Women comprise almost 60% of U.S. college enrollment, according to spring 2021 estimates from the nonprofit organization the National Student Clearinghouse. The Chronicle of Higher Education, on the other hand, reports that as of 2019, they constituted only about 30% of college presidents – including those who lead two-year colleges. (Presiding over a college or university is unfortunately not one of the 32 fastest growing jobs dominated by women.)
But that situation may be changing. Using a variety of internet sources, 24/7 Wall St. compiles a list of 49 top-rated colleges and universities around the country with female presidents. From a shortlist of about 100 institutions, we selected the 49 assessed with a grade ‘B’ or higher by education review and analysis company Niche in their 2022 Best Colleges in America report. (Undergraduate population and annual tuition and expenses also come from Niche.)
Among the various explanations for the dearth of women leading universities, besides just plain bias, are a lack of diversity in hiring practices, a lack of women on the college boards that do the hiring, and the reluctance of some women to accept such a position due to the demands of family life.
More than half of the women on our list ascended to the top of the Ivory Tower within the last five years. Among the most recent is Liz Magill at the University of Pennsylvania, who was unanimously confirmed on March 14 of this year and will begin her tenure July 1. Women now lead three of the eight Ivy League schools, in fact. (Here’s a look at the hardest college to get into in every state.)
Click here to see 49 top-rated colleges with a female president
Women are presidents of schools with small enrollments, such as Olin College in Needham, Massachusetts, as well as big schools like the massive Ohio State University. Speaking of OSU, it is one of four Big Ten schools on the list helmed by a woman.
The state on the list with the most female college presidents is Texas with seven, followed by New York with five and California with four.
To identify 49 top-rated colleges with a female president, 24/7 Wall St. compiled a list of the U.S. colleges and universities that currently have a female president. Of this group (about 100 organizations), we selected the 49 which were assessed with a grade ‘B’ or higher by education review and analysis company Niche. Grades, as well as student body and net price data were obtained from Niche’s 2022 Best Colleges in America report.
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Olin College
> President: Gilda Barabino (2020–present)
> Undergraduate population: 347 – #49 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $35,310 – #7 highest on list
> Location: Needham, MA
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Harvey Mudd College
> President: Maria Klawe (2006–present)
> Undergraduate population: 894 – #48 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $39,411 – #4 highest on list
> Location: Claremont, CA
Swarthmore College
> President: Valerie Smith (2015–present)
> Undergraduate population: 1,591 – #45 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $19,759 – #21 highest on list
> Location: Swarthmore, PA
Pomona College
> President: G. Gabrielle Starr (2017–present)
> Undergraduate population: 1,617 – #42 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $18,500 – #23 highest on list
> Location: Claremont, CA
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Grinnell College
> President: Anne F. Harris (2020–present)
> Undergraduate population: 1,700 – #41 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $29,404 – #12 highest on list
> Location: Grinnell, IA
Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
Davidson College
> President: Carol Quillen (2011–present)
> Undergraduate population: 1,837 – #38 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $27,714 – #14 highest on list
> Location: Davidson, NC
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Source: Courtesy of Macalester College
Macalester College
> President: Suzanne Rivera (2020–present)
> Undergraduate population: 2,074 – #36 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $31,458 – #10 highest on list
> Location: Saint Paul, MN
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University of Rochester
> President: Sarah Mangelsdorf (2019–present)
> Undergraduate population: 6,410 – #28 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $32,939 – #9 highest on list
> Location: Rochester, NY
Brown University
> President: Christina Paxson (2012–present)
> Undergraduate population: 6,826 – #26 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $27,218 – #15 highest on list
> Location: Providence, Rhode Island
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University of Pennsylvania
> President: Liz Magill (2022–present)
> Undergraduate population: 10,448 – #21 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $24,771 – #17 highest on list
> Location: Philadelphia, PA
Source: YinYang / iStock Unreleased via Getty Images
University of Wisconsin-Madison
> President: Rebecca M. Blank (2013–present)
> Undergraduate population: 30,157 – #2 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $16,103 – #30 highest on list
> Location: Madison, WI
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Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
> President: Shirley Ann Jackson (1999–present)
> Undergraduate population: 6,218 – #29 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $41,006 – #2 highest on list
> Location: Troy, NY
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Baylor University
> President: Linda Livingstone (2017–present)
> Undergraduate population: 13,906 – #15 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $38,372 – #5 highest on list
> Location: Waco, TX
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University of Utah
> President: Ruth V. Watkins (2018–present)
> Undergraduate population: 18,628 – #12 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $13,739 – #35 highest on list
> Location: Salt Lake City, UT
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University of Iowa
> President: Barbara J. Wilson (2021–present)
> Undergraduate population: 21,212 – #11 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $17,008 – #27 highest on list
> Location: Iowa City, IA
Source: CRobertson / iStock Editorial via Getty Images
Iowa State University
> President: Wendy Wintersteen (2017–present)
> Undergraduate population: 26,713 – #7 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $15,195 – #32 highest on list
> Location: Ames, IA
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University of Washington
> President: Ana Mari Cauce (2015–present)
> Undergraduate population: 29,332 – #4 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $10,692 – #42 highest on list
> Location: Seattle, WA
Source: Wolterk / Getty Images
University of Minnesota
> President: Joan T.A. Gabel (2019–present)
> Undergraduate population: 29,939 – #3 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $17,279 – #26 highest on list
> Location: Minneapolis and Saint Paul, MN
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Ohio State University
> President: Kristina M. Johnson (2020–present)
> Undergraduate population: 42,776 – #1 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $18,706 – #22 highest on list
> Location: Columbus, OH
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Taylor University
> President: Paige Comstock Cunningham (2019–present)
> Undergraduate population: 1,799 – #39 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $26,703 – #16 highest on list
> Location: Upland, IN
Source: stevegeer / iStock Unreleased via Getty Images
National Louis University
> President: Nivine Megahed (2010–present)
> Undergraduate population: 2,370 – #35 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $14,848 – #33 highest on list
> Location: Chicago, IL
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Oberlin College
> President: Carmen Twillie Ambar (2018–present)
> Undergraduate population: 2,822 – #33 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $43,612 – #1 highest on list
> Location: Oberlin, OH
Source: Carl Hill / Getty Images
University of Denver
> President: Rebecca Chopp (2014–present)
> Undergraduate population: 5,478 – #31 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $37,263 – #6 highest on list
> Location: Denver, CO
American University
> President: Sylvia Matthews Burwell (2017–present)
> Undergraduate population: 8,207 – #23 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $40,469 – #3 highest on list
> Location: Washington, D.C.
