The latest U.S. News and World Report Best Colleges rankings didn’t have dramatic changes from last year, but a few D.C.-area colleges saw some surprising shifts.
Johns Hopkins University, Georgetown University, the University of Virginia and the University of Maryland at College Park, still rank in the top 50 best national universities for the 2026 Best Colleges standings, which were released Tuesday.
Hopkins remained in the top 10, weighing in at No. 7 in a four-way tie, down one slot from 2025, while Georgetown remained at No. 24, the same as last year.
But tiny Patrick Henry College in Purcellville, Virginia, surprised U.S. News and World Report researchers with its giant jump, rising 29 spots from last year to rank in a tie at No. 107, according to LaMont Jones, managing editor for education at U.S. News and World Report.
“There wasn’t a lot of volatility this year at all … that kind of a leap this year is unusual,” Jones said about the Christian liberal arts college, located about 45 miles from the District.
Nationally, Princeton University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University came in first, second and third, respectively, in the overall National Universities category, just like last year.
The University of Maryland, College Park, rose two to No. 42 in a tie with the University of Washington, while the University of Virginia dropped two slots, coming in at No. 26 in the National Universities category.
As far as liberal arts colleges, Williams College took the top slot, Amherst College came in second and the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis rose one to the No. 3 spot for best National Liberal Arts Colleges.
Jones said that this year is the 41st ranking by U.S. News and World Report, and researchers looked at about 17 factors to make the list.
“More than half of the weights are on how well colleges prepare students in college and how well they equip them to get a job,” Jones told WTOP. “Schools that rank very high are very good at having great outcomes for their students, whether it’s job attainment rate within a certain amount of time graduating or lower student debt per student.”
Standardized test scores of students who are admitted are also considered.
William & Mary in Virginia tied with Virginia Tech, Wake Forest and Texas A&M for the No. 51 spot for national universities, rising three spots from last year. In D.C., George Washington University leaped four spots to rank at No. 59 in the nation.
American University ranked No. 88 in the nation in a nine-way tie, moving up 3 points in the rankings, while outside the top 100, George Mason took the No. 117 slot in a seven-way tie.
Howard University ranked second behind Spelman College in the Top Historically Black Colleges and Universities category.
The 2026 edition also includes specialized rankings, such as the best value schools, most innovative colleges and top performers on social mobility, according to U.S. News and World Reports.
The full list is available online.
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