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These Missouri schools rank among the best in the nation

See which Missouri, Illinois schools rank on Forbes' new list
Washington University in St. Louis

ST. LOUIS — Thirteen schools in Missouri and four in Illinois rank among the top 650 colleges and universities in the nation, according to a new ranking from Forbes.

Washington University in St. Louis and the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign fared the best (of Missouri and Illinois schools) on Forbes' ranking.

Saint Louis University raised a record $119.4 million in gifts in the fiscal year ended June 30, thanks in part to a $50 million gift last August from billionaire philanthropist and political donor Rex Sinquefield and his wife, Jeanne Sinquefield.

See where each university ranked in this gallery. The photos also include data on net price, average debt and average early career salary for each school.

Forbes' list was based on alumni salaries, student satisfaction, debt, American leaders (successful graduates), on-time graduation rate and academic success.

The ranking includes 15% of the 4,300 degree-granting postsecondary institutions in the U.S., Forbes said. The average total cost for these colleges is $45,000 annually and 49% of graduates under the age of 30 have student loan debt.

Missouri's average student loan debt per borrower increased from $26,834 in 2017 to $29,223 in 2018, according to an annual report by LendEDU. Nationally, student loan debt is $1.52 trillion, the report said.

At the top of this year's ranking is Harvard University with a net price of $69,600 and average debt of $7,372. The average early career salary for Harvard graduates is $74,800. At the bottom is Catawba College in North Carolina with a net price of $44,921 and average debt of $6,492. The average early career salary is $42,500.

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