Life Score

    Chapman University

    Orange, CA · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 9,961 students
    Catholic lifeFairAcademicsExcellent
  • Catholic Life Score

    Cornell University

    Ithaca, NY · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 26,264 students
    Catholic lifeFairAcademicsExcellent
  • Catholic Life Score

    Stevens Institute of Technology

    Hoboken, NJ · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 8,842 students
    Catholic lifeFairAcademicsExcellent
  • Not yet rated

    University of Chicago

    Chicago, IL · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 18,339 students
    Catholic lifeNot ratedAcademicsExcellent
  • Not yet rated

    California Institute of Technology

    Pasadena, CA · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 2,463 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsExcellent
  • Not yet rated

    Vassar College

    Poughkeepsie, NY · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 2,456 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsExcellent
  • Not yet rated

    Wellesley College

    Wellesley, MA · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 2,418 students
    All-femaleAll-female: the school enrolls women only.Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsExcellent
  • Not yet rated

    Washington and Lee University

    Lexington, VA · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 2,277 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsExcellent
  • Not yet rated

    Williams College

    Williamstown, MA · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 2,168 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsExcellent
  • Not yet rated

    Carleton College

    Northfield, MN · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 2,069 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsExcellent
  • Not yet rated

    Amherst College

    Amherst, MA · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,910 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsExcellent
  • Not yet rated

    Pomona College

    Claremont, CA · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,664 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsExcellent
  • Not yet rated

    Claremont McKenna College

    Claremont, CA · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,384 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsExcellent
  • Not yet rated

    The Juilliard School

    New York, NY · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,028 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsExcellent
  • Not yet rated

    Harvey Mudd College

    Claremont, CA · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 949 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsExcellent
  • Not yet rated

    Curtis Institute of Music

    Philadelphia, PA · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 159 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsExcellent
  • Not yet rated

    Smith College

    Northampton, MA · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 2,830 students
    All-femaleAll-female: the school enrolls women only.Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsExcellent
  • Not yet rated

    Swarthmore College

    Swarthmore, PA · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,644 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsExcellent
  • Not yet rated

    Middlebury College

    Middlebury, VT · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 2,857 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsExcellent

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