The quality of a SUNY Old Westbury education and of the atmosphere it provides for its students is getting noticed. The University has been recognized by ranking agencies for everything from the value of this educational experience to students’ social mobility following graduation.
In its “2025 America’s Best Colleges” rankings, U.S.News & World Report ranked SUNY Old Westbury the 24th consecutive year. The institution earned the following rankings:
- #9 in Top Performers on Social Mobility in in Regional Universities North
- #37 in Top Public Schools in in Regional Universities North
- #101 in Regional Universities North
SUNY Old Westbury was ranked #136 among nearly 600 top master’s universities in the nation while also being ranked the #31 "Best Bang for the Buck" among nearly 400 Northeast institutions in the Washington Monthly's 2024 College Guide and Rankings.
SUNY Old Westbury was included among the Tier 1 institutions and earned a ranking of 28th nationally in the 2023 Third Way Economic Mobility Index, a review by the national think tank Third Way that assesses the degree of economic mobility provided by institutions of higher education. The University's 2023 position is the highest ranking among Long Island institutions, the highest within the State University of New York system, and among the Top 2% nationwide.
SUNY Old Westbury has earned a 2025-26 Military Friendly® School Silver designation. Institutions earning the Military Friendly® School designation were evaluated using both public data sources and responses from a proprietary survey. More than 1,800 schools participated in the 2025-2026 survey with 830 earning special awards for going above the standard.
SUNY Old Westbury was named one of only 115 institutions of higher education across the nation to receive the 2024 Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) Award from INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine, the only national honor recognizing U.S. colleges and universities that demonstrate an outstanding commitment to diversity and inclusion across their campus. This is the seventh consecutive year the University has earned this honor.
CollegeFactual.com ranked SUNY Old Westbury in the top 15% of colleges and universities in the Middle Atlantic Region in 2024 for overall value. The ranking measures the quality of education a student will receive for each dollar they might spend at a specific institution, relative to all the other institutions.
Abound, an online college guidance system for degree-seeking adults, has named SUNY Old Westbury to its exclusive list of the nation’s Best Colleges for Adults in 2024. Old Westbury was listed among 176 colleges, including 11 from New York State, excelling at meeting the needs of mature learners, some of whom are returning to the classroom after many years.
Top 35% of universities worldwide on the Study Abroad Aide “Best Value University Ranking for International Students,” recognizing institutions that stand out globally for providing a mix of academic quality and affordability.
SUNY Old Westbury ranked 39th in the nation among Top Producers of African American Graduates with undergraduate social science degrees in the 2024 edition of research conducted annually by Diverse Education, a publication dedicated to covering issues pertaining to underrepresented groups in American higher education.
SUNY Old Westbury in 2023 was named a NYSERDA Clean Green Campus ACHIEVER. As an ACHIEVER campus, SUNY Old Westbury was recognized by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority for the University's formal commitment to carbon reduction and for having completed some clean energy projects. These institutions also have dedicated staff to focus on clean energy investments and achieving institutional carbon reduction goals.
In 2021, SUNY Old Westbury was highlighted among Study.com's list of Top 50 Colleges for Racial and Cultural Diversity nationwide. Schools were rated based on several factors, including the ethnic makeup of the student body and faculty, graduation rates of ethnically diverse students, and facilities and programs offered to promote diversity.
The graduate degree in Forensic Accounting offered by the School of Business in 2023 was ranked 3rd in the nation among the “Best Master’s Degrees in Forensic Accounting” as ranked by Accounting.com. The rankings were compiled based on key factors related to academics, affordability, reputation, and program availability.
SUNY Old Westbury was named to the U.S. President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll for nine consecutive years by the Corporation for National and Community Service. The award is the highest federal affirmation a college or university can receive in recognition of its commitment to service-learning and civic engagement.
SUNY Old Westbury was named a 2019 “Best Public College in America” by Buffalo Business First, an American City Business Journal publication. The rankings analyzed 499 public universities and colleges that offer the best educational experiences to their students. Old Westbury ranks in the top 25 New York institutions.
SUNY Old Westbury holds the prestigious Tree Campus USA® recognition from the Arbor Day Foundation for its commitment to effective urban forest management. At Old Westbury, 328 acres of the 604-acre campus are set aside as open space under state law. The campus earned this distinction in 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020.
The United Nations in 2017 approved SUNY Old Westbury as an official member of the United Nations Academic Impact, a global initiative that aligns institutions of higher education with the United Nations to further the principles of human rights, sustainability, and peace through intellectual, socially responsible activities, programs and research.
SUNY Old Westbury in 2016 was identified among the Top 40 best values in Master of Taxation degree programs in the nation according to a ranking by the website Online-accounting-degrees.net.