Four colleges and universities in New York ranked among the nation's top 50 in the latest U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges rankings for 2026.
The list includes two Ivy League schools — Cornell University and Columbia University — along with New York University and the University of Rochester among the nation's top national universities.
The United States Military Academy at West Point also ranked among the country's top liberal arts colleges.
According to U.S. News, New York has more four-year, degree-granting colleges and universities than any other state. Most operate within the State University of New York (SUNY) and City University of New York (CUNY) systems, two of the nation's largest public university systems.
Here's how New York schools
ranked.
Top national universities in New York
To qualify as a national university, a school must offer a broad range of undergraduate majors, along with master's and doctoral programs, while emphasizing faculty research or awarding professional practice doctorates, according to U.S. News.
The top-ranked national universities in New York are:
- Cornell University — No. 12
- Columbia University — No. 15
- New York University — No. 32
- University of Rochester — No. 46
- Stony Brook University — No. 59
- Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute — No. 64
- Binghamton University — Tied for No. 73
- Syracuse University — Tied for No. 75
- University at Buffalo — Tied for No. 75
- Yeshiva University — No. 84
Top liberal arts colleges in New York
U.S. News defines national liberal arts colleges as institutions that focus primarily on undergraduate education and award at least half of their degrees in the arts and sciences.
New York's highest-ranked liberal arts colleges are:
- United States Military Academy at West Point — Tied for No. 10
- Barnard College — Tied for No. 13
- Hamilton College — Tied for No. 13
- Vassar College — Tied for No. 13
- Colgate University — Tied for No. 22
- Skidmore College — Tied for No. 37
- Union College — No. 44
- St. Lawrence University — Tied for No. 58
- Bard College — Tied for No. 70
- Hobart and William Smith Colleges — Tied for No. 73
How U.S. News ranked the schools
U.S. News evaluated national universities using a range of academic and student outcome measures, including:
- Graduation and first-year retention rates
- Graduation performance
- Pell Grant student graduation rates and performance
- First-generation student graduation rates and performance
- Graduate earnings compared with high school graduates
- Student borrowing
- Peer assessment
- Financial resources per student
- Faculty salaries
- Full-time faculty
- Student-to-faculty ratio
- Standardized test scores
- Research impact, including citations and publication quality
National liberal arts colleges were evaluated using the same methodology, except first-generation graduation measures were not included.on rate performance.
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Best colleges in New York 2026: 10 schools make U.S. News rankings
