Beaufort County Community College ranked number one in the nation

WASHINGTON, N.C. (WITN) - An Eastern Carolina community college is ranked the best in the nation by a financial information company.

Beaufort County Community College is the number one community college in the nation for 2025 by SmartAssets Advisors, LLC. The company ranked BCCC against 585 other community colleges across the nation.

According to the release, they considered a college’s tuition and fees, student-to-faculty ratio, and retention rates. Beaufort CCC had the following scores:

• A tuition of $2,540 per year and grant-sponsored scholarships
• A student-to-faculty ratio of 8-to-1
• and a retention rate of 81%

SmartAssets highlighted the college’s tuition as important as measures against accruing student debt while still getting a valuable education.

“We’re finally getting recognition for removing financial barriers to higher education through our Beaufort Promise last-dollar scholarship program,” said Dr. Dave Loope, president of BCCC. “We’re wedded to the concept of universal higher education, and you must lead all prospective students to the pathway for ‘free community college’ if the universality is to take hold.”

The full ranking can be found here.