​Applying to college is a journey that involves finding the right school, submitting applications and then – if you're lucky – choosing among the acceptance letters and financial aid awards to find that place you'll call home for the next few years.

To steer you in the right direction, U.S. News surveys colleges and universities each year and ranks nearly 1,400 of them in different categories according to our methodology.

Here, we offer a sneak peek of the 2016 Best Colleges rankings.

These 10 schools – listed alphabetically below – are the highest-ranking Top Public Schools among those in the National Universities category. National Universities emphasize faculty research and offer a full range of undergraduate majors, plus master's and doctoral programs. Public schools are typically operated under the supervision of state governments and give state residents discounted tuition.

College of William and Mary (VA) School (state) Georgia Institute of Technology School (state) University of California—Berkeley School (state) University of California—Irvine School (state) University of California—Los Angeles School (state) University of California—San Diego School (state) University of California—Santa Barbara School (state) University of Michigan—Ann Arbor School (state) University of North Carolina—Chapel Hill School (state) University of Virginia School (state) School (state) College of William and Mary (VA) Georgia Institute of Technology University of California—Berkeley University of California—Irvine University of California—Los Angeles University of California—San Diego University of California—Santa Barbara University of Michigan—Ann Arbor University of North Carolina—Chapel Hill University of Virginia

The actual Top Public Schools rankings of these and other schools will be available Sept. 9, 2015, on usnews.com.