F&M Stories
Wall Street Journal Recognizes Franklin & Marshall for Student Outcomes and Learning Opportunities
F&M was ranked among the best colleges in the U.S. by the Wall Street Journal-College Pulse, which rates 584 eligible universities in the country on how well colleges set graduates up for financial success.
Among peer liberal arts colleges, F&M was ranked 16th highest.1 For nearly 240 years, F&M has embraced the power of the liberal arts, and today’s
graduates launch into purpose-driven careers through a personalized liberal arts education
that pairs deep faculty mentorship with real-world experiences. F&M graduates have
a strong foundation of valuable skills widely desired by today’s top employers in
a rapidly changing labor market, including analytical and creative thinking; resilience
and adaptability; persuasive and consensus-building leadership; and emotional intelligence.
Among peer liberal arts colleges recognized for research, F&M was ranked 11th highest.2 Only 44 liberal arts colleges, including F&M, recently earned Carnegie’s “Research
Colleges and Universities” designation, reinforcing the College’s excellence in providing
its undergraduate students opportunities to work side-by-side with professors on impactful
research.

These accolades build on the momentum of earlier successes in the U.S. News & World Report rankings. F&M was recently ranked 35th among all national liberal arts colleges, and the College’s three-year range in U.S. News is its strongest in more than 20 years. U.S. News also ranked F&M 33rd nationally for best undergraduate teaching, and the College has been highlighted as a best value institution by both U.S. News and the Princeton Review. The latter also recently ranked F&M 24th nationally for most accessible professors.
“Franklin & Marshall has long been nationally recognized for its excellence in liberal arts education,” F&M President Andrew Rich said. “This fall’s rankings reinforce that excellence. We at F&M are proud of our history of building leaders at every level, ready to take their place as tomorrow’s global citizens who shape our world.”
1 F&M defines peer liberal arts colleges as those institutions designated by the 2025 Carnegie Classifications as “Special Focus: Arts and Sciences.”
2 F&M defines peer liberal arts colleges recognized for research as those institutions that received dual designations by the 2025 Carnegie Classification as both “Special Focus: Arts and Sciences” and “Research Colleges and Universities.”
Related Articles
December 18, 2025
Innovative Workshop Fosters Dialogue about Importance of AI Literacy
As generative artificial intelligence continues to impact teaching and learning on college campuses, Franklin & Marshall is pioneering inventive ways to help students build critical literacy skills they need to compete and excel in an AI-infused society. Associate Professor of Sociology Caroline Faulkner and Senior Instructional Designer Kelly Miller offered a four-part workshop for faculty to help them guide students navigating AI for a wide variety of academic purposes.
December 16, 2025
Art Clark, Jr. Reaches $10 Million in Support for Financial Aid at F&M
Arthur R. “Art” Clark, Jr.’s philanthropy, intended to honor his father’s experience as an F&M student and graduate, has resulted in $10 million in cumulative gifts to support student scholarships and financial aid, with $2.8 million contributed this year alone. In recognition of his generosity, Clark was inducted this fall into F&M’s Kite & Key Circle, which honors F&M’s most generous philanthropists.
November 11, 2025
F&M’s Walters Scholarship Strengthens College’s Commitment to Affordability for Lancaster County Students
Franklin & Marshall College has opened applications for prospective students based in Lancaster County to apply for the Arthur F. and Selma C. Walters Scholarship. The need-based scholarship, funded through the generosity of the late Arthur Walters, covers all or part of F&M’s tuition and is awarded to incoming students who graduate from Lancaster County high schools.