For centuries, Ivy League schools have been coveted in the U.S., not only by students but also by employers looking to fill top positions with the most qualified college graduates. The tide may be turning, though, thanks to recent events (not excluding administration responses to pro-Palestinian protests on some Ivy League campuses).
Other matters of concern include the college admissions scandal of 2019 and accusations of grade inflation at Harvard and Yale. All of this together is causing many skeptics to question the legitimacy and value of an Ivy League degree.
With this in mind, Forbes set out to identify which of the nation’s schools might make suitable replacements for these once-revered institutions. Using a methodology that highlighted standardized test scores and admissions rates, Forbes narrowed the initial pool of more than 1,700 colleges and universities to just 32.
These 32 schools were then evaluated by hiring managers who had the final say regarding inclusion in the list of new Ivies. Here are the 10 public and 10 private schools that made the cut, listed in alphabetical order:
The New Ivies: Public Schools
- Binghampton University
- Georgia Institute of Technology
- University of Florida
- University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
- University of Maryland – College Park
- University of Michigan – Ann Arbor
- University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill
- University of Texas – Austin
- University of Virginia
- University of Wisconsin – Madison
The New Ivies: Private Schools
- Boston College
- Carnegie Mellon University
- Emory University
- Georgetown University
- Johns Hopkins University
- Northwestern University
- Rice University
- University of Notre Dame
- University of Southern California
- Vanderbilt University
A separate survey of Forbes’ Future of Work newsletter subscribers revealed that employers are 33% less likely to hire candidates from the Ivy League pool than they were just five years ago.
Related: Free Ivy League Courses Online