The University of Mary Washington is listed among Kiplinger’s Personal Finance magazine’s “100 Best Values in Public Colleges” for 2011.
The university ranks as the 26th best value out of 100 four-year public institutions nationwide when comparing in-state tuition costs and 28th when considering out-of-state tuition costs, according to the February 2011 issue of Kiplinger’s available beginning Tuesday, January 4. The list also can be found online at www.kiplinger.com/tools/colleges.
UMW has appeared consistently on Kiplinger’s best value list since 2006. This year, the university rose 12 places, up from 38, on the 2010 list for in-state tuition and 14 places, up from 42, for out-of-state tuition.
“Despite rising tuition costs, there are still many first-rate institutions providing outstanding academics at an affordable price,” said Janet Bodnar, editor of Kiplinger’s. “Schools like these on the Kiplinger 100 list prove graduates can enter the workforce with a great education—and without a huge cloud of debt.”
The magazine selects the best values from a pool of 500 public four-year colleges and universities, ranking them on academic quality, including admission and retention rates, student-faculty ratios and four- and six-year graduation rates, as well as on cost and financial aid.
Other Virginia schools on the in-state “best value” list include the University of Virginia (3), the College of William and Mary (4), James Madison University (19), Virginia Tech (24) and George Mason University (61).
In recent years, UMW has seen its academic reputation gain national recognition through continuous, high rankings in selective college guidebooks. Fiske Guide to Colleges 2011 designated Mary Washington as a “Best Buy School,” making it the only college in Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia reaching this distinction. The university also has been highly ranked by the Princeton Review, U.S. News & World Report and Barron’s Profiles of American Colleges and Universities.