With all of the options student athletes have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. College Factual has developed its Best Colleges for Division III Men's Lacrosse ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.
After analyzing 207 schools in the United States, we came up with our list of those that offered the best educational experiences for D3 Men's Lacrosse athletes. Our ranking methodology focuses a number of different objective factors - such as the overall quality of the school, the school's athletic competitiveness, and the amount of athletic aid per student - to make this determination. Having a great sports team is not enough - the school must also focus on academic excellence.
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 D3 Men's Lacrosse athletes
Our 2023 rankings named Wesleyan University the best school for D3 Men’s Lacrosse athletes working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in Middletown, Connecticut, the small private not-for-profit school awarded 1,206 diplomas to qualified bachelor’s degree students in .
The D3 Men’s Lacrosse team at Wesleyan U made $748,424 in revenue, while incurring $471,672 in expenses. Happily, this means that the team turned a profit of $276,752.
The student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Wesleyan U also is in the top 5% of our overall quality ranking.
Full Wesleyan University Sports Report
Out of the 207 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Bates College landed the #2 spot on the list. Located in Lewiston, Maine, the small private not-for-profit school handed out 601 bachelor’s degrees in .
The team at Bates took home $317,895 in revenue and paid out $297,208 in expenses in recent times. Happily, this means that the team turned a profit of $20,687.
With a freshman retention rate of 92%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. On top of its placing in this ranking, Bates also did well on our overall quality list. It’s in the top 5% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
Read full sports report on Bates College
Out of the 207 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Denison University landed the #3 spot on the list. Denison is a private not-for-profit institution located in Granville, Ohio. The school has a small population, and it awarded 685 bachelor’s degrees in .
Speaking financially, the D3 Men’s Lacrosse team at Denison took home $355,553 in revenue.
With a student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Denison also is in the top 10% of our overall quality ranking.
Full Denison University Sports Report
You’ll join some of the best athletes around if you attend St Lawrence University. The school came in at #4 in this year’s ranking. Located in Canton, New York, the small private not-for-profit school handed out 713 bachelor’s degrees in .
Speaking financially, the D3 Men’s Lacrosse team at St. Lawrence took home $157,948 in revenue.
With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. St. Lawrence also claimed a spot on our overall quality list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools in this category.
Full St Lawrence University Sports Report
Out of the 207 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Salisbury University landed the #5 spot on the list. Salisbury is located in Salisbury, Maryland and, has a medium-sized student population. In , this school awarded 1,708 bachelor’s degrees to qualified undergraduates.
The team at Salisbury took home $399,333 in revenue and paid out $342,677 in expenses in recent times. Thus, the team actually made $56,656, which isn’t bad at all. Sports aren’t the only thing that the team excels at - they had a perfect academic progress rate of 1000.
Full Salisbury University Sports Report
Rhodes College did quite well in the 2023 Best Colleges for Division III Men’s Lacrosse ranking, coming in at #6. This small private not-for-profit school is located in Memphis, Tennessee, and it awarded 538 bachelor’s degrees in .
The team at Rhodes College took home $257,302 in revenue and paid out $252,043 in expenses in recent times. That boils down to a yearly profit of $5,259 for the sports team.
With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. On top of its placing in this ranking, Rhodes College also did well on our overall quality list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
Read full sports report on Rhodes College
Amherst College came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for Division III Men’s Lacrosse ranking. Amherst is located in Amherst, Massachusetts and, has a small student population. In , this school awarded 759 bachelor’s degrees to qualified undergraduates.
On the financial side of things, the D3 Men’s Lacrosse team at Amherst made $349,459 in revenue.
With a freshman retention rate of 98%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. On top of its placing in this ranking, Amherst also did well on our overall quality list. It’s in the top 1% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
Read full sports report on Amherst College
United States Merchant Marine Academy came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for Division III Men’s Lacrosse ranking. Located in Kings Point, New York, the small public school awarded 246 diplomas to qualified bachelor’s degree students in .
The team at USMMA took home $144,941 in revenue and paid out $127,695 in expenses in recent times. That boils down to a yearly profit of $17,246 for the sports team. The great academic progress rate of 983 shows that team members perform well in the classroom, too.
