Stacker reviewed data from Niche to compile a list of the best public colleges in North Dakota. Niche's methodology rates academic quality as the most important—which includes the quality of professors, the college's acceptance and graduation rates, and how much they spend on research. Next in Niche's importance is value—which includes the average cost students pay after financial aid is factored in, the average loan amount students take out each year, and metrics about graduates' earnings and ability to repay student debt.Â