Resources › For Students and Parents Top Maine Colleges Learn about the Top Colleges and Universities in Maine Share Flipboard Email Print For Students and Parents College Admissions College Rankings College Admissions Process College Profiles Choosing A College Application Tips Essay Samples & Tips Testing Graphs College Financial Aid Advanced Placement Homework Help Private School Test Prep College Life Graduate School Business School Law School Distance Learning View More By Allen Grove Allen Grove Facebook Twitter College Admissions Expert Ph.D., English, University of Pennsylvania M.A., English, University of Pennsylvania B.S., Materials Science & Engineering and Literature, MIT Dr. Allen Grove is an Alfred University English professor and a college admissions expert with over 20 years of experience helping students transition to college. Learn about our Editorial Process Updated on July 03, 2019 Water lovers take note—you'll be hard-pressed to find a Maine college that isn't located near a lake, river, or the Atlantic. Several of the top picks for the state have ocean-front campuses. Maine is particularly strong when it comes to liberal arts colleges, but you will also find a couple comprehensive universities and public institutions on the list. The selected schools range in size from a few hundred students to over 10,000, and the admissions standards vary greatly. Bowdoin College is one of the most selective colleges in the country while the University of Maine at Farmington admits the great majority of applicants. Selection criteria include retention rates, four- and six-year graduation rates, value, student engagement, and notable curricular strengths. The schools are listed alphabetically rather than forcing them into any kind of artificial ranking (indeed, trying to rank a school like the College of the Atlantic with the University of Maine would be an exercise in ridiculousness). For a quick visual of how these main colleges compare on the admissions front, be sure to look at the table of SAT scores for Maine colleges and the corresponding article on ACT Scores for Maine Colleges. Bates College Bates College Quad. reivax / Flickr Location: Lewiston, Maine Enrollment: 1,780 (all undergraduate) Type of Institution: private liberal arts college Distinctions: one of the top liberal arts colleges; chapter of Phi Beta Kappa for strong liberal arts and sciences; test-optional admissions; 10 to 1 student / faculty ratio For the acceptance rate costs and other admissions information, visit the Bates College profile GPA, SAT and ACT graph for Bates admissions Bowdoin College Bowdoin College. Paul VanDerWerf / Flickr Location: Brunswick, Maine Enrollment: 1,806 (all undergraduate) Type of Institution: private liberal arts college Distinctions: 9 to 1 student / faculty ratio; one of the strongest colleges with test-optional admissions; a top liberal arts colleges; chapter of Phi Beta Kappa for strong liberal arts and sciences; loan-free financial aid; 118-acre research center on Orr's Island For acceptance rate, test scores, costs and other information, visit the Bowdoin College profile GPA, SAT and ACT graph for Bowdoin admissions Colby College Miller LIbrary at Colby College. Colby Mariam / Wikimedia Commons Location: Waterville, Maine Enrollment: 1,879 (all undergraduate) Type of Institution: private liberal arts college Distinctions: chapter of Phi Beta Kappa for strong liberal arts and sciences; 10 to 1 student / faculty ratio; one of the country's top liberal arts colleges; attractive 714-acre campus; strong environmental initiatives For acceptance rate, test scores, costs and other information, visit the Colby College profile GPA, SAT and ACT graph for Colby admissions College of the Atlantic Bar Harbor, Maine. Garden State Hiker / Flickr Location: Bar Harbor, Maine Enrollment: 344 (337 undergraduate) Type of Institution: environmental liberal arts college Distinctions: one of the country's best colleges for sustainability (campus is carbon-neutral); 10 to 1 student / faculty ratio; average class size of 12; beautiful ocean-front location; test-optional admissions For acceptance rate, test scores, costs and other information, visit the College of the Atlantic profile GPA, SAT and ACT graph for COA admissions Maine Maritime Academy The State of Maine - Maine Maritime Academy's training ship. nightthree / Flickr Location: Castine, Maine Enrollment: 1,045 (1,014 undergraduates) Type of Institution: public institution Distinctions: curricular focus on engineering, management, science and transportation; ocean-front location; fleet of 60 vessels including the 500-foot State of Maine; strong engineering and co-op programs For acceptance rate, test scores, costs and other information, visit the Maine Maritime Academy profile GPA, SAT and ACT graph for MMA admissions Saint Joseph's College of Maine Sebago Lake in Maine. Lizard10979 / Flickr Location: Standish, Maine Enrollment: 2,102 (1,504 undergraduates) Type of Institution: private Catholic liberal arts college Distinctions: attractive location on Sebago Lake; 12 to 1 student / faculty ratio; average class size of 17; strong study abroad and internship programs; good online options for graduate programs; nearly all students receive grant aid For acceptance rate, test scores, costs and other information, visit the Saint Joseph's College of Maine profile GPA, SAT and ACT graph for SJC admissions University of Maine at Farmington The University of Maine at Farmington. Wesley Fryer / Flickr Location: Farmington, Maine Enrollment: 2,000 (1,782 undergraduates) Type of Institution: public liberal arts college Distinctions: Maine's designated public liberal arts college; 14 to 1 student / faculty ratio; average class size of 19; "Farmington in Four" program guarantees students a bachelor's degree in four years; excellent value For acceptance rate, test scores, costs and other information, visit the University of Maine at Farmington profile GPA, SAT and ACT graph for UMF admissions University of Maine at Orono University of Maine. OlaUSAola / Flickr Location: Orono, Maine Enrollment: 11,219 (9,323 undergraduate) Type of Institution: public university Distinctions: flagship campus of the University of Maine system; 16 to 1 student / faculty ratio; chapter of Phi Beta Kappa for strong liberal arts and sciences; 88 bachelor's degree programs; attractive campus on the Stillwater River; member of the NCAA Division I America East Conference For acceptance rate, test scores, costs and other information, visit the University of Maine at Orono profile University of New England University of New England College of Pharmacy in Portland. BMRR / Wikimedia Commons Location: Biddeford, Maine Enrollment: 8,263 (4,247 undergraduates) Type of Institution: private university Distinctions: 540-acre campus with 4,000 feet of ocean-front property; 13 to 1 student / faculty ratio; a second 41-acre campus in Portland; strong programs in biological and health-related fields; good grant aid For acceptance rate, test scores, costs and other information, visit the University of New England profile GPA, SAT and ACT graph for UNE admissions Calculate Your Chances Calculate Your Chances of Being Admitted. Se e if you have the grades and test scores you need to get into one of these top Maine schools with this free tool from Cappex: Calculate Your Chances of Getting In 25 Top New England Colleges and Universities Brown University. Photo Credit: Allen Grove If you're interested in colleges in Maine, you may also like some of the colleges in neighboring states. Be sure to check out these 25 top New England colleges and universities. Top National Colleges and Universities Cornell University Sage Hall. Photo Credit: Allen Grove Broaden your search further by checking out these top national colleges and universities: Top Ranked U.S. Colleges: Private Universities | Public Universities | Liberal Arts Colleges | Engineering | Business | Women's | Most Selective | More Top Picks Cite this Article Format mla apa chicago Your Citation Grove, Allen. "Top Maine Colleges." ThoughtCo, Apr. 5, 2023, thoughtco.com/top-maine-colleges-788314. Grove, Allen. (2023, April 5). Top Maine Colleges. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/top-maine-colleges-788314 Grove, Allen. "Top Maine Colleges." ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/top-maine-colleges-788314 (accessed June 5, 2023). copy citation