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: NeuroscienceClear all

166 schools · Sorted by Compass Score (Catholic first)

  • Not yet rated

    Furman University

    Greenville, SC · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 2,505 students
    Catholic lifeNot ratedAcademicsExcellent
  • Not yet rated

    Dickinson College

    Carlisle, PA · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 2,217 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsExcellent
  • Not yet rated

    Whitman College

    Walla Walla, WA · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,544 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsExcellent
  • Not yet rated

    Reed College

    Portland, OR · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,458 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsExcellent
  • Not yet rated

    St. Lawrence University

    Canton, NY · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 2,089 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsExcellent
  • Not yet rated

    The University of the South

    Sewanee, TN · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,693 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsExcellent
  • Not yet rated

    Connecticut College

    New London, CT · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,995 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsExcellent
  • Not yet rated

    Lawrence University

    Appleton, WI · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,410 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsExcellent
  • Not yet rated

    DePauw University

    Greencastle, IN · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,819 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsExcellent
  • Not yet rated

    Bennington College

    Bennington, VT · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 867 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsExcellent
  • Not yet rated

    Simmons University

    Boston, MA · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 5,053 students
    All-femaleAll-female: the school enrolls women only.Catholic lifeNot ratedAcademicsExcellent
  • Not yet rated

    Ursinus College

    Collegeville, PA · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,492 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsStrong
  • Not yet rated

    The College of Wooster

    Wooster, OH · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,876 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsStrong
  • Not yet rated

    Washington College

    Chestertown, MD · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 916 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsStrong
  • Not yet rated

    Earlham College

    Richmond, IN · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 696 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsStrong
  • Not yet rated

    Wheaton College (Massachusetts)

    Norton, MA · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,778 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsStrong
  • Not yet rated

    University of Puget Sound

    Tacoma, WA · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,914 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsStrong
  • Not yet rated

    Bard College at Simon's Rock

    Great Barrington, MA · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 312 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsStrong
  • Not yet rated

    Allegheny College

    Meadville, PA · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,231 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsStrong
  • Not yet rated

    Agnes Scott College

    Decatur, GA · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,077 students
    All-femaleAll-female: the school enrolls women only.Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsStrong
  • Not yet rated

    Illinois Wesleyan University

    Bloomington, IL · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,576 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsStrong
  • Not yet rated

    Transylvania University

    Lexington, KY · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,022 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsStrong
  • Not yet rated

    St. Mary's College of Maryland

    St. Mary's City, MD · Public · 4-year · 1,587 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsStrong
  • Not yet rated

    Knox College

    Galesburg, IL · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,001 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsStrong
  • Not yet rated

    Washington & Jefferson College

    Washington, PA · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,162 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsStrong

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