Rankings, Accolades & Awards | Adelphi University

Founded more than 125 years ago and the first coed private university on Long Island in New York, Adelphi is recognized across the nation—and around the world—for the quality of our academic programs, the support we give our students and the successful outcomes of our graduates.

Top Academics

There are many ways to measure the quality of academics. One is the annual set of rankings by U.S. News & World Report, which has consistently named Adelphi one of the nation’s Best Colleges. This year, it also recognized two of our premier undergraduate programs and eight graduate programs as best in class.

Best Colleges U.S. News and World Report: National Universities 2026

Adelphi University has been named a Best College among National Universities for eight consecutive years. Adelphi remains the top-ranked private university on Long Island.

Celebrate Our Rise

Undergraduate Programs

U.S. News & World Report ranks two of our programs in its 2026 list of Best Undergraduate Programs. Both undergraduate programs have appeared in the rankings for multiple years.

U.S. News & World Report: Best Colleges: Nursing BSN Programs 2026

Adelphi’s College of Nursing and Public Health climbed 32 spots to No. 186 in the annual list of Best Undergraduate Nursing Programs, a position in the top 28% institutions nationwide.

Nursing Majors & Minors

U.S. News & World Report: Best Colleges: Psychology Undergraduate Program 2026

Continuing its tradition of excellence, Adelphi’s Gordon F. Derner School of Psychology has been ranked in the list of best undergraduate psychology programs in the nation for the third consecutive year.

Psychology Majors & Minors

In addition, the undergraduate program offered by our Robert B. Willumstad School of Business now appears in the prestigious Poets&Quants rankings.

P&Q for Undergrads: Top Business School 2025

Poets&Quants ranks the undergraduate program at the Robert B. Willumstad School of Business as one of the nation’s best, based on the high quality of the School’s admissions standards, academic experience and outcomes.

A Best Undergraduate Business School

Graduate Programs

U.S. News & World Report ranks programs from five of our colleges and schools in its 2026 list of Best Graduate School rankings. All of these graduate programs and schools have appeared in the rankings for multiple years:

Best Part-time MBA Programs
Best Nursing Schools: Master’s
Best Nursing Schools: DNP
Best Public Health School
Best School for Social Work
Best Psychology School
Best Clinical Psychology Doctorate Program
Best Speech-Language Pathology Program

Recognized Value

Top publications that focus their rankings on affordability, return on investment and career outcomes recognize Adelphi as one of the nation’s best colleges. For three years in a row, Forbes has ranked Adelphi as the best private university on Long Island in New York.

Forbes’ 2026 America’s Top Colleges List Badge

Forbes names Adelphi to its America’s Top Colleges list of 500 schools—noted for producing high-earning, influential graduates with less student debt.

Adelphi’s Ranking

Money magazine ranks Adelphi as one of the country’s Best Colleges. Its rankings focus on quality of education, affordability and student outcomes to help families make informed decisions about where to spend their tuition dollars.

See Our Ranking

Adelphi University professor interacting with smiling students in a classroom setting.

Adelphi earned national recognition in the 2026 Wall Street Journal/College Pulse rankings for its strong student outcomes. The University ranked highly in social mobility and best salaries, reflecting the lifetime return on investment it provides to students.

Ranked one of the best

Niche.com ranks Adelphi University in the top 8% of Best Value Colleges in America, the top 10% of Best College Locations in America, and the top 18% of Best Colleges for Nursing in America.

Ranked a Top College

Supporting Student Success

Adelphi offers a wide range of programs and resources to help our students succeed in the classroom, on campus and in their future careers.

U.S. News & World Report: Best Colleges Social Mobility 2026

Transforming lives at every income level, Adelphi University is ranked among the nation’s top social mobility performers, supporting students from all backgrounds reach their full potential.

Highly Ranked

Adelphi University earned a 2025–2026 Military Friendly® School with a Bronze ranking—reflecting our strong commitment to supporting our military and veteran students.

Our Military Rating

Colleges of Distinction: Career Development 2025-2026

Adelphi is recognized as a Career Development College of Distinction for the exceptional way that we equip students with skills to succeed in their lifelong career journey.

Expert Career Guidance

Phi Theta Kappa recognizes Adelphi as one of America’s most accommodating universities for community college transfer students. Showcasing only 251 of the top 25% of transfer-friendly institutions nationwide, we’ve been recognized for nine consecutive years.

Transfer to Adelphi

An Athletics Powerhouse

Adelphi has established itself as a true powerhouse over the past two years with conference and national championships. In 2023-24 and 2024-25, Adelphi won:

2 NCAA Division II National Championships: Men’s Lacrosse
2 NCAA Division II Championship Finalists: Women’s Lacrosse
2 Northeast-10 Conference President’s Cups (Overall Championship)
8 Northeast-10 Team Championships (Men’s Basketball, Softball, Women’s Lacrosse, Women’s Soccer, Men’s Lacrosse, Men’s Tennis)

In Adelphi’s history, our record stands at:

254

NCAA Tournament Appearances
219

Northeast 10 Conference Championships
71

East Coast Conference Championships
6

Northeast 10 Presidents Cups
5

East Coast Conference Commissioner’s Cups
19

Division II National Championships

International Recognition

Adelphi’s reputation for excellence has spread beyond our borders and is now included in the prestigious Times Higher Education World Rankings.

Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings

Times Higher Education ranks Adelphi in the top 8 percent of four-year universities in the United States and as one of the best universities in the world.

Global Recognition

Colleges of Distinction: International 2025-2026

Adelphi is recognized as a College of Distinction for the exceptional support services we provide international students at every stage of their academic journey.

Top Ranked in Global Belonging

Social Responsibility

Adelphi is fully committed to serving our surrounding community and to sustainability.

Adelphi University is one of 119 U.S. colleges and universities to receive the 2020 Carnegie Community Engagement Classification which recognizes our institutional commitment to civic engagement and service learning.

Carnegie Foundation