Cal State Fullerton is featured as one of Forbes’ 2026 America’s Top Colleges, ranking at No. 26 in the West and at No. 85 among research universities on the list.
This academic year, Forbes ranked CSUF at No. 118 overall among 500 U.S. schools that offer the best educational, financial and career outcomes for all students.
To select its annual Top 500 list, Forbes ranks colleges and universities by such measures as alumni salary, typical debt load for students, graduation rate, return on investment, retention rate and academic success.
Forbes also considers the Forbes American Leaders List in its rankings. The leaders list measures how many listmakers each school has on Forbes’ most recent 30 Under 30, Forbes 400, Richest Self-Made Women and Most Powerful Women lists.
The leaders list also considers schools’ graduates who are members of the current President’s Cabinet, the Supreme Court, Congress and of sitting governors, as well as the most recent winners of the MacArthur Fellowship, Nobel Prize, Breakthrough Prize, Lasker Prize, Fields Prize, Academy Awards, Tony’s, NAACP Awards, Guggenheim Fellowship, Presidential Medals and Pulitzer Prizes.