Clark University continues to be one of the best-value colleges in the country, according to the newly released 2027 U.S. News & World Report rankings. The rankings are one of several encouraging signs of momentum across the University that Clark President David Fithian shared with faculty and staff in a message on Tuesday.
Clark’s standing among Best Value Schools in the annual rankings improved from #37 to #34, a score Fithian described as “especially meaningful” because it reflects that “families increasingly want assurance that a college education will provide both intellectual growth and a strong return on investment. Our continued recognition as a leading value institution reflects our commitment to providing an education that is rigorous, relevant, and accessible.”
Clark also achieved a ranking of #69 in the new category of Top Private National Universities (public universities were excluded from this category). The University’s standing in the overall National University rankings remained essentially unchanged at #133 compared with #132 last year.
“The work we are doing together is strengthening Clark’s position and expanding our impact. That momentum belongs to all of us.”
President David Fithian
In his message, President Fithian noted the rankings tell only a small part of the Clark story.
This fall, Clark welcomed 567 first-year students, a 36% increase over last year, while also strengthening the academic profile of the class (average high school GPA of 3.80, up from 3.49 last year and 3.57 in 2024). Nearly 30% of incoming students joined the Honors Program, 29% are Pell-eligible, 22% are first-generation college students, and 37% are students of color. “These numbers reflect a class that is both academically strong and broadly representative of the aspirations and opportunities that define Clark,” Fithian said.
Clark is also seeing promising early results in undergraduate recruitment for Fall 2027, he said. First-year applications are already up 17% compared with this point last year, while inquiries are up 53%. Domestic applications are similarly up 17%, and domestic inquiries have increased by 79%. Clark has already welcomed nearly 2,400 prospective students to campus, with another open house scheduled for Oct. 25.
Other encouraging signs can be found in the support shown to Clark through Plan & Purpose: Our Campaign for What Matters Most, which to date has raised $108 million to support priorities ranging from student access and success to academic innovation and faculty excellence. This year, according to President Fithian, contributions to The Clark Fund are on pace to exceed $4 million for the first time in University history and are on track to double average annual giving levels from the past decade.
Clark faculty continue to attract significant external support for research, scholarship, and creative work. During the past year, Clark researchers secured $5.5 million in new grant awards and produced nearly 800 scholarly publications, advancing knowledge and solutions to some of the world’s most pressing challenges, the president said.
The positive trends in enrollment, student demand, philanthropy, grant activity, and external recognition ultimately reflect the collective efforts of the Clark community to strengthen and grow the University, he said.
“Taken individually, each of these indicators is encouraging,” Fithian said. “Taken together, they suggest something even more important: that the choices we are making, the investments we are making, and the work we are doing together are strengthening Clark’s position and expanding our impact. That momentum belongs to all of us.”
