AACC Ranks as No. 1 Community College

March 10, 2021

Anne Arundel Community College (AACC) has taken the top spot in a national ranking of community colleges by Academic Influence, a team of academics and data scientists providing objective, influence-based rankings for higher education.

“We’re excited and humbled to be ranked number one in the country," said Dr. Dawn Lindsay, AACC president. "It affirms the work we do and the impact that our faculty, staff, students and alumni have on our community." AACC’s offerings in law, computer science, medical, education and criminal justice were a few of the notable programs mentioned in the college’s profile on the site.

Academic Influence has previously ranked a range of higher education institutions, including liberal arts colleges, research universities and international institutions. This is the organization’s first-ever ranking of two-year colleges.

The site reviewed 839 community colleges that are fully accredited, enroll at least 1,000 students and primarily provide two-year, associate degree programs and certificate credentials. The top 10 are: 

1. Anne Arundel Community College
2. Roxbury Community College (Massachusetts)
3. Eastern Maine Community College (Maine)
4. Springfield Technical Community College (Massachusetts)
5. College of Marin (California)
6. Los Angeles City College (California)
7. Lamar Institute of Technology (Texas)
8. Kennedy-King College (Illinois)
9. West Kentucky Community and Technical College (Kentucky)
10. Lamar State College - Port Arthur (Texas)

Rankings are based on the premise that the people affiliated with a school determine its quality, and use a trademarked measuring method searching open-source data from faculty, staff and alumni.

More information about the ranking methods can be found on their website. The top 50 schools can also be found there.