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Best universities in the United States 2024

Find the best universities in the United States 2024 through Times Higher Education’s World University Rankings data

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September 27 2023
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Top 10 universities in the US 2024

Scroll down for the full list of best universities in the United States

US rank 2024  World University Rank 2024   World University Rank 2023  University City State
1  2   =3  Stanford University Stanford California
2  3   5  Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge Massachusetts
3  4   2  Harvard University Cambridge Massachusetts
4  6   7  Princeton University Princeton New Jersey
5  7   6  California Institute of Technology Pasadena California
6  9   8  University of California, Berkeley Berkeley California
7  10   9  Yale University New Haven Connecticut
8  13   13  The University of Chicago Chicago Illinois
9  15   15  Johns Hopkins University Baltimore Maryland
10  16   14  University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia Pennsylvania

Thinking about studying in the US can be overwhelming because there are so many options. Which US university is the best? Where are the top universities in the United States?

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We thought you might like to know the top universities in the US based on the highly respected Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2024.

There are 169 US universities and colleges among the world’s best, so wherever you want to study in the US, a top university will not be far away. Almost all states and about 130 cities are represented in the best US universities list.

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California is the most represented state among the best US universities for 2024, with 14 institutions, followed by 13 universities in New York, 12 universities in Texas and 10 universities in Massachusetts.

The universities at the very top of the table are concentrated in these popular destinations, which are well known for their higher education opportunities; the top three are based in California and in Massachusetts.

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Top 5 universities in the United States 2024

5. California Institute of Technology (CalTech)

Across the six faculties at CalTech, there is a focus on science and engineering.

CalTech has an impressive number of successful graduates and affiliates, including 39 Nobel laureates, six Turing Award winners and four Fields Medallists.

There are about 2,200 students at CalTech, and the primary campus in Pasadena, near Los Angeles, covers 124 acres (about 50 hectares). Almost all undergraduates live on campus.

In addition to Nobel laureates and top researchers, the CalTech graduate community includes a number of politicians and public advisers, particularly in the areas of science, technology and energy.

All first-year students belong to one of four houses as part of the university’s alternative model to fraternities and sororities. A number of traditions and events are associated with each house.

Caltech: ‘uniquely difficult but a wonderful place to study’

4. Princeton University

Princeton University is one of the oldest universities in the US. It is part of the prestigious group of Ivy League universities.

As well as high-quality teaching and research output, the university is known for its beautiful campus, with some buildings designed by some of America’s most well-known architects.

Notable alumni who have won Nobel prizes include the physicists Richard Feynman and Robert Hofstadter and the chemists Richard Smalley and Edwin McMillan.

Princeton has also educated two US presidents, James Madison and Woodrow Wilson. Other distinguished graduates include Michelle Obama, actors Jimmy Stewart and Brooke Shields, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and Apollo astronaut Pete Conrad.

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3. Harvard University

Founded in 1636, Harvard University is the oldest higher education institution in the US.

About 21,000 students are enrolled, a quarter of whom are international.

Harvard University is probably the world’s best known university, topping the Times Higher Education Reputation Rankings most years.

Although tuition is expensive, Harvard’s financial endowment allows for plenty of financial aid for students.

The Harvard library system is made up of 79 libraries and is the largest academic library in the world.

Among many famous alumni, Harvard can count eight US presidents, 158 Nobel laureates, 14 Turing Award winners and 62 living billionaires.

Unlike some other universities at the top of the list, Harvard is at least equally reputed for arts and humanities as it is for science and technology, if not more so.

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2. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

A third of MIT’s 11,000 students are international, hailing from 154 countries.

Famous alumni include astronaut Buzz Aldrin, former UN secretary general Kofi Annan and physicist Richard Feynman.

MIT cultivates a strong entrepreneurial culture, which has seen many alumni found notable companies such as Intel and Dropbox.

Unusually, the undergraduate and postgraduate programmes at MIT are not wholly separate; many courses can be taken at either level.

The undergraduate programme is one of the country’s most selective, admitting only 8 per cent of applicants. Engineering and computer science are the most popular courses among undergraduates.

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2. Stanford University

Many faculty members, students and alumni have founded successful technology companies and start-ups, including Google, Snapchat and Hewlett-Packard.