With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. On top of its placing in this ranking, USMMA also did well on our overall quality list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
Full United States Merchant Marine Academy Sports Report
With a ranking of #9, Dickinson College did quite well on the 2023 Best Colleges for Division III Men’s Lacrosse ranking. Dickinson is a private not-for-profit institution located in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. The school has a small population, and it awarded 640 bachelor’s degrees in .
The D3 Men’s Lacrosse team at Dickinson made $222,302 in revenue, while incurring $166,921 in expenses. So, the team made money for the school, bringing in $55,381 in profit.
Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, those pursuing a bachelor’s degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. Dickinson also claimed a spot on our overall quality list. It’s in the top 5% of all schools in this category.
Read full sports report on Dickinson College
Catholic University of America did quite well in the 2023 Best Colleges for Division III Men’s Lacrosse ranking, coming in at #10. Located in Washington, District of Columbia, the small private not-for-profit school awarded 834 diplomas to qualified bachelor’s degree students in .
The D3 Men’s Lacrosse team at CUA made $272,464 in revenue, while incurring $242,235 in expenses. So, the team made money for the school, bringing in $30,229 in profit.
With a freshman retention rate of 88%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. As a testament to the quality of education it offers, CUA also is in the top 15% of our overall quality ranking.
Read full sports report on Catholic University of America
Colorado College came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for Division III Men’s Lacrosse ranking. Colorado Springs, Colorado is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelor’s degrees to 530 students in .
The D3 Men’s Lacrosse team at Colorado College brought home $473,555 in revenue in a single year.
With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. In addition to its great ranking here, Colorado College is in the top 5% of all schools on our overall quality list.
Full Colorado College Sports Report
With a ranking of #12, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute did quite well on the 2023 Best Colleges for Division III Men’s Lacrosse ranking. Located in Troy, New York, the medium-sized private not-for-profit school handed out 1,566 bachelor’s degrees in .
The D3 Men’s Lacrosse team at RPI brought home $253,450 in revenue in a single year.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. RPI excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 5% of all schools on our overall quality list.
Read full sports report on Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Ithaca College came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for Division III Men’s Lacrosse ranking. Ithaca College is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in Ithaca, New York that handed out 1,322 bachelor’s degrees in .
On the financial side of things, the D3 Men’s Lacrosse team at Ithaca made $222,640 in revenue.
On top of its placing in this ranking, Ithaca also did well on our overall quality list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
Full Ithaca College Sports Report
Illinois Wesleyan University ranked #14 on this year’s Best Colleges for Division III Men’s Lacrosse list. Bloomington, Illinois is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelor’s degrees to 404 students in .
On the financial side of things, the D3 Men’s Lacrosse team at Illinois Wesleyan made $203,718 in revenue.
Illinois Wesleyan also claimed a spot on our overall quality list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools in this category.
Full Illinois Wesleyan University Sports Report
Vassar College did quite well in the 2023 Best Colleges for Division III Men’s Lacrosse ranking, coming in at #15. Located in Poughkeepsie, New York, the small private not-for-profit school awarded 816 diplomas to qualified bachelor’s degree students in .
The D3 Men’s Lacrosse team at Vassar made $286,134 in revenue, while incurring $282,983 in expenses. That boils down to a yearly profit of $3,151 for the sports team.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 95%. On top of its placing in this ranking, Vassar also did well on our overall quality list. It’s in the top 5% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
Full Vassar College Sports Report
Stevens Institute of Technology ranked #16 on this year’s Best Colleges for Division III Men’s Lacrosse list. Stevens is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Hoboken, New Jersey. It awarded 929 bachelor’s degrees in .
The D3 Men’s Lacrosse team at Stevens brought home $277,626 in revenue in a single year.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 93%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. In addition to its great ranking here, Stevens is in the top 10% of all schools on our overall quality list.
Read full sports report on Stevens Institute of Technology
Tufts University landed the #17 spot on the 2023 Best Colleges for Division III Men’s Lacrosse ranking. Medford, Massachusetts is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelor’s degrees to 1,915 students in .
