Washington College Again in Top 15% of Schools Nationwide 

The Princeton Review’s “Best 391 Colleges: 2026 Edition” recognizes the College in a number of categories including ranking Washington #22 in the “Professors Get High Marks” category. 

Washington College once again appears among the best colleges in the nation according to The Princeton Review’s annual Best Colleges publication, which is based on surveys of students on dozens of topics. It does not rank the 391 colleges who rose to the top—just noting they are all among the best in the nation— but it does provide top 25 rankings in each of multiple categories.

In the “Professors Get High Marks” category, Washington was again in the top 25 nationally based on students’ survey responses, coming in at #22 for 2026. The College also appears on The Princeton Review’s lists for Best Mid-Atlantic Colleges and Green Colleges.

"The colleges that make our ranking lists do so entirely as a result of their own students' opinions of them," said Rob Franek, editor-in-chief of The Princeton Review and the book's lead author. "We don't rank colleges based on our opinion of them nor would we crown a school 'best' overall. It is what the students attending the colleges in this book tell us about their experiences at their schools that determines on which lists the schools appear."

The Princeton Review’s website summarizes comments it collects through the student surveys when describing each college through the lens of categories like academics or campus life. The quotes it pulls about faculty demonstrate some of the high praise Washington professors received from their students.

“The academic experience is ‘rigorous and rewarding,’ with small class sizes that allow students to ‘feel incredibly connected to your professors,’” the site summarizes from the surveys. “The faculty is ‘incredibly kind, empathetic, and passionate’ and ‘challenge students and push them to give their best work.’ Many say ‘The professors are the greatest strength’ of Washington College. ‘They are always accessible, very understanding, and happy to help in pursuing your goals outside of class through letters of recommendations, internship searches, and graduate school research.’"

Provost and Dean of the College Kiho Kim is unsurprised that the students hold the faculty in such high regard. As the chief academic officer at Washington, Kim is in a unique position to closely follow the work of faculty members in every department and knows how remarkable professors are across all disciplines.

"The heart of any college is found in the relationship between professors and students, and in every way, Washington faculty show up for our students,” Kim said. “Not only are the courses rigorous and engaging, but our faculty also truly serve as mentors for students, both formally through the senior capstone experience and informally by just being available to talk about intellectual interests, professional aspirations, and career options that can let students bring all of those things together.”

Students also provided positive feedback on many other aspects of the College in the Princeton Review’s research, showing why it considers Washington one of the best overall colleges for undergraduates in the country. The summary notes students feel “very prepared to enter the job market,” thanks to both the liberal arts emphasis on critical thinking and the extensive support for job shadowing and internships. And student feedback shows they enjoy the four-year experience on campus leading up to entering their careers.

“At Washington College, ‘there is a connected feel throughout the student body,’ which is a product of the small campus size. ’Everyone knows each other in some sort of fashion,’ and ‘it's quite the treat to walk around and only see familiar faces,’” The Princeton Review’s summary of student remarks reads. “As one undergrad notes, ‘By and at large, students are respectful and caring toward each other, and there's a broad friendliness to the community.’ Students describe their peers as ‘diverse, opinionated, and intelligent’ people who ‘want to be actively involved in their institution and have their voices heard.’” 

 — Mark Jolly-Van Bodegraven