Avid readers of U.S. News & World Report’s annual rankings of colleges and universities will find the names of dozens of Catholic schools on the lists. The University of Notre Dame, in South Bend, Ind., is the top-ranked national Catholic institution, placing 18th. Georgetown University, in Washington, D.C., was close behind in a three-way tie for the 20th spot, and Boston College placed 31st. In the regional North rankings, Villanova University, in Pennsylvania, Providence College, in Rhode Island and Fairfield University, in Connecticut, swept the top three spots. In the Midwest, Creighton University, in Omaha, Neb., topped the list. Santa Clara University, in California, Loyola Marymount University, in Los Angeles, and Gonzaga University, in Spokane, Wash., finished second, third and fourth in the West. The Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities noted that all 28 of its member schools had been ranked in the survey, including Wheeling Jesuit College in West Virginia, rated sixth of 118 southern colleges.

This article appears in September 30 2013.