The University of Mary Washington is the only institution in Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia to be named as a "best buy" in the prestigious Fiske Guide to Colleges 2011.
Mary Washington is among 45 public and private institutions that have been designated with the best buy distinction, delivering the best education at the most reasonable costs. The highly selective guidebook includes more than 300 colleges and universities from 2,200-plus four-year institutions surveyed in the United States. The listing was based on questionnaires sent to administrators and a cross-section of students.
UMW is one of 21 public and 24 private schools singled out as best buys.
“Mary Washington could easily be mistaken for one of Virginia’s elite private colleges. It offers just as much history and tradition – for a much lower price,” according to the Fiske Guide, which has been compiled annually for more than 25 years under the direction of Edward B. Fiske, former education editor of the New York Times.
“Strolling among the university’s elegant buildings of red brick with white columns has led more than one pleased parent to declare, ‘Now this is what a college should look like,’” the Fiske Guide states. “Indeed, for an aura of history and tradition, few schools stack up to this small college in Fredericksburg, a site of Civil War action and the boyhood town of George Washington. . . the University of Mary Washington offers a first-rate liberal arts education. It has the feel of a private school with a public school price tag and is an option that should be explored.”
The Fiske Guide will be available in August. For more information, go to www.sourcebookscollege.com and http://fiskeguide.com.
In January, the Princeton Review named Mary Washington to its list of 100 “Best Value Colleges for 2010.” The university also has received national recognition in other selective guidebooks, including Kiplinger’s Personal Finance magazine, U.S. News & World Report, Peterson’s Competitive Colleges, Barron’s Profiles of American Colleges and Forbes online magazine.