Top 10 Most Underrated East Coast Colleges
What’s Covered:
When it comes to colleges, most students have heard of the big names—there are the Ivy League powerhouses like Harvard and Yale, West Coast alternatives like Stanford, and specialty schools like MIT. Athletes might know a lot about Notre Dame or UCLA, while performing artists often dream about Julliard.
At CollegeVine, however, we’re accustomed to looking beyond the obvious choices. In fact, we find that for most students, the best fit colleges aren’t necessarily those with the biggest names. Here we’ll talk about the top ten most underrated colleges on the East Coast.
How We Put This List Together
Through our experiences with thousands of students, we are uniquely familiar with various college ranking tools and their metrics. Most college rankings do a good job of identifying schools that excel in traditional ways, but sometimes these rankings can miss the bigger picture.
When we look at how successful colleges are, we look less at input factors like selectivity and average SAT scores, and more at outcome factors like return on investment (ROI), job outcomes, and starting salaries.
To determine our top ten underrated colleges on the East Coast, we considered the following factors:
- Cost of attendance and generosity of financial aid & scholarships
- One- and five-year ROI after graduation
- Financial performance of specific majors
- Qualitative data on career outcomes like job placement and grad school progression
The 10 Most Underrated East Coast Colleges
1. Binghamton University, SUNY
Location: Binghamton, NY
Acceptance Rate: 38%
Undergrad Enrollment: 14,400
The top school in the State University of New York system, SUNY Binghamton offers access to the New York City job market at an affordable price tag for in-state students. It ranks in the top 50 for ROI and career outcomes, and is often ranked within the top 100 colleges in the U.S.
SUNY Binghamton is frequently regarded as a “Public Ivy” due to the high quality of its educational offerings.
Learn more about SUNY Binghamton University and what it takes to get accepted.
2. City College of New York | CCNY
Location: New York, NY
Acceptance Rate: 64%
Undergrad Enrollment: 12,300
The City College of New York (CCNY) is located in the Hamilton Heights neighborhood of northern Manhattan. It offers prime access to the NYC job market and lands in the top 50 for ROI and career outcomes. It generally falls within the top 150 colleges in the U.S.
The school has graduated 10 Nobel Prize laureates and 3 Pulitzer Prize winners. CCNY is rich with history, having been home to the first student government in the nation, the first national fraternity to accept members without regard to religion or race (Delta Sigma Phi), and the first degree-granting evening education program.
Learn more about The City College of New York and what it takes to get accepted.
3. Worcester Polytechnic Institute | WPI
Location: Worcester, MA
Acceptance Rate: 60%
Undergrad Enrollment: 5,200
Located just over 40 miles west of Boston, Worcester Polytechnic Institute specializes in programs in the technical arts and applied sciences. Students interested in pursuing Business, STEM, or pre-med programs should give Worcester Polytechnic Institute more than a cursory glance.
WPI places in the top 100 universities in the U.S., as well as in the top 35 for ROI and career outcomes. In 2016, it was awarded the prestigious Bernard M. Gordon Prize for Innovation in Engineering and Technology Education by the National Academy of Engineering.
Learn more about Worcester Polytechnic Institute and what it takes to get accepted.
4. Fordham University
Location: Bronx, NY
Acceptance Rate: 58%
Undergrad Enrollment: 10,000
Another sleeper school located in New York City, Fordham is a private Catholic research university and the only Jesuit university in NYC. It is a little bit more expensive than the public schools on this list, but it still ranks in the top 35 for ROI and career outcomes.
The school boasts campuses in the Bronx and Manhattan, as well as strong programs in subjects such as business, finance, and economics. Fordham University typically ranks within the top 150 universities nationally.
Learn more about Fordham University and what it takes to get accepted.
5. Babson College
Location: Babson Park, MA
Acceptance Rate: 25%
Undergrad Enrollment: 2,500
Another private school, Babson specializes in business, and is consistently ranked among the top schools by publications such as The Economist, Money Magazine, and U.S. News & World Report for its entrepreneurship education. In fact, every entrepreneurship professor at Babson has either started, bought, sold, or run a successful business.
