U.S. News and World Report Ranks Ithaca College Among Best of Its Kind

By David Maley, September 24, 2025

Publication gives IC high marks for teaching and innovation.

The 2026 “Best Colleges” edition of U.S. News & World Report places Ithaca College among the top institutions of its kind and gives it particularly good grades for teaching and innovation.

Serving as a guide for students and their families considering their higher education choices, the annual rankings evaluate colleges and universities using statistical measures that the publication believes reflect academic quality and graduate outcomes. The indicators include such factors as first-year student retention rates, graduation rates, student-faculty ratio, graduate indebtedness, graduate earnings, and peer assessment, which is a measure of how a school is regarded by top administrators at other institutions.

IC was ranked #13 for overall quality from among the 164 institutions considered in the Regional Universities in the North category.

Regional universities are schools that offer a broad scope of undergraduate degrees and some master’s degree programs, but few, if any, doctoral programs. Ithaca College offers doctoral degrees in physical therapy and occupational therapy. For this category, the rankings are divided into four regions — North, South, Midwest, and West.

This distinction reflects the unwavering commitment of our faculty to place students at the center of everything they do—challenging, mentoring, and inspiring them to reach their full potential.

President La Jerne Terry Cornish

Ithaca College was ranked #2 for Best Undergraduate Teaching, which identifies schools whose faculty and administrators are committed to teaching undergraduate students in a high-quality manner.

“This distinction reflects the unwavering commitment of our faculty to place students at the center of everything they do—challenging, mentoring, and inspiring them to reach their full potential,” said Ithaca College President La Jerne Terry Cornish. “It is a testament to the strength of our academic community and the transformative experience we provide.”

Ithaca College was also ranked #8 for Most Innovative Schools, signifying the institutions that are making cutting-edge developments in terms of curriculum, faculty, students, campus life, technology, or facilities.

“Our faculty, staff, and students are continually seeking new ways to expand opportunity and enrich learning,” said Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs Melanie Stein. “At our core, innovation means challenging convention, embracing new ideas, and preparing students for a rapidly changing world—and this recognition affirms that commitment.”

In addition to U.S. New & World Report, IC was recently included in Princeton Review’s The Best 391 Colleges, which ranked the college among the top 25 in the nation in four individual categories:

#9 Best College Newspaper
#12 Best College Theater
#20 Best College Radio Station
#25 Green Matters: Everyone Cares About Conservation

For more information on the U.S. News & World Report rankings, visit usnews.com/best-colleges.