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2021 Best Colleges in the United States for Students from Canada

691 Colleges
$57,036 Avg Tuition & Fees*
82% Avg 4-Year Grad Rate*

Quality BadgeIt's not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for international students. College Factual has developed its Best Colleges for Canadian Students ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.

We analyzed 691 colleges and universities across the United States to determine which were the best for Canadian students. Our ranking methodology focuses a number of different objective factors - such as the overall quality of the school, number of total international students at the school, and the percentage of international students on campus - to make this determination.

Get more details on our ranking methodology.

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We've developed a number of other tools and rankings to help you make your college decision. Start by filtering this list by location and then explore our other rankings that feature schools great for different groups of students such as online students or returnings adults.

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Top Colleges in the U.S. for Students from Canada

See which schools came out on top of our ranking:

1

Our analysis found Columbia University in the City of New York to be the best school for Canadian students in this year’s ranking. This large private not-for-profit school is located in New York, New York, and it awarded 2,654 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.

Of the total number of students at the school, 34.9% are international. Students from as far away as China, India, and South Korea come to Columbia to study.

With a freshman retention rate of 95%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read full report on Columbia University in the City of New York

2

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend New York University. It ranked #2 on our 2021 Best Colleges for Canadian students list. NYU is a private not-for-profit institution located in New York, New York. The school has a large population, and it awarded 6,752 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.

Around 27.6% of the total student population at the school is international. The top three countries sending students to study at NYU are China, India, and South Korea.

Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, those pursuing a bachelor’s degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.

Read full report on New York University

3

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Cornell University. The school came in at #3 in this year’s ranking. Cornell University is a large private not-for-profit school located in Ithaca, New York that handed out 4,287 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.

Of the total number of students at the school, 21.8% are international. Students from as far away as China, India, and Canada come to Cornell to study.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%.

Full Cornell University Report

4
Harvard crest
Harvard University
Cambridge, MA

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Harvard University. The school came in at #4 in this year’s ranking. Harvard is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It awarded 1,618 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.

International students make up 22.9% of the total student body at the school. Students from as far away as China, Canada, and India come to Harvard to study.

The student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.

Read More…

5

A rank of #5 on our list means University of Southern California is a great place for Canadian students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in Los Angeles, California, the large private not-for-profit school awarded 5,745 diplomas to qualified bachelor’s degree students in 2020-2021.

Around 22.5% of the total student population at the school is international. Students studying at USC come from such countries as China, India, and South Korea.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%.

Read More…

6

University of Pennsylvania came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for Canadian Students ranking. UPenn is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It awarded 3,499 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.

International students make up 19.5% of the total student body at the school. Students from as far away as China, India, and South Korea come to UPenn to study.

Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, those pursuing a bachelor’s degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.

Read full report on University of Pennsylvania

7

University of California - Berkeley did quite well in the 2021 Best Colleges for Canadian Students ranking, coming in at #7. UC Berkeley is a public institution located in Berkeley, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 10,523 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.

Of the total number of students at the school, 16.2% are international. Students studying at UC Berkeley come from such countries as China, South Korea, and India.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%.

Read More…

8

Massachusetts Institute of Technology landed the #8 spot on the 2021 Best Colleges for Canadian Students. MIT is a private not-for-profit institution located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 1,249 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.

International students make up 29.1% of the total student body at the school. Students studying at MIT come from such countries as China, India, and Canada.

With a student-to-faculty ratio of 3 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.

Read full report on Massachusetts Institute of Technology

9

With a ranking of #9, Stanford University did quite well on the 2021 Best Colleges for Canadian Students. Stanford is a private not-for-profit institution located in Stanford, California. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 1,511 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.

Of the total number of students at the school, 23.9% are international. The top three countries sending students to study at Stanford are China, India, and Canada.

With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Full Stanford University Report

10

Boston University ranked #10 on this year’s Best Colleges for Canadian Students list. Boston U is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Boston, Massachusetts. It awarded 4,788 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.

Around 24.6% of the total student population at the school is international. The top three countries sending students to study at Boston U are China, India, and South Korea.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 92%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read More…

11

University of California - Los Angeles landed the #11 spot on the 2021 Best Colleges for Canadian Students. UCLA is a public institution located in Los Angeles, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 10,102 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.

International students make up 13.8% of the total student body at the school. Students from as far away as China, South Korea, and India come to UCLA to study.

With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read full report on University of California - Los Angeles

12

Carnegie Mellon University came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for Canadian Students ranking. Carnegie Mellon is a private not-for-profit institution located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 1,953 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.

Of the total number of students at the school, 37.1% are international. Students studying at Carnegie Mellon come from such countries as China, India, and South Korea.

With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Full Carnegie Mellon University Report

13

Northwestern University ranked #13 on this year’s Best Colleges for Canadian Students list. This large private not-for-profit school is located in Evanston, Illinois, and it awarded 2,722 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.

Around 16.3% of the total student population at the school is international. Students studying at Northwestern come from such countries as China, India, and South Korea.

