BOONE, N.C. — The latest college rankings of six national publications, including U.S. News & World Report, The Princeton Review and Forbes magazine, have one thing in common: All place Appalachian State University among the best schools in the nation — and the Southeast — for the 2024–25 academic year.
Lauding the university for its academics, innovation, value, benefits for student veterans, programs to enhance the first-year experience and other aspects, the publications have named App State to the following lists for 2024 and 2025:
- “Best Colleges” rankings for 2025 — U.S. News & World Report
- “The Best 390 Colleges” and “Best Colleges: Region by Region” rankings for 2025 — The Princeton Review
- “America’s Top Colleges” rankings for 2024–25 — Forbes magazine
- “Best Colleges in America” for 2024 — Money.com
- “Best Colleges in the U.S.” for 2025 — The Wall Street Journal
- “Best Bang for the Buck” college rankings and “Master’s University Rankings” for 2024 — Washington Monthly magazine
App State students are pictured in a classroom on the university’s Boone campus. Photo by Chase Reynolds
“These latest accolades reflect the commitment and dedicated efforts of our faculty and staff in fostering student success through comprehensive support, including helping students graduate on time,” said App State Interim Chancellor Heather Norris. “We’re preparing Mountaineers to become the leaders and innovators of tomorrow.”
She continued: “Our reputation for educational excellence, which has endured for 125 years, is a testament to the transformative power of an App State education — to improve the lives and communities of our state, nation, and world.”
Read on to learn more about App State’s 2024–25 accolades.
A ‘Best College’ for 2025 — U.S. News & World Report
App State earned several top-five positions in U.S. News & World Report’s 2025 “Best Colleges” rankings for regional universities in the South, released Sept. 24. Schools recognized in the publication’s Regional Universities rankings category offer a broad range of undergraduate programs and master’s programs but few doctoral programs.
Notable U.S. News rankings for App State included:
- No. 2 in Top Public Schools in the South, with App State earning this accolade for the second consecutive year.
- No. 2 in Best Colleges for Veterans among Southern universities — a distinction App State has held for four consecutive years.
- No. 3 in Most Innovative Schools in the South. The university has been recognized as a top three school in this category for eight consecutive years. Schools recognized in this category were identified by top college officials for making innovative improvements in curriculum, faculty, students, campus life, technology or facilities.
- No. 3 in the Best Undergraduate Teaching category among Southern universities, recognizing the high-quality instruction App State provides its undergraduate students. App State has placed within the top three schools in this category for eight straight years.
- No. 3 in Best Regional Universities of the South for the second year in a row.
Additionally, App State was recognized among Southern universities for Best Value and for Top Performers on Social Mobility, which recognizes schools that are successful at advancing social mobility by enrolling and graduating large proportions of students receiving the Pell Grant. App State was also ranked among the top institutions nationwide for First-Year Experiences, which recognizes schools for the experiences they provide first-year students, such as first-year seminar programs.
In February, U.S. News ranked App State Online programs among the nation’s best for 2024, naming the university in its “Best Online Bachelor’s Programs,” “Best Online Master’s in Education Programs,” “Best Online MBA Programs” and “Best Online Master’s in Nursing Programs” lists — all part of U.S. News’ 2024 “Best Online Programs” rankings.
Since the U.S. News’ “Best Colleges” rankings were first published annually, beginning in 1987, App State has consistently placed among the top 15 public and private Southern universities.
Access U.S. News & World Report’s 2025 “Best Colleges” rankings.
Learn more about App State’s 2024 “Best Online Programs” rankings from U.S. News.
A ‘Best’ in the U.S., Southeast for 2025 — The Princeton Review
App State has been recognized as one of “The Best 390 Colleges” in the U.S. by The Princeton Review for 2025. Additionally, the publication named the university among 109 best schools in the South for 2025 — part of its “Best Colleges: Region by Region” website feature. The institutions included in both lists, released Aug. 27, were unranked.
In its online profile of App State, The Princeton Review wrote that Mountaineer students described App State as an “exceedingly affordable” school with “a strong sense of community” and faculty who are “all highly educated experts in their respective fields.”
The profile also highlighted App State’s class sizes, which “allow a more personal learning experience” according to the students surveyed, as well as the university’s Honors College, textbook rental program — which saved students more than $5 million in 2022–23, numerous clubs and organizations, students’ passion for sustainability and wide variety of Outdoor Programs. The university’s student-to-faculty ratio for fall 2024 is 16:1.
The “The Best 390 Colleges” list is generated based on the student experience at each of the recognized institutions — as reported by students in The Princeton Review’s survey for the project. Responses were collected from 168,000 students, who were asked to answer questions on the topics of Academics and Administration, Quality of Life, Politics, Campus Life, Town Life, Extracurriculars and Social Scene.
App State was also featured in The Princeton Review’s 2025 “Guide to Green Colleges,” released Oct. 15. National and international colleges and universities included in the guide were recognized for “exceptional programs, policies, and practices related to sustainability and the environment,” according to the publication. The schools were unranked.
