Updated: Friday, August 21st, 2009

Those interested in enrolling in a bachelors program may find it interesting that U.S. News Media Group has teamed up with Hewlett Packard to release the U.S. News 100 Best Colleges and Universities guide as an interactive application.

The program is free and allows students and families to customize the way they view the college ranking by filtering their search using enrollment size, cost, acceptance rate and student-to-faculty ratios.

Users will be able to navigate the locations of each of the top colleges as pinpoints across America, and touching an image on screen will bring up a profile with related facts about the college, including photos and videos featuring interviews with current students.

"We're continually looking for innovative ways to enhance our content, and with this application, we can provide a better user experience and increase audience engagement," says U.S. News editor Brian Kelly.

The application is a complement to the 2010 edition of America's Best Colleges, and ranks Harvard University at #1, followed by Princeton and Yale. Rounding off the top ten is North Carolina's Duke University.

Studies have shown that salaries of those with college degrees consistently surpass the earnings of those without higher education.

For example, estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau for 2007 show the average earnings for men with high school education were $42,466, while those with bachelors degrees earned $88,843, which is more than twice as much.

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