National University Rankings
National University Methodology
Schools in the National Universities category, such as Columbia University and Stanford University, offer a full range of undergraduate majors, plus master's and Ph.D. programs. These colleges also are committed to producing groundbreaking research.
To see full rankings, SAT/ACT scores, scholarship and grant information, graduation rates, and more, sign up for the U.S. News College Compass!
| Save | U.S. News rank | School | Tuition | Total enrollment | Fall 2011 acceptance rate | Average freshman retention rate | 6-year graduation rate | Classes with under 20 students | SAT/ACT 25th-75th percentile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #33 |
University of Rochester
Rochester, NY |
$43,666 | 10,319 | 34.1% | 95% | 83 | Locked | Locked | |
| #23 |
Carnegie Mellon University
Pittsburgh, PA |
$45,124 | 12,058 | 30.4% | 96% | 87 | Locked | Locked | |
| #54 |
University of Florida
Gainesville, FL |
N/A | 49,589 | 43.2% | 96% | 84 | Locked | Locked | |
| #21 |
Georgetown University
Washington, DC |
$42,870 | 17,130 | 18.1% | 96% | 94 | Locked | Locked | |
| #29 |
University of Michigan–Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor, MI |
in-state: $13,437, out-of-state: $39,109 | 42,716 | 40.6% | 96% | 90 | Locked | Locked | |
| #15 |
Cornell University
Ithaca, NY |
$43,413 | 21,131 | 18.0% | 97% | 93 | Locked | Locked | |
| #12 |
Northwestern University
Evanston, IL |
$43,779 | 19,968 | 18.0% | 97% | 94 | Locked | Locked | |
| #17 |
Rice University
Houston, TX |
$37,292 | 6,224 | 18.8% | 97% | 92 | Locked | Locked | |
| #28 |
Tufts University
Medford, MA |
$44,666 | 10,775 | 21.9% | 97% | 90 | Locked | Locked | |
| #17 |
Vanderbilt University
Nashville, TN |
$42,118 | 12,836 | 16.4% | 97% | 92 | Locked | Locked | |
| #13 |
Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, MD |
$43,930 | 21,139 | 18.4% | 97% | 92 | Locked | Locked | |
| #30 |
University of North Carolina–Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC |
in-state: $7,694, out-of-state: $28,446 | 29,137 | 31.4% | 97% | 90 | Locked | Locked | |
| #24 |
University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA |
$44,463 | 38,010 | 23.0% | 97% | 90 | Locked | Locked | |
| #24 |
University of Virginia
Charlottesville, VA |
in-state: $12,006, out-of-state: $38,018 | 24,297 | 33.3% | 97% | 94 | Locked | Locked | |
| #14 |
Washington University in St. Louis
St. Louis, MO |
$43,705 | 13,908 | 16.5% | 97% | 93 | Locked | Locked | |
| #8 |
Duke University
Durham, NC |
$43,623 | 15,427 | 14.0% | 97% | 94 | Locked | Locked | |
| #21 |
University of California–Berkeley
Berkeley, CA |
N/A | 36,142 | 21.6% | 97% | 90 | Locked | Locked | |
| #24 |
University of California–Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA |
in-state: $12,692, out-of-state: $35,570 | 40,675 | 25.5% | 97% | 90 | Locked | Locked | |
| #15 |
Brown University
Providence, RI |
$43,758 | 8,768 | 8.9% | 98% | 95 | Locked | Locked | |
| #1 |
Harvard University
Cambridge, MA |
$40,866 | 19,872 | 6.3% | 98% | 97 | Locked | Locked | |
| #6 |
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Cambridge, MA |
$42,050 | 10,894 | 9.7% | 98% | 93 | Locked | Locked | |
| #17 |
University of Notre Dame
Notre Dame, IN |
$42,971 | 12,004 | 24.3% | 98% | 96 | Locked | Locked | |
| #10 |
Dartmouth College
Hanover, NH |
$45,042 | 6,144 | 10.1% | 98% | 95 | Locked | Locked | |
| #8 |
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA |
$43,738 | 19,919 | 12.4% | 98% | 96 | Locked | Locked | |
| #10 |
California Institute of Technology
Pasadena, CA |
$39,588 | 2,231 | 12.8% | 98% | 87 | Locked | Locked |













