Best value colleges for Communications in North Carolina.2026 Rankings
With 43 Communications programs spread across North Carolina, narrowing your list takes real data. Our algorithm ranks each school on six factors — admission rate, graduation rate, net price, median graduate earnings, student-faculty ratio, and major breadth — so you can compare apples to apples before you apply.
North Carolina offers 12 public and 18 private Communications programs in this ranking. Public universities average $25,123 for in-state students, making them a strong value option. The most competitive school on the list — Duke University — accepts 7% of applicants. Early-career earnings for Communications graduates average $32,451, with a state-wide graduation rate of 58% for ranked programs.
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ranked by value score
| # | College | Value Score | Admit Rate | Grad Rate | Net Price | Median Earnings | Student:Faculty | Majors Offered | Size |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Duke UniversityPrivate | Perfect· 52 | 7% | 96% | $6,901 | $74,497 | 6:1 | 59 | 6,417 |
| 2 | Davidson CollegePrivate | Excellent· 47 | 14% | 92% | $7,610 | $41,411 | 9:1 | 32 | 1,901 |
| 3 | Wake Forest UniversityPrivate | Excellent· 46 | 22% | 91% | $12,769 | $42,055 | 9:1 | 37 | 5,471 |
| 4 | Excellent· 44 | 40% | 85% | $13,992 | $39,889 | 15:1 | 77 | 26,389 | |
| 5 | Excellent· 43 | 19% | 92% | $11,220 | $43,348 | 15:1 | 51 | 20,556 | |
| 6 | Elon UniversityPrivate | Strong· 37 | 67% | 83% | $32,133 | $48,637 | 11:1 | 64 | 6,402 |
| 7 | Strong· 35 | 89% | 73% | $15,766 | $38,331 | 16:1 | 67 | 19,304 | |
| 8 | Catawba CollegePrivate | Strong· 35 | 78% | 52% | $14,971 | $32,323 | 12:1 | 35 | 1,127 |
| 9 | Strong· 35 | 70% | 48% | $8,929 | $34,414 | 17:1 | 32 | 1,863 | |
| 10 | Meredith CollegePrivate | Strong· 35 | 75% | 65% | $17,521 | $35,157 | 10:1 | 37 | 1,288 |
| 11 | Strong· 35 | 68% | 66% | $24,168 | $36,279 | 9:1 | 39 | 1,362 | |
| 12 | Saint Augustine's UniversityPrivate | Strong· 35 | 59% | 33% | $17,866 | $23,746 | 11:1 | 27 | 766 |
| 13 | Shaw UniversityPrivate | Strong· 35 | 30% | 20% | $16,310 | $26,963 | 11:1 | 26 | 839 |
| 14 | Strong· 35 | 74% | 71% | $18,377 | $36,695 | 17:1 | 49 | 14,176 | |
| 15 | Strong· 34 | 80% | 35% | $8,806 | $24,210 | 19:1 | 33 | 5,493 | |
| 16 | Methodist UniversityPrivate | Strong· 34 | 75% | 40% | $23,113 | $39,592 | 9:1 | 47 | 1,425 |
| 17 | Strong· 34 | 94% | 55% | $13,105 | $27,682 | 11:1 | 31 | 2,790 | |
| 18 | Strong· 34 | 80% | 68% | $14,014 | $38,234 | 21:1 | 69 | 23,567 | |
| 19 | Johnson C Smith UniversityPrivate | Good· 33 | 43% | 34% | $17,959 | $26,090 | 11:1 | 24 | 1,047 |
| 20 | Good· 33 | 46% | 55% | $13,024 | $28,985 | 20:1 | 58 | 11,925 | |
| 21 | Good· 33 | 78% | 40% | $17,786 | $36,227 | 13:1 | 28 | 1,169 | |
| 22 | Salem CollegePrivate | Good· 33 | 87% | 56% | $18,561 | $34,178 | 7:1 | 35 | 390 |
| 23 | Good· 33 | 92% | 45% | $10,905 | $26,411 | 14:1 | 33 | 5,386 | |
| 24 | Good· 33 | 69% | 49% | $15,668 | $24,899 | 16:1 | 36 | 4,244 | |
| 25 | Chowan UniversityPrivate | Good· 32 | 72% | 29% | $18,449 | $25,301 | 15:1 | 27 | 638 |
| 26 | Gardner-Webb UniversityPrivate | Good· 32 | 87% | 62% | $19,334 | $45,413 | 11:1 | 42 | 1,836 |
| 27 | Lees-McRae CollegePrivate | Good· 32 | 81% | 44% | $20,899 | $38,074 | 10:1 | 24 | 817 |
| 28 | Montreat CollegePrivate | Good· 32 | 66% | 41% | $26,184 | $31,744 | 12:1 | 31 | 750 |
| 29 | East Carolina UniversityPublic | Good· 31 | 90% | 62% | $16,785 | $37,813 | 17:1 | 68 | 19,857 |
| 30 | Lenoir-Rhyne UniversityPrivate | Good· 31 | 81% | 51% | $20,065 | $40,155 | 15:1 | 42 | 1,348 |