Bennington Ranks Among Top 5 Most Innovative Schools, Other High Marks by U.S. News and The Princeton Review
U.S. News and The Princeton Review released their rankings for the top colleges in America, with Bennington featured on lists for Most Innovative Schools, Green Colleges, Great Professors, Great Classroom Experiences, and more.
Noting Bennington’s outstanding programs and inclusive campus community, the 2022 rankings provided by The Princeton Review and the U.S. News prominently featured Bennington in many key categories.
The Princeton Review
The Princeton Review's rankings are based on a survey of 160,000 students at 388 top colleges, in which students are asked to assess their schools in a number of categories and report on their student experiences. Bennington has regularly found a top place in The Princeton Review rankings for its unique approach to teaching and learning and for the spaces in which its students live and work.
Student surveys resulted in The Princeton Review commending Bennington for the strong academic experience the College provides its students, highlighting it among Top 25 ranking of all colleges and universities, ranking in the Top 25 “Best Classroom Experiences,” and #13 among “Great Professors.” Bennington, according to student responses for The Princeton Review, continues to excel as an institution that celebrates the individualized curriculum and collaboration with faculty to do meaningful work in their respective fields.
In addition to notable academics, Bennington was also recognized for its campus and community life. The campus itself ranked as a Top 20 “Most Beautiful Campus,” and its students rank #6 as “Most Politically Active.” Bennington's diverse and inclusive on-campus culture led to the College being noted in the Top 20 as being "LGBTQ-Friendly." Students surveyed said the campus was, “Full of people open to self-expression and being who you are, whoever you may be.”
Drama at Bennington, consistently recognized by Princeton for its outsized impact, outperforming larger schools, and once again achieved top ranks at #7 "Best College Theater," a testament to the program’s flexibility, its state of the art theater spaces, hands-on production experience, and abundant opportunities to get involved on all levels. B-Rad, the College radio station, also ranked as a Top 10 “Best College Radio Station.”
Highlighting the College's ongoing commitment to the environment and sustainability, Bennington was also featured on Princeton's "Green Colleges" list of environmentally sustainable schools, as well as the list where “Green Matters: Everyone Cares About Conservation.”
U.S. News
On the U.S. News' 2022 Best College Rankings, Bennington was highly ranked on several prominent lists.
Bennington was ranked #5 among Most Innovative Schools. Innovation is a cornerstone of a Bennington education—where the belief that a dynamic, relevant education is best achieved when students themselves define its direction. In this way, Bennington students take with them not only what they have learned, but how they have learned it. Another unique aspect that makes Bennington top the list in this category is Field Work Term, where every student, every winter spends six weeks at work in the world pursuing jobs, internships, and entrepreneurial endeavors related to their studies, their professional ambitions, and their own curiosities.
Bennington also ranked #84 among National Liberal Arts Colleges, and due to its distinct student-directed pedagogy and faculty mentorship also earned the commendation of #49 Undergraduate Teaching, among National Liberal Arts Colleges.
The latest edition of the U.S. News rankings assess 1,466 US bachelor's degree-granting institutions on 17 measures of academic quality. Learn more about the U.S. News ranking methodology.