20 Beautiful College Campuses

Located about 45 miles west of Chicago, Aurora University's 37-acre campus features the landmark Eckhart Hall, which houses the school's administration offices and its carillon, and is on the National Register of Historic Places. Opened in 1912, it's named after donor and Civil War veteran Charles E. Eckhart, who specified that the hall and all major buildings on campus feature distinctive red tile roofs. AU's formal entrance is lined with more than 50 Greenspire linden trees and more than 140 Dakota Pinnacle Asian birch trees. The campus was recognized for its beauty by the Professional Grounds Management Society, winning the 2023 grand honor in the small university and college grounds category for schools with 200 acres or fewer.

U.S. News rank: 303, National Universities

Baylor University features many buildings with Georgian-style architecture, giving it a uniform look across campus. Founded in 1845, the campus sits in the heart of Waco in central Texas. Pat Neff Hall, with its 23.5-karat golden cupola, stands as the the most iconic landmark. The campus features both exterior and interior beauty, as many buildings showcase ornate copper ceilings and other intricate designs. Waco Creek runs through the campus and is a picturesque and relaxing spot for students.

U.S. News rank: 93 (tie), National Universities

Founded in 1831, Denison University sits on 850 acres in Granville. The hilltop campus, designed by the Frederick Law Olmsted landscape architecture firm, has been recognized by the Professional Grounds Management Society with several national awards for its beauty and sustainable maintenance practices, including the inaugural Environmental Green Star Award in 2019, which recognizes grounds maintained with a high degree of excellence, and two grand honors in the small university college grounds category.

U.S. News rank: 39 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges

Spanning nearly 8,700 acres in Durham, the Duke University campus was also recognized by the PGMS for its landscaping and beauty. The Duke Forest is home to more than 900 species of plants, including more than 100 species of trees, and more than 7,000 acres of the forest are dedicated to research and environmental study. The campus also features an oak tree estimated to be about 350 years old. Duke's East Campus features Georgian architecture while the West Campus features Gothic architecture and the towering Duke Chapel, which features 77 stained glass windows, ribbed vaults and a 50-bell carillon.

U.S. News rank: 7 (tie), National Universities

Flagler College in St. Augustine traces its campus roots to 1888, when the Hotel Ponce De León was built by industrialist Henry Flagler, co-founder of the Standard Oil Company. The hotel, which features Spanish Renaissance style architecture with a tan stucco facade and red tile roofing, was an early project of architects John Carrère and Thomas Hastings, who designed the House and Senate office buildings in Washington, D.C., according to the school's website. The interior features stained glass windows by Louis Comfort Tiffany. In 1968, Flagler College was established, with the hotel serving as its main campus building.

U.S. News rank: 3 (tie), Regional Colleges South

A haven amid bustling traffic and skyscrapers in the heart of Atlanta, Georgia Institute of Technology's main campus spans more than 400 wooded acres and has been recognized by various organizations for its beauty. In 2023, the PGMS awarded Georgia Tech its grand honor for urban university grounds as well as its sustainability award. Across the campus, nearly 160 buildings span Collegiate Gothic, Late Modern and Postmodern architectural styles.

U.S. News rank: 33 (tie), National Universities

The oldest university in the U.S., Harvard University's architecture offers more than a glimpse into the past. Roughly 660 tight-knit buildings make up the Boston-area campus, showcasing Romanesque, Colonial Revival, Federal, High Victorian Gothic, Greek Revival, Collegiate Gothic, Art Deco and modernist architecture. "A walker can sample almost 300 years of innovative designs in an easy stroll," The Harvard Gazette notes. Massachusetts Hall, built in early Georgian style in 1720, is the oldest building on campus and served as an army barrack during the Revolutionary War. Today it houses a freshman dormitory and the office of Harvard's president.

U.S. News rank: 3 (tie), National Universities

Nearly every building on the Indiana University—Bloomington campus is made from local limestone, and the campus features about eight different styles of architecture. Many of the school's first buildings were built in Collegiate Gothic style – a modified version of High Victorian Gothic – though other buildings feature styles such as Romanesque, Art Deco and Modern, according to the school's website. The building design creates a uniform look and feel as students stroll the campus, often passing through the Sample Gates, which were built in 1987 and now serve as the campus' iconic entrance.

U.S. News rank: 73 (tie), National Universities

The oldest private college in Ohio, Kenyon College was founded in 1824. Its Gothic-inspired buildings sprawl across a 1,000-acre rural campus on a hilltop surrounded by wooded areas in the central Ohio city of Gambier. Rosse Hall, built between 1829 and 1845 in Greek Revival style, is Kenyon College's first chapel, according to the Society of Architectural Historians. A fire destroyed it in 1897, and the building was later converted to a gymnasium, then renovated in 1975 to resemble its original form. It's now a 600-seat concert and lecture hall.

U.S. News rank: 39 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges

Sometimes a school's geographic location can give the campus a leg up. One school that can stake that claim is Pepperdine University. Formed in 1937 and situated atop a cliff overlooking the Pacific Ocean in Malibu, Pepperdine gives students and faculty a view most college students don't get. The university's buildings "were designed to complement the ocean-side setting by using a modern interpretation of the Mediterranean Revival style," according to the Los Angeles Conservancy.