The D3 Men’s Lacrosse team at Tufts made $542,614 in revenue, while incurring $510,497 in expenses. So, the team made money for the school, bringing in $32,117 in profit.
With a freshman retention rate of 97%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. Tufts excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 5% of all schools on our overall quality list.
Read full sports report on Tufts University
Elizabethtown College ranked #18 on this year’s Best Colleges for Division III Men’s Lacrosse list. This small private not-for-profit school is located in Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania, and it awarded 417 bachelor’s degrees in .
On the financial side of things, the D3 Men’s Lacrosse team at Etown made $111,082 in revenue.
Etown excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 15% of all schools on our overall quality list.
Read full sports report on Elizabethtown College
With a ranking of #19, Bowdoin College did quite well on the 2023 Best Colleges for Division III Men’s Lacrosse ranking. Brunswick, Maine is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelor’s degrees to 631 students in .
The team at Bowdoin took home $604,574 in revenue and paid out $556,230 in expenses in recent times. Thus, the team actually made $48,344, which isn’t bad at all.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 97%. In addition to its great ranking here, Bowdoin is in the top 5% of all schools on our overall quality list.
Read full sports report on Bowdoin College
Swarthmore College did quite well in the 2023 Best Colleges for Division III Men’s Lacrosse ranking, coming in at #19. Swarthmore is a private not-for-profit institution located in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania. The school has a small population, and it awarded 567 bachelor’s degrees in .
Swarthmore brought in $212,145 while tallying up $150,523 in expenses for its D3 Men’s Lacrosse team. Happily, this means that the team turned a profit of $61,622.
The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. On top of its placing in this ranking, Swarthmore also did well on our overall quality list. It’s in the top 5% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
Full Swarthmore College Sports Report
Massachusetts Institute of Technology ranked #21 on this year’s Best Colleges for Division III Men’s Lacrosse list. This fairly large private not-for-profit school is located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and it awarded 1,361 bachelor’s degrees in .
Speaking financially, the D3 Men’s Lacrosse team at MIT took home $130,241 in revenue.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 99%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. MIT also made our overall quality list, coming in at #5.
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With a ranking of #22, Gettysburg College did quite well on the 2023 Best Colleges for Division III Men’s Lacrosse ranking. Gettysburg is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. It awarded 764 bachelor’s degrees in .
The D3 Men’s Lacrosse team at Gettysburg brought home $296,686 in revenue in a single year.
With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. Gettysburg excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 5% of all schools on our overall quality list.
Full Gettysburg College Sports Report
SUNY Cortland came in at #23 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for Division III Men’s Lacrosse ranking. SUNY Cortland is a medium-sized public school situated in Cortland, New York. It awarded 1,479 bachelor’s degrees in .
On the financial side of things, the D3 Men’s Lacrosse team at SUNY Cortland made $260,397 in revenue.
Read full sports report on SUNY Cortland
Clark University came in at #24 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for Division III Men’s Lacrosse ranking. Located in Worcester, Massachusetts, the small private not-for-profit school handed out 657 bachelor’s degrees in .
Speaking financially, the D3 Men’s Lacrosse team at Clark took home $185,030 in revenue.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%. Clark also claimed a spot on our overall quality list. It’s in the top 15% of all schools in this category.
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Washington and Lee University came in at #25 in this year’s edition of the Best Colleges for Division III Men’s Lacrosse ranking. Washington and Lee is a private not-for-profit institution located in Lexington, Virginia. The school has a small population, and it awarded 581 bachelor’s degrees in .
On the financial side of things, the D3 Men’s Lacrosse team at Washington and Lee made $298,828 in revenue.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 96%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. Washington and Lee also claimed a spot on our overall quality list. It’s in the top 5% of all schools in this category.
Read More…
Rest of the Top 15% Best Colleges for D3 Men's Lacrosse athletes
Not only did these schools make the top 31 list, but they also landed in the top 15% of this year’s ranking:
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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
The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of our data about colleges.
The academic progress rate (APR) of each team was made available by the NCAA.
Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.
With all of the options student athletes have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. College Factual has developed its Best Colleges for Division III Men's Lacrosse ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.
