Out of 584 public and private universities ranked, Stanford University was named the best college in the country, just ahead of Babson College, Yale University, Princeton University and Harvard University. Stanford's placement at the top of the list is a victory for the prestigious Bay Area school after it was ranked at No. 3 last year and No. 4 the previous year. UC Berkeley was the public California university that appeared highest on the list, ranking No. 7,
Forbes released its list of America's top 500 colleges, and Bay State schools dominated the list. Ranking in first place again this year is MIT with a 20-year median salary of $196,900, average debt of about $12,000, and an A+ financial grade. MIT students earn a median salary of $110,200 three years after graduating, and 99.8% of students return to the college for sophomore year, Forbes said.