With a freshman retention rate of 97%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Full Northwestern University Report

14
Yale crest
Yale University
New Haven, CT

Yale University came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for Canadian Students ranking. Yale University is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in New Haven, Connecticut that handed out 1,431 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.

Around 21.1% of the total student population at the school is international. The top three countries sending students to study at Yale are China, Canada, and India.

The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.

Read full report on Yale University

15

University of Chicago landed the #15 spot on the 2021 Best Colleges for Canadian Students. Located in Chicago, Illinois, the fairly large private not-for-profit school handed out 2,163 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.

Around 26.6% of the total student population at the school is international. The top three countries sending students to study at UChicago are China, India, and South Korea.

The student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.

Read full report on University of Chicago

16

University of Michigan - Ann Arbor landed the #16 spot on the 2021 Best Colleges for Canadian Students. U-M is a large public school situated in Ann Arbor, Michigan. It awarded 9,144 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.

International students make up 13.9% of the total student body at the school. The top three countries sending students to study at U-M are China, India, and South Korea.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%.

Read full report on University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

17

Princeton University did quite well in the 2021 Best Colleges for Canadian Students ranking, coming in at #17. Princeton University is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in Princeton, New Jersey that handed out 1,175 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.

Around 23.2% of the total student population at the school is international. Students studying at Princeton come from such countries as China, Canada, and India.

Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1, those pursuing a bachelor’s degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.

Read More…

18

Johns Hopkins University landed the #18 spot on the 2021 Best Colleges for Canadian Students. Johns Hopkins is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Baltimore, Maryland. It awarded 1,847 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.

Around 19.2% of the total student population at the school is international. The top three countries sending students to study at Johns Hopkins are China, India, and South Korea.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 97%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read More…

19

Northeastern University came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for Canadian Students ranking. Located in Boston, Massachusetts, the large private not-for-profit school awarded 4,358 diplomas to qualified bachelor’s degree students in 2020-2021.

Of the total number of students at the school, 29.2% are international. Students studying at Northeastern come from such countries as China, India, and Taiwan.

With a freshman retention rate of 97%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read More…

20
Duke crest
Duke University
Durham, NC

Duke University did quite well in the 2021 Best Colleges for Canadian Students ranking, coming in at #20. This fairly large private not-for-profit school is located in Durham, North Carolina, and it awarded 2,319 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.

Around 18.3% of the total student population at the school is international. The top three countries sending students to study at Duke are China, India, and South Korea.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 97%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read full report on Duke University

21

California Institute of Technology ranked #21 on this year’s Best Colleges for Canadian Students list. This small private not-for-profit school is located in Pasadena, California, and it awarded 227 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.

Of the total number of students at the school, 30.5% are international. Students from as far away as China, India, and Canada come to Caltech to study.

The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 3 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.

Full California Institute of Technology Report

22
Brown crest
Brown University
Providence, RI

Brown University did quite well in the 2021 Best Colleges for Canadian Students ranking, coming in at #22. Brown is a private not-for-profit institution located in Providence, Rhode Island. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 1,987 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.

International students make up 17.7% of the total student body at the school. Students from as far away as China, India, and Canada come to Brown to study.

With a freshman retention rate of 92%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Full Brown University Report

23

With a ranking of #23, Washington University in St Louis did quite well on the 2021 Best Colleges for Canadian Students. Washington University in St Louis is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in Saint Louis, Missouri that handed out 2,441 bachelor’s degrees in 2020-2021.

International students make up 21.0% of the total student body at the school. The top three countries sending students to study at WUSTL are China, South Korea, and India.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%.

Read More…

24

With a ranking of #24, Dartmouth College did quite well on the 2021 Best Colleges for Canadian Students. Located in Hanover, New Hampshire, the medium-sized private not-for-profit school awarded 1,384 diplomas to qualified bachelor’s degree students in 2020-2021.

Of the total number of students at the school, 15.6% are international. The top three countries sending students to study at Dartmouth are China, India, and Canada.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 96%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read full report on Dartmouth College

25

University of Washington - Seattle Campus did quite well in the 2021 Best Colleges for Canadian Students ranking, coming in at #25. UW Seattle is located in Seattle, Washington and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 9,451 bachelor’s degrees to qualified undergraduates.

Of the total number of students at the school, 16.2% are international. The top three countries sending students to study at UW Seattle are China, India, and South Korea.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%.