For this year’s “Guide to Green Colleges,” the publication surveyed administrators at nearly 600 schools in 2023–24 concerning their institutions’ sustainability-related policies, practices and programs. Students attending the schools were also surveyed about their “green” campus experience. More than 25 survey data points were analyzed by The Princeton Review editors to tally Green Rating scores for the schools on a scale of 60 to 99, with schools earning a Green Rating of 80 or higher named to the guide. App State received a Green Rating of 90.
Access The Princeton Review’s “The Best 390 Colleges” list.
Access The Princeton Review’s “Best Colleges: Region by Region” feature.
Access The Princeton Review’s 2025 “Guide to Green Colleges” list.
Among ‘America’s Top Colleges’ for 2024–25 — Forbes magazine
App State ranks among the top public and private schools in the nation according to Forbes magazine, which recognized the university in its 2024–25 “America’s Top Colleges” rankings list, released Aug. 27. The university is the eighth highest among public and private North Carolina schools on the list and fourth among public schools in the state. The university was the only rural North Carolina institution recognized on Forbes’ list and was ranked among the top 39% of nationwide schools named in the list’s rural category.
According to Forbes, its annual college rankings spotlight schools “offer the best educational, financial, and career outcomes for all students.”
Forbes used 14 metrics, in the following categories, to determine its rankings: alumni salaries; student loan debt; return on investment; graduation rates; retention rates; academic success; and the number of graduates produced by the schools who are named to designated lists of successful leaders in public service, business, the arts and athletics.
Access the complete Forbes list of “America’s Top Colleges” for 2024–25.
A ‘Best College’ for value in 2024 — Money.com
App State has been named in Money.com’s “Best Colleges in America” list for 2024, released in June. The list recognizes four-year public and private colleges and universities across the country “where students are more likely to graduate with manageable debt and land good-paying jobs,” the magazine wrote.
Money’s analysis of the “Best Colleges” considered 25 data points grouped into three categories — quality, affordability and student outcomes. Among the data points were graduation rates, cost of attendance, financial aid and alumni salaries.
Access Money.com’s 2024 “Best Colleges in America” list.
A ‘Best Bang for the Buck’ and No. 1 Master’s University in NC — Washington Monthly
Washington Monthly has ranked App State within the top 11% of public and private colleges and universities in the Southeast, naming the university in its 2024 “Best Bang for the Buck Colleges” rankings list. The list, published Aug. 25, recognizes schools that help students “earn reasonably priced degrees that help them get economically ahead in life,” the magazine wrote. Among the list’s public higher education institutions, App State earned the No. 14 spot out of 98 public schools named to the list.
The publication also recognized App State in its “2024 Master’s University Rankings” list, with App State placing within the top 8% of nationwide public and private institutions named to the list. Among North Carolina schools recognized, App State secured the No. 1 spot.
Schools named to the “Master’s University Rankings” list, which recognizes institutions that award a significant number of master’s degrees but few or no doctoral degrees, were ranked based on their contribution to the public good in three broad categories: social mobility, research and promoting public service. The social mobility score was used to determine the publication’s “Best Bang for the Buck” rankings. Both lists were published Aug. 25.
Access Washington Monthly’s 2024 “Best Bang for the Buck” and “Master’s University” rankings.
Among nation’s ‘Best Colleges’ for 2025 — The Wall Street Journal
App State is one of the best colleges and universities in the nation for 2025, according to The Wall Street Journal, which recognized the university in its “2025 Best Colleges in the U.S.” rankings list, released Sept. 4. The university was among the top 10 North Carolina schools named to the list.
Developed and executed in collaboration with WSJ research partners College Pulse and Statista, the list was determined using federal data and students’ survey responses related to the following:
- Student outcomes, including graduation rates and graduate salaries.
- The schools’ learning environments, including the quality and frequency of both learning and career preparation opportunities and students’ satisfaction with the school’s learning facilities.
- The diversity of the schools’ student body and faculty.
Additionally, WSJ recognized App State among 2025’s best colleges for providing:
- a great student experience;
- the best educational value;
- the best graduate salaries; and
- opportunities for students to enhance their social mobility.
Access The Wall Street Journal’s college rankings for 2025.
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About Appalachian State University
As a premier public institution, Appalachian State University prepares students to lead purposeful lives. App State is one of 17 campuses in the University of North Carolina System, with a national reputation for innovative teaching and opening access to a high-quality, affordable education for all. The university enrolls more than 21,000 students, has a low student-to-faculty ratio and offers more than 150 undergraduate and 80 graduate majors at its Boone and Hickory campuses and through App State Online. Learn more at https://www.appstate.edu.
Boone campus population held steady for 5th consecutive year as Hickory campus and online enrollment continue growth
Team Sunergy also earned the Spirit of the Event Award
The university is one of 228 U.S. higher education institutions named to 2024 Phi Theta Kappa Transfer Honor Roll
The university also received a top 10 Military Spouse Friendly School designation
The annual U.S. News rankings recognized App State business, education and nursing programs
University tops list of National Board Certified Teachers’ alma maters for 8th straight year
