Best Colleges for First-Generation Students
Schools with high Pell Grant enrollment and strong graduation rates, ranked by how well they serve low-income, first-gen students.
EDP School
Brooklyn, NY · Private
Fred W Eberle Technical Center
Buckhannon, WV · Public
Wood County Technical Center-Practical Nursing
Parkersburg, WV · Public
Amridge University
Montgomery, AL · Private
Beaumont Adult School
Beaumont, CA · Public
Rockland County BOCES-Practical Nursing Program
West Nyack, NY · Public
Polytechnic University of Puerto Rico-Miami
Miami, FL · Private
Saline County Career Center
Marshall, MO · Public
John D Rockefeller IV Career Center
New Cumberland, WV · Public
University of Fort Lauderdale
Lauderhill, FL · Private
Cayuga Onondaga BOCES-Practical Nursing Program
Auburn, NY · Public
Adult and Community Education-Hudson
Columbus, OH · Public
Four Rivers Career Center
Washington, MO · Public
Orange Ulster BOCES
Newburgh, NY · Public
Ralph R Willis Career and Technical Center
Stollings, WV · Public
Arnot Ogden Medical Center
Elmira, NY · Private
Kirksville Area Technical Center
Kirksville, MO · Public
Capital Area Career Center
Springfield, IL · Public
Sandusky Career Center
Sandusky, OH · Public
Erie 2 Chautauqua Cattaraugus BOCES-Practical Nursing Program
Angola, NY · Public
Cass Career Center
Harrisonville, MO · Public
Lenape Technical School Practical Nursing Program
Ford City, PA · Public
NTMA Machinist Career College
Santa Fe Springs, CA · Private
Wayne Finger Lakes BOCES-Practical Nursing Program
Newark, NY · Public
Boricua College
New York, NY · Private
Homestead Schools
Torrance, CA · Private
Dutchess BOCES-Practical Nursing Program
Poughkeepsie, NY · Public
Cleveland University-Kansas City
Overland Park, KS · Private
Warrensburg Area Career Center
Warrensburg, MO · Public
St Luke's College
Sioux City, IA · Private
How this list is built
Schools with 25%+ Pell recipients and 40%+ graduation rate, ranked by combined Pell share (40%) and graduation rate (60%). For-profit schools are not included, and each list shows at most 30 schools.
Pell data: IPEDS. Graduation rate: IPEDS. Earnings: College Scorecard.
Read our source policy →Pell data: IPEDS. Graduation rate: IPEDS. Earnings: College Scorecard. Rankings reflect available data and do not constitute endorsement.