Of the 16,000 students, most of whom live on campus, 22 per cent are international.

Based in Palo Alto, right beside Silicon Valley, Stanford University has had a prominent role in encouraging the region’s tech industry to develop.

In total, companies founded by Stanford alumni make $2.7 trillion (£2.2 trillion) each year.

The university is often referred to as “the Farm” because the campus was built on the site of the Stanford family’s Palo Alto stock farm. The campus covers 8,180 acres (3,300 hectares), but more than half of the land is not yet developed.

With its distinctive sand-coloured, red-roofed buildings, Stanford’s campus is thought to be one of the most beautiful in the world. It contains a number of sculpture gardens and art museums, as well as a public meditation centre.

As might be expected from one of the best universities in the world, Stanford is highly competitive. The admission rate stands at just over 5 per cent.

Video: how I got into Stanford University as a low-income international student

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Top universities in the United States 2024

Click each institution to view its full World University Rankings 2024 profile

US rank 2024  World University Rank 2024   World University Rank 2023  University City State
1  2   =3  Stanford University Stanford California
2  3   5  Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge Massachusetts
3  4   2  Harvard University Cambridge Massachusetts
4  6   7  Princeton University Princeton New Jersey
5  7   6  California Institute of Technology Pasadena California
6  9   8  University of California, Berkeley Berkeley California
7  10   9  Yale University New Haven Connecticut
8  13   13  The University of Chicago Chicago Illinois
9  15   15  Johns Hopkins University Baltimore Maryland
10  16   14  University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia Pennsylvania
11  17   =11  Columbia University New York City New York
12  18   21  University of California, Los Angeles Los Angeles California
13  20   20  Cornell University Ithaca New York
14  23   23  University of Michigan-Ann Arbor Ann Arbor Michigan
15  24   28  Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh Pennsylvania
16  25   =26  University of Washington Seattle Washington
17  26   25  Duke University Durham North Carolina
18  27   24  New York University New York City New York
19  28   =26  Northwestern University Evanston Illinois
20  34   32  University of California, San Diego San Diego California
21  36   38  Georgia Institute of Technology Atlanta Georgia
22  42   48  University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Champaign Illinois
23  52   50  University of Texas at Austin Austin Texas
24  59   63  University of California, Davis Davis California
25  63   81  University of Wisconsin-Madison Madison Wisconsin
26  =64   61  Brown University Providence Rhode Island
27  68   57  Washington University in St Louis St Louis Missouri
28  69   64  University of California, Santa Barbara Santa Barbara California
29  72   69  University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Chapel Hill North Carolina
30  74   65  University of Southern California Los Angeles California
31  78   =71  Boston University Boston Massachusetts
32  85   =101  University of Minnesota Minneapolis Minnesota
33  86   127  Purdue University West Lafayette West Lafayette Indiana
=34  =92   =95  University of California, Irvine Irvine California
=34  =92   98  Vanderbilt University Nashville Tennessee
36  =99   112  Ohio State University (Main campus) Columbus Ohio
37  =106   =82  Emory University Atlanta Georgia
38  114   =104  University of Maryland, College Park College Park Maryland
39  =116   106  Michigan State University East Lansing Michigan
40  118   181  Texas A&M University College Station Texas
41  =119   147  Rice University Houston Texas
42  122   =151  Penn State (Main campus) State College Pennsylvania
43  =123   191  University of Massachusetts Amherst, Boston, Dartmouth, Lowell, Worcester Massachusetts
44  132   =151  University of Florida Gainesville Florida
45  133   154  University of Rochester Rochester New York
46  =138   =148  University of Colorado Boulder Boulder Colorado
47  =145   144  University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh campus Pittsburgh Pennsylvania
