Higher education institutions in Maine
Bowdoin College's Massachusetts Hall
The U.S. state of Maine has twenty-nine accredited, degree-granting institutions of higher learning. The state's land-grant university and only research university is the University of Maine in Orono. It is the flagship of the University of Maine System, which also has institutions in Augusta, Portland/Gorham/Lewiston, Farmington, Fort Kent, Machias, and Presque Isle.[1] Maine's public education system also includes the Maine Community College System, comprising seven schools, and the Maine Maritime Academy.
The state's three oldest institutions of higher education are Bowdoin College (founded in 1794), Colby College (1813), and Bates College (1855). The three colleges collectively form the Colby-Bates-Bowdoin Consortium and are ranked among the best colleges in the United States; often placing in the top 10 percent of all liberal arts colleges.[2][3][4]
The largest institution in the state is the public University of Maine, with 12,231 students. The smallest, with 43 students, is Maine Media College. The University of Maine is home to the state's only NCAA Division I athletic program, the Maine Black Bears. Maine also hosts numerous private baccalaureate colleges such as Husson University, Unity Environmental University, and Thomas College. There is only one medical school in the state, the University of New England's College of Osteopathic Medicine, and only one law school, the University of Maine School of Law.
Universities and colleges in Maine blue=public; green=private
| School
|
Location(s)
|
Control
|
Type[a]
|
Enrollment[5] (Fall 2024)
|
Founded
|
Athletic Conference
|
| University of Maine
|
Orono
|
Public
|
Research university
|
10,878
|
1865
|
AmEast
(NCAA D-I)
|
| Unity Environmental University
|
New Gloucester and Unity
|
Private
|
Masters university
|
9,154
|
1965
|
N/A
|
| Southern Maine Community College
|
South Portland and Brunswick
|
Public
|
Associates college
|
7,900
|
1946[6]
|
YSCC
(USCAA D-II)
|
| University of New England
|
Biddeford and Portland
|
Private
|
Research university
|
6,573
|
1939
|
CNE
(NCAA D-III)
|
| University of Southern Maine
|
Gorham and Portland
|
Public
|
Masters university
|
6,257
|
1878
|
LEC
(NCAA D-III)
|
| Central Maine Community College
|
Auburn
|
Public
|
Associates college
|
4,754
|
1963[7]
|
YSCC
(USCAA D-II)
|
| Husson University
|
Bangor
|
Private
|
Doctoral university
|
3,133
|
1898
|
CNE
(NCAA D-III)
|
| University of Maine at Augusta
|
Augusta
|
Public
|
Baccalaureate college
|
3,034
|
1965
|
YSCC
(USCAA D-II)
|
| Eastern Maine Community College
|
Bangor
|
Public
|
Associates college
|
2,719
|
1966[8]
|
N/A
|
| Kennebec Valley Community College
|
Fairfield
|
Public
|
Associates college
|
2,489
|
1969[9]
|
Independent
(USCAA D-II)
|
| Colby College
|
Waterville
|
Private
|
Baccalaureate college
|
2,299
|
1813[10]
|
NESCAC
(NCAA D-III)
|
| York County Community College
|
Wells
|
Public
|
Associates college
|
1,875
|
1994[11]
|
YSCC
(USCAA D-II)
|
| Bowdoin College
|
Brunswick
|
Private
|
Baccalaureate college
|
1,850
|
1794
|
NESCAC
(NCAA D-III)
|
| Bates College
|
Lewiston
|
Private
|
Baccalaureate college
|
1,753
|
1855
|
NESCAC
(NCAA D-III)
|
| Thomas College
|
Waterville
|
Private
|
Masters university
|
1,737
|
1894
|
NAC
(NCAA D-III)
|
| University of Maine at Farmington
|
Farmington
|
Public
|
Baccalaureate college
|
1,524
|
1863
|
NAC
(NCAA D-III)
|
| University of Maine at Presque Isle
|
Presque Isle
|
Public
|
Baccalaureate college
|
1,509
|
1903
|
NAC
(NCAA D-III)
|
| Saint Joseph's College of Maine
|
Standish
|
Private
|
Masters university
|
1,478
|
1912
|
GNAC
(NCAA D-III)
|
| Maine Maritime Academy
|
Castine
|
Public
|
Baccalaureate college
|
897
|
1941
|
CNE
(NCAA D-III)
|
| Northern Maine Community College
|
Presque Isle
|
Public
|
Associates college
|
808
|
1961[12]
|
N/A
|
| Washington County Community College
|
Calais
|
Public
|
Associates college
|
805
|
1969[13]
|
Independent
(USCAA D-II)
|
| University of Maine at Fort Kent
|
Fort Kent
|
Public
|
Baccalaureate college
|
770
|
1878
|
Independent
(USCAA D-II)
|
| Maine College of Art & Design
|
Portland
|
Private
|
Special-focus institution
|
436
|
1882
|
N/A
|
| Beal University
|
Bangor
|
Private (for-profit)
|
Associates college
|
400
|
1891[14]
|
N/A
|
| College of the Atlantic
|
Bar Harbor
|
Private
|
Baccalaureate college
|
380
|
1969
|
N/A
|
| University of Maine at Machias
|
Machias
|
Public
|
Baccalaureate college
|
293
|
1909
|
N/A
|
| University of Maine School of Law
|
Portland
|
Public
|
Special-focus institution
|
277
|
1962
|
N/A
|
| Maine College of Health Professions
|
Lewiston
|
Private
|
Special-focus institution
|
237
|
1891[15]
|
N/A
|
| Institute for Doctoral Studies in the Visual Arts
|
Portland
|
Private
|
Masters college
|
92
|
2007[16]
|
N/A
|
| New England Bible College and Seminary
|
Bangor
|
Private
|
Seminary
|
55
|
1959
|
N/A
|
| The Landing School
|
Arundel
|
Private
|
Special-focus institution
|
46
|
1978[17]
|
N/A
|
| Maine Media College
|
Rockport
|
Private
|
Special-focus institution
|
43
|
1973
|
N/A
|
Defunct institutions
[edit]
Out-of-state institutions
[edit]
Unaccredited institutions
[edit]
One school is recognized by the state as a degree-granting institution, but has not been accredited by a recognized accrediting body:[35]
- General
- Specific
- ^ "About UMaine". Umaine.edu. Retrieved July 18, 2016.
