The Forbes 2023 College Financial Grades report paints a largely positive picture of the financial health of America’s elite higher education institutions. Remarkably, 93% of the colleges and universities that ranked in the top 100, according to US News and World Report’s classifications of liberal arts colleges or national universities, secured an A- grade or higher. 75% of these institutions were awarded an A+. Within the top 25 liberal arts colleges or national universities, Georgetown University was the sole institution to receive a grade lower than a perfect 4.50 GPA, yet it still earned an A+ ranking.
In an examination of the top 50 colleges and universities, only four did not achieve an A+ rating. New York University and Connecticut College were assigned an A grade, and Northeastern University and Pepperdine University received an A-. Forbes highlights a significant trend towards enhanced financial stability in higher education, pointing out that in 2023, only 30% of the 906 evaluated private, not-for-profit colleges were rated C+ or below. This marks a substantial improvement from 2020, when more than 65% of institutions were in that lower bracket. The 20 colleges that received a D, the lowest score on the grading scale, are regional and religious colleges with small student populations.
The analysis also revealed that among the top 100 colleges, only Illinois Institute of Technology and Drexel University were rated with a C grade.
The complete list of top 100 colleges and universities with below an A- rating below:
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