Washington DC - The 2025 Best Colleges Rankings have been released, with only minor changes to the methodology compared to last year. This year's adjustments include the removal of first-generation graduation rates as factors, which led to little fluctuation among top-ranked colleges. Most schools remained consistent, with nearly 78.1% of the almost 1,500 institutions submitting their data in 2024, slightly down from last year.
The top schools for National Universities and National Liberal Arts Colleges remained largely stable. Princeton University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Harvard University lead the National Universities, while Williams College and Amherst College top the National Liberal Arts Colleges rankings. Despite minor shifts, no new universities entered the top 10, although Brown University dropped to 13th, and the University of Pennsylvania fell to 10th.
There were some notable changes further down the list. Florida International University broke into the top 100, and Howard University saw a significant rise to tie at 86th. However, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and the University of Connecticut experienced drops in their rankings.
Among the Regional Universities, The College of New Jersey, Butler University, and California Polytechnic State University maintained strong positions, while The Citadel took over the top spot in the South. The U.S. Coast Guard Academy, High Point University, and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University remained the top Regional Colleges in their respective regions.
Additional rankings include Best Value Schools, Top Public Schools, and Best Colleges for Veterans. The University of California—Los Angeles claimed the top spot for public National Universities, followed by the University of California, Berkeley, and the University of Michigan—Ann Arbor. Students can use tools like the U.S. News College Compass and the Scholarship Finder to explore further data.
