Forbes Top Colleges in America: How Does Wisconsin Rate?

Harvard University has reclaimed its place as the number one college in America on Forbes' annual list. The 2017 list, which was released on Wednesday, looks at what institutions give back to students on the money they spend on a college education.

Forbes describes the rankings as "fiscally minded" and says they does not take into account things like campus atmosphere, Greek life, sports etc. The methodology favors variables like "alumni salary, graduation rate and student satisfaction."

Post-graduate success accounted for 35 percent of the ranking; how effectively students at each school avoid or pay back student loan debt accounts for 20 percent of the rankings, as does the student experience. Graduation rate and academic success both account for 12.5 percent. (You can see the full methodology here.)

Here is how Wisconsin's Colleges Stack Up:

#87 University of Wisconsin, Madison WI

• #18 in Public Colleges
• #45 in Research Universities
• #11 in the Midwest

#78 America's Best Value Colleges

#355 University of Wisconsin, La Crosse WI

• #114 in Public Colleges
• #79 in the Midwest

#437 University of Wisconsin, Eau Claire WI

• #145 in Public Colleges
• #97 in the Midwest

#448 Wisconsin Lutheran College WI

#601 University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee WI

• #223 in Public Colleges
• #237 in Research Universities
• #153 in the Midwest

The colleges that crack the top 10 on Forbes' list of top 50 colleges are:

1. Harvard University
2. Stanford University
3. Yale University
4. Princeton University
5. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
6. California Institute of Technology
7. University of Pennsylvania
8. Duke University
9. Brown University
10. Pomona College

Harvard made its way back to number one after landing on the sixth and fourth spot in 2015 and 2016 respectively. Among the top 50, Forbes also points out some surprises: The U.S. Naval Academy (20) edges out the U.S. Military Academy (24), and the University of Michigan Ann Arbor (38) pushed ahead of the University of Virginia (40).

Image Credit: Roger W via Flickr Creative Commons

Feroze Dhanoa (Patch National Staff) - contributed to this report