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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Compass Score lists Catholic colleges first, then the other schools by the same score. The other sorts order every school by a different measure.
Ratings
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).
Major1
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).
Small classesMajor: Engineering (any)Clear all

256 schools · Sorted by Compass Score (Catholic first)

  • Not yet rated

    Piedmont University

    Demorest, GA · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,840 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsFair
  • Not yet rated

    Tennessee Wesleyan University

    Athens, TN · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,074 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsFair
  • Not yet rated

    University of the District of Columbia

    Washington, DC · Public · 4-year · 3,855 students
    Catholic lifeNot ratedAcademicsFair
  • Not yet rated

    Pennsylvania State University-Penn State DuBois

    DuBois, PA · Public · 4-year · 353 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsFair
  • Not yet rated

    University of Alaska Anchorage

    Anchorage, AK · Public · 4-year · 10,796 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsFair
  • Not yet rated

    King University

    Bristol, TN · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,295 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Johnson C Smith University

    Charlotte, NC · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,102 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Caribbean University-Bayamon

    Bayamon, PR · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 929 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Scranton

    Dunmore, PA · Public · 4-year · 838 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Charleston Southern University

    Charleston, SC · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 3,545 students
    Catholic lifeNot ratedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Baker College

    Owosso, MI · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 3,898 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Lincoln University

    Lincoln University, PA · Public · 4-year · 1,848 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Louisiana Christian University

    Pineville, LA · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 950 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Benjamin Franklin Cummings Institute of Technology

    Boston, MA · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 592 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Wilkes-Barre

    Dallas, PA · Public · 4-year · 353 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff

    Pine Bluff, AR · Public · 4-year · 2,100 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Friends University

    Wichita, KS · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,927 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Caribbean University-Ponce

    Ponce, PR · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 607 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Hazleton

    Hazleton, PA · Public · 4-year · 510 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Howard Payne University

    Brownwood, TX · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 833 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Indiana Institute of Technology-College of Professional Studies

    Fort Wayne, IN · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 2,535 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Polytechnic University of Puerto Rico-Orlando

    Orlando, FL · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 119 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Bethany College

    Lindsborg, KS · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 637 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Wilberforce University

    Wilberforce, OH · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 617 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Saint Augustine's University

    Raleigh, NC · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 943 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited

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