This year's ranking of universities by the Wall Street Journal and Times Higher Education are top-heavy in terms of prestige—and cost.

The 2021 Wall Street Journal/Times Higher Education College Rankings are based on 15 factors comprising four main categories, with 40% of each school's score based on student outcomes that includes graduate salaries and debt.

According to the Wall Street Journal, 30% of the score comes from academic resources, including teaching expenditures; 20% from student engagement, and 10% from each school's learning environment, including campus diversity.

The newspaper also noted that the data for the latest rankings were taken before the Covid outbreak, which has led to the virtual shutdown of most U.S. college campuses and a shift to remote learning.

"Still, fundamentals like the cost of tuition or student-body diversity remain basically the same during the pandemic," the newspaper stated in announcing the ranking.

The following schools, in ascending order, topped the WSJ/THE college ranking:  

10. Northwestern University
Evanston, Ill.

Tuition and fees: $54,568
Room and board: $16,626
Salary after 10 years: $66,433

9. Cornell University
Ithaca, N.Y.

Tuition and fees: $55,188
Room and board: $14,766
Salary after 10 years: $74,300

7. (tied) Princeton University
Princeton, N.J.
 
Tuition and fees: $50,340
Room and board: $16,360
Salary after 10 years: $77,700

7. (tied) California Institute of Technology
Pasadena, Calif.
 
Tuition and fees: $52,362
Room and board: $15,525
Salary after 10 years: $79,300

5. (tied) Duke University
Durham, N.C.
 
Tuition and fees: $55,695
Room and board: $15,178
Salary after 10 years: $79,667

5. (tied) Brown University
Providence, R.I.

Tuition and fees: $55,466
Room and board: $14,670
Salary after 10 years: $63,433

4. Stanford University
Stanford, Calif.
 
Tuition and fees: $51,354
Room and board: $15,763
Salary after 10 years: $88,567

3. Yale University
New Haven, Conn.
 
Tuition and fees: $53,430
Room and board: $16,000
Salary after 10 years: $80,200

2. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Cambridge, Mass.

Tuition and fees: $51,832
Room and board: $15,510
Salary after 10 years: $96,033

1. Harvard University
Cambridge, Mass.
 
Tuition and fees: $50,420
Room and board: $17,160
Salary after 10 years: $92,033