Skip to content
CollegeRanker

Rankings / By State

Best Education Colleges in Ohio

By David Krug, Co-Founder, CollegeRanker · Updated 2026-05-31 · 50 schools · Agent Insights
50
Schools Analyzed
$52,904
Avg. Earnings (10yr)
54%
Avg. Graduation Rate
$19,894
Avg. Net Price

Find Your Program

Explore Accredited Programs in This Field

Find accredited programs in this field accepting applicants.

✓ Accredited programs ✓ 100% free ✓ No obligation

This ranking scores 50 institutions on graduation rates, graduate earnings, debt burdens, and social mobility data from Opportunity Insights. Every data point comes from federal sources. No surveys, no opinions.

Social mobility carries the heaviest weight in our algorithm. We use Raj Chetty's Mobility Report Card — built on 30 million anonymized tax records — to measure whether a college changes a family's economic trajectory across generations. Schools that take low-income students and launch them into higher earnings rank higher than schools that admit wealthy students and take credit for their success.

The transparency penalty matters here. Schools that don't report their data get scored lower than schools that do. If an institution won't show you its numbers, we think you should know that before you write them a tuition check.

Quick Numbers

Schools ranked 50
Avg. earnings at 10yr $52,904
Avg. graduation rate 54%
Avg. net price $19,894
Avg. median debt $23,819

How We Ranked

Education programs in Ohio ranked by outcomes and program concentration

Read our full methodology →

Earnings vs. Cost

Each dot is a ranked school. Up = higher earnings. Right = higher cost. Top-left is the best value.

$15K$68K$120K$0$50KNET PRICECentral StateBluffton UniversityAshland UniversityUniversity ofMount Vernon

Graduation Rates

Longer bars = higher graduation rate.

Central State University24%Bluffton University51%Ashland University61%University of Dayton81%Mount Vernon Nazarene Un…66%Walsh University60%Cedarville University73%Ohio Northern University75%Capital University63%Malone University48%Marietta College60%Lake Erie College40%Otterbein University68%Hiram College57%University of Mount Union62%Youngstown State Univers…52%Muskingum University55%Ohio Wesleyan University60%John Carroll University78%Franciscan University of…76%

Top 3

#1

Central State University

Wilberforce, OH

Graduation24%
Earnings$33,267
Net Price$13,096

View full profile →
#2

Bluffton University

Bluffton, OH

Graduation51%
Earnings$49,547
Net Price$19,943

View full profile →
#3

Ashland University

Ashland, OH

Graduation61%
Earnings$52,928
Net Price$21,988

View full profile →

Sponsored

Featured Programs From Accredited Schools

Accredited schools accepting applicants in this field.

