Washington City Ranked Among The Best College Towns In America
By Zuri Anderson
January 5, 2023
College towns have made a name for themselves thanks to the local colleges and universities and their young students populating the area. Not everything in a college town is catered toward undergraduates. In fact, these destinations have plenty of amenities, attractions, restaurants, and bars that will keep everyone entertained. Some of these places have even become top places to live.
If you're thinking about moving to one of these spots, WalletHub rounded up the best college towns and cities in America. To determine their rankings, researchers "compared more than 400 U.S. cities of varying sizes based on 32 key indicators of academic, social and economic opportunities for students. Our data set ranges from the cost of living to the quality of higher education to the crime rate."
According to the website, Seattle was the highest-ranking city representing Washington state! This destination ranked at No. 18 overall, but when broken down by size, it was in the Top 10 among large cities. It also scored the highest in "social environment," which includes the number of attractions, sports teams, shopping centers, student population, and much more.
Bellevue in particular got a kudos for having one of the lowest rates of brain drain, meaning that college-educated people tend to stay in the area.
Here are the Top 10 college towns and cities, according to the study:
- Austin, Texas
- Ann Arbor, Michigan
- Orlando, Florida
- Gainesville, Florida
- Tampa, Florida
- Rexburg, Idaho
- Provo, Utah
- Scottsdale, Arizona
- Miami, Florida
- Raleigh, North Carolina