The Mid-American Conference (MAC) is a Division I NCAA athletic conference made up mostly of mid-sized colleges in the Midwest.
The MAC schools don’t have the athletic or academic cachet of the Big Ten or SEC, but many of them are academically sound institutions.
If you’re looking at colleges in the Midwest but don’t know if you want to attend a massive Big Ten school, the MAC offers many great alternatives. This guide lists the MAC schools ranked academically.
Table of Contents
- #1: University at Buffalo
- #2: Miami University—Ohio
- #3: Ohio University
- #4: Ball State University
- #5: Kent State University
- #6: Central Michigan University
- #7: Bowling Green State University
- #8: Western Michigan University
- #9: Northern Illinois University
- #10: University of Toledo
- #11: Eastern Michigan University
- #12: University of Akron
#1: University at Buffalo
- Location: Buffalo, NY
- U.S. News ranking: #76 in National Universities
- Acceptance rate: 68%
- Middle 50% SAT range: 1,190-1,380
- Middle 50% ACT range: 25-32
- Graduation rate: 75%
The University at Buffalo is part of the State University of New York (SUNY) system, which is generally considered to be one of the best public university systems in the United States, up there with (but slightly below) the UC system in California.
And Buffalo, along with Stony Brook on Long Island and Geneseo in rural upstate New York, is considered one of the top branches of the system.
At UB, students get an education from a top-100 university in an energetic (but cold!) city that is experiencing an impressive revitalization in the 2020s. Its sports programs are also on the upswing.
Because of Buffalo’s association with the SUNY system, its name recognition, and its location that positions students well for jobs and internships, we have it ranked in the number-one spot above similarly prestigious Miami of Ohio.
#2: Miami University—Ohio
- Location: Oxford, OH
- U.S. News ranking: #133 in National Universities
- Acceptance rate: 88%
- Middle 50% SAT range: 1,160-1,370
- Middle 50% ACT range: 24-29
- Graduation rate: 82%
Decades ago, Miami University of Oxford, Ohio, commonly known as Miami of Ohio, was considered one of the best public universities in the nation. It ranked in the same class as schools like the University of Michigan and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
And when it came to academics, Miami of Ohio was considered miles ahead of the state flagship school, Ohio State.
But times have changed. Ohio State has moved beyond its open-admissions days of the 1970s and 1980s and become a prestigious and selective university in its own right.
As a result, more highly touted in-state students are heading to tOSU, which has a world-class football and tailgating scene and is located in a growing, thriving metropolitan area, and eschewing Miami-Ohio and Oxford.
The result is that Miami doesn’t carry the cachet it once did. But just because the reputation has slipped a bit doesn’t mean the academics have. You can still get a world-class education at Miami-Ohio, and it still ranks solidly as the #2 academic school in the MAC.
#3: Ohio University
- Location: Athens, OH
- U.S. News ranking: #178 in National Universities
- Acceptance rate: 87%
- Middle 50% SAT range: 1,080-1,270
- Middle 50% ACT range: 22-27
- Graduation rate: 66%
Ohio University comes in as a solid third on our list. In terms of academic standards as measured by incoming students’ SAT and ACT scores and by graduation rate, there’s a huge drop between Buffalo and Miami of Ohio in the first two positions and Ohio at the number three position.
But Ohio University is a much better academic institution than the numbers indicate at first glance. Its graduation rate is unimpressive, but the two-thirds of students who manage to get a degree within six years undergo a rigorous education and have good outcomes in terms of starting salaries and grad school acceptance rates.
Ohio University also has specific programs that rank among the best in the country, most notably its Scripps School of Journalism, considered on the same level as schools like Missouri, Arizona State (Cronkite School of Journalism), and Syracuse (Newhouse School of Journalism).
#4: Ball State University
- Location: Muncie, IN
- U.S. News ranking: #216 in National Universities
- Acceptance rate: 69%
- Middle 50% SAT range: 1,090-1,260
- Middle 50% ACT range: 23-28
- Graduation rate: 66%
Ball State University has middling incoming student stats, and fewer than two-thirds of students graduate within six years. But, like Ohio University, Ball State delivers a solid education to the students who apply themselves to their studies.
Because Ball State is smaller than a typical state university, it has more of a liberal arts college feel than a huge state school feel. But you won’t pay liberal arts college prices to get a degree there, especially if you went to high school in Indiana. Ball State is one of the easiest schools in the Midwest on the pocketbook.
Ball State has particularly well-regarded programs in broadcast journalism and communications. Just ask one of its most famous alums who was pretty well known for broadcasting and communicating: David Letterman!
#5: Kent State University
- Location: Kent, OH
- U.S. News ranking: #227 in National Universities
- Acceptance rate: 88%
- Middle 50% SAT range: 1,000-1,210
- Middle 50% ACT range: 18-25
- Graduation rate: 65%
Kent State is a regional state school in Ohio with a growing national reputation. Its U.S. News rank as of 2024 is just outside of the top 200, but it has a number of individual majors and programs that rank in the top 100, including nursing, education, psychology, and physics.
As many people who grew up and went to high school in Ohio know, a ton of great teachers come out of Kent State. The university has top-notch bachelor’s and master’s programs in education.
Kent State’s location a few miles northeast of Akron and less than an hour southeast of Cleveland puts it in an ideal spot to position students for internships and jobs.
