11 Maryland Schools On Princeton Review’s ‘Best 385’ List

MARYLAND — The Princeton Review has released its annual list of the 385 best colleges, which includes 11 schools in Maryland. Along with the list of the best 385 colleges, the Princeton Review ranks colleges in categories like academics and administration, politics, quality of life and more.

“We chose the 385 colleges for this edition as our 'best' overall, academically, based on data we gathered in 2018–19 from more than a thousand school administrators about their schools' academic programs and offerings,” Robert Franek, Princeton Review's editor-in-chief and the lead author of the book, said in a press release.

"We are well aware, however, that applicants need more than an academic assessment to choose the colleges best for them,” Franek said. “We created our dozens of ranking lists specifically to facilitate that search. We tally our lists using data we gather directly from our surveys of students attending these colleges. Our survey asks the students about their professors, administrators, school services, campus culture, and other facets of life at their schools.”

Some Maryland colleges found themselves high on lists that are not so flattering. For example: The US Naval Academy finished tops in America on the list entitled: "Is That A Dorm" and was No. 4 for "Least Happy Students." The University of Maryland at College Park finished ninth for "Least Accessible Professors" and 11th in the nation on the list entitled: "Professors Get Low Marks."

On the overall list of the best 385 colleges, the Princeton Review says the colleges aren’t ranked in order from No. 1 to No. 385. Colleges are ranked on the more specific lists like “best campus food,” “best college newspaper” and “party schools.”

In all, there are 62 of these lists and each list includes a ranking of the top 20 colleges in that category.

The Maryland colleges on the overall best 385 schools list are:

• St. John's College, Annapolis
  • Ranked 4th in Lots of Race/Class Interaction
  • Ranked 5th in Best Classroom Experience
  • Ranked 5th in Professors Get High Marks
  • Ranked 10th in Most Accessible Professors
  • Ranked 15th in Everyone Plays Intramural Sports
  • Ranked 17th in Students Study the Most
  • Ranked 20th in LGBTQ-Friendly
• United States Naval Academy, Annapolis
  • Ranked 1st in Is That a Dorm?
  • Ranked 3rd in Don't Inhale
  • Ranked 4th in Least Happy Students
  • Ranked 4th in Stone-Cold Sober Schools
  • Ranked 4th in Town-Gown Relations are Great
  • Ranked 5th in Best Science Lab Facilities
  • Ranked 6th in Scotch and Soda, Hold the Scotch
  • Ranked 7th in Lots of Race/Class Interaction
  • Ranked 12th in Got Milk?
  • Ranked 13th in Future Rotarians and DAR
  • Ranked 16th in Everyone Plays Intramural Sports
  • Ranked 20th in Most Engaged in Community Service
• Goucher College, Baltimore
  • Ranked 1st in Most Popular Study Abroad Program
• Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore
  • Ranked 11th in Best Science Lab Facilities
• Loyola University Maryland, Baltimore
  • Ranked 10th in Best College Dorms
  • University of Maryland, Baltimore County, Baltimore
  • No individual category rankings
  • Washington College, Chestertown
  • No individual category rankings
  • University of Maryland, College Park, College Park
  • Ranked 9th in Least Accessible Professors
  • Ranked 11th in Professors Get Low Marks
  • Salisbury University, Salisbury
  • Ranked 3rd in Least Accessible Professors
  • St. Mary's College of Maryland, St. Mary's City
  • No individual category rankings
• McDaniel College, Westminster: No individual category rankings

Princeton Review says the colleges on the best 385 list are selected primarily based on the organization’s “high opinion of their academics.” Princeton Review closely analyzes more than 2,000 schools and collects feedback from students, educators, parents and advisors. The 62 specific lists that rank the top 20 schools in each category are compiled using a student survey.

Read the full Princeton Review methodology and see the schools ranked in each of the 62 lists.