Catholic School CompassTrue north for Catholic families.

Every accredited U.S. college

Catholic life at other colleges

Public and private colleges that are not Catholic, rated on Catholic life on campus: campus ministry, Mass and confession, chaplains, and student groups.

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Best match lists Catholic colleges first, by Compass Score. The other sorts order every school by that one 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.
Location1
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.
MajorComing soon
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
Other collegesState: TennesseeClear all

82 schools · Sorted by Best match (Catholic first)

  • Catholic Life Score

    Vanderbilt University

    Nashville, TN · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 13,456 students
    Catholic lifeStrongAcademicsExcellent
  • Catholic Life Score

    Belmont University

    Nashville, TN · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 8,862 students
    Catholic lifeStrongAcademicsStrong
  • Catholic Life Score

    The University of Tennessee-Knoxville

    Knoxville, TN · Public · 4-year · 36,304 students
    Catholic lifeStrongAcademicsStrong
  • Catholic Life Score

    Middle Tennessee State University

    Murfreesboro, TN · Public · 4-year · 20,183 students
    Catholic lifeStrongAcademicsFair
  • Catholic Life Score

    The University of Tennessee-Martin

    Martin, TN · Public · 4-year · 6,941 students
    Catholic lifeStrongAcademicsFair
  • Catholic Life Score

    Austin Peay State University

    Clarksville, TN · Public · 4-year · 9,945 students
    Catholic lifeStrongAcademicsLimited
  • Catholic Life Score

    University of Memphis

    Memphis, TN · Public · 4-year · 21,736 students
    Catholic lifeFairAcademicsFair
  • Catholic Life Score

    The University of Tennessee-Chattanooga

    Chattanooga, TN · Public · 4-year · 11,380 students
    Catholic lifeFairAcademicsFair
  • Not yet rated

    Rhodes College

    Memphis, TN · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,952 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

    Union University

    Jackson, TN · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 2,674 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsStrong
  • Not yet rated

    Lipscomb University

    Nashville, TN · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 5,047 students
    Catholic lifeNot ratedAcademicsStrong
  • Not yet rated

    Freed-Hardeman University

    Henderson, TN · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 2,294 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsStrong
  • Not yet rated

    Milligan University

    Milligan, TN · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,200 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsStrong
  • Not yet rated

    Lee University

    Cleveland, TN · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 3,680 students
    Catholic lifeNot ratedAcademicsFair
  • Not yet rated

    East Tennessee State University

    Johnson City, TN · Public · 4-year · 13,586 students
    Catholic lifeNot ratedAcademicsFair
  • Not yet rated

    Tennessee Technological University

    Cookeville, TN · Public · 4-year · 10,117 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsFair
  • Not yet rated

    Nossi College of Art and Design

    Nashville, TN · Private for-profit · 4-year · 278 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsFair
  • Not yet rated

    Lincoln Memorial University

    Harrogate, TN · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 5,805 students
    Catholic lifeNot ratedAcademicsFair
  • Not yet rated

    Johnson University

    Knoxville, TN · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 950 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsFair
  • Not yet rated

    Maryville College

    Maryville, TN · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 1,147 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsFair
  • Not yet rated

    Welch College

    Gallatin, TN · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 389 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsFair
  • Not yet rated

    Carson-Newman University

    Jefferson City, TN · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 2,735 students
    Catholic life not yet researchedAcademicsFair
  • Not yet rated

    Southern Adventist University

    Collegedale, TN · Private nonprofit · 4-year · 3,154 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

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