The state is home to both large universities and specialized liberal arts colleges. According to College Navigator, there are nine public colleges, five private non-profit colleges, and one private for-profit school in North Dakota.
The average cost of in-state tuition in North Dakota that students paid during the 2021-22 school year was $10,020, according to College Board.
College students pursuing an undergraduate degree were awarded an average of $14,800 during the 2020-21 school year.
This list features some of the best brick-and-mortar schools in North Dakota. Each school featured is a nonprofit, accredited institution — either public or private — with a high standard of academic quality for post-secondary institutions. We included liberal arts colleges and research universities as well as small, midsize, and large institutions. Next, we compared this comprehensive list to a list of aggregated college rankings from reputable publications like the U.S. News & World Report among others to simplify a student’s college search. We pored through these rankings so students don’t have to.
The colleges on our list are accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (HLC), a reputable organization that examines the objectives, quality, and overall effectiveness of education programs in the central United States.
We evaluated each school on tuition costs, admission, retention and graduation rates, faculty, and reputation as well as the student resources provided for on-campus students. Then we calculated the Intelligent Score on a scale of 0 to 100. Read more about our ranking methodology.
When deciding which state you’d like to study in, consider your post-graduation job opportunities. By evaluating the biggest industries in North Dakota, you can get a better understanding of the job market. The top five industries in North Dakota, according to an October 2021 study, are trade, transportation, and utilities; government; goods-producing; education and health services; and retail trade.
Graduates who have a bachelor’s degree have several career opportunities available to them in North Dakota. The five fastest-growing careers for this education level in North Dakota are medical and health services managers, social science research assistants, logisticians, interpreters and translators, and software developers.
To gain insight into the job outlook in North Dakota, examine the largest employers in the state. The top 150 employers in North Dakota include North Dakota State University, Sanford Broadway Medical Center, Altru Health Syst-Audiology, Altru Health System, and Lighting Design Center.
Financial aid is available from both federal and state agencies to help cover the costs associated with higher education. The list below includes resources to assist you in finding potential funding opportunities for your studies.