US News & World Report released its annual ranking of the nation’s top colleges and universities on Monday.
US News calculates its rank based on six categories, each weighted differently: Student Achievement (40%), Faculty Resources (20%), Expert Reviews (20%), Financial Resources (10%), Excellence from students (7%) and donations from alumni (3%).
US News changed its methodology slightly this year to accommodate changes in standardized testing requirements. Previously, if less than 75% of students entering a given school submitted standardized test scores, US News reduced the importance of standardized test scores to 15% of the school’s overall ranking. This year, because so many schools have adopted voluntary testing policies in response to the coronavirus pandemic, US News has lowered the limit by 50%.
This year’s top universities have a lot in common. They are all prestigious schools with large donations and four of the top five are members of the Ivy League. They are also all incredibly difficult, with the students admitted having good high school results and high standardized test scores.
Princeton University maintained its position as the top-ranked university in the country, along with a high student retention rate, as well as a student-to-faculty ratio of just four students for each faculty member. It is estimated that 98% of Princeton students graduate within six years, and most importantly, low-income Princeton students who receive Pell Scholarships also graduate at the same rate.
In the last season of admissions, Princeton offered admission to 1,498 students for the class of 2025, of which 22% would be first-generation students, a 17% increase from the previous year.
Here are the 5 best universities of 2022, according to US News – and what it takes to get into them.
1. Princeton University
Blair Hall at Princeton University
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Location: Princeton, New Jersey
Average SAT scores: 1450-1570
Share of first-year students in the top 10% of the high school class: 89%
Acceptance rate: 6%
2. Columbia University (tie)
Columbia university
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Location: New York, New York
Average SAT scores: 1470-1570
Share of first year students in the top 10% of their high school class: 96%
Acceptance rate: 6%
2. Harvard University (tie)
Larger library at Harvard University
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Location: Cambridge, Massachusetts
Average SAT scores: 1460-1580
Share of first year students in the top 10% of their high school class: 94%
Acceptance rate: 5%
2. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (tie)
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts
(Photo: Bloomberg / Getty Images)
Location: Cambridge, Massachusetts
Average SAT scores: 1510-1580
Share of first-year students in the top 10% of their high school class: 100%
Acceptance rate: 7%
5. Yale University
Yale University
Yana Paskova / Stringer (Getty Images)
Location: New Haven, Connecticut
Average SAT scores: 1460-1580
Share of first year students in the top 10% of their high school class: 94%
Acceptance rate: 7%
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