Delaware State University Holds Top 10 Public HBCU Spot as U.S. News Shifts to Measuring ROI

DOVER, Del. — Delaware State University has once again cemented its place among the nation's premier public HBCUs, ranking No. 9 among public HBCUs in the 2027 U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges rankings released Tuesday, September 22. The result keeps the University in the Top 10 public HBCUs for the twelfth consecutive year — a remarkable run of consistency that reflects sustained institutional momentum rather than a one-time high.

The ranking mirrors Delaware State's showing in Forbes' first-ever HBCU list this summer, which placed the University No. 10 among public HBCUs and No. 2 nationally among HBCUs for online programs. What makes this year notable is not just where Delaware State landed, but how the landscape of college rankings is changing. U.S. News retired its measure of graduate indebtedness — a category Delaware State had led for years — and added two outcome-based measures: graduates' earnings by major (drawn from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard) and graduation rate performance. The shift moves U.S. News closer to the return-on-investment approach that families increasingly use to judge educational value.

“We think U.S. News is asking the right question,” said Delaware State University President Tony Allen. “Families want to know whether a degree pays off, and we want to ensure that it does... Our students are not settling for us.

Central to Delaware State's success is a talent pipeline that begins in seventh grade. Nearly 900 students are enrolled across two early college pipelines — the Drs. Robin S. and Harry L. Williams Early College School on the Dover campus, serving roughly 700 students in grades 7 through 12, and the HBCU Early College Preparatory School in Queens, New York, now in its second cohort after drawing more than 2,000 applications for its first 200 seats. Sixty-three percent of Williams School graduates go on to enroll at Delaware State, and every HBCU Early College Preparatory graduate will earn a high school diploma, an associate degree, and automatic admission to the University. On September 17, at the Williams School's dedication, Dr. Harry L. Williams — now President and CEO of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund — and Dr. Robin S. Williams announced a $1 million estate gift plus an annual unrestricted gift to support the school's operations.

The University is also building career readiness directly into the academic experience. Delaware State became the first public HBCU partner of Braven, the national career accelerator, in 2024, and is now expanding that partnership alongside a planned Center for Workforce Equity and Economic Mobility. Braven Fellows graduate at a 92 percent rate and are far more likely than their peers to complete an internship or career-accelerating experience during college. Founded in 1891, Delaware State is a public, land-grant, R2 research institution enrolling students from 39 states and 34 countries — and its latest ranking is a powerful reminder to HBCU Connect's students, alumni, and employer partners of the extraordinary return an HBCU education can deliver.

Students and alumni interested in connecting with top employers who recruit HBCU talent can explore opportunities at hbcuconnect.com/jobs and upload a resume to be found by recruiters.