Monmouth University Named to Forbes’ America’s Top Colleges List

Monmouth University was named to Forbes' 2026 America's Top Colleges list, which showcases 500 colleges that produce successful, high-earning and influential graduates from all economic backgrounds, with less student debt.

Forbes began its search with thousands of colleges across the nation that educate undergraduates according to their Carnegie Classification, which categorizes institutions by degrees offered, research output, and specialty focus. Those schools were evaluated based on data from federal educational databases and narrowed down to 500 institutions from around the country.

The pool of 500 schools was then ranked based on the following key metrics: alumni salary (20%), debt (15%), graduation rate (15%), Forbes American Leaders List (15%), return on investment (15%), retention rate (10%), and academic success (10%).

Forbes differentiates its list from other ranking publications with its Forbes American Leaders List metric, which "aims to gauge leadership and entrepreneurial success of a college's graduates." To achieve this, Forbes accounts for "listmakers" produced by each school from categories including the Forbes 30 Under 30 and Forbes 400, as well as alumni who currently serve in the federal government or have won prestigious honors such as Pulitzer Prizes or Academy Awards.

In recent years, Forbes has also adjusted its methodology to incorporate outcomes for low-income students-factoring in six-year graduation rates and return-on-investment measures for recipients of Pell grants-and rewarding colleges that enroll a greater percentage of low-income students. Monmouth was one of 14 colleges in New Jersey to be included on the list.

Review the full 2026 list and learn more about Forbes' ranking methodology.