Purchase College is proudly recognized by a variety of publications, including the Princeton Review and The Hollywood Reporter.
Purchase has been selected for inclusion in several publications that rank the best colleges and programs in the nation.
The Princeton Review 2026
Purchase is among The Princeton Review’s 2026 Best 391 Colleges, which profiles only about 15% of America’s 2,400 four-year colleges. The Princeton Review chooses colleges by their academic reputation mixed with information based on data from surveys of college students attending the schools who report on their experiences at their institutions.
The guide praises Purchase for its vibrant campus, creative culture, accepting community, engaged faculty, and wide range of hands-on programs with one student saying,
“We’re all about finding new ways to think about things, from science to art to management.”
Purchase also lands on their lists:
Best Northeast Colleges
Green Colleges
Best College Theater
The Hollywood Reporter
25 Best Drama Schools of 2025
The Hollywood Reporter has named Purchase as one of the Top 25 Drama Schools in the World for 2025.
“The school benefits from its proximity to New York City as well as its faculty who work on Broadway and in film and TV. “
Purchase is also among the bestNYC-area film schools, noted for our outstanding alumni and affordability.
Money Magazine
Money included Purchase on their 2025 list of the Best Colleges in America, which evaluates colleges based on “graduation rates, cost of attendance, financial aid, alumni salaries, and more.”
U.S. News and World Report 2025
Purchase College landed at #11 on U.S. News and World Report’s 2025 Best Colleges list of Top Public Schools. We’re also a best National Liberal Arts College and a Top Performer in Social Mobility.
Fiske Guide To Colleges
The Fiske Guide to Colleges selected Purchase as one of the 300 “best and most interesting colleges in the U.S., Canada, and U.K.” commended for an “academic environment that provides a strong sense of community yet celebrates individuals for their unique talents and contributions.”
“There’s a raw energy that exists on campus—in the students and professors—that I don’t think many other colleges have.”
“It’s one of only five acting schools in the Consortium of Professional Theatre Training Programs…. Purchase’s program offers intensive, individualized training in topics such as movement, speech, theater history, dramatic literature, improvisation, and Lecoq technique.”
