Sorah Emory, Campus Carrier staff writer
Berry College has been ranked 391st on the 2026 edition of the Princeton Review and has received spots on FORBES’ list of top 500 colleges in America, as well as U.S. News and World Report’s (USN) nationwide Best Value Schools list.
Rankings for colleges may influence several factors, such as application numbers, reputation, funding and prestige.
“A college’s reputation is established in the landscape of higher education,” Trevor Ehrenheim, senior associate director of admission, said. “It’s a proxy for quality, I suppose.”
Berry has been ranked for several categories, notable titles including number one for Undergraduate Teaching Programs and Best Value Regional Universities in the South by USN, and number four overall among regional universities in the South by USN.
Berry has a small student population of around 2,300 students, and is known for having a 12:1 student-to-faculty ratio. This ratio allows for personal, one-on-one learning experiences as well as individual mentors for each student and impactful undergraduate teaching. These factors contributed to Berry College’s ranking as number one for Undergraduate Teaching programs on USN.
Additionally, Berry’s ranking as number four overall among Regional Universities in the South by USN is supported by its scores in undergraduate teaching.
Ehrenheim said that since he’s been here, he’s noticed an increase in the number of applications each season. Andrew Bressette, vice president of enrollment management, said he believes the rankings open the door for people to take a closer look and learn about Berry.
Ehrenheim said that the rankings could attract not only students, but also faculty looking for the environment and community Berry provides.
Berry, making both regional and national lists, has expanded its reach to places outside of Georgia. Such lists have additionally made knowledge of high-quality and affordable educational institutions more accessible, especially to first-gen students.
“I think we are starting to see students outside Georgia, not just in the Southeast, but across the country,” Bresette said. “We’re not sending postcards, but they are learning about Berry through rankings and Google searches, and they’re liking what they’re seeing.”
Bressette said the rankings could increase knowledge of how affordable private schools like Berry can be despite the nominal price tag.
Berry’s personability and the community at the school has made Berry stand out as a school of value. The principles Berry is founded on is communicated through the several programs, resources and support available to students of this institution.
“What we try to do when talking to prospective students is share a little bit more about students’ stories,” Ehrenheim said. “The statistics and rankings are helpful in qualifying the success that we’ve seen at Berry, but we find that if we just talk about statistics and rankings with folks, it doesn’t really hit home in a personal way.”
Though the rankings have boosted Berry’s reputation and expanded its profile, rankings aren’t everything, according to Ehrenheim.
“We try to get beneath the rankings and share personal stories to put a face and a name with the statistic,” Ehrenheim said.
Ehrenheim said Berry should prioritize improvement to increase student performance.
“I think all schools should think about how we can continue to improve what we do, not because we want better rankings but because we want better student outcomes,”
Ehrenheim said.