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Appalachian State University
> President: Sheri Everts (2014–present)
> Undergraduate population: 16,622 – #13 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $10,525 – #43 highest on list
> Location: Boone, NC
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University of California, Riverside
> President: Jane C. Conoley (2012–present)
> Undergraduate population: 21,652 – #10 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $13,045 – #39 highest on list
> Location: Riverside, CA
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Colorado State University
> President: Joyce McConnell (2019–present)
> Undergraduate population: 22,247 – #9 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $16,793 – #28 highest on list
> Location: Fort Collins, CO
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University of Houston
> President: Renu Khator (2008–present)
> Undergraduate population: 28,368 – #5 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $13,212 – #36 highest on list
> Location: Houston, TX
Oklahoma City University
> President: Martha Burger (2018–present)
> Undergraduate population: 1,510 – #46 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $24,264 – #18 highest on list
> Location: Oklahoma City, OK
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Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
Allegheny College
> President: Hilary L. Link (2019–present)
> Undergraduate population: 1,713 – #40 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $24,227 – #19 highest on list
> Location: Meadville PA
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Ithaca College
> President: Shirley M. Collado (2017–present)
> Undergraduate population: 5,739 – #30 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $34,942 – #8 highest on list
> Location: Ithaca, NY
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New Mexico State University at Las Cruces
> President: Barbara Couture (2010–present)
> Undergraduate population: 9,740 – #22 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $9,930 – #45 highest on list
> Location: Las Cruces, NM
University of Massachusetts Lowell
> President: Jaquie Moloney (2015–present)
> Undergraduate population: 10,862 – #20 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $18,183 – #24 highest on list
> Location: Lowell, MA
John Jay College of Criminal Justice
> President: Karol V. Mason (2017–present)
> Undergraduate population: 11,200 – #19 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $3,814 – #49 highest on list
> Location: New York City, NY
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Montana State University
> President: Waded Cruzado (2010–present)
> Undergraduate population: 12,359 – #17 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $16,746 – #29 highest on list
> Location: Bozeman, MT
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West Virginia University Institute of Technology
> President: Carolyn Long (2011–present)
> Undergraduate population: 1,148 – #47 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $10,502 – #44 highest on list
> Location: Beckley, WV
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Northern Oklahoma College
> President: Cheryl Evans (2011–present)
> Undergraduate population: 1,598 – #44 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $7,113 – #48 highest on list
> Location: Tonkawa, OK
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Simmons University
> President: Lynn Wooten (2020–present)
> Undergraduate population: 1,607 – #43 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $30,841 – #11 highest on list
> Location: Boston, MA
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Hamline University
> President: Fayneese Miller (2015–present)
> Undergraduate population: 2,008 – #37 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $22,253 – #20 highest on list
> Location: Saint Paul, MN
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East Central University
> President: Katricia Pierson (2022-present)
> Undergraduate population: 2,471 – #34 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $9,893 – #46 highest on list
> Location: Ada, OK
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St Edwards University
> President: Montserrat Fuentes (2021–present)
> Undergraduate population: 3,199 – #32 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $28,214 – #13 highest on list
> Location: Austin, TX
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State University of New York at Oswego
> President: Deborah F. Stanley (1997–present)
> Undergraduate population: 6,561 – #27 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $15,762 – #31 highest on list
> Location: Oswego, NY
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Texas Woman’s University
> President: Carine M. Feyten (2014–present)
> Undergraduate population: 7,040 – #25 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $9,830 – #47 highest on list
> Location: Denton, TX
Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi
> President: Kelly M. Miller (2017–present)
> Undergraduate population: 7,201 – #24 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $12,916 – #40 highest on list
> Location: Corpus Christi, TX
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University of Louisville
> President: Neeli Bendapudi (2018–present)
> Undergraduate population: 11,560 – #18 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $17,490 – #25 highest on list
> Location: Louisville, KY
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Oakland University
> President: Ora Hirsch Pescovitz M.D. (2017–present)
> Undergraduate population: 12,454 – #16 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $12,843 – #41 highest on list
> Location: Rochester, MI
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Sam Houston State University
> President: Dana G. Hoyt (2010–present)
> Undergraduate population: 15,311 – #14 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $13,055 – #38 highest on list
> Location: Huntsville, TX
Source: Sundry Photography / iStock via Getty Images
San Jose State University
> President: Mary A. Papazian (2016–present)
> Undergraduate population: 23,593 – #8 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $14,471 – #34 highest on list
> Location: San Jose, CA
Texas State University
> President: Denise Trauth (2002–present)
> Undergraduate population: 27,923 – #6 most on list
> Annual tuition and expenses: $13,178 – #37 highest on list
> Location: San Marcos, TX
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