Northwestern University, the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and the University of Chicago have received the highest score possible on Money magazine's revamped "Best Colleges in the U.S." list, according to rankings released Thursday.
All three universities were named "five-star colleges" on a new five-tier star ranking system, which evaluates educational institutions on criteria including quality, affordability, future earning potential and graduation rates. The new ratings system, according to a news release, is based on the philosophy that there isn't one best college for every student, rather that there are "a variety of outstanding, high-value colleges across the country."
Northwestern, UIUC and the University of Chicago, along with 47 other colleges or universities, were considered "top-rated colleges" out of more than 700 submissions.
The three universities weren't the only ones in Illinois to receive accolades, however.
Illinois State University, the University of Illinois Chicago and UIUC were named among the Best Public Colleges in the U.S., scoring in the top third of all submissions. A number of other colleges and universities from across the state landed on a list of the "Best Colleges With High Acceptance Rates."
The following Illinois colleges received high markings and also admit at least two-thirds of applicants:
Bradley University in Peoria, Dominican University in River Forest, Elmhurst University, ISU, Lewis University in Romeoville, Trinity Christian College in Palos Heights, UIC, University of St. Francis in Joliet and Wheaton College.
Interested in learning which colleges are the top of them all? The complete list of the five-star Best Colleges, according to Money, is below:
- Amherst College
- Berea College
- Brown University
- California Institute of Technology
- California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
- Columbia University
- Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art
- Cornell University
- Dartmouth College
- Duke University
- Georgetown University
- Georgia Institute of Technology
- Harvard University
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Massachusetts Maritime Academy
- Northwestern University
- Princeton University
- Rice University
- Stanford University
- University of California, Berkeley
- University of California, Irvine
- University of California, Los Angeles
- University of California, San Diego
- University of Chicago
- University of Florida
- University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
- University of Michigan
- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
- University of Notre Dame
- University of Pennsylvania
- University of Virginia
- University of Wisconsin-Madison
- Williams College
- Yale University
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