It’s no wonder there are so many Aggie CEOs in the top 100 companies within the Fortune 500.
According to the Wall Street Journal’s 2025 edition of, “Best Colleges in the U.S.”, Texas A&M was ranked the best university in Texas, making the list at first place for the second year in a row. A&M was also ranked 11th among the nation’s public institutions, and in 28th place overall.
The overall national number is a remarkable 10-place rise from last year. Additionally, the rankings place A&M at number one among Southeastern Conference (SEC) schools.
The Journal ranks the top 500 universities nationally in several parameters, heavily leaning on student outcomes based on graduates’ salaries, time to pay off costs, graduation rate impact, and much more.
A new factor to this year’s ranking is a “character score”, defined 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.”
Other factors include universities’ learning environments, including learning opportunities, career preparation, learning facilities, and whether a student recommends the school to others.
What sets the Wall Street Journal’s rankings apart is how it zeroes in on the success of school’s graduates, particularly in terms of college being a good investment. Texas A&M is often recognized for its quality of education versus cost.
“I’m thrilled to see the rest of the country start to catch on to what we here in Aggieland already know — that this university really stands for something. Our Core Values are at the heart of everything we do at Texas AM. We take pride in knowing that we are developing the next generation of exceptional leaders who will put those Core Values into practice for the betterment of our state and nation.”
– General (Ret.) Mark A. Welsh III, president of Texas A&M
Texas A&M is in good company, as several elite public and private schools – including Princeton University (which topped the list), Stanford, Yale, MIT, and Harvard – all were in the top ten.
You can view the full rankings and methodologies from WSJ online. Let us know your thoughts on our social media feeds and keep an eye on the ‘What’s Happening’ feed of our website for more great local news.
