Furman ranks among nation’s best in US News Best Colleges 2026

Furman University has again been recognized as one of the most innovative universities in the country with one of the best experiences for first-year students, according to the U.S. News and World Report Best Colleges 2026 rankings.

Among national liberal arts and sciences universities, Furman ranks:

• 45^th overall, the same place as last year. Furman has been ranked 45^th or 46^th in six of the last seven years
• 11^th “Most Innovative”
• 21^st for “Best Undergraduate Teaching”

Among all universities in the country – liberal arts and large research schools – Furman ranks:

• 18^th for “Best First-Year Experience,” above schools including Duke, Notre Dame and Bucknell, and
• 44^th for “Best Undergraduate Research,” above such schools as Rhodes College, the University of Georgia and the University of Virginia

Furman again has the highest overall rank of any university in South Carolina. It is the 8^th ranked liberal arts university in the South.

The overall ranking is a calculation of multiple factors, including graduation rate, student-faculty ratio and reputation. The category rankings are decided by university presidents, provosts and deans of admissions who are asked to list the top schools that come to mind in the respective categories.

Furman, entering its bicentennial year in 2026, has gained national attention in several areas recently. In 2024 the Pathways Program, the only two-year advising program in the country, won the Advising Innovation Award from NACADA, the global community for academic advising in higher education.

In 2024, Furman opened Blackwell Hall, a new residence for first-year students that provides open, airy spaces to encourage community. In 2025, the University completed renovations of all first-year student housing.

Also this year, Furman’s Malone Center for Career Engagement won the National Association of Colleges and Employers Award for small colleges.

Niche ranked Furman 32^nd among liberal arts colleges,  34^th among small colleges and 14^th among colleges with no application fee. The campus was included in Travel & Leisure’s “25 Most Beautiful College Campuses in the US.”