BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas (FOX 44) — Texas A&M University is the best university in the state for the second consecutive year, according to rankings from The Wall Street Journal.
The top 500 universities in the country were rated in the 2025 edition of the “Best Colleges in the U.S.” The Wall Street Journal editors, along with College Pulse/Statista, placed Texas A&M at No. 1 in the Lone Star State, and No. 11 among the nation’s public institutions and No. 28 overall.
The Wall Street Journal ranked the University of Texas at Austin at No. 41 overall, and No. 3 in the state.
According to Texas A&M, the overall national number is a remarkable ten-place rise from last year. The rankings also place A&M No. 1 among Southeastern Conference (SEC) schools.
Factors for the rankings include universities’ learning environments, including learning opportunities, career preparation, learning facilities, and whether a student would recommend the school to others.
New to the ranking this year is a “character score,” which the Journal defines as, “the extent to which students feel the college has developed character strengths that will help them to make a meaningful contribution to society, including moral courage, hopefulness, resilience, wisdom and a sense of justice.”
Texas A&M says it finds itself in elite company on the list, which is topped by Princeton University; eight of the top ten universities are private schools, including Stanford, Yale, MIT and Harvard. The only other Texas university in the Top 30 is Rice University, at No. 29 nationally.
The WSJ/College Pulse 2025 Best Colleges in the U.S. ranking was developed and executed in collaboration with College Pulse and Statista. You can view the full WSJ rankings and methodologies online.