Washington, D.C. is our nation's capital city and is rich with history and culture. With its majestic structures, such as the Lincoln and Washington Monuments, the Capitol building and, of course, the White House on Pennsylvania Avenue, there is much to see and learn from within the city. The area is also home to a large number of colleges, most of which have a long history themselves. The colleges in the area are not only within the City of Washington, D.C. but also Maryland, Virginia, and even Delaware and Pennsylvania.

Beth Sloan, Research Editor for OnlineCollegePlan.com, examined colleges located within 100 miles of our capital in order to develop one of the latest rankings, "Top 20 Best Online Colleges Near Washington, D.C." (http://www.onlinecollegeplan.com/online-colleges-washington-dc/) Full methodology is disclosed preceding the ranking.

The following schools are named in the ranking:

20. Morgan State University - Baltimore, Maryland

19. Mount St. Mary's University - Emmitsburg, Maryland

18. Wilson College - Chambersburg, Pennsylvania

17. University of Mary Washington - Fredericksburg, Virginia

16. Maryland Institute College of Art - Baltimore, Maryland

15. Goucher College - Baltimore, Maryland

14. McDaniel College - Westminster, Maryland

13. Notre Dame of Maryland University - Baltimore, Maryland

12. Catholic University of America - Washington, D.C.

11. Howard University - Washington, D.C.

10. Towson University - Towson, Maryland

9. University of Maryland Baltimore County - Baltimore, Maryland

8. George Mason University - Fairfax, Virginia

7. Loyola University Maryland - Baltimore, Maryland

6. American University - Washington, D.C.

5. George Washington University - Washington, D.C.

4. University of Delaware - Newark, Delaware

3. Georgetown University - Washington, D.C.

2. Johns Hopkins University - Baltimore, Maryland

1. University of Maryland - College Park, Maryland