Longwood University has again performed well in annual rankings used by millions of families to make decisions about higher education.
This year, Longwood ranked No. 8 among all regional public universities in the south, making it the 11th straight year that Longwood is a top-10 public university in that category, according to the annual U.S. News & World Report rankings out today.
For the last decade, Longwood has consistently found its place among the best academic institutions offering undergraduate and master’s programs in the region. This year, in addition to landing in the top 10 among public universities in the South, Longwood ranked No. 16 among all regional universities in that category, both public and private. Longwood also stayed in the top-tier of universities on the annual list’s Best Value in the South list, climbing 17 spots over the past five years.
Longwood’s rise in rankings over the past decade coincides with a continued investment in small classes taught by full-time professors, a course of action few public universities have taken. This year, Longwood welcomed 26 new full-time professors to the faculty, many of whom teach Civitae Core Curriculum classes, the foundational courses that all students take as they develop into citizen leaders.
At Longwood, we’ve spent the last decade investing in those very strengths—small classes led by full-time faculty, strong student mentorship and support, upgraded and new residence halls, new academic buildings and abundant opportunities for personal and professional growth.
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More than two-thirds of Longwood classes have 20 or fewer students, the highest percentage of any Virginia public college or university. Longwood also has the highest percentage of classes taught by full-time tenure track faculty of Virginia’s public universities.
“Rankings will never capture the full story of a university, but they do highlight core strengths that define strong institutions,” said President W. Taylor Reveley IV. “At Longwood, we’ve spent the last decade investing in those very strengths—small classes led by full-time faculty, strong student mentorship and support, upgraded and new residence halls, new academic buildings and abundant opportunities for personal and professional growth. Families who visit our campus see those investments firsthand, and they make a difference.”
In other recent rankings, Longwood’s nursing program was ranked #2 in Virginia by RegisteredNursing.org and continues to be ranked among the top 10 BSN Programs in the Southeast by NursingProcess.org. Bolstered by its near-perfect pass rate on nursing licensure exams over the past decade, RegisteredNursing.org noted Longwood’s exceptional 99.32 percent average NCLEX pass rate in its 2026 ranking.
Longwood’s MBA program has also gained national acclaim. Earlier this year Longwood was named one of the “Best MBA Programs for Your Money” by Money, placing it among just 33 graduate business schools nationwide to earn the distinction for 2025. Longwood’s MBA program also earned a spot on the U.S. News & World Report list of Best Online MBA Programs earlier this year, including ranking No. 1 in the category “Faculty Credentials and Training.”
“I’m particularly proud of our upward trend on the Best Value rankings,” said Reveley. “A commitment to keeping higher education affordable animates our daily work, and we are proud to have among the very lowest average tuition increase among all Virginia public universities over the last 10 years. That continues to be our commitment to students and their families.”
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