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.
School1
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 outcomes
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).
Net price up to $20,000Major: Political scienceClear all

566 schools · Sorted by Compass Score (Catholic first)

  • Not yet rated

    Winston-Salem State University

    Winston-Salem, NC · Public · 4-year · 4,776 students
    Catholic lifeNot ratedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Regent University

    Virginia Beach, VA · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 10,168 students
    Catholic lifeNot ratedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    California State University-Los Angeles

    Los Angeles, CA · Public · 4-year · 25,080 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Dickinson State University

    Dickinson, ND · Public · 4-year · 1,453 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    University of North Texas

    Denton, TX · Public · 4-year · 47,507 students
    Catholic lifeNot ratedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Eastern Oregon University

    La Grande, OR · Public · 4-year · 2,798 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Hardin-Simmons University

    Abilene, TX · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,655 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Eastern Michigan University

    Ypsilanti, MI · Public · 4-year · 13,324 students
    Catholic lifeNot ratedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma

    Chickasha, OK · Public · 4-year · 914 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    University of South Carolina-Upstate

    Spartanburg, SC · Public · 4-year · 4,946 students
    Catholic lifeNot ratedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Trevecca Nazarene University

    Nashville, TN · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 3,196 students
    Catholic lifeNot ratedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Bemidji State University

    Bemidji, MN · Public · 4-year · 3,926 students
    Catholic lifeNot ratedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Shepherd University

    Shepherdstown, WV · Public · 4-year · 3,318 students
    Catholic lifeNot ratedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley

    Edinburg, TX · Public · 4-year · 31,931 students
    Catholic lifeNot ratedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Cheyney University of Pennsylvania

    Cheyney, PA · Public · 4-year · 724 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Georgetown College

    Georgetown, KY · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,463 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Purdue University Fort Wayne

    Fort Wayne, IN · Public · 4-year · 8,874 students
    Catholic lifeNot ratedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    North Carolina Central University

    Durham, NC · Public · 4-year · 7,965 students
    Catholic lifeNot ratedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    American Public University System

    Charles Town, WV · Private for-profit · 4-year · 50,187 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Thomas College

    Waterville, ME · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,669 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Belhaven University

    Jackson, MS · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 3,616 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    California State University-Northridge

    Northridge, CA · Public · 4-year · 37,760 students
    Catholic lifeNot ratedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Lincoln University

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

    University of Pittsburgh-Greensburg

    Greensburg, PA · Public · 4-year · 1,326 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsLimited
  • Not yet rated

    Virginia State University

    Petersburg, VA · Public · 4-year · 5,190 students
    Catholic lifeNot ratedAcademicsLimited

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