There are many different lists used when researchers are ranking the best colleges. Some of the major factors used at Forbes Magazine are average score on SAT, student to faculty ratio and percentage of students admitted. Many researchers use different methods when putting together their lists of top schools but it is roughly the same for every list. Pay attention to average yearly cost as that can be a deciding factor for parents who have students accepted to more than one school.
Princeton University is a private university located in Princeton, New Jersey. This Ivy League school has gained respect as the first university to offer grants instead of loans to students who need help paying tuition. As of 2010 Princeton University is ranked No. 3 by The Princeton Review, No. 2 by Forbes Magazine and U.S. News & World Report. The total amount of students on campus is 7,330 with tuition being about $37,000. The average SAT score at Princeton is 1,390 to 1,580 making the standard of students entering very high. Students receive a lot of attention because of the 6-to-1 student to teacher ratio ensuring they will gain the most from this educational institution.
Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts is a private Ivy League school near Boston. Harvard is respected as the oldest college institution in the country with the largest population of all the top schools at somewhere around 26,496 students. Even with this large amount of students attending Harvard, the student to teacher ratio is only 7-to-1. As of 2010, Harvard University is ranked No. 1 by U.S. News & World Report, No. 5 by The Princeton Review and No. 8 by Forbes Magazine. Students must study hard to get a high SAT score because the average at Harvard is 1,390 to 1,580 while tuition is roughly $34,976.
Yale University, located in New Haven, Connecticut, offers a small college life with the resources of a major research institution. As of 2010 Yale is ranked No. 3 by U.S. News & World Report and No. 10 by Forbes Magazine and The Princeton Review. Yale offers degree programs in bachelor's, master's, post master's certificate, doctor research and doctor's professional degree. The average SAT score for students attending Yale is 1400 to 1590 which is slightly higher than the other top schools. The total student population at Yale is somewhere around 10,192 with the student to teacher ratio being 6-to-1 and tuition at a total of $38,300.