Florida universities and colleges saw both gains and losses in this year’s Best Colleges rankings from U.S. News & World Report, released Tuesday.

After twice reaching the top five public universities in recent years, the University of Florida slipped one spot to No. 8 this year. Despite the decrease, the school did not move among all public and private universities in the nation, staying at No. 30.

UF was leapfrogged for the seventh spot by the University of Texas. The rest of the top eight public universities, in order: The University of California, Berkeley at the top, followed by UCLA, Michigan, North Carolina, Virginia and the University of California, San Diego.

Florida State University rose both among public universities and overall universities in the 2026 rankings. The universi

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