Top 10 Oldest Colleges in the US
Are you curious about which US-based colleges are the oldest? We’ve compiled a list that answers this very question.
| Rank | College/University | Founded | Founded As | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Harvard University (MA) | 1636 | New College | Harvard University (official) |
| 2 | College of William & Mary (VA) | 1693 | College of William & Mary | W&M (official) |
| 3 | St. John’s College (MD) | 1696* | King William’s School | St. John’s College (official) |
| 4 | Yale University (CT) | 1701 | Collegiate School | Yale University (official) |
| 5 | University of Pennsylvania (PA) | 1740* | Charity School | UPenn (official) |
| 6 | Moravian University (PA) | 1742 | Bethlehem Female Seminary | Moravian University (official) |
| 7 | Princeton University (NJ) | 1746 | College of New Jersey | Princeton University (official) |
| 8 | Washington & Lee University (VA) | 1749 | Augusta Academy | W&L (official) |
| 9 | Columbia University (NY) | 1754 | King’s College | Columbia University (official) |
| 10 | Brown University (RI) | 1764 | College in the English Colony of Rhode Island | Brown University (official) |
*St. John’s College traces its roots to King William’s School (1696) but didn’t become a degree-granting college until its 1784 charter — some lists rank it lower or omit it for this reason. *Penn’s 1740 date (a charity school that predated the College) is the founding year Penn itself claims, though it’s debated among historians; some sources instead cite 1749 or 1751. Just outside the top 10: Rutgers University (1766) and Dartmouth College (1769).