U.S. News rank: 76 (tie), National Universities

Salve Regina University in Newport is home to seven mansions built during the Gilded Age, a time of remarkable innovation and extravagance which roughly spanned from 1877 to 1896. The 80-acre campus, situated at the Atlantic Ocean, also features "more than 20 historic structures that have been sensitively adapted to meet University needs while also preserving their status as treasures of the 19th and early 20th centuries," according to the school's website.

U.S. News rank: 27 (tie), Regional Universities North

Like many universities in California, San Diego State University features Mission-style buildings with white stucco facades and red tile roofs that blend with the city's architecture. The campus design plays off its sunny environment, Hyman says, with open outdoor corridors lined with palm trees, flower gardens and buildings with large windows. Hyman says SDSU uses "value-sensitive design," which aims to accommodate the values of those it seeks to attract. One way it does that is by providing skateboard-specific lanes for skaters to get across campus. "So it's not just the beauty, it's the character that's displayed in the values," Hyman says. "Whether on a conscious or unconscious level, that impacts student perception."

U.S. News rank: 105 (tie), National Universities

Another picturesque California college setting can be found at Stanford University in Palo Alto, just south of San Francisco. Featuring a blend of Romanesque and Mission Revival architecture known as Richardsonian Romanesque, the general plan for the campus' ambitious and architecturally brilliant design was conceived in 1886 by renowned landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted, who designed Central Park in New York City, according to the school's website. Founded in 1885, Stanford spans nearly 13 square miles and is full of grassy fields, eucalyptus groves and rolling hills.

U.S. News rank: 3 (tie), National Universities

Located southwest of Philadelphia, Swarthmore College is centered around the campus' first building, Parrish Hall, a Victorian-era building constructed in 1868. The Scott Arboretum is a popular spot to visit, featuring gardens of hydrangeas, lilacs, tree peonies and many other trees and shrubs, according to the arboretum's website. The campus also features an outdoor amphitheater with multiple levels of lawn-covered stone tiers shaded by tulip trees. Throughout the school’s 425 acres are many wooded areas and walking trails.

U.S. News rank: 4 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges

Founded in 1873, the campus of Texas Christian University features a mix of historic and contemporary buildings. One landmark on the Fort Worth-based campus is Frog Fountain, which consists of four flutes topped with stylized lotus leaves – one for each class of students, with the shortest symbolizing freshmen and the tallest representing seniors. The water flowing from flute to flute represents the sharing of knowledge from class to class. TCU won a 2023 PGMS award and in 2024 was named a Tree Campus Higher Education Institution by the Arbor Day Foundation for the eighth consecutive year, recognizing commitment to caring for the university's trees.

U.S. News rank: 98 (tie), National Universities

As visually appealing as the campus itself may be, with its sandstone buildings and tile roofs in a romantic Italianate style, perhaps one of the biggest perks of attending the University of Colorado Boulder is the view of the Rocky Mountains in the distance. Fans attending evening games at Folsom Field are often greeted with a sunset just behind the mountains, creating a picturesque setting for college football. Those with outdoor hobbies like hiking or skiing can feel right at home in Boulder.

U.S. News rank: 105 (tie), National Universities

Inspired by Notre Dame Cathedral in France, many of the buildings on the University of Notre Dame's campus in South Bend are modeled after Gothic architecture. At the center of campus is the 187-foot tall Main Building, with its iconic gold dome. Topped by a 19-foot-tall, 4,000-pound statue of Mary, the current building was built in 1879 after the previous one was destroyed by fire. Originally a center for teaching, dining and residences, Main Building today primarily houses offices for administration, though some classrooms remain. The Fighting Irish football team wears golden helmets as a nod to the dome.

U.S. News rank: 20, National Universities

Founded in 1791, the University of Vermont is the fifth-oldest university in New England. Its 460-acre campus features buildings constructed in various architectural styles. The Old Mill – home for the economics, English, geography and political science departments – is one of the oldest buildings on campus. The university's first college building once occupied that site but was destroyed by fire in 1824, according to the school's website. The campus sits near Lake Champlain in the middle of Burlington, in northwest Vermont. Snow typically covers the campus in colder months, while vibrant and colorful trees line the campus in the fall.

U.S. News rank: 133 (tie), National Universities

Founded by former U.S. President Thomas Jefferson in 1819, the University of Virginia's iconic red brick buildings and white columns were inspired by Greco-Roman architecture and Italian Renaissance architect Andrea Palladia, according to the Cultural Landscape Foundation, a nonprofit landscape heritage advocacy and education organization. Anchored by the famous Rotunda, Jefferson's Academical Village has been named a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The university’s Charlottesville campus also features examples of postmodernist architecture.

U.S. News Rank: 24 (tie), National Universities

Situated next to Lake Washington in Seattle, the University of Washington gives students a big-city experience along with a taste of just about everything associated with the Pacific Northwest – lush greenery next to a large body of water with views of mountains in the distance. From various spots on campus, particularly Rainier Vista, you can view Mt. Rainier to the south. Each spring, 30 blossoming Yoshino cherry trees line the liberal arts quadrangle with a bright shade of pink. Other green retreats include the rhododendron- and azalea-filled Greig Garden where, University of Washington Magazine notes, "they 'unpaved' a parking lot and put up Paradise."

U.S. News rank: 40 (tie), National Universities

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