Choosing a college is one of the biggest decisions you’ll make in your life. College has a huge impact on you financially, emotionally, socially and academically–and can have a large effect on your future job prospects and earnings.
But no college is right for everyone, and everyone has different ideas about what makes a college best for them.
To make it easier for African-Americans to find colleges that fit their needs and preferences, MONEY collaborated with Essence magazine to analyze more than 1,500 four-year colleges to determine which ones offer the best value for African-American students.
While we’ve touted community colleges and public colleges as a way to make college more affordable, private colleges definitely have their benefits–especially those with large endowments, which tend to be most generous with financial aid.
College Factual recently released their list of the top 10 best private colleges in the U.S., based on factors including student body caliber, educational resources, level of degree completion, and post-graduate earnings.