UW-Eau Claire Makes Forbes' 2022 America's Top Colleges List

Thursday, September 8th, 2022 -- 9:00 AM

UW-Eau Claire is ranked third in Wisconsin among all colleges and universities, public and private, on Forbes’ 2022 America’s Top Colleges list, behind only UW-Madison and Marquette University.

UW-Eau Claire is the top-ranked regional public university in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa and Illinois. Among public universities in Wisconsin and Minnesota, only UW-Madison and the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities are ranked higher than UW-Eau Claire.

In Forbes’ annual America’s Top Colleges list, UW-Eau Claire is ranked No. 253 nationally among all colleges and universities. Among public universities, UW-Eau Claire is ranked No. 119, and it’s ranked No. 43 among all public or private universities in the Midwest.

On its website, Forbes says the 500 colleges and universities it includes on its America’s Top Colleges list “showcase the finest in American education.” Its rankings spotlight “schools that offer an excellent education at a great price, graduate high-earners and propel students to become successful entrepreneurs and influential leaders in their fields,” Forbes states.

To choose its top schools, Forbes considers, among other things, average grant aid, average student debt and graduates’ median 10-year salary. Several factors help Forbes determine those numbers, including things like price-to-earnings, the number of years it took students to pay their college costs, and the number of low-income and Pell students a school enrolls.

Through its analysis, Forbes found UW-Eau Claire’s average grant aid as $3,873, its average student debt as $7,231 and its graduates’ median 10-year salary as $100,900. When creating its top colleges list, Forbes also considers the number of graduates who win competitive scholarships.

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