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Pennsylvania: The 10 Best Colleges, Ranked

By Anne Erickson
College

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.

  • 10 Best Colleges In Pennsylvania

    This list is via US News & World Report.

  • 10. Duquesne University

    Duquesne University is one of the nation’s top Catholic universities. It’s a regular on this list.

    Duquesne University

    Founded in 1878, Duquesne is consistently ranked among the nation's top Catholic universities for its award-winning faculty and horizon-expanding education. A campus of nearly 8,000 graduate and undergraduate students, Duquesne prepares students by having them work alongside faculty to discover and reach their goals.

  • 9. Thomas Jefferson University

    On their website, they state, “Our Philadelphia campuses are tradition-breakers and beautiful places to learn. We cross the city and the suburbs.” It is a beautiful campus!

    Thomas Jefferson University

    At Thomas Jefferson University, we are helping you to redefine what's possible.

  • 8. Temple University

    Temple University is a public state-related research university located in Philly.

  • 7. Drexel University

    Drexel University has a rich history and was founded back in 1891 by Anthony J. Drexel.

    Drexel Home

    Drexel University in Philadelphia, PA is an academically comprehensive and globally engaged urban research university, dedicated to advancing knowledge and society and to providing every student with a valuable, rigorous, experiential, technology-infused education, enriched by the nation's premier co-operative education program.

  • 6. The Pennsylvania State University

    Everyone knows Penn State. It’s a a major, public, research-I university serving Pennsylvania and the global community, as they state on their site.

    Penn State University

    Penn State is a major, public, research-I university serving Pennsylvania and the global community. Learn more about our undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral degree programs.

  • 5. University of Pittsburgh

    The University of Pittsburgh is a public state-related research university in Pittsburgh.

    Home

    The transformative gift - for which the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine will make an equivalent co-investment - will support labs, fellows, research and clinical work to push orthopaedic treatments forward.

  • 4. Villanova University

    They’re the only Augustinian Catholic university in the nation. Not to mention a great basketball team.

    University | Villanova University

    Villanova University is a Catholic university founded in 1842 by the Order of Saint Augustine. At Villanova, our educational experience is rooted in a passionate, collaborative pursuit of knowledge and service to others.

  • 3. Lehigh University

    Lehigh is recognized among the nation’s premier research universities.

    Home

    Home | https://www2.lehigh.edu/home

  • 2. Carnegie Mellon University

    The famed Carnegie Mellon University is a private research university based in Pittsburgh.

    Homepage - CMU - Carnegie Mellon University

    CMU is a global research university known for its world-class, interdisciplinary programs: arts, business, computing, engineering, humanities, policy and science.

  • 1. University of Pennsylvania

    No big surprise that this is No. 1. The University of Pennsylvania is a private Ivy League research university in Philly that gets recognized all the time for its excellence in academics.

    University of Pennsylvania

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