Best colleges in the U.S.

Rice University is a private institution in Houston, Texas that has a total undergraduate enrollment of about 7,000 students. The university has a 300-acre campus that abuts the Houston Zoo and Texas Medical Center. Students take classes that follow a semester-based academic calendar, and the university provides merit and need-based scholarships to most students. 

Rice has a rich academic history including the Cao Center for Asian Studies, the Boniuk Institute, and the Ken Kennedy Institute of Information Technology. Students at Rice can explore Houston’s Museum District, walk along Hermann Park, and take advantage of Houston’s METRORail system which is just across from the main campus. 

Many students benefit from Rice’s small classes and 6:1 student-to-faculty ratio. The university also provides students with over 360 undergraduate and graduate degree options in over 60 academic departments. Outside of the classroom, students interested in media and journalism can participate in a variety of student-led organizations like The Rice Thresher, The Campanile, and KTRU Rice Radio. Notable alumni include pilot Howard Hughes, writer Joyce Carol Oates, and American investor John Doerr.

Cornell University is a private land-grant research university that was founded in 1865 in the suburban college town of Ithaca, New York by Andrew Dickson White and Ezra Cornell. It has a total undergraduate enrollment of about 15,000 students who attend classes on a campus that covers over 4,000 acres. Cornell is on a semester-based academic calendar with tuition and fees for both in-state students and out-of-state students that exceeds $55,000, though financial aid is available. 

Cornell University is made up of seven colleges and seven graduate divisions, including competitive hospitality and business programs. The school is known for its robust international network that is fostered in part by two satellite campuses in New York City and Education City, Qatar. 

Cornell University is part of the Ivy League and has affiliations with some of the top academic scholars of the last century. In addition to its strong scholastic traditions, the school is known for its Botanic Gardens and a large portfolio of university-owned and operated land in New York City. Notable alumni include Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, television star Bill Nye, and Christopher Reeve, who was known for being the first actor to play Superman.

Founded in 1740 in downtown Philadelphia, the University of Pennsylvania is a private academic institution with a current undergraduate enrollment of roughly 25,000. The school was initially founded by Benjamin Franklin before the Declaration of Independence was drafted, making it one of only nine universities to be chartered in that era. Penn's tuition and fees total over $55,000 annually, and the school ranks among the top universities in the nation. 

The university is in an urban setting with a historic gothic campus that includes a walled-in student housing complex located just north of the Schuylkill River and blocks from Rittenhouse Square. Classes follow a semester-based academic calendar, and the current student-faculty ratio is 6:1, one of the smallest ratios for a top university in the nation. 

The University of Pennsylvania is home to internationally recognized colleges including the Annenberg School for Communication, The Jerome Fisher Program in Management and Technology, and the Wharton School of Business. UPenn has academic partnerships worldwide with schools such as King’s College London, the University of Barcelona, and even in Australia at the University of Queensland. During their stay at UPenn, students can participate in a range of social clubs like the famous Penn Glee Club, or work at The Daily Pennsylvanian, the student-run newspaper. Notable alumni include former President of the United States Donald Trump, author Noam Chomsky, and architect of the Louvre Pyramid, I.M. Pei.

Brown University is a private Ivy League institution that was founded in 1764 in the city of Providence, Rhode Island. It has a total undergraduate enrollment of about 9,000 students, all of whom attend classes on a campus that covers over 140 acres. Brown is on a trimester academic calendar and ranks among one of the most expensive schools in the country, though many students secure financial aid. 

Brown has a rich academic history and operates the longest-serving Ivy engineering program. The school is known for its unique curriculum which eliminated the need for core class requirements and traditional grading systems, allowing students to choose their own path to graduation without the need for general education classes. 

Brown is not the only school in Providence with the neighboring Rhode Island School of Design just west of the campus. Students at Brown enjoy the option to register for classes at RISD and vice-versa, allowing them to take up to four classes at the other school. Along with its strong writing and international affairs programs, the school also hosts the Joukowsky Institute for Archeology and the Ancient World, which provides classes in Egyptology, Mesopotamia, and Assyriology. Notable alumni include media and buffalo magnate Ted Turner, actor John Krasinski, and politician Andrew Yang.

Northwestern University, or Northwestern, is a private school founded in 1851. Today the university has an undergraduate enrollment of just over 20,000 students. Built in suburban Chicago in the lakeside town of Evanston, Northwestern’s campus is on the smaller side with just under 250 acres along with a 25-acre campus in downtown Chicago. Students at Northwestern take classes on a semester-based academic calendar, and tuition for in-state students is roughly $55,000, just below the cost of attendance at a local rival, the University of Chicago. Northwestern tends to offer small undergraduate classes under 20 students and boasts a graduation rate that exceeds 90%. 

Northwestern provides a variety of academic programs depending on student interest and is known nationally for its Theatre program and Kellogg School of Management. Northwestern also has high-ranking departments including the Pritzker School of Law, the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences, and the McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science. 

Graduates from Northwestern University have gone on to found many worldwide brands and organizations including Guggenheim Partners, Aon Corporation, and Groupon. During their time at school, students have the opportunity to explore downtown Chicago and eat at local Italian restaurant Uno’s for Chicago deep-dish pizza or see the Cubs play at Wrigley Field. Notable alumni include comedians Seth Meyers and Stephan Colbert, writer George R.R. Martin, and ESPN commentator Michael Wilbon.

Duke University is a private university founded in 1892 in Durham, North Carolina by Quaker and Methodist groups in the region. Duke gets its name from the tobacco and electrical magnate Washington Duke, who worked with Julian S. Carr in the late 1890s to build the school’s first campus, known locally as East Campus. The university's West Campus was later constructed in the early 1930s in a gothic and Georgian style. Duke has 12 schools and undergraduate programs including the Pratt School of Engineering, Duke Kunshan, and the Trinity College of Arts and Sciences. 

Duke has a total undergraduate enrollment of around 15,000 students that take classes according to a semester-based academic calendar. Prospective students should note that tuition is well over $50,000 with an acceptance rate of just under 10%, making it one of the hardest, most costly schools in the U.S. 

Duke has a history of academic research and has annual budgets that exceed $1 billion, with strong biomedical funding from groups like the NIH. The graduation rate at Duke is an impressive 94.5%, thanks in part to the student-to-faculty ratio of 8:1 as well as strong financial aid packages. The Duke Blue Devils are known globally for their success in NCAA men’s basketball, with their coach, known as Coach K, winning 5 national championships during his tenure at the school. Notable alumni include retired Representative Ron Paul, news anchor Judy Woodruff, and billionaire Melinda French.