Babson falls in the top 10 for ROI and career outcomes and offers excellent merit scholarships. Students with aspirations in the business world are all but guaranteed a top notch introduction at Babson.
Learn more about Babson College and what it takes to get accepted.
6. Wellesley College
Location: Wellesley, MA
Acceptance Rate: 16%
Undergrad Enrollment: 2,500
Although it’s already well respected within the world of single-sex colleges, women’s only Wellesley College offers a top notch education that is on par with the coed Ivy Leagues. Its broad course offerings span from STEM to the humanities, and its location in the Boston suburbs offers access to a prime job market.
Wellesley ranks in the top 10 for women’s only ROI and career outcomes, and boasts high-profile graduates like Madeleine Albright, Hillary Clinton, and astronaut Pamela Melroy.
Learn more about Wellesley College and what it takes to get accepted.
7. Stevens Institute of Technology
Location: Hoboken, NJ
Acceptance Rate: 48%
Undergrad Enrollment: 4,200
Located in Hoboken, NJ, Stevens is another lesser-known choice for aspiring engineers. Its location between Philadelphia and NYC means grads have access to two large job markets, and its solid programming lands it in the top 30 for ROI and career outcomes.
The unique cooperative education program at Stevens offers the option to extend an undergraduate program to five years by adding 18 months of progressive, full-time, paid job experience. 95% of graduates land a job in their intended field within 6 months of graduation. Stevens generally ranks within the top 150 universities nationally.
Learn more about Stevens Institute of Technology and what it takes to get accepted.
8. Carnegie Mellon University
Location: Pittsburgh, PA
Acceptance Rate: 14%
Undergrad Enrollment: 7,000
Carnegie Mellon is consistently ranked within the top 40 universities in the U.S., but for prospective engineering and computer science majors, it’s among the very best options. It lands in the top 5 for ROI and career outcomes, and its location in Pittsburgh, PA, means that the Philadelphia and NYC job markets aren’t far.
For students going on to advanced degrees, CMU offers even more top notch choices, with its graduate program in computer science ranked in the top 3 in the country.
Learn more about Carnegie Mellon University and what it takes to get accepted.
9. The College of New Jersey | TCNJ
Location: Ewing Township, NJ
Acceptance Rate: 62%
Undergrad Enrollment: 7,400
The College of New Jersey (TCNJ) is a public university located just outside of Trenton, NJ. It ranks within the top 250 colleges in the U.S., and in the top 15 in its region. Based on our data, the school also ranks in the top 150 for ROI and career outcomes.
As TCNJ isn’t too far from Philadelphia or New York City, grads have access to a strong job market, and the school’s business program is especially strong. The school also offers more than 50 liberal arts and professional programs.
Learn more about The College of New Jersey and what it takes to get accepted.
10. Hofstra University
Location: Hempstead, NY
Acceptance Rate: 68%
Undergrad Enrollment: 6,100
Hofstra University is a large private research university on Long Island, and its location makes it a great spot for students who want access to the Manhattan job market. In recent years, it has become well known for hosting presidential debates, for elections in 2008, 2012, and 2016.
Hofstra offers a strong business program, with ROI and career outcomes in the top 70, and it often ranks within the top 200 national universities. The school also grants extensive merit scholarships, with around 50% of incoming students receiving some type of merit aid.
Learn more about Hofstra University and what it takes to get accepted.
For More Information
With these schools in mind, you may have found a college that aligns with your future med school goals. At CollegeVine, we’re committed to making college guidance accessible to all who want it. That’s why, on our college applications guidance platform, you can use our free chancing engine, build a best-fit school list, and learn how to improve your profile—all for free.
Sign up for a CollegeVine account today to get a boost on your journey to a college as a pre-med. Also check out Sage, our AI tutor and advisor, who can improve your chances of acceptance to your dream school by helping you show what you have to offer beyond the numbers!