- ^ "National Liberal Arts College Rankings | Top Liberal Arts Colleges | US News Best Colleges". colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com. Archived from the original on October 12, 2016. Retrieved August 12, 2016.
- ^ "College Guide Rankings 2015 – Liberal Arts Colleges". Washington Monthly. Retrieved August 12, 2016.
- ^ "America's Top Colleges". Forbes. Retrieved August 12, 2016.
- ^ "College Navigator - Maine". nces.ed.gov. Retrieved November 14, 2024.
- ^ Southern Maine Community College. "History of SMCC". Retrieved September 29, 2007.
- ^ Central Maine Community College. "About CM". Archived from the original on May 8, 2008. Retrieved September 29, 2007.
- ^ Eastern Maine Community College. "Our History". Archived from the original on July 2, 2007. Retrieved September 29, 2007.
- ^
- ^ "About". Retrieved August 19, 2016.
- ^
- ^ Northern Maine Community College. "About NMCC". Archived from the original on October 23, 2007. Retrieved September 29, 2007.
- ^ [permanent dead link]
- ^ Beal University. "Course Catalog". p. 5. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 9, 2008. Retrieved March 27, 2023.
- ^ "History of the College". Maine College of Health Professions. Retrieved June 9, 2016.
- ^ Wunsch, Oliver (September 1, 2010). "Do artists need PhDs?". Art21. Retrieved February 21, 2018.
- ^ The Landing School. "History". Retrieved July 14, 2021.
- ^ "About". The BTS Center. Retrieved August 12, 2016.
- ^ "Bliss College on Lisbon Street, Lewiston". Retrieved August 19, 2016.
- ^ Vegh, Steven G. (August 10, 1999). "Andover buys Casco Bay College". Portland Press Herald. ProQuest 276912665.
- ^ "Casco Bay College advertisement". Burlington Free Press. July 7, 1986 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Beveridge, Pam (January 18, 2012). "Heirlooms Reunited: Eastern State Normal School at Castine, Maine - 1881 Catalog/Names". Heirlooms Reunited. Retrieved August 19, 2016.
- ^ "Campus Descriptions - Gorham | Special Collections | University of Southern Maine". usm.maine.edu. Retrieved August 19, 2016.
- ^ "Saco school is among affiliates of Catholic U". Biddeford-Saco Journal. May 5, 1962 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Daigle, Laurel J. (January 1, 2009). Fort Kent. Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 9780738563831.
- ^ Robert Crichton (January 1, 1959). The Great Impostor. RandomHouse.
- ^ Chmelecki, Lisa (August 27, 2003). "Questions left at Mid-State". Sun Journal. Lewiston, Maine. Retrieved February 21, 2018.
- ^ www.dawnsweb.net. "Nasson College Alumni Association: History". www.nasson.org. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
- ^ Burnham, Emily (September 26, 2008). "Rite of fall: Bangor Symphony Orchestra kicks off new season Sunday". Bangor Daily News. ProQuest 414357791.
- ^ "Several new assignments made by Oblates of Mary". The Bangor Daily News. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
- ^ "America's Lost Colleges". America's Lost Colleges. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
- ^ "Maine College of Art Announces Acquisition of Salt Institute of Documentary Studies". Maine College of Art. Retrieved May 14, 2020.
- ^ Grunewald, Will (March 30, 2021). "Can the Roux Institute Turn Portland Into a Tech Hub?". Down East Magazine. Retrieved August 9, 2023.
- ^ "Medical Students - Maine Track Program | MaineHealth". www.mainehealth.org. Retrieved May 6, 2024.
- ^ "Maine Degree Granting". Maine Department of Education. Retrieved July 14, 2021.