Ad

Full Rankings

#1

Central State University

Wilberforce, OH · 2,620 students · Public

99% accepted 24% graduate $33,267 earnings
Central's full profile
#2

Bluffton University

Bluffton, OH · 582 students · Private nonprofit

67% accepted 51% graduate $49,547 earnings
Bluffton's full profile
#3

Ashland University

Ashland, OH · 2,199 students · Private nonprofit

76% accepted 61% graduate $52,928 earnings
Ashland's full profile
#4

University of Dayton

Dayton, OH · 7,682 students · Private nonprofit

65% accepted 81% graduate $75,537 earnings
University's full profile
#5

Mount Vernon Nazarene University

Mount Vernon, OH · 1,358 students · Private nonprofit

84% accepted 66% graduate $49,555 earnings
Mount's full profile
#6

Walsh University

North Canton, OH · 1,390 students · Private nonprofit

71% accepted 60% graduate $59,764 earnings
Walsh's full profile
#7

Cedarville University

Cedarville, OH · 4,024 students · Private nonprofit

65% accepted 73% graduate $55,443 earnings
Cedarville's full profile
#8

Ohio Northern University

Ada, OH · 2,489 students · Private nonprofit

74% accepted 75% graduate $80,928 earnings
Ohio's full profile
#9

Capital University

Columbus, OH · 1,585 students · Private nonprofit

70% accepted 63% graduate $54,143 earnings
Capital's full profile
#10

Malone University

Canton, OH · 798 students · Private nonprofit

76% accepted 48% graduate $48,909 earnings
Malone's full profile
#11

Marietta College

Marietta, OH · 952 students · Private nonprofit

79% accepted 60% graduate $57,180 earnings
Marietta's full profile
#12

Lake Erie College

Painesville, OH · 852 students · Private nonprofit

70% accepted 40% graduate $50,417 earnings
Lake's full profile
#13

Otterbein University

Westerville, OH · 2,157 students · Private nonprofit

85% accepted 68% graduate $53,313 earnings
Otterbein's full profile
#14

Hiram College

Hiram, OH · 777 students · Private nonprofit

94% accepted 57% graduate $54,311 earnings
Hiram's full profile
#15

University of Mount Union

Alliance, OH · 1,995 students · Private nonprofit

78% accepted 62% graduate $53,217 earnings
University's full profile
#16

Youngstown State University

Youngstown, OH · 7,961 students · Public

84% accepted 52% graduate $41,544 earnings
Youngstown's full profile
#17

Muskingum University

New Concord, OH · 1,376 students · Private nonprofit

82% accepted 55% graduate $48,440 earnings
Muskingum's full profile
#18

Ohio Wesleyan University

Delaware, OH · 1,516 students · Private nonprofit

56% accepted 60% graduate $55,624 earnings
Ohio's full profile
#19

John Carroll University

University Heights, OH · 2,274 students · Private nonprofit

81% accepted 78% graduate $62,860 earnings
John's full profile
#20

Franciscan University of Steubenville

Steubenville, OH · 2,901 students · Private nonprofit

58% accepted 76% graduate $50,030 earnings
Franciscan's full profile
#21

Wilmington College

Wilmington, OH · 1,006 students · Private nonprofit

92% accepted 51% graduate $48,491 earnings
Wilmington's full profile
#22

Cleveland State University

Cleveland, OH · 8,969 students · Public

91% accepted 50% graduate $52,131 earnings
Cleveland's full profile
#23

Heidelberg University

Tiffin, OH · 915 students · Private nonprofit

86% accepted 51% graduate $48,466 earnings
Heidelberg's full profile
#24

The University of Findlay

Findlay, OH · 2,223 students · Private nonprofit

83% accepted 60% graduate $56,996 earnings
The's full profile
#25

Wittenberg University

Springfield, OH · 1,215 students · Private nonprofit

72% accepted 53% graduate $54,947 earnings
Wittenberg's full profile
#26

University of Toledo

Toledo, OH · 9,770 students · Public

92% accepted 56% graduate $50,632 earnings
University's full profile
#27

Ohio Dominican University

Columbus, OH · 760 students · Private nonprofit

94% accepted 44% graduate $51,748 earnings
Ohio's full profile
#28

Baldwin Wallace University

Berea, OH · 2,842 students · Private nonprofit

76% accepted 68% graduate $54,122 earnings
Baldwin's full profile
#29

Defiance College

Defiance, OH · 499 students · Private nonprofit

48% accepted 34% graduate $49,351 earnings
Defiance's full profile
#30

Xavier University

Cincinnati, OH · 4,207 students · Private nonprofit

86% accepted 70% graduate $64,873 earnings
Xavier's full profile
#31

Shawnee State University

Portsmouth, OH · 2,247 students · Public

45% graduate $39,596 earnings
Shawnee's full profile
#32

Mount St. Joseph University

Cincinnati, OH · 1,129 students · Private nonprofit

59% accepted 56% graduate $51,509 earnings
Mount's full profile
#33

Ohio State University-Main Campus

Columbus, OH · 45,638 students · Public

61% accepted 88% graduate $60,409 earnings
Ohio's full profile
#34

Bowling Green State University-Main Campus

Bowling Green, OH · 12,812 students · Public

81% accepted 63% graduate $47,896 earnings
Bowling's full profile
#35

Ohio State University-Lima Campus

Lima, OH · 621 students · Public

21% graduate $60,409 earnings
Ohio's full profile
#36

University of Rio Grande

Rio Grande, OH · 1,400 students · Private nonprofit

34% graduate $41,478 earnings
University's full profile
#37

Ohio State University-Marion Campus

Marion, OH · 794 students · Public

26% graduate $60,409 earnings
Ohio's full profile
#38

Miami University-Oxford

Oxford, OH · 16,656 students · Public

75% accepted 81% graduate $55,076 earnings
Miami's full profile
#39

Ohio University-Main Campus

Athens, OH · 19,633 students · Public

85% accepted 66% graduate $52,581 earnings
Ohio's full profile
#40

Wright State University-Main Campus

Dayton, OH · 6,762 students · Public

96% accepted 44% graduate $49,500 earnings
Wright's full profile
#41

Gods Bible School and College

Cincinnati, OH · 281 students · Private nonprofit

75% accepted 45% graduate $37,722 earnings
Gods's full profile
#42

Kent State University at Kent

Kent, OH · 19,320 students · Public

86% accepted 65% graduate $45,388 earnings
Kent's full profile
#43

Ohio State University-Newark Campus

Newark, OH · 2,396 students · Public

30% graduate $60,409 earnings
Ohio's full profile
#44

University of Cincinnati-Main Campus

Cincinnati, OH · 29,882 students · Public

85% accepted 73% graduate $54,810 earnings
University's full profile
#45

Ohio State University Agricultural Technical Institute

Wooster, OH · 464 students · Public

42% graduate $60,409 earnings
Ohio's full profile
#46

University of Akron Main Campus

Akron, OH · 9,052 students · Public

60% accepted 50% graduate $46,600 earnings
University's full profile
#47

Ohio University-Zanesville Campus

Zanesville, OH · 560 students · Public

20% graduate $52,581 earnings
Ohio's full profile
#48

Kent State University at Tuscarawas

New Philadelphia, OH · 1,654 students · Public

37% graduate $45,388 earnings
Kent's full profile
#49

University of Cincinnati-Blue Ash College

Blue Ash, OH · 4,354 students · Public

16% graduate $54,810 earnings
University's full profile
#50

Wright State University-Lake Campus

Celina, OH · 892 students · Public

42% graduate $49,500 earnings
Wright's full profile

Sources & Citations

[1]

U.S. Department of Education. College Scorecard Data. Federal Student Aid, National Center for Education Statistics. →

[2]

National Center for Education Statistics. Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS). →

DK

David Krug

Co-Founder, CollegeRanker

David Krug is the co-founder of CollegeRanker and a data systems architect focused on making institutional research accessible to families. He builds the data pipelines and ranking algorithms that power CollegeRanker, drawing from federal datasets and Raj Chetty's Opportunity Insights research to measure what traditional rankings ignore: whether a college actually changes a family's economic trajectory.

Related Rankings

All Rankings Methodology Best Colleges Social Mobility Highest Mobility