If you’re currently deciding between college programs, looking at rankings can help you learn more about the schools you’re considering. While this is just a first step in learning more about each college, you should take in the information from as many university rankings as possible. One of the newest lists is compiled by Forbes and their companion website, Forbes.com.

While Forbes is an old and well-respected business magazine, they have only been compiling their college list, known as “America’s Best Colleges,” since 2008. They’re well-known for other major lists of importance, such as the Forbes 400, which is an annual list of the richest people in the United States. They haven’t officially called the America’s Best Colleges list an annual list, but they have updated it annual so far, so it seems as though this is the direction in which they’re heading.

The Forbes college list is unique in that it focuses on liberal arts colleges, rather than just rehashing other lists, which put a greater emphasis on the sciences. They have been praised for including schools that are not typically found on other lists, rather than focusing on Ivy League schools. Others have criticized their methodology, since it takes a number of non-conformable statistics into consideration.

What is their methodology? Many other magazines and organizations rely on surveys to compile their list, but Forbes’ approach is to gather information from fresh sources. Some of the factors considered when they compile their list include the following:

• Student Graduation Rate
• Alumni Inclusion in Who’s Who in America
• Alumni Salary, as reported on PayScale.com
• Professor Ratings and Evaluations, as reported on RateMyProfessor.com
• Debt Accumulated by Students over the Course of Four Years
• National Honors and Awards given to Students and Professors

In addition to providing the America’s Best College list, Forbes has also compiled a list that they call the “Top Colleges for Getting Rich.” This list relies on data mostly from PayScale.com, where alumni can report their earnings. However, this list has been criticized, since there is no way to confirm the reported salaries of alumni on PayScale.com and it is suspected that the reports on that website are skewed, since people have the option to give their salary or not. There have been a number of surprising schools included on this list, while other, more prominent schools have ranked lower.

Whether or not you want to believe that this list is technical and accurate doesn’t dismiss the fact that it is a unique view of the colleges you are considering. The Forbes list should just be one of the many college rankings lists you read, and on top of that, it is important to not rely too heavily on these lists. While they are useful tools for gathering information, other factors, like talking to professors and visiting campuses, are just as valuable.

The Internet has revolutionized the world of education so that now you can earn a degree entirely online from the comfort of your home or office. This is perfect for busy working professionals or anyone who wants to get ahead in a career without having to go to class on a physical campus everyday. Below we have listed the best schools offering accredited online degrees.

Top 10 Online Universities Ranking

	University of Phoenix — Degree Levels: Associate's, Bachelor's, Master's, and Doctorate. The University of Phoenix is world-renowned for being the largest online university, which is one reason why we list it at the #1 spot here in our ranking. Unlike other onine universities which may only offer a handful of specialized degree programs to its students, Phoenix boasts dozens of different degrees at all levels that students can choose from.
	Ashford University — Degree Levels: Associate's, Bachelor's, and Master's. Ashford is a private liberal arts university based in Clinton, Iowa. But thanks to the World Wide Web, students from all over the world can access their online coursework. Originally founded in 1918 as Mount St. Clare College, Ashford has Catholic roots and today its NAIA-level athletic teams are known as The Saints, which compete in the Midwest Collegiate Conference in over a dozen sports.
	Boston University — Degree Levels: Bachelor's, Master's, and Doctorate. Founded in 1839, Boston University is one of the oldest universities that offers online education. At Boston Online, students can study liberal arts, business, science, criminal justice, health, music, nursing, and more.
	Liberty University — Degree Levels: Associate's, Bachelor's, and Master's. Liberty University has the reputation of being the largest online evangelical Christian university in the nation. Founded in 1971 by the late Reverend Jerry Falwell, Liberty's original name was Lynchburg Baptist College. Liberty obtained university status in 1984. In athletics, Liberty is a member of the Big South Conference for 18 sports, including football, hockey, and basketball. Academically, Liberty offers majors in over 70 subjects, including aeronautics, business, nursing, and more.
	Walden University — Degree Levels: Bachelor's, Master's, and Doctorate. For students looking for flexible and affordable online education, Walden University offers both. Courses of study available include business, criminal justice, health science, and much more.
	DeVry University — Degree Levels: Associate's, Bachelor's, and Master's. DeVry has dozens of campuses nationwide and delivers its coursework via the Web to thousands of online students studying for their degrees. At DeVry University, all degree programs are career-focused to ensure that proper training is given to students pursuing a specific job or career path.
	Capella University — Degree Levels: Bachelor's, Master's, and Doctorate. Capella University was founded in 1991 by Stephen Shank, the former CEO of Tonka, who felt that working adults were underserved by traditional brick-and-mortar universities. While their offices are located in downtown Minneapolis, being an online university, the majority of learning takes place outside of campus and instead via the Internet. Their motto: "Knowledge is solving problems no one else can."
	Kaplan University — Degree Levels: Associate's, Bachelor's, and Master's. Founded in 1937 as Quest College, Kaplan University is based in Davenport, Iowa, but its online classes are open to everyone nationwide. Kaplan is organized into ten different academic schools, including Arts & Sciences, Business, Criminal Justice, Education, Health Sciences, IS & Technology, Legal Studies, Nursing, Continuing Education, and Concord Law School. As you can see, Kaplan offers degrees in numerous subjects.
	American InterContinental University — Degree Levels: Associate's, Bachelor's, and Master's. American InterContinental University, also known as AIU, is a private school accredited by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association. Founded in 1970 as the American College of Applied Arts, AIU today has seven campuses in the US and UK and runs its online program out of its Chicago offices. AIU offers degree programs in several subjects, including healthcare, business, education, criminal justice, and more.
	Strayer University — Degree Levels: Associate's, Bachelor's, and Master's. In 1892, S. Irving Strayer founded Strayer's Business College. Today, this is known as Strayer University and has over 70 non-residential campuses with more than 50,000 students nationwide. Strayer is highly regarded as producing as many students with computer science degrees as any other school in the country.
	Grand Canyon University — Degree Levels: Bachelor's and Master's. Grand Canyon University was founded in 1949 as Grand Canyon College, an Arizona Southern Baptist school. (It reached university status in 1989.) Accredited by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association, GCU is typically featured among the Top 10 online colleges as ranked by The Online Education Database (OEDb).
	Argosy University — Degree Levels: Bachelor's, Master's, and Doctorate. Argosy University was formed in 2001 when the University of Sarasota, the American School of Professional Psychology, and the Medical Institute of Minnesota merged. Today, Argosy is headquartered in Chicago but has campus locations all over the United States and offers online degrees in psychology, business, and education.
	Westwood College Online — Degree Levels: Associate's and Bachelor's. Westwood College has over a dozen campus locations throughout the US. The Denver North campus is responsible for their online division, in which all coursework is completed entirely via the Internet. Currently, over two dozen online degree programs are available in subjects including criminal justice, business administration, fashion merchandising, and more.
	Everest University — Degree Levels: Associate's, Bachelor's, and Master's. Formerly Florida Metropolitan University, Everest University was founded in 1969. Today, the university has campuses scattered throughout the state of Florida and offers classes online to any US citizen. Everest offers a special online learning programs for US servicemembers overseas. Military students of the university are able to complete courses in their off-duty hours at military installations in the US, overseas, and even on naval ships.
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