Published September 24, 2026 at 5:30 AM EDT

Released this Monday, U.S. News ranked Pittsburgh universities among the best in the country in its 2027 National Universities tier list.

Carnegie Mellon broke into the top 15 for the first time in the institution's history, ranked at No. 14 overall in a tie with Cornell, and was listed No. 1 in Computer Science. The private university also bested Brown, which sits at No. 16, beating an Ivy League in another first. Carnegie Mellon was listed as No. 1 in nine categories, and within the top five in 17 specialties.

Pitt moved up 10 spots from last year's ranking, making the biggest jump among public universities, and is now ranked at No. 59 overall. In the public university rankings, Pitt sits at No. 24, and placed No. 6 among publics for undergraduate research and creative projects. Pitt's nursing program ranked No. 12 nationally.

Duquesne was ranked No. 78 among private universities, and 159 overall. Robert Morris ranked at 219, Chatham at No. 236 and Point Park at 332.

This year, U.S. News introduced new ranking factors, using 17 measures of academic quality and graduate success. Over 1,700 colleges and universities were ranked, with peer assessment and student outcomes making up a large portion of the criteria.