Quartz: These 25 Schools Are Responsible For The Greatest Advances in Science

Swarthmore College is fourth among the top 25 U.S. schools most responsible for the greatest advancements in science, according to recent analysis by Quartz, a digital news outlet created by Atlantic Media.

The analysis, conducted by Michigan State professor Steve Hsu and Jonathan Wai, a researcher at Duke University, sought to go beyond test scores and earnings to answer the question: “Which universities are most likely to produce individuals with lasting effect on our world?”

They focused on STEM (science, technology, engineering, medicine/mathematics) contributions from exceptional achievers. To level the playing field for schools new and old, large and small, the authors computed a per-capita rate of production from 1966 to 2013.

The first level of analysis included all winners of the Nobel Prize, Fields Medal, and the Turing Award. With five winners among its alumni, Swarthmore is fourth behind the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), Harvard University, and The University of Chicago.

The second level included individuals elected to the National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, or Institute of Medicine. With 49 members, Swarthmore places fourth behind Caltech, The Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Harvard.

See the full list of 25 schools.