U.S. News and World Report is out with its annual rankings of the top public and private universities and colleges in the country. Number one among public universities this year: Princeton University in New Jersey, which beat out Harvard (#2) and Columbia (#3) for the top spot.

Source: Harvard Public Affairs and Communications

Among liberal arts colleges, Williams College in Massachusetts came in first, followed by Amherst, and Swarthmore College in Swarthmore, PA, the highest ranking Pennsylvania school on either list.

Pennsylvania and Pittsburgh-area schools that made the top 100 national universities are:

3. Swarthmore College

8. University of Pennsylvania

25. Carnegie Mellon University

49. Villanova University

53. Lehigh University

59. Penn State

70. University of Pittsburgh

Read the whole top universities list here .

We bet CMU grads aren't too concerned about their school being #25 on the list (Image: Carnegie Mellon University)

Pennsylvania and Pittsburgh-area schools that made the top 100 liberal arts colleges are:

11. Haverford College

27. Bryn Mawr College

36. Bucknell University

36. Franklin and Marshall College

36. Lafayette College

49 Gettysburg College

51. Dickinson College

76. Allegheny College

81. Muhlenberg College

86. Juniata College

Read the whole best liberal arts colleges list here .

Historic Bentley Hall was built in 1820 � five years after Allegheny, the nation�s 32nd oldest college, was founded (Image: Allegheny College/Bill Owen)

U.S. News says their rankings provide a good starting point when you're comparing schools. The four overall rankings National Universities , Liberal Arts Colleges , Regional Universities and Regional Colleges are based on factors that indicate academic quality, such graduation rates and faculty resources.

(Featured Image: Princeton University, Office of Communications, Denise Applewhite)