Last week, U.S. News & World Report released its 2027 rankings of colleges and universities around the country. Bowdoin, which is ranked in the “National Liberal Arts Colleges” list, rose to third place. The college shares this ranking with four other schools: Claremont McKenna College in Claremont, Calif., Pomona College in Claremont, Calif., Swarthmore College in Swarthmore, Pa. and the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md.

U.S. News defines “National Liberal Arts Colleges” as institutions focusing “almost exclusively” on undergraduate education and awarding degrees primarily in the arts and sciences. Bowdoin, which has not reached a third-place ranking since the 2018 edition, previously ranked fifth in 2026. Its lowest placement in recent years was ninth in the 2024 list.

The scoring process and components can change from year to year, but the 2027 rankings include 13 categories for National Liberal Arts Colleges: graduation rates, first-year retention rates, graduation rate performance, Pell graduation rates, Pell graduation performance, college graduates earning more than a high school graduate, earnings by major, peer assessment, financial resources, faculty salaries, full-time faculty, student-faculty ratio and standardized tests. Colleges are scored in each category and scores are standardized and weighted to calculate an overall score—94 out of 100 for Bowdoin.

The College also ranked highly in other publications this year, including the Princeton Review’s lists of Best College Dorms (#1), Best Campus Food (#2) and Top 20 Best Schools for Financial Aid (Private Schools) (#6).

In an email to the Orient, Senior Vice President and Dean of Admissions and Student Aid Claudia Marroquin ’06 emphasized that while Bowdoin’s high rankings over the years reflect strengths in teaching, community and the alumni network, there are limits to these lists.

“I always encourage students to spend the time getting to know a college or university for how it will support a student in their academic journey and grow as an individual. That’s not information that can be gleaned from a ranking,” Marroquin wrote. “I’m a proud Bowdoin staff member and alumna regardless of where Bowdoin sits on the U.S. News or any other rankings list.”

Senior Vice President for Communications and Public Affairs Hellen Hom-Diamond expressed a similar sentiment in an email to the Orient.

“Rankings do not capture the full impact of a Bowdoin education,” Hom-Diamond wrote. “Nonetheless we are glad to see our college recognized this way.”