According to the new U.S. News & World Report college rankings, Harvard University is not only the oldest and wealthiest in the U.S., but it has also become the most selective after 8 years of Princeton University.

So after 12 years, Harvard is No.1 again, while Princeton slipped to No.2 after ranking first 8 years in a row. The latest edition of U.S. News & World Report college rankings will be released on the newsstands on Monday, but the report was posted Friday on the magazine’s Web site.

"It is always nice to be recognized in this way,” said Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences spokesman Robert Mitchell, but he advised students to select a college or university best suited for their needs and not according to rankings.

The third best is Yale University, while the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Stanford both claimed the fourth spot with the same scoring. In order to rank the universities, the magazine has taken into account numerous factors such as reputation assessments by other colleges, faculty resources, graduation rates and alumni giving. The top ten is completed by Cal Tech, Penn, Columbia, Duke, and the University of Chicago.

In a separate list which ranks the best liberal arts colleges, Amherst, Williams, and Swarthmore clinched the first three spots, with Amherst and Williams sharing the podium.