List of Best Colleges
For many students and parents, the first stop in finding the perfect university is the college ranking publication. There are many different lists to choose from, each using different criteria to make their ranking determination. To help you get started, the top ten list of best colleges from US News & World Report and Forbes are listed below.
US News & World Report List of Best Colleges
1. Harvard University
2. Princeton University
3. Yale University
4. Columbia University
5. (tie) Stanford University
5. (tie) University of Pennsylvania
7. (tie) California Institute of Technology
7. (tie) Massachusetts Institute of Technology
9. (tie) Dartmouth College
9. (tie) Duke University
9. (tie) University of Chicago
Forbes List of Best Colleges
1. Centre College
2. Rice University
3. United States Naval Academy
4. Washington and Lee University
5. Duke University
6. Vanderbilt University
7. University Of Virginia
8. College of William and Mary
9. Rhodes College
10. Davidson College
Earn Your Degree Online
Want to earn your degree, but aren’t sure you have the time required due to work and family commitments? Earning your degree online is another option… Currently, the top 2 universities offering degrees online are Florida Tech (Tier 1 ranked university by U.S. News) and Walden University.
Why the drastic difference in the listings?
As stated previously, the different ranking publications use different criteria when determining the top schools. Forbes bases their list on the experiences of the students by using general categories like student satisfaction, postgraduate success, and four year graduation rate. They use student and scholarly assessments to gather information.
US News & World Report, on the other hand, uses criteria to determine academic excellence. These include retention, graduation rate, student selectivity, and faculty resources. In the event of a tie, the schools receiving the same score are listed at the same rank in alphabetical order.