National Universities Rankings
Schools in the National Universities category, such as Columbia University and the University of Pennsylvania, offer a full range of undergraduate majors, plus master's and doctoral programs. These colleges also are committed to producing groundbreaking research.
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Princeton University
Princeton, NJ
The ivy-covered campus of Princeton University, a private institution, is located in the quiet town of Princeton, New Jersey. Princeton was the first university to offer a "no loan" policy to financially needy students, giving grants instead of loans to accepted students who need help paying tuition.
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Harvard University
Harvard University
Cambridge, MA
Harvard University is a private institution in Cambridge, Massachusetts, just outside of Boston. This Ivy League school is the oldest higher education institution in the country and has the largest endowment of any school in the world.
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Yale University
Yale University, located in New Haven, Connecticut, offers a small college life with the resources of a major research institution. Yale students are divided into 12 residential colleges that foster a supportive environment for living, learning and socializing.
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Low Memorial Library, a Columbia University Landmark.
Columbia University
New York, NY
Columbia University has three undergraduate schools: Columbia College, The Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS), and the School of General Studies. This Ivy League, private school guarantees students housing for all four years on campus in Manhattan’s Morningside Heights neighborhood in New York City.
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Stanford University. Front entrance with Oval.
Stanford University
Stanford, CA
The sunny campus of Stanford University is located in California’s Bay Area, about 30 miles from San Francisco. The private institution stresses a multidisciplinary combination of teaching, learning, and research, and students have many opportunities to get involved in research projects.
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A mix of historical Gothic buildings and innovative structures by renowned architects make up the University of Chicago campus.
University of Chicago
Chicago, IL
The University of Chicago, situated in Chicago’s Hyde Park community, offers a rich campus life in a big-city setting. Since 1987, the private institution has hosted the University of Chicago Scavenger Hunt, a four-day event that is regarded as the largest scavenger hunt in the world.
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Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Cambridge, MA
Though the Massachusetts Institute of Technology may be best known for its math, science and engineering education, this private research university also offers architecture, humanities, management and social science programs. The school is located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, just across the Charles River from do
Schools in the National Universities category, such as Columbia University and the University of Pennsylvania, offer a full range of undergraduate majors, plus master's and doctoral programs. These colleges also are committed to producing groundbreaking research.
See the National Universities Methodology »
To see full rankings, SAT/ACT scores, scholarship and grant information, graduation rates and more, sign up for the U.S. News College Compass!
Princeton University
Princeton, NJ
The ivy-covered campus of Princeton University, a private institution, is located in the quiet town of Princeton, New Jersey. Princeton was the first university to offer a "no loan" policy to financially needy students, giving grants instead of loans to accepted students who need help paying tuition.
Get access to expanded profiles, financial aid statistics, GPAs and more.
Harvard University
Harvard University
Cambridge, MA
Harvard University is a private institution in Cambridge, Massachusetts, just outside of Boston. This Ivy League school is the oldest higher education institution in the country and has the largest endowment of any school in the world.
Get access to expanded profiles, financial aid statistics, GPAs and more.
Yale University
Yale University, located in New Haven, Connecticut, offers a small college life with the resources of a major research institution. Yale students are divided into 12 residential colleges that foster a supportive environment for living, learning and socializing.
Get access to expanded profiles, financial aid statistics, GPAs and more.
Low Memorial Library, a Columbia University Landmark.
Columbia University
New York, NY
Columbia University has three undergraduate schools: Columbia College, The Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS), and the School of General Studies. This Ivy League, private school guarantees students housing for all four years on campus in Manhattan’s Morningside Heights neighborhood in New York City.
Get access to expanded profiles, financial aid statistics, GPAs and more.
Stanford University. Front entrance with Oval.
Stanford University
Stanford, CA
The sunny campus of Stanford University is located in California’s Bay Area, about 30 miles from San Francisco. The private institution stresses a multidisciplinary combination of teaching, learning, and research, and students have many opportunities to get involved in research projects.
Get access to expanded profiles, financial aid statistics, GPAs and more.
A mix of historical Gothic buildings and innovative structures by renowned architects make up the University of Chicago campus.
University of Chicago
Chicago, IL
The University of Chicago, situated in Chicago’s Hyde Park community, offers a rich campus life in a big-city setting. Since 1987, the private institution has hosted the University of Chicago Scavenger Hunt, a four-day event that is regarded as the largest scavenger hunt in the world.
Get access to expanded profiles, financial aid statistics, GPAs and more.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Cambridge, MA
Though the Massachusetts Institute of Technology may be best known for its math, science and engineering education, this private research university also offers architecture, humanities, management and social science programs. The school is located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, just across the Charles River from do
