Best US universities for 2022-23 revealed

Prospective students rely on annual rankings to determine where to apply to university

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Princeton, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard, Stanford and Yale have been named the top five universities in the country by US News & World Report.

Prospective students often rely on the annual rankings to determine where they should apply to university.

Columbia University, whose second overall ranking was rescinded last year for failing to substantiate certain data, re-entered the rankings at number 18.

In this year's rankings, the media outlet announced changes made to its methodology, most notably how the Covid-19 pandemic affected student life.

This was most apparent in the area of standardised testing, as test centres closed due to public health concerns and demand to take them plummeted, “especially among applicants from low-income backgrounds”.

Instead, more weight was placed on graduation and retention rates.

“A higher average graduation rate scores better than a lower graduation rate in the ranking because completion is integral for students to get the most value in their careers from their education,” US News & World Report said of its methodology.

Other ranking factors included social mobility, graduation rate performance, academic reputation via peer survey, faculty and financial resources, and others.

Here are the top 10 universities in the US for 2022-23:

1. Princeton University

2. Massachusetts Institute of Technology

3. Harvard University

4. Stanford University

5. Yale University

6. University of Chicago

7. (tie) Johns Hopkins University

7. (tie) University of Pennsylvania

9. California Institute of Technology

10. Duke University

Updated: September 13, 2022, 10:03 PM