#6: Central Michigan University
- Location: Mount Pleasant, MI
- U.S. News ranking: #260 in National Universities
- Acceptance rate: 79%
- Middle 50% SAT range: 980-1,220
- Middle 50% ACT range: 21-27
- Graduation rate: 61%
Central Michigan University in Mount Pleasant is the highest-ranked of the directional Michigan universities. It also has the most competitive sports programs year in and year out, so if you want to attend a MAC school but still get the kind of game day experience you might find in the Big Ten, CMU is worth a look. One of the top college football coaches in the country, Brian Kelly, now at LSU and formerly at Notre Dame, got his start at CMU.
Central Michigan doesn’t require world-beating stats to get in, but it has a respectable graduation rate for a regional state school with a heavy commuter population, and the university is known for its academic rigor, small class sizes, and dedicated professors.
#7: Bowling Green State University
- Location: Bowling Green, OH
- U.S. News ranking: #280 in National Universities
- Acceptance rate: 79%
- Middle 50% SAT range: 990-1,200
- Middle 50% ACT range: 20-25
- Graduation rate: 61%
Bowling Green State University has a regional feel, and a large percentage of its students come from the northwest quadrant of Ohio. But it isn’t a commuter school at all: more than 85% of freshmen and 25% of upperclassmen live on campus.
As schools like Ohio State become even more competitive, attracting top students from Ohio who in years past might have gone out of state or to a private university, regional campuses like Bowling Green stand to benefit. And you can already see it happening, as the acceptance rate is starting to creep down and the incoming test score ranges starting to rise.
That said, BGSU is still held back by its low graduation rate. Just over 60% of students graduate within six years. For that reason, we put Bowling Green seventh on our list.
#8: Western Michigan University
- Location: Kalamazoo, MI
- U.S. News ranking: #304 in National Universities
- Acceptance rate: 85%
- Middle 50% SAT range: 990-1,220
- Middle 50% ACT range: 19-27
- Graduation rate: 56%
Western Michigan is a directional state university in Michigan that is growing in popularity and academic stature. It arguably has the best location of any of the three main Michigan directionals (Western, Eastern, and Central), particularly for students who want a campus in a walkable city with nightlife and cultural attractions.
Western’s campus in Kalamazoo offers easy access to downtown, which is full of restaurants, bars, museums, and shopping. The school is also adjacent to Kalamazoo College, a liberal arts college known for its high academic standards and rigorous curriculum.
Because the two schools are both in such close proximity to downtown Kalamazoo, it gives the small city a true college town feel, especially within the urban core.
As far as academics, Western offers a solid curriculum and an impressive array of tenured faculty, but it could stand to bring up its graduation rate. It is making strides in that direction, but as of the early 2020s, only 56% of students graduate within six years.
#9: Northern Illinois University
- Location: DeKalb, IL
- U.S. News ranking: #269 in National Universities
- Acceptance rate: 71%
- Middle 50% SAT range: 900-1,140
- Middle 50% ACT range: 19-25
- Graduation rate: 50%
Northern Illinois University is a regional state school located about 15 miles west of where the sprawling Chicago metro area begins. It’s far enough away from the city to have a true college town vibe, but close enough that students can escape the bubble pretty easily.
NIU has a sizable commuter population, as well as a high percentage of adult learners. These two factors contribute to the school’s low graduation rate. Commuters, part-time students, and adult learners juggling a full-time job with their schoolwork have higher dropout rates for a number of reasons: financial, time restraints, and so on.
But students who stick it out until graduation receive a solid education and have plenty of career opportunities thanks to the school’s proximity to Chicago.
#10: University of Toledo
- Location: Toledo, OH
- U.S. News ranking: #280 in National Universities
- Acceptance rate: 92%
- Middle 50% SAT range: 1,060-1,280
- Middle 50% ACT range: 21-28
- Graduation rate: 54%
The University of Toledo is known as a commuter school, and its low graduation rate and low percentage of freshmen living on campus (just under 50%) indicate that the reputation is accurate.
But Toledo also has one of the state’s best honors programs. Jesup Scott Honors College students at Toledo graduate at much higher rates, usually live on campus for at least their first year, and have access to small class sizes and close mentorship relationships with their professors.
Also, the honors housing at Toledo is some of the nicest of any state school in Ohio. Expect to have a single room in an air-conditioned, recently updated building. In addition, you’ll find that the honors program fosters a close-knit community and strong camaraderie.
#11: Eastern Michigan University
- Location: Ypsilanti, MI
- U.S. News ranking: #376 in National Universities
- Acceptance rate: 83%
- Middle 50% SAT range: 930-1,180
- Middle 50% ACT range: 18-25
- Graduation rate: 47%
Eastern Michigan University is a solid directional school with a nice campus in a quaint college town. It has a dedicated faculty, many of whom have terminal degrees in their respective fields.
The reasons it comes in so low on our list are, one, it has an extremely low graduation rate. Two, its incoming student stats are fairly low as well. Three, its location doesn’t yield the best results for internships and jobs compared to, say, Toledo’s location in a small-to-mid-sized metro area.
All that said, you can get a fine education at EMU if you apply yourself.
#12: University of Akron
- Location: Akron, OH
- U.S. News ranking: #361 in National Universities
- Acceptance rate: 83%
- Middle 50% SAT range: 980-1,230
- Middle 50% ACT range: 18-25
- Graduation rate: 51%
Unfortunately, one school has to come in last on each of these conference academic ranking lists we do, and for the MAC, it’s the University of Akron. It doesn’t mean Akron isn’t a fine school, because it is. It just means that based on the metrics we use to rank each school against its conference peers, Akron graded out slightly below all the others.
Namely, the school has a low graduation rate, middling test score ranges, and is in a part of Ohio that has hollowed out in recent years rather than grown, making it not the most ideal place to secure lucrative jobs and internships.
