Each year, U.S. News & World Report comes out with its rankings for the best colleges in the United States. Pennsylvania, of course, is known for having great colleges and universities, so it’s no surprise that the Mitten is a often a favorite on the list.
Now, U.S. News & World Report has released its 2022-2023 Best Colleges rankings, and a whopping 46 colleges and universities in Pennsylvania were ranked among the best. So which schools were on top?
U.S. News has been publishing this guide of the best colleges across the U.S. for almost 40 years. According to a release, methodology has evolved over the years to reflect changes in higher education, says Kim Castro, editor and chief content officer at U.S. News. U.S. News prides itself on offering a ranking for millions of parents with “useful data and information to help with one of life’s biggest decisions,” Castro said.
In this year’s study, U.S. News ranked a massive 1,500 colleges and universities in 17 academic measures. When going about ranking, U.S. News first put each school into a category based on its mission and, sometimes, its geographic location. There are also different lists for different kinds of universities. National universities are research-heavy and have several doctoral programs, while liberal arts colleges are ranked separately.
Regarding Pennsylvania’s colleges, U.S. News states, “More than 100 four-year, degree-granting institutions for which U.S. News has information are located throughout Pennsylvania, including a mix of large research universities, midsize colleges, small liberal arts schools and several specialty schools. Among the specialty schools in Pennsylvania are art schools, seminaries and health sciences institutions. Many colleges and universities in Pennsylvania are located in the major cities of Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, the latter being the fifth-largest city in the U.S. Dozens of top colleges and universities in Pennsylvania are publicly funded, including Pennsylvania State University—University Park, one of the largest universities in the U.S. with more than 39,000 undergraduate students.” Read on for 10 Pennsylvania colleges and universities that made the cut.
