Last Updated on January 17, 2023
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best schools in united states
Public universities deliver the most outstanding education to the broadest range of students at the most affordable price. That’s the message of Forbes’ 2021 ranking of top colleges. Using a new methodology that counts low-income student outcomes and adds a giant federal database to Forbes’ tally of graduate earnings, for the first time ever, Forbes has ranked a public school, the University of California at Berkeley, in the No. 1 spot. Harvard, unseated from first place, is a distant No. 7. There are five other publics in the top 25 including three UCs, the University of Michigan and the University of Florida. Forbes put the list together in consultation with higher ed consultant Michael Itzkowitz. See here for a complete methodology, here for a story about what makes the University of California great and here for a piece about the weirdest year in college sports.
America’s Top Colleges List
Filter list by:
Overall
State
public/private
School Size
Campus Setting
Rank
Name
State
Type
Av. Grant Aid
Av. Debt
Median 10-year Salary
America’s Top Colleges 2021: For The First Time A Public School Is Number One
After spending the pandemic year rethinking the way we evaluate the country’s finest schools, low-cost public universities surged up our ranking, grabbing six of the top 25 spots.
1.
University of California, Berkeley
CA
Public
$19,126
$6,000
$138,800
One of the top public universities in the country, UC Berkeley has a rich tradition of leading technological and social change.
Berkeley’s faculty has had a hand in the discovery of Vitamins E and K, the development of the atomic bomb and the creation of the flu vaccine.
AV. GRANT AID
$19,126
2.
Yale University
CT
Private
$55,827
$5,056
$141,300
3.
Princeton University
NJ
Private
$52,188
$3,888
$150,500
4.
Stanford University
CA
Private
$54,808
$8,205
$147,100
5.
Columbia University
NY
Private
$55,071
$10,493
$132,100
6.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
MA
Private
$49,775
$8,568
$158,100
7.
Harvard University
MA
Private
$55,455
$5,770
$147,700
8.
University of California, Los Angeles
CA
Public
$19,595
$5,631
$122,400
9.
University of Pennsylvania
PA
Private
$50,532
$9,413
$142,900
10.
Northwestern University
IL
Private
$48,438
$5,670
$120,300
11.
Dartmouth College
NH
Private
$50,490
$5,412
$141,400
12.
Duke University
NC
Private
$50,719
$6,544
$135,000
13.
Cornell University
NY
Private
$44,955
$7,078
$133,100
14.
Vanderbilt University
TN
Private
$44,291
$8,934
$122,400
15.
University of California, San Diego
CA
Public
$18,237
$6,137
$128,900
Top Colleges 2021 – Inside The Methodology
The nuts and bolts underlying our annual list of the best schools
16.
Amherst College
MA
Private
$57,627
$7,348
$127,100
17.
University of Southern California
CA
Private
$37,217
$6,784
$126,300
18.
Williams College
MA
Private
$55,897
$4,163
$142,300
19.
Pomona College
CA
Private
$53,449
$6,834
$121,900
20.
University of California, Davis
CA
Public
$19,687
$5,368
$119,900
21.
Georgetown University
DC
Private
$45,398
$6,913
$134,500
23.
University of Chicago
IL
Private
$43,836
$9,735
$123,100
30.
University of Virginia
VA
Public
$23,377
$7,904
$125,200
Watch Now: Forbes releases their annual list of America’s Top Colleges 2021
31.
University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
IL
Public
$15,567
$6,481
$117,800
32.
Wellesley College
MA
Private
$52,403
$5,111
$109,300
33.
Washington University in St. Louis
MO
Private
$47,253
$6,170
$118,000
34.
Georgia Institute of Technology
GA
Public
$13,116
$7,015
$137,300
35.
Emory University
GA
Private
$43,560
$6,822
$116,900
36.
Bowdoin College
ME
Private
$46,902
$8,216
$124,400
37.
Johns Hopkins University
MD
Private
$42,902
$5,541
$117,300
38.
Tufts University
MA
Private
$47,191
$6,075
$124,800
39.
University of California, Santa Barbara
CA
Public
$20,253
$6,118
$124,400
40.
California Institute of Technology
CA
Private
$44,646
$6,596
$150,300
41.
University of Notre Dame
IN
Private
$41,252
$7,168
$136,900
42.
University of Maryland, College Park
MD
Public
$9,388
$8,702
$112,800
43.
Swarthmore College
PA
Private
$51,408
$8,986
$141,000
44.
Middlebury College
VT
Private
$48,613
$5,891
$118,400
45.
University of Texas, Austin
TX
Public
$10,724
$4,131
$115,600
The flagship campus of the massive University of California system provides a top-drawer education to a diverse group of students at a fraction of the price of an elite private school.
46.
Claremont McKenna College
CA
Private
$49,354
$4,702
$138,500
47.
University of California, Irvine
CA
Public
$18,934
$5,378
$125,900
48.
Colgate University
NY
Private
$48,772
$7,289
$144,800
49.
Carnegie Mellon University
PA
Private
$41,645
$6,615
$136,500
50.
Texas A&M University, College Station
TX
Public
$10,984
$7,046
$119,000
51.
College of William & Mary
VA
Public
$20,591
$7,734
$115,200
52.
Barnard College
NY
Private
$48,128
$6,169
$119,900
53.
Brigham Young University
UT
Private
$5,164
$5,198
$113,400
54.
Wesleyan University
CT
Private
$50,786
$7,102
$123,600
55.
United States Naval Academy
MD
Public
$152,600
56.
Boston College
MA
Private
$44,700
$4,007
$119,700
57.
Davidson College
NC
Private
$40,880
$8,086
$118,900
58.
California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
CA
Public
$5,867
$5,873
$123,500
59.
University of Wisconsin, Madison
WI
Public
$8,324
$8,094
$105,000
60.
Cooper Union
NY
Private
$34,918
$6,948
$136,100
Public schools stole the show in this year’s Top Colleges list. From UC Berkeley to the military service academies, these 25 schools showcase the best in public higher education.
76.
Northeastern University
MA
Private
$34,094
$8,628
$109,700
77.
Binghamton University, SUNY
NY
Public
$9,398
$7,471
$115,100
78.
University of Rochester
NY
Private
$39,782
$6,976
$116,000
79.
North Carolina State University, Raleigh
NC
Public
$10,351
$6,834
$108,300
80.
New York University
NY
Private
$33,694
$7,956
$124,700
81.
Babson College
MA
Private
$42,103
$9,084
$146,200
82.
Trinity College (CT)
CT
Private
$46,132
$7,236
$116,800
83.
Boston University
MA
Private
$43,022
$10,980
$120,900
84.
University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
MN
Public
$9,334
$8,166
$105,700
85.
California State University, Long Beach
CA
Public
$9,118
$5,417
$104,200
86.
Hamilton College
NY
Private
$40,873
$6,480
$106,000
87.
University of Miami (FL)
FL
Private
$33,931
$7,909
$101,000