48  =155   180  University of Arizona Tucson Arizona
49  =161   123  Dartmouth College Hanover New Hampshire
50  =164   134  Case Western Reserve University Cleveland Ohio
51  166   =156  University of Virginia (Main campus) Charlottesville Virginia
52  182   =156  Arizona State University (Tempe) Tempe Arizona
53  =187   136  Georgetown University   Washington DC
54  =191   =151  Tufts University Medford Massachusetts
55  198   =170  Indiana University Bloomington Indiana
56  =199   201–250  University of Notre Dame Notre Dame Indiana
=57  201–250   =192  University of California, Santa Cruz Santa Cruz California
=57  201–250   201–250  George Washington University   Washington DC
=57  201–250   251–300  University of Hawai’i at Mānoa Honolulu Hawai'i
=57  201–250   251–300  University of Illinois Chicago Chicago Illinois
=57  201–250   301–350  University of Iowa Iowa City Iowa
=57  201–250   =194  University of Miami Coral Gables Florida
=57  201–250   =168  Northeastern University, US Boston Massachusetts
=57  201–250   201–250  Rutgers University – New Brunswick New Brunswick New Jersey
=57  201–250   251–300  University of Utah Salt Lake City Utah
=66  251–300   251–300  Boston College Boston Massachusetts
=66  251–300   301–350  Brandeis University Waltham Massachusetts
=66  251–300   251–300  University of California, Riverside Riverside California
=66  251–300   301–350  Florida State University Tallahassee Florida
=66  251–300   351–400  North Carolina State University Raleigh North Carolina
=66  251–300   201–250  University of South Florida Tampa Florida
=66  251–300   301–350  Stony Brook University Stony Brook New York
=66  251–300   251–300  Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Blacksburg Virginia
=74  301–350   301–350  University at Buffalo Buffalo New York
=74  301–350   301–350  Drexel University Philadelphia Pennsylvania
=74  301–350   251–300  Oregon Health and Science University Portland Oregon
=74  301–350   301–350  The University of Tennessee-Knoxville Knoxville Tennessee
=74  301–350   351–400  Washington State University Pullman Washington
=79  351–400   301–350  University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus Denver Colorado
=79  351–400   401–500  University of Connecticut Mansfield Connecticut
=79  351–400   601–800  University of Georgia Athens Georgia
=79  351–400   401–500  Illinois Institute of Technology Chicago Illinois
=79  351–400   401–500  Iowa State University Ames Illinois
=79  351–400   401–500  University of Kansas Lawrence Kansas
=79  351–400   301–350  Temple University Philadelphia Pennsylvania
=79  351–400   351–400  University of Texas at Dallas Richardson Texas
=87  401–500   301–350  University of California, Merced Merced California
=87  401–500   601–800  University of Central Florida Orlando Florida
=87  401–500   401–500  Colorado State University, Fort Collins Fort Collins Colorado
=87  401–500   351–400  University of Delaware Newark Delaware
=87  401–500   501–600  Florida International University Miami Florida
=87  401–500   301–350  George Mason University Fairfax Virginia
=87  401–500   401–500  Georgia State University Atlanta Georgia
=87  401–500   501–600  University of Kentucky Lexington Kentucky
=87  401–500   501–600  Missouri University of Science and Technology Rolla Missouri
=87  401–500   601–800  Mizzou - University of Missouri Columbia Missouri
=87  401–500   401–500  University of Nebraska-Lincoln Lincoln Nebraska
=87  401–500   601–800  New Jersey Institute of Technology Newark  New Jersey
=87  401–500   NR  University of Oregon Eugene Oregon
=87  401–500   601–800  Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Troy New York
=87  401–500   301–350  Saint Louis University Saint Louis Missouri
=87  401–500   501–600  University of South Carolina-Columbia Columbia Colorado
=87  401–500   501–600  Stevens Institute of Technology Hoboken New Jersey
=87  401–500   401–500  Syracuse University Syracuse New York
=87  401–500   351–400  Tulane University New Orleans Louisiana
=87  401–500   501–600  Virginia Commonwealth University Richmond Virginia
=87  401–500   351–400  Wake Forest University Winston-Salem North Carolina
=108  501–600   401–500  University of Alaska Fairbanks Fairbanks Alaska
=108  501–600   601–800  Auburn University Auburn Alabama
=108  501–600   401–500  University of Denver Denver Colorado
=108  501–600   601–800  University of Houston Houston Texas
=108  501–600   401–500  University of Nebraska Medical Center Omaha Nebraska
=108  501–600   351–400  Rush University Chicago Illinois
=108  501–600   601–800  The University of Texas at San Antonio Arlington Texas
=108  501–600   401–500  The University of Tulsa Tulsa Oklahoma
=108  501–600   501–600  Wayne State University Detroit MIchigan
=117  601–800   801–1000  University of Alabama Tuscaloosa Alabama
=117  601–800   601–800  American University   Washington DC
=117  601–800   601–800  University of Arkansas Fayetteville Arkansas
=117  601–800   601–800  Baylor University Waco Texas
=117  601–800   NR  The Catholic University of America   Washington DC
=117  601–800   601–800  Clark University Worcester Massachusetts
=117  601–800   801–1000  Kansas State University Lawrence Kansas
=117  601–800   601–800  Lehigh University Bethlehem Pennsylvania
=117  601–800   601–800  Louisiana State University Baton Rouge Louisiana
=117  601–800   601–800  University of Maryland, Baltimore County Baltimore Maryland
=117  601–800   801–1000  Mississippi State University Starkville Mississippi
=117  601–800   601–800  University of Nevada, Las Vegas Las Vegas Nevada
=117  601–800   601–800  University of North Carolina at Charlotte Charlotte North Carolina
=117  601–800   801–1000  Northern Illinois University DeKalb Illinois
=117  601–800   801–1000  Ohio University (Main campus) Athens Ohio
=117  601–800   601–800  Oklahoma State University Stillwater Oklahoma
=117  601–800   801–1000  Old Dominion University Norfolk Virginia
=117  601–800   801–1000  University of Rhode Island South Kingstown Rhode Island
=117  601–800   601–800  SUNY Binghamton University Binghamton New York
=117  601–800   601–800  University of Texas at Arlington Arlington Texas
=117  601–800   801–1000  Texas Tech University Lubbock Texas
=117  601–800   601–800  University of Toledo Toledo Ohio
=117  601–800   401–500  William & Mary Williamsburg Virginia
=117  601–800   801–1000  Worcester Polytechnic Institute Worcester Massachusetts
=117  601–800   801–1000  University of Wyoming Laramie Wyoming
=142  801–1000   801–1000  Chapman University Orange California
=142  801–1000   1001–1200  Clarkson University Potsdam New York
=142  801–1000   801–1000  Florida Atlantic University Boca Raton Florida
=142  801–1000   1001–1200  Florida Institute of Technology Melbourne Florida
=142  801–1000   351–400  Howard University   Washington DC
=142  801–1000   801–1000  Marquette University Milwaukee Wisconsin
=142  801–1000   801–1000  University of Memphis Memphis Tennessee
=142  801–1000   801–1000  Montana State University Bozeman Montana
=142  801–1000   801–1000  The New School New York City New York
=142  801–1000   801–1000  New Mexico State University (Main campus) Albuquerque New Mexico
=142  801–1000   401–500  Nova Southeastern University Fort Lauderdale Florida
=142  801–1000   1001–1200  Portland State University Portland Oregon
=142  801–1000   1001–1200  Rochester Institute of Technology Rochester New York
=142  801–1000   601–800  San Diego State University San Diego California
=142  801–1000   801–1000  University of Texas at El Paso El Paso Texas
=157  1001–1200   1001–1200  Bowling Green State University Bowling Green Ohio
=157  1001–1200   NR  Central Michigan University Mount Pleasant Michigan
=157  1001–1200   801–1000  Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University Tallahassee Florida
=157  1001–1200   1001–1200  Oakland University Rochester Michigan
=157  1001–1200   1001–1200  Rowan University Glassboro New Jersey
=157  1001–1200   1001–1200  University of South Dakota Vermillion South Dakota
=157  1001–1200   1201–1500  Texas State University San Marcos Texas
=157  1001–1200   1201–1500  Western Michigan University Kalamazoo Michigan
=157  1201–1500   1201–1500  Georgia Southern University Statesboro Georgia
=157  1201–1500   1001–1200  Morgan State University Baltimore Maryland
=157  1201–1500   1001–1200  University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Brownsville Texas
=168  1501+   NR  Adelphi University Garden City New York
.=168  1501+   NR  College of Charleston Charleston South Carolina
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