Two Virginia schools have secured a spot on Forbes‘ list of the top 25 U.S. public colleges: The University of Virginia and William & Mary. The two schools also ranked on Forbes’ New Ivies list of 20 public and private colleges that best prepare students for employment.
Forbes uses the same methodology for all its top college lists and “relies on educational and career outcomes, not a school’s reputation.” Schools are ranked based on student debt levels, graduation outcomes, and return on investment.
UVA and William & Mary
The University of Virginia is No. 6 on the list of best public colleges, climbing three places from last year’s No. 9. Forbes highlighted the school’s scenic campus and increase in STEM courses, including it’s expanded master’s in data science program.
UVA has a six-year graduation rate of 96 percent, the highest of the top 25 public schools. It also had more than 80,000 applicants for the 2026-27 school year, a 27 percent increase over the previous year.
William & Mary is No. 18 on the list, up from No. 19 last year. The school has been on the New Ivies list for two years in a row. The second oldest college in the country is the birthplace of the first American college fraternity and national academic honor society, Phi Beta Kappa.
Forbes also noted that William & Mary launched two new schools in 2025: the School of Computing, Data Sciences & Physics and William & Mary Batten School of Coastal & Marine Sciences.
The University of Maryland, College Park was No. 14 on the list.
The top public college on the list was the University of California Berkeley. It was followed by the University of California Los Angeles (No. 2), the University of Michigan Ann Arbor (No. 3), the University of California San Diego (No. 4), and the Georgia Institute of Technology (No. 5).
Top 500 Colleges List
Twelve Virginia schools were ranked on Forbes‘ Top 500 Colleges list. They include:
- No. 28: University of Virginia
- No. 43: Washington and Lee University
- No. 61: William & Mary
- No. 82: University of Richmond
- No. 91: Virginia Tech
- No. 133: George Mason University
- No. 166: James Madison University
- No. 257: Virginia Military Institute
- No. 297: University of Mary Washington
- No. 313: Hampden-Sydney College
- No. 341: Virginia Commonwealth University
- No. 432: Christopher Newport University
Feature image, Stacy/stock.adobe.com
