The 50 Most Technologically Advanced Schools In America

When was the last time you used your cell phone? Computer? Tablet? Every day we utilize technology to communicate, learn, and enhance productivity both in our daily lives and at the office.

As universities work to shape the next generation of engineers, doctors, and creatives, they too utilize technology in the classroom, in research facilities, and beyond. Many universities are equipped with cutting-edge facilities that provide students and faculty with countless opportunities that encourage innovation through tech. But which universities are the most technologically advanced?

To find out, we conducted extensive research on the top 200 National Universities as classified by the U.S. News and World Report to narrow down the 50 most technologically advanced universities in America.

The Process

What makes a school technologically advanced? We took two main categories into consideration — how they integrate technology into student-services/communication and how they utilize technology in their research and mentorship. The criteria we examined includes:

• Mobile app (when was it last updated)
• Mobile-friendly site (is it easy to navigate on-the-go)
• Presence on social media (how active are they, which platforms do they use)
• Leader in computer science (for their reputation and research)
• Awards (to staff and the university)
• Research activity (highest, higher, moderate)

Each criterion was weighted based on importance. The first three were worth 10% each, while the latter three were worth 20%, 30%, and 20%, respectively.

We examined mobile apps in the App Store, judged mobile-friendliness by Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test, and looked at each university’s Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube pages, as well as their other prominent social media sites. Points awarded to the leader in computer science category were based on each university’s computer science ranking by U.S. News & World Report.

The awards we took into consideration include the Computing Research Association’s awards to undergraduate researchers and mentoring faculty, the Campus Technology Innovation Awards, and the American Association of Engineering Societies Awards. We also considered the number of faculty members that were members of the National Academy of Engineering and the National Academy of Inventors.

Research activity was determined by The Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education.

Now that you know how we ranked each university, you can learn more about how each stacked up below. To clarify the categories, Mobile Points refer to a mobile-friendly site, ComSci Points refer to leaders in computer science, and Social Points refer to active involvement on social media.