Full University of Washington - Seattle Campus Report

Rest of the Top 50 Best Colleges for Canadian students

Not only did these schools make the top 50 list, but they also landed in the top 15% of this year’s ranking:

26
Michigan State Crest
Michigan State University
East Lansing, Michigan
27
University of Rochester Crest
University of Rochester
Rochester, New York
28
29
Georgetown Crest
Georgetown University
Washington, District of Columbia
30
31
Rice Crest
Rice University
Houston, Texas
32
33
Syracuse Crest
Syracuse University
Syracuse, New York

34
Emory Crest
Emory University
Atlanta, Georgia

35
36
37
U Miami Crest
University of Miami
Coral Gables, Florida
38
Notre Dame Crest
University of Notre Dame
Notre Dame, Indiana
39
40
GWU Crest
George Washington University
Washington, District of Columbia
41
42
43

44

45
46
RISD Crest
Rhode Island School of Design
Providence, Rhode Island
47
48
49
Vanderbilt Crest
Vanderbilt University
Nashville, Tennessee
50
Babson College Crest
Babson College
Wellesley, Massachusetts

Rest of the Top 15% Best Colleges in the United States for International Students

To learn more about the schools below, just click on their names:

RankCollegeLocation
51University of FloridaGainesville, FL
52University of Virginia - Main CampusCharlottesville, VA
53Boston CollegeChestnut Hill, MA
54University at BuffaloBuffalo, NY
55Pennsylvania State University - University ParkUniversity Park, PA
56Arizona State University - TempeTempe, AZ
57The New SchoolNew York, NY
58Bentley UniversityWaltham, MA
59Tufts UniversityMedford, MA
60University of ConnecticutStorrs, CT
61Texas A&M University - College StationCollege Station, TX
62Wellesley CollegeWellesley, MA
63Brandeis UniversityWaltham, MA
64University of Massachusetts AmherstAmherst, MA
65University of Maryland - College ParkCollege Park, MD
RankCollegeLocation
66Yeshiva UniversityNew York, NY
67Rensselaer Polytechnic InstituteTroy, NY
68University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh CampusPittsburgh, PA
69Santa Clara UniversitySanta Clara, CA
70Rutgers University - New BrunswickNew Brunswick, NJ
71Colgate UniversityHamilton, NY
72University of North Carolina at Chapel HillChapel Hill, NC
73Ohio State University - Main CampusColumbus, OH
74Southern Methodist UniversityDallas, TX
75Middlebury CollegeMiddlebury, VT
76Stony Brook UniversityStony Brook, NY
77Tulane University of LouisianaNew Orleans, LA
78University of California - Santa BarbaraSanta Barbara, CA
79University of South Florida - Main CampusTampa, FL
80Pratt Institute - MainBrooklyn, NY
81Wesleyan UniversityMiddletown, CT
82Illinois Institute of TechnologyChicago, IL
83Fordham UniversityBronx, NY
84Claremont McKenna CollegeClaremont, CA
85North Carolina State UniversityRaleigh, NC
86Pepperdine UniversityMalibu, CA
87Loyola Marymount UniversityLos Angeles, CA
88Drexel UniversityPhiladelphia, PA
89Williams CollegeWilliamstown, MA
90Virginia TechBlacksburg, VA
RankCollegeLocation
91Lehigh UniversityBethlehem, PA
92University of Colorado BoulderBoulder, CO
93University of DenverDenver, CO
94St Lawrence UniversityCanton, NY
95University of UtahSalt Lake City, UT
96University of OregonEugene, OR
97University of TulsaTulsa, OK
98University of San FranciscoSan Francisco, CA
99Colby CollegeWaterville, ME
100The University of Texas at DallasRichardson, TX
101Clarkson UniversityPotsdam, NY
102University of GeorgiaAthens, GA
103Wayne State UniversityDetroit, MI
104University of DelawareNewark, DE

Honorable Mentions

These schools also performed well in our Best Colleges for Canadian Students ranking:

RankCollegeLocation
105Berklee College of MusicBoston, MA
106Calvin UniversityGrand Rapids, MI
107University of VermontBurlington, VT
108Savannah College of Art and DesignSavannah, GA
109University of Illinois at ChicagoChicago, IL
110Saint Louis UniversitySaint Louis, MO
111School of Visual ArtsNew York, NY
112Smith CollegeNorthampton, MA
113Michigan Technological UniversityHoughton, MI
114Wake Forest UniversityWinston-Salem, NC
115American UniversityWashington, DC
116Iowa State UniversityAmes, IA
117Trinity CollegeHartford, CT
118University of San DiegoSan Diego, CA
119Hamilton CollegeClinton, NY
RankCollegeLocation
120Pomona CollegeClaremont, CA
121Temple UniversityPhiladelphia, PA
122Amherst CollegeAmherst, MA
123Florida State UniversityTallahassee, FL
124Union College New YorkSchenectady, NY
125Barnard CollegeNew York, NY
126University of New Hampshire - Main CampusDurham, NH
127The Juilliard SchoolNew York, NY
128The New England Conservatory of MusicBoston, MA
129University of ArizonaTucson, AZ
130DePaul UniversityChicago, IL
131Skidmore CollegeSaratoga Springs, NY
132Hobart and William Smith CollegesGeneva, NY
133Niagara UniversityNiagara University, NY
134Binghamton UniversityVestal, NY
135Carleton CollegeNorthfield, MN
136University of Nebraska - LincolnLincoln, NE
137University of IowaIowa City, IA
138Stevens Institute of TechnologyHoboken, NJ
139University of California - Santa CruzSanta Cruz, CA
RankCollegeLocation

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Notes and References

Footnotes

*Avg Tuition and Fees and Avg 4-Year Grad Rate are for the top 25 schools only.

References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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