Data and Insights

The top colleges for careers AND fun, according to Lyft data

Sarah Conlisk - Aug 29, 2025

Earlier this month, LinkedIn released a report highlighting the 50 best colleges for career success, based on its data (network strength, recruiter demand, job placement, etc.). But college — rather like rideshare — is about more than where you end up: It’s also about how you get there. So, using our data, we decided to highlight the colleges in LinkedIn’s top 50 that not only work hard, but also play hard. After all, por qué no las dos?

1. Top colleges that pub

According to Lyft data, if you want to spend some time at college collegially hanging out at a bar and still come out with a solid job at the end, you should consider Wake Forest, Vanderbilt, or Miami University — students at those universities are roughly four times as likely as other students to go to bars and pubs.

Ranking based on share of Lyft rides, relative to the average, August 2023 – August 2025

2. Top colleges that hike

Meanwhile, if your version of “play hard” leans a bit more toward mountain climb than pub crawl, consider Stanford, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, or Carnegie Mellon. All of these top schools’ riders prioritize time in parks (along with their grades, of course).

Ranking based on share of Lyft rides, relative to the average, August 2023 – August 2025

3. Top colleges that art

Some students decompress from their workload by consuming art — that’s the case for the University of Michigan, Cornell, and Carnegie Mellon, where students are twice as likely to take a Lyft ride to galleries in their free time.

Ranking based on share of Lyft rides, relative to the average, August 2023 – August 2025

4. Top colleges that sport

Brawn vs. brain isn’t a question for students at the University of Texas — where students are 3.5x more likely to go to sports arenas than other top-college riders. 

Ranking based on share of Lyft rides, relative to the average, August 2023 – August 2025

5. Top colleges that treat

“Play” for some colleges might be as simple as an ice cream cone. That’s true for students at USC and Georgetown, who are five times more likely to take a Lyft ride to a creamery than other top students.

Ranking based on share of Lyft rides, relative to the average, August 2023 – August 2025