29 PA Schools Named To Princeton Review's Best Colleges List

PENNSYLVANIA — Princeton College Review just released its ranking of the 391 best colleges in America, and 29 are in Pennsylvania.

The schools on the 2026 Best Colleges list aren’t ranked; however, the top 25 colleges were ranked in 50 categories designed to help guide those making college choices to institutions that best fit their academic and personal needs.

Below are Pennsylvania colleges and universities that made the list:

• University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia
• Drexel University, Philadelphia
• Villanova University, Villanova
• Swarthmore College, Swarthmore
• Temple University, Philadelphia
• Saint Joseph's University (PA), Philadelphia
• Haverford College, Haverford
• Bryn Mawr College, Bryn Mawr
• Ursinus College, Collegeville
• The University of Scranton, Scranton
• Muhlenberg College, Allentown
• Lafayette College, Easton
• Moravian University, Bethlehem
• Lehigh University, Bethlehem
• Susquehanna University, Selinsgrove
• Bucknell University, Lewisburg
• Lycoming College, Williamsport
• Gettysburg College, Gettysburg
• Dickinson College, Carlisle
• Penn State University Park, University Park
• Juniata College, Huntingdon
• Allegheny College, Meadville
• Grove City College, Grove City
• Indiana University of Pennsylvania, Indiana
• Washington & Jefferson College, Washington
• Duquesne University, Pittsburgh
• University of Pittsburgh—Pittsburgh Campus, Pittsburgh
• Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh
• Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster

They are also published in The Best 391 Colleges: 2026 Edition (Penguin Random House, $26.99), which went on sale Tuesday.

All the ranking lists are based on The Princeton Review’s surveys of students attending the schools in the book, who rate their own colleges on dozens of topics and report on their campus experiences at them. The rankings are based on data from the company's surveys of 170,000 students at the 391 schools in the book (about 435 per school on average). The surveys were conducted in 2024–25 and/or the previous two academic years.

The rankings are based entirely on students’ opinions of them, Rob Franek, The Princeton Review’s editor-in-chief and the book’s lead author, said in a news release.

“We don’t rank colleges based on our opinion of them, nor would we crown a school ‘best’ overall. It is what the students attending the colleges in this book tell us about their experiences at their schools that determines on which lists the schools appear in our book.”

A new ranking list — Most Politically Moderate Students — was added to the project this year in consideration of the rising political polarization in the country. It, as well as two related lists that have long been in the book — Most Politically Liberal Students and Most Politically Conservative Students — is based on a survey question that asks students their assessment of their personal political views.

Grove City College in Mercer County was No. 1 on the list of the Most Religious Students.

A special feature in the new edition of the book identifies colleges in the book with compelling distinctions based on data from The Princeton Review's institutional survey for the project.

“The colleges we profile in our 'Best Colleges' book are a truly select group. They constitute only about 15 percent of America's nearly 2,400 four-year institutions,” Franek said. “While they vary by locale, type, size, and campus culture, each one offers its students an academically outstanding undergraduate education. In our opinion, they are the nation's best undergraduate colleges and ideal choices for students seeking their ‘best-fit’ college.”

Editor's note: A previous version of this story did not include Franklin & Marshall College. Patch regrets the error.