U.S. News & World Report has ranked the University of Mary Washington’s undergraduate program fifth among public southern institutions in the “Universities – Master’s” category in its 2011 edition of America’s Best Colleges. The university ranks 13th among all southern universities in the same category and rates in the top 20 colleges nationally with the highest graduation rate. UMW has a 76 percent graduation rate.
The listing was announced August 17 in the magazine’s online edition at www.usnews.com. U.S. News & World Report bases its rankings on peer assessment, graduation and retention rates, faculty resources and alumni giving.
The “Universities – Master’s” category includes institutions that provide a full range of undergraduate and master’s programs but few, if any, doctoral programs. Of the 572 universities ranked nationally in this category, 115 are classified as being in the South.
The University of Mary Washington has seen its academic reputation gain national attention in selective guidebooks. Recently, UMW was the only institution in Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia to be named a “best buy” in the prestigious Fiske Guide to Colleges 2011. In addition, Forbes.com rated Mary Washington this month among the nation’s top universities, ranking UMW 44th out of 100 institutions considered “America’s Best Buys.”
Other publications recognizing UMW among the nation’s best include Kiplinger’s Personal Finance magazine, Princeton Review, Peterson’s Competitive Colleges and Barron’s Profiles of American Colleges.