Ohio Northern University offers the best value of any university in Ohio, according to new rankings by the Wall Street Journal. ONU is ranked #1 in the Buckeye State in the Best Value category in the publication’s 2025 Best Colleges in the U.S.
According to the Journal, “The WSJ/College Pulse Best Value ranking lists schools in order of how quickly the difference between their graduates’ salaries and those of comparable high-school graduates pays back the average net price of four years of study – what we call ‘Years to pay off net price.’”
ONU is again #1 in Ohio, and 40th in the nation, in the publication’s Best Salaries ranking, which rates schools “in order of their impact on graduate’s salaries and how this relates to the cost of attending college.”
The University remains a highly-rated top 100 university in the publication’s overall ranking of the best universities in the country. ONU is No. 89 in the country and second in Ohio.
“Ohio Northern continues to provide students and their families with an outstanding return on their educational investment,” said ONU President Melissa J. Baumann, Ph.D. “This exceptional ROI remains a cornerstone of our commitment to student outcomes. Through our high-impact learning experiences, we’re preparing our graduates for careers in their desired field while meeting the workforce needs of our region, state, and nation.”
WSJ/College Pulse 2025 Best Colleges in the U.S. rates the top 500 universities in the country, emphasizing how much a college improves its students’ chances of graduating on time, and how much it boosts the salaries they earn after graduation.