Austin and San Antonio don’t have the same opportunities as even larger Texas cities, but a recent study shows they’re prepared. Both cities rank in the top 10 of Forbes Advisor’s “Most Educated Cities In The U.S.” list: San Antonio was No. 4, and Austin was No. 7.

Other Texas cities made the list of 100, but some fell surprisingly far behind. Dallas was No. 20, followed by Houston at No. 79 and Fort Worth at No. 93. In an even more surprising twist, the smaller city of Garland was fourth in Texas at No. 26, with El Paso, Corpus Christi and Laredo all beating out Houston.

This study compared the nation’s 100 largest cities, according to the 2021 Census, using metrics such as high school dropout rates, the percentage of adults 25 and older with some college but no degree, the percentage of undergraduate college graduates, and the percentage of adults 25 and older with an advanced degree. There were also some less weighted equity metrics, examining racial and gender gaps in college completion.

While many education studies praise the University of Texas, this study looks at education as a whole but mentions the university once.

In San AntonioThe bachelor’s degree completion rate for people 25 and older was 67.30 percent, and 29.56 percent of people in that age group have a college degree. The study doesn’t say much about educational opportunities in the city, focusing instead on its tourism potential. But it did note that the city had one of the smallest racial gaps in higher education, at just -5.49 percent. The gender gap was 0.97 percent, and the high school dropout rate was 4.53 percent.

Trinity University in San Antonio did great in a Niche study released in early September. It was the 18th best small college in America and topped the list in Texas. Among the big fish, it was also the 20th best liberal arts college in the country (and again the best in Texas) and ranked 4th overall for best colleges in Texas.

In AustinOf those 25 and older, 59.89 percent completed a bachelor’s degree, and 22.76 percent completed some post-secondary education. The racial gap was much wider at 10.87 percent. The gender gap was slightly smaller than San Antonio’s, at 0.69 percent, and the dropout rate was higher at 7.56 percent.

Of course, the study here mentions UT, located in Austin. It made WalletHub’s 2024 rankings of the best colleges and universities in Texas, earning the No. 2 spot; took the No. 6 spot in Niche’s ranking of the best public universities in the country; and earned the No. 2 spot on a list of best bachelor’s programs for entrepreneurs by the Princeton Review, among other honors.

Just inside the top 20, Valleys‘ The percentage of graduates with a bachelor’s degree was 57.05 percent, with 21.37 percent earning an advanced degree. The racial and gender gaps were -14.99 percent and 1.64 percent, respectively. Much further down the list, Houston’s The percentage of graduates with a bachelor’s degree was only 32.99 percent, and only 10.97 percent earned an advanced degree. The dropout rate was 8.90 percent, and the racial and gender gaps were -4.99 and 2.10 percent, respectively.

Below are all the cities in Texas on the list of 100, in order of most to least educated:

• 4. San Antonio
• 7.Austin
• 20.Dallas
• 26. Slinger
• 49. El Paso
• 59. Corpus Christi
• 76. Laredo
• 79.Houston
• 81. Arlington
• 83.Irving