Report Card
TCU scores spot among America's best colleges in revered report
It's not breaking news, but it's always fun to hear: Texas Christian University isn't just one of the best colleges in Texas, it stands above most in the nation, according to U.S. News & World Report's latest ranking.
On September 9, the publication released its annual 2020 Best Colleges report, comparing nearly 1,400 schools around the country.
TCU ranks No. 6 in Texas and No. 97 in the nation, tying with Drexel University, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Saint Louis University, University of Denver, University of San Francisco, and Yeshiva University. That's down from its No. 80 ranking in last year's report. Rice University in Houston ranks No. 1 in the state and No. 17 in the nation, the University of Texas at Austin ranks No. 2 and No. 48 in the nation, and Southern Methodist University ranks No. 3 in Texas and No. 64 in the nation.
U.S. News broke down ranking metrics like a classic syllabus. Each school was graded across six categories, weighing outcomes (graduation and retention rates, social mobility, etc.) the heaviest at 35 percent. Faculty resources and expert opinion of schools each accounted for 20 percent of scores, followed by financial resources and student excellence at 10 percent each, and alumni giving at 5 percent.
The publication also brought some new rankings to the table this year, including Top Performers on Social Mobility, which analyzes schools by which best serve underrepresented students, looking at Pell Grants and enrollment and graduation rates of students from low-income backgrounds. TCU ranks near the bottom of that list at No. 370 out of 381 schools.
Nationwide, the Ivies continue their dominance atop the list. Princeton University is the best university in America, followed by Harvard University (No. 2), and Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Yale University, which tied for third.
College Station's Texas A&M University (No. 70) and Waco's Baylor University (No. 79) round out the top five schools in Texas on the national list.
Also in the area, the University of Texas at Dallas ranks 147th, and the University of North Texas and Dallas Baptist University tie in 281st place. Texas Wesleyan University, the University of Texas at Arlington, and Texas Woman's University all rank in the No. 293-381 range.
