New list ranks Cal Poly among top universities in nation. See where it placed
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Money Magazine awarded Cal Poly a five-star rating on its 2025 best colleges list.
- Cal Poly posted an 86% graduation rate and $90,770 early career salary average.
- The ranking emphasized value through education quality, cost and student outcomes.
Cal Poly once again earned a five-star rating on Money Magazine’s list of top colleges and universities, placing the San Luis Obispo campus among the best in the nation.
The list, published June 25, shows Cal Poly was one of 40 campuses to receive the five-star ranking — the highest issued by the magazine. Cal Poly also received five stars in the 2024 ranking.
“There isn’t one ‘best’ college for every student, but our star ratings on more than 700 colleges can help you build a list of standout schools that fit your budget,” the magazine wrote.
Other five-star campuses included Ivy League universities like Harvard and Stanford, as well as other California universities like UCLA, UC Berkeley and San Jose State. A total of eight CSU campuses earned five stars, alongside five UC campuses.
According to a Cal Poly news release announcing the achievement, all CSUs were ranked four stars or higher.
Money’s annual list ranks public and private colleges based on three indicators: quality of education, affordability and outcomes.
The magazine’s methodology page shows that factors like graduation rates and instructor access are considered when calculating quality of education. The affordability indicator includes the net price of a degree from an institution, debt taken on by students and their ability to repay loans after graduating.
When calculating student outcomes, the magazine takes into account how much a graduate earns after entering the workforce, as well as economic mobility.
According to Cal Poly’s ranking, the university boasts a 86% graduation rate with a median student debt of $18,500. The university had a 30% acceptance rate with an average GPA of 4.03.
The typical early career salary for a Cal Poly graduate sat at $90,770, according to the ranking — something the magazine described as “a premium over similar schools.”
This isn’t the first time Cal Poly has ranked among the top schools in California or the nation.
The university was ranked as one of the best values in the US by SmartAsset in December, and sat among the top 25 schools for graduate salaries in a list from the Wall Street Journal in September.
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