Top Universities in the U.S.

Often considered the most liberal of the Ivy League schools, Brown is well known for its open curriculum in which students craft their own plan of study. Like Dartmouth, Brown has more of an undergraduate focus than other top-ranked universities. Brown is situated in Providence, the capitol of Rhode Island. Boston is only a short drive or train ride away.

• Admissions: Brown GPA and test score data
• Costs, aid, and other information: Brown profile

If you want an Ivy League education in a truly urban setting, be sure to take a look at Columbia. It’s location in upper Manhattan places it right in the bustle of New York City. Columbia has extensive graduate programs—of its 25,000 students, over two-thirds are graduate students.

• Admissions: Columbia GPA and test score data
• Costs, aid, and other information: Columbia profile

Along with its excellent faculty and facilities, Cornell boasts a beautiful location in the Finger Lakes region of central New York. The huge hillside campus overlooks Lake Cayuga and is crisscrossed by deep gorges and bridges. Cornell is unique among the Ivy League universities in that its agricultural program is part of the state school system.

• Admissions: Cornell GPA and test score data
• Costs, aid, and other information: Cornell profile
• Explore the Campus: Cornell University photo tour

As the smallest of the Ivy League schools, Dartmouth provides the curricular breadth of its larger rivals with a feeling more like a liberal arts college. Dartmouth’s picturesque campus is located in Hanover, New Hampshire, a town of 11,000.

• Admissions: Dartmouth GPA and test score data
• Costs, aid, and other information: Dartmouth profile
• Explore the Campus: Dartmouth College Photo Tour

Located in Durham, North Carolina, Duke is one of the most prestigious and competitive universities in the south. Duke is part of the “research triangle” with UNC Chapel Hill and North Carolina State University in Raleigh. The area boasts the highest concentration of PhDs and MDs in the world.

• Admissions: Duke GPA and test score data
• Costs, aid, and other information: Duke profile

Harvard usually ranks #1 or #2 of all schools in the U.S. With an endowment around $35 billion, Harvard has more financial resources at its disposal than any other university in the world. The result is a world-class faculty, state-of-the-art facilities, and free tuition for students from families with modest income. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, this Ivy League school is in close-proximity to the hundreds of thousands of college students in the greater Boston area.

• Admissions: Harvard GPA and test score data
• Costs, aid, and other information: Harvard profile
• Explore the Campus: Harvard University Photo Tour

Princeton often vies with Harvard for the top spot on national rankings of universities. Located in a town of about 30,000 people, Princeton’s beautiful 500-acre campus sits about an hour away from both New York City and Philadelphia.

• Admissions: Princeton GPA and test score data
• Costs, aid, and other information: Princeton profile

Stanford is usually considered the best school on the west coast, as well as one of the finest research and teaching universities in the world. Stanford is just as competitive as the best universities in the Northeast, but with its Spanish architecture and mild Californian climate, you won’t mistake it for the Ivy League.

• Admissions: Stanford GPA and test score data
• Costs, aid, and other information: Stanford profile

Founded by Benjamin Franklin, Penn should not be confused with Penn State or a public university. The University of Pennsylvania holds its own against the best of its Ivy League brethren. From Penn’s location in West Philadelphia, Center City is an easy walk across the Schuylkill river. With nearly 12,000 undergraduates and a similar number of graduate students, Penn has a diverse and bustling urban campus.

• Admissions: Penn GPA and test score data
• Costs, aid, and other information: Penn profile

Yale, with Princeton and Harvard, usually finds itself near the top of university rankings. With an endowment over $15 billion and a 6:1 student / faculty ratio, it’s easy to see why. Located in New Haven, Connecticut, Yale is an easy train ride to either New York City or Boston.

• Admissions: Yale GPA and test score data
• Costs, aid, and other information: Yale profile