The 30 Most LGBT-Friendly College Campuses In America

As students return to campuses and new, scared, fresh faces arrive on universities across America, there’s a few things on their mind. Mostly the cost of books, the strenuous amounts of work laid on professors, and which butt looks better in the sweatpants that roll out of dorms and into classes plague their mind, but for queers the thought of acceptance might flash across their minds. Especially those coming from small towns with big hatred.

Luckily, Campus Pride has launched its “Best of the Best” report, detailing the 30 most LGBT-friendly campuses in America.

The eighth annual study examined policies, programs and practices at more than 235 institutes of higher education to determine rankings. This year’s index includes includes private and public colleges with student populations ranging from 807 to more than 45,000.

“Prospective students and their families today expect colleges to be LGBTQ-friendly. They want to know what programs, services and resources are available on the campus—and which are the ’Best of the Best,’” said Campus Pride director Shane Windmeyer. “Now more than ever, there are colleges that are recruiting LGBTQ youth and investing in a campus that is fully supportive of LGBTQ students.”

According to Windmeyer, “there is a lot to find for LGBTQ life at these campuses”— many are specifically recruiting queer students and addressing issues involving safety and inclusion on campus.

Here is the top 30 in alphabetical order …

1.  Cornell University
2. Elon University
3. Harvey Mudd College
4. Hobart and William Smith Colleges
5. Indiana University, Bloomington
6. Ithaca College
7. Macalester College
8. Montclair State University
9. Portland State University
10. Princeton University
11. Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey-New Brunswick
12. San Diego State University
13. Southern Oregon University
14. The Pennsylvania State University
15. Tufts University
16. University of California, Los Angeles
17. University of California, Davis
18. University of California, Santa Barbara
19. University of Illinois at Chicago
20. University of Louisville
21. University of Maine at Machias
22. University of Maryland, College Park
23. University of Massachusetts, Amherst
24. University of Minnesota Twin Cities
25. University of Pennsylvania
26. University of Vermont
27. University of Washington
28. University of Wisconsin, Green Bay
29. University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee
30. Washington State University