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ILLINOIS - Illinois has once again solidified its reputation as a hub for higher education, with two universities making the top 25 of the 2025 U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges rankings.
The annual ranking was based on statistics such as graduation and job placement rates as well as student preference.
Northwestern University in Evanston made the top 10, tying with California Institute of Technology, Duke University, Johns Hopkins University for number 6.
The University of Chicago in Hyde Park tied with Cornell for number 11.
While not in the top 25, the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign continues to be a strong contender, ranking at number 33 nationally.
Top 25 Best National Universities
1. Princeton University - Princeton, New Jersey
2. Massachusetts Institute of Technology - Cambridge, Massachusetts
3. Harvard University - Cambridge, Massachusetts
4. Stanford University - Stanford, California
5. Yale University - New Haven, Connecticut
6. (four-way tie) California Institute of Technology - Pasadena, California; Duke University - Durham, North Carolina; Johns Hopkins University - Baltimore, Maryland; Northwestern University - Evanston, Illinois
10. University of Pennsylvania - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
11. (two-way tie) Cornell University - Ithaca, New York; University of Chicago - Chicago, Illinois
13. (two-way tie) Brown University - Providence, Rhode Island; Columbia University - New York, New York
15. (two-way tie) Dartmouth College - Hanover, New Hampshire; University of California, Los Angeles - Los Angeles, California
17. University of California, Berkeley - Berkeley, California
18. (three-way tie) Rice University - Houston, Texas; University of Notre Dame - South Bend, Indiana; Vanderbilt University - Nashville, Tennessee
21. (three-way tie) Carnegie Mellon University - Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; University of Michigan, Ann Arbor - Ann Arbor, Michigan; Washington University in St. Louis - St. Louis, Missouri
24. (three-way tie) Emory University - Atlanta, Georgia; Georgetown University - Washington, D.C.; University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia
For the full list of rankings, visit U.S. News & World Report.