On September 24, U.S. News & World Report released its 2025 university rankings, ranking Notre Dame 18th in the nation. This marks an improvement for the school, which was tied with Rice University and Vanderbilt University, moving up two spots from last year’s ranking.
According to the U.S. News website, the ranking methodology combines a variety of factors, including retention rates, graduation rates, and financial data. The most important factor is “peer review,” which is a measure of how a school is rated by top administrators at other institutions and accounts for 20% of the overall score.
While the U.S. News Rankings are the most commonly referenced by prospective students, they are not the only influential lists. Other notable rankings include Forbes and Niche, where Notre Dame currently ranks 42nd and 26th, respectively. While Forbes focuses on graduate school success, Niche provides a more comprehensive view of colleges, incorporating factors such as campus life, safety, and student experience.
For many Notre Dame students, these rankings play an important role in the decision-making process, but they are not the only factor.
“Notre Dame is where I felt I was going to get the best education possible,” freshman Nick Martin said.
Martin, an electrical engineering major, pointed to Notre Dame’s academic reputation and highly ranked programs in fields such as business, engineering and architecture as a major influence on his choice.
Still, for other students, factors other than academics are central to their decision to attend Notre Dame. The university’s religious identity, community atmosphere, and commitment to public service were recurring themes in student interviews.
“National rankings can only take into account a limited number of factors,” Fr. Kevin Grove is a professor of theology at the university. “Other important aspects of Notre Dame—community, fellowship, and dedication to the common good—do not fit neatly into magazine rankings.”
The University of Notre Dame is one of only three Catholic institutions in the top 40, along with Georgetown University and Boston University, and the only religious institution in the top 20. The university’s Catholic mission is reflected in its required theology and philosophy courses.
For many, the combination of academic rigor and spiritual depth is the hallmark of Notre Dame. Nate Moore, a student who chose Notre Dame because of his religious identity, emphasized the importance of faith-based education in his decision.
“(It was) primarily a religious factor,” Moore said. “I wanted a Catholic educational hub.”
Academic prestige and rankings will continue to be a source of pride for the university, but for many members of the Notre Dame community, the value of an education goes beyond numbers.
“It’s great to see[the rankings]continue to go up, but I don’t really pay attention to it and I don’t really care about it,” Moore added. “I don’t care about numbers. It’s more about culture.”
