A California university was placed among the top 10 colleges nationwide, and no, it wasn’t Stanford, Berkeley, or UCLA.
Personal finance company WalletHub released its ranking of the best universities nationwide for 2025. More than 700 schools were ranked based on cost, campus safety, and career outcomes.
WalletHub determined that the best university in America was Princeton University, followed by fellow Ivy League schools, Yale and Harvard.
However, outranking other Ivy League schools to place seventh was the California Institute of Technology, the private research university known for its science and engineering programs that achieved pop culture fame as home to the sitcom “The Big Bang Theory.” Based in Pasadena, Caltech has less than 2,500 undergraduate and graduate students enrolled this fall, according to the private school.
WalletHub determined the ranking by looking at various metrics such as student selectivity, cost and financing, faculty resources, campus safety, campus experience, and educational and career outcomes. The admissions rate, student loan debt, student-to-faculty ratio, and income of former students were among the factors measured for this ranking.
Here are the other California schools that made the top 100.
More:See which 30 California schools were named to National Blue Ribbon list
Which California schools made the top 100 universities in the USA?
- Stanford University, No. 12
- Claremont McKenna College, No. 20
- UCLA, No. 24
- University of California, San Diego, No. 28
- University of California, Berkeley, No. 29
- University of California, Irvine, No. 31
- USC, No. 44
- University of California, Santa Barbara, No. 51
- California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, No. 57
- University of California, Davis, No. 78
- Occidental College, No. 81
- Santa Clara University, No. 92
Paris Barraza is a trending reporter covering California news at The Desert Sun. Reach her at pbarraza@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @ParisBarraza.
