Ties Galore! The U.S. News College Rankings 2010

U.S. News & World Report released their 2010 ranking of America's Best Colleges today. While there weren't any big changes this year--plus, annual updates to the methodology, such as increased focus on the number of low-income students, can make comparisons somewhat "misleading"--there were a number of ties. In the top 10 national universities alone, Harvard and Princeton tied for the No. 1 slot, Cal Tech, MIT, Stanford and Penn for No. 4, and Columbia and UChicago for No. 8. Although there was no first place tie on the liberal arts list (Williams is No. 1 and Amherst No. 2, a flip-flop from the 2009 rankings), Middlebury and Wellesley tied for the No. 4 spot, Bowdoin and Pomona for No. 6, and Carleton and Davidson for No. 8. Even U.S. News' more specific rankings, including top public universities and best undergraduate teaching and best values, all have ties in the top 10. Speaking of which, Dartmouth and Pomona nabbed the No. 1 best undergrad teaching spots, and UC Berkeley the top public university. Harvard and Williams are the best values for their respective school types, which underlines the increased importance in affordability and economic diversity in the overall rankings this year.

To check it out for yourself, visit U.S. News. We've also included the top 10 lists for the big two so you can have a quick look.

Best National Universities 2010

1. Harvard University
1. Princeton University
3. Yale University
4. California Institute of Technology
4. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
4. Stanford University
4. University of Pennsylvania
8. Columbia University
8. University of Chicago
10. Duke University

Best Liberal Arts Colleges 2010

1. Williams College
2. Amherst College
3. Swarthmore College
4. Middlebury College
4. Wellesley College
6. Bowdoin College
6. Pomona College
8. Carleton College
8. Davidson College
10. Haverford College