California universities once again crowded Forbes' list of the nation's 500 best colleges published Thursday, even as some top schools slipped in the rankings.
No California college made Forbes' top five this year. Stanford was the state's highest-ranked school at No. 6, falling from its No. 4 spot last year and No. 2 the year before.
The colleges ahead of Stanford this year were Massachusetts Institute of Technology (No.1), Princeton University (No. 2), Harvard University (No. 3), Columbia University (No. 4) and University of Pennsylvania (No. 5).
The next California university to appear on the overall list after Stanford was the California Institute of Technology at No. 7. Cal Tech made a major jump compared with the previous year when it landed in the No. 24 slot. Notably, Cal Tech also beat UC Berkeley this year, which ranked at No. 9.
Although UC Berkeley lost its position in the top five this year (the school secured the No. 5 spot last year), it still remains the highest-ranked public university in the country.
The second-highest-ranked public university on the list was UC Berkeley's longtime rival, UCLA, which landed the No. 12 overall spot. The two California flagships also took opposite approaches to admissions this fall: UC Berkeley admitted fewer California students, while UCLA admitted more, even as a record number of in-state applicants received offers across the UC system, SFGATE previously reported.
UC San Diego fell two spots to No. 22 this year, losing its place as the nation's third-highest-ranked public university. The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, moved ahead at No. 21 overall to claim that title.
Other California schools to crack Forbes' top 50 were USC (No. 26), Pomona College (No. 29), Claremont McKenna College (No. 35), UC Davis (No. 36), UC Irvine (No. 37) and UC Santa Barbara (No. 39).
The Forbes list of the top 500 U.S. colleges is one of the country's most popular rankings, alongside those from U.S. News & World Report and the Wall Street Journal. Forbes' methodology largely focuses on student outcomes rather than the school's reputation, according to its website.
In addition to its top colleges list, Forbes published another list on Thursday ranking the top 25 schools with the best financial returns in the country. The methodology for that ranking considered student debt and post-graduation salaries. The rankings team used a calculator that shows how many years it takes to "recoup a student's net cost of the degree," according to Forbes.
Several California schools made the list, including Stanford University at No. 7 and Caltech at No. 10. But California State University campuses stood out, earning numerous spots across the "highest payoff" list. The other California schools with the best payoffs in the country were CSU Dominguez Hills (No. 15), CSU Stanislaus (No. 19), Cal State Los Angeles (No. 20) and CSU Bakersfield.
Forbes created the "highest payoff" list as artificial intelligence threatens workforces, fueling concerns about job security and if a college degree is "worth it," according to its report on the list.
- Woman charged in two separate Bay Area homicides
- FBI says man ran meth operation out of Calif. Round Table Pizza
- Rare disease found among the children of a Calif. suburb
- 1 hospitalized, 4 injured after accident at Skywalker Ranch
Sign up for SFGATE's breaking news email
This article originally published at No California college made Forbes' top 5 in its latest ranking.