Arizona State University is the nation's top innovator for a third straight year. The U.S. News & World Report named Arizona State #1 in innovation for 2017 over the likes of Stanford and MIT.
According to the list, ASU continues to set the bar when it comes to providing new ways to attain a college education. The top ranking was driven by the university's continued alliance with Starbucks that allows Starbucks employees to earn their bachelor's degree free of charge. The school has also entered a similar partnership with Adidas to provide scholarships to 100 Adidas employees.
Arizona State's School of Earth and Space Exploration is also emerging as a leader in space exploration. The school was recently chosen to lead a future NASA mission to the asteroid Psyche. The mission will launch in 2023 and mark the first time the school has led a deep-space NASA mission.