The Best Colleges and Universities in Michigan for 2025

Choosing where to advance your academic career is a huge decision and many Michigan undergrads are beginning to make those decisions. With the fall semester soon coming to a close, high school juniors and seniors are weighing the pros and cons of their top choices.

Luckily, there are plenty of great schools to choose from in Michigan. The state is filled with quality institutions to help students achieve their academic and career goals.

But having many great options to choose from doesn't make that decision any easier. Nor does it mean students can realistically choose among the best overall options. But which schools are the best of the best?

There are 93 colleges and universities in Michigan, nearly all of which are in the Lower Peninsula, according to Appily. While each brings something to the table that prospective students can gravitate towards, only 17 are among the best in the country.

WalletHub recently released a list of the top 500 colleges and universities in the United States and Michigan was well represented by those 17 schools.

However, it's worth noting that Michigan didn't exactly light up the scoreboard here. Only one school landed in the top 40 and only four cracked the top 200. There are thousands of schools across the country, so being among the top 200 is still an accomplishment, but it does show there are better places to go.

The list was built by analyzing how schools performed in student selectivity, tuition cost and financing options, faculty resources, campus safety and experience,and educational and career outcomes. Over 800 colleges and universities were analyzed to form the list of the top 500.

With those 17 Michigan schools making the list, that means some interesting schools missed the list. All 17 schools that made the list are listed below from the lowest-ranked school to the top.

It's a bit surprising that schools like Western Michigan, Eastern Michigan and Northern Michigan didn't make the list - especially when the University of Michigan made the list with three separate locations instead.

If academics are the least of your concerns and you're just looking for a place to party, these Michigan schools are